So, I have a co-worker, and he and I are both die-hard Nintendo fanboys. We have always owned Nintendo consoles, we have always worshiped Nintendo properties, we have always waited with child-like glee and anticipation for every new nugget of Nintendo goodness.

Now, this co-worker friend of mine recently purchased an Xbox 360. No problem, I have nothing against other consoles. I’ve played the 360 myself. It’s a good system, there’s just very little on there that I want to play. I’m not a fan of FPS or war games, and there seems to be a plethora of both on the console.

But my friend just won’t shut up talking about how great the system is. He extols the virtues of achievements, the Gamertag, Xbox LIVE, arcade titles, the ease of online gaming, friends lists sans intricate coding mechanisms — it’s all a little too much for this simple Wii gamer. Maybe because I wish the Wii had all of those elements.

I mournfully take a glance at my meager catalog of games, look up the games on their way, and sigh with remorse. Nintendo had promised so much. Streamlined online play, excellent third party support, great downloadable content. More and more, I’m starting to feel like I’ve been had.

Don’t get me wrong; there have been some great experiences on the Wii. Zack & Wiki was amazing. No More Heroes was a blast. Super Smash Bros. Brawl managed to capture my interest for a couple of weeks, until Mario Kart came by and stole that attention away. I loved Lostwinds on WiiWare. But after a year and a half, I expected so much more on the horizon than Wii Fit and a weakened version of Rock Band. Yeah, I know, there’s some RPGs on the way, but who knows when those are going to hit the system here in the US? It’s the GameCube all over again. I wait, and I wait, and I wait for something great to come along; and it does, once a year (if that).

There’s some great stuff coming out for the 360, as well. A brand new entry in the Tales series, Tales of Vesperia. And Ubisoft is bringing out a sequel to one of my favorite games of all time, Beyond Good and Evil: to the 360 and PS3 only. Just those two titles alone are enough to justify me purchasing a 360.

And when they’re available, I’ll likely pick one up. And when Nintendo announces another console, along with a bucket full of promises they’ll never keep, I’ll try hard not to get excited.

I’m not falling for it again, Nintendo. Sorry. Unless something absolutely astronomical is announced, I’m just not falling for it again.