Otakuism

Recently, I’ve found myself fascinated by the Wii commercials, mainly because, for commercials aimed at selling a product in the american market, they seem incredibly Japanese to me. They’re nothing like the commercials of yore, filled with mind-blowing graphics and violence that us americans love. Instead, it’s two guys, I like to call them Hiro and Ando, in salaryman business suits, driving around in their incredibly small hybrid car, to a distinctly traditional japanese soundtrack. When they approach potential users, they politely bow and ask them to play. And it’s never solely college guys their asking to play. It’s your mom, your uncle, your grandma, it’s the entire family. Gone our the solitary days of old, where it was just a man and his game. And, boy, are these guys everywhere. Their in the suburbs, the cities, hispanic neighborhoods, the heartland! They get hugged by burly macho men and fed nachos. Their the guests everyone loves, maybe because they bring high-priced electronics.

Now, clearly there’s a lot of smart marketing behind this. The Wii is meant for everyone, so you show people of all ages enjoying it. Still, could not the same thing be done by american businessmen? Would Americans not trust people of their own country into their homes? Is the wii so foreign to the consumer, that only two Japanese men and their environmentally friendly car, another foreign thing in America, can represent it? I’m probably reading too much into this, and you can rebuke me if I am, but the whole family coming together, playing together, reminds me of how group-oriented japanese culture is. Looked at this way, the Wii is more than a radically new gaming machine. It’s an export of uniquely japanese values of togetherness, humility, and eco-friendlyness. And I wouldn’t mind seeing more of those values these days. Geez, listen to me. I’m starting to sound like a certain scottish guy.