Nintendo said today that it will launch its next-generation Wii game machine in December at about $200 each, undercutting the price of Sony's beleaguered PlayStation 3.
The Wii stand-alone machine will be released in Japan on December 2 at a price of $212, said Satoru Iwata, president of Kyoto-based Nintendo.
The launch will come three weeks after Sony puts out its next-generation PlayStation 3 on November 11 at a much heftier price for a 20-gigabyte machine.
Technical glitches forced Sony to delay the global launch of its next-generation PS3 console by about six months until November, giving US giant Microsoft a one-year head start with its next-generation Xbox 360. Sony said earlier this month that it will delay the PS3 again in Europe from November to March, sparking a fall in its share price.
Nintendo leads the global market in portable game machines and has been taking aim at Sony's lead in stand-alone consoles.
Microsoft has also been aiming to unlock the Japanese gamemakers' stranglehold in their home market with its Xbox 360.
Microsoft last week announced it would sell a cheaper, basic version of its next-generation Xbox from November 2 at $255 in Japan, about 25% less than the standard version.
