It’s Nintendo Faithful’s Turn to Play the Game

Nintendo Co. on Sunday officially entered the three-way fight for dominance in the $7-billion U.S. video game market, releasing its GameCube console to consumers who started lining up Saturday night to buy the $200 device.

For Nintendo, which endured a lukewarm launch in Japan two months ago, Sunday’s U.S. debut was critical to generating momentum against Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox.

The Japanese launch of GameCube on Sept. 14 was eclipsed by the terrorist attacks in the United States three days earlier. Within the first three days, Nintendo sold 300,000 of 450,000 units shipped.

Sony, by comparison, sold out of its initial shipment of 980,000 PlayStation 2 consoles within its first weekend of being on sale in Japan in March 2000.

Sony also sold out of its shipment of 500,000 PS2 consoles the day the system made its U.S. debut in October 2000.

An anemic Japanese economy and a launch lineup of just three games also hampered GameCube sales in Japan, making the U.S. debut even more critical for Nintendo, which gets 60% of its revenue from North America.

Nintendo planned to ship 700,000 units to retailers for Sunday’s launch.

Definitive sales figures were not available, but many Southern California stores reported selling out of GameCubes by the end of the day.

By 5 p.m. Sunday, 11 of the 15 Electronics Boutique stores in the Los Angeles area had sold out of GameCubes. Five stores had sold out of Xboxes, which Microsoft launched Nov. 15.

“There were over 100 people here before our store opened,” said Troy Lelis, merchandising manager for the Best Buy store in West Los Angeles. “They got here as early as 8:30 last night. At 11 o’clock, they called me at home to let me know that there were already 20 people in line.”

Omar Khan, a 22-year-old student at UCLA, arrived at the Fry’s Electronics store in Manhattan Beach at 6:30 a.m. Sunday to buy his GameCube.

“I’ve played Nintendo since I was a kid,” Khan said. “That’s why I’m buying the GameCube instead of the Xbox. It’s a way to relive my childhood. All my friends are buying it as well.”

For Nintendo, success hinges on its ability to capitalize on years of earning the trust and loyalty of consumers such as Khan. Newcomer Microsoft must overcome consumer suspicion.

“I’m not fond of Microsoft launches,” said Colleen Bauman, a software engineer who lined up outside Fry’s at 8:30 a.m. Sunday to buy a GameCube for her two children. “I’m afraid I’ll bring [Xbox] home and the features won’t be fully functional and I’ll be told to wait a few months for an upgrade. Meanwhile, my kids would be disappointed for Christmas. Since my kids are so young, I prefer to stay with a brand that is reliable.”

The GameCube also has the advantage of being $100 cheaper than either of its rivals.

“I think the Xbox is too expensive,” said Matthew Herrier, a 17-year-old senior at Palisades High School, who arrived at 5 a.m. at the Santa Monica Toys R Us to be the first in line.

Nintendo still faces a number of challenges both from Microsoft, which is spending $500 million to market Xbox, and from Sony, which had a one-year head start on Nintendo and already has shipped more than 20 million PS2 consoles worldwide.

Nintendo also must overcome the GameCube’s reputation as a “kiddie” console with little to offer older players.

Nintendo plans to spend $70 million marketing GameCube in the United States, highlighting grown-up titles such as “Star Wars Rogue Leader” from LucasArts and the upcoming “Resident Evil” game from Capcom Co.

“I’m probably the oldest guy here,” Kyle Sziraki, 30, said as he stood in line at Fry’s for his GameCube. “But I just like the quality of Nintendo’s games. They do a good job of thinking a little deeper about how to impress their fans.”

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Related Times stories, reviews and photos of the new game platforms are at www.latimes.com/vidgames.