Last week Nintendo announced a voluntary replacement program for the Wii Remote's wrist strap, which had been breaking at inopportune times for some customers and resulting in collateral damage. Shortly after the system launched in North America on November 19, reports popped up of broken cords, followed quickly by flying controllers crashing into high-priced electronics, living room furniture, and the occasional innocent bystander. While Nintendo acknowledged the Wii strap's problem and apparently addressed it, the company might not have done so in time.

On December 6, a Wii purchaser in Austin, Texas filed a class-action suit against Nintendo, alleging the publisher of violating the Washington Consumer Protection Act (Nintendo is based in the state of Washington, where the suit was filed) by engaging in "unfair or deceptive practices" by telling consumers that the wrist strap was to prevent the controller from flying out of a user's hand during use, and then providing a strap that was "ineffective for its intended use." The suit also claims that the Wii Remote strap's problems constitute a breach of warranty, and defines the class of people who may join the suit as including anybody who has purchased a Wii.

"As a result of the defective nature of the wrist strap on the Wii remote, plaintiff's wrist strap broke on his remote causing damage to the Wii product plaintiff purchased," the suit reads. "The controller is an essential component of any video game console, and so [the] plaintiff is unable to use the Nintendo Wii for its intended purposes as a result of the broken wrist band. Accordingly, it renders the Wii console, which retails in the United States for $250, useless."

The Wii only comes packed with a single controller, but additional Wii Remotes can be purchased for $50 each.

One of the plaintiff's lawyers told GameSpot that Nintendo's replacement program for the wrist straps will not cause them to drop the suit. As for whether purchasers of new Wii systems that come with thicker wrist straps for the Wii Remotes would be eligible to join the class-action suit, he said it would depend in part on whether the new straps adequately address the problem.

In his original filing, the plaintiff demands Nintendo cease what he sees as its unfair and deceptive practices, to refund or replace the strap with one that works as intended, reimburse him for legal expenses, and "such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper."

As of press time, a Nintendo representative did not have a comment on the situation.

Source: Gamespot

Last week, Nintendo acknowledged that it was receiving reports of problems with the wrist strap that secures the Wii Remote to users' wrists and told the Associated Press that it was investigating the matter. Today, it appears that investigation has wrapped up, as the company is offering to replace users' Wii Remote straps free of charge. The newer version of the strap features a thicker cord to keep the controller tethered to a user's wrist.

However, Nintendo said it has been shipping Wii systems with the new cords since earlier this month, so it asks that users check to see which straps they have before submitting a request for replacements (see picture above). The Associated Press is reporting that Nintendo's offer applies to about 3.2 million straps worldwide and could cost the company several million dollars.

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission's notice of the voluntary replacement program says Nintendo has received three reports of injuries that occurred when a strap broke. All of them happened while users were playing Wii Sports, and none required medical attention.

All that secures the TV-remote-shaped controller to players' hands (other than players' fingers) is a cloth strap attached to the base of the controller by a thin cord. However, numerous reports have sprung up that the cord is breaking, sending the controllers flying out of the sweaty hands of gamers and into high-priced electronics, living room furniture, and the occasional innocent bystander.

Nintendo expects to begin shipping replacement straps around December 21, and they will take between five and nine days to arrive at their destination. To request up to four replacement straps, Wii owners are asked to give Nintendo their mailing addresses and Wii serial numbers at the company's official Web site.