What Does Wii Stand For?
As with so many other consumer electronics, the Nintendo Wii was known by a codename during the earlier part of its development. For example, the Nintendo GameCube was known as Project Dolphin while it was still being created. What about the Wii? It started its life as the Nintendo Revolution. It wasn’t until April 2006 that it was renamed as the Nintendo Wii. This announcement came just prior to the E3 2006 trade show. It was at that trade show that Nintendo explained its rationale for the change.
Up until 27 April 2006, the console had a code name: “Revolution”. According to the company, the name “is simply Wii, not Nintendo Wii” and therefore signalled the first games console marketed outside of Japan without the company name featured in its trademark. Commonly known as “Wiis”, the company has also stated that the official plural form is “Wii systems” or “Wii consoles”. Those asking ‘when can i purchase a Wii‘ assume that the word Wii is an acronym, but Nintendo’s official line on the meaning of “Wii” (with 2 lower-case i’s) is that it is purely symbolic. And what those looking for wii addons probably don’t realise is that the 2 i’s are meant to depict 2 individuals standing together who represent players coming together; they also represent the well known Wii accessories – the Wii Remote and Nunchuk.
