 The Wii ( / ˈwiː / WEE ) is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19 , 2006 . As a seventh @-@ generation console , the Wii competed with Microsoft 's Xbox 360 and Sony 's PlayStation 3 . Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others . As of the first quarter of 2012 , the Wii leads its generation over PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in worldwide sales , with more than 101 million units sold ; in December 2009 , the console broke the sales record for a single month in the United States . 
