Loyalty
I theoretically subscribe to the epitome of video game journalism, Electronics Gaming Monthly (EGM). I don't actually pay for the subscription (there are enough free subscription sites out there, I rarely pay for any of the magazines I get), so I don't really have any sort of investment in the content. However, while I was reading the most recent issue with Link and the pre-Wii Revolution on the cover, I could help but notice a bias in the coverage. Obviously, they would deny it vehemently - it's a common response for gaming news sources to label themselves as universal and objective observers. I can understand the pro-Playstation bias - whether you like the system/company or not, there is no denying that there is an audience of readers who would like to have their single console choice vindicated. That audience outnumbers the ranks of those committed to the other platforms, so it makes editorial sense to prefer that platform.
(Although, I continue to be confused by the constant digs at the cost of Xbox Live. Do these people not have other bills like cable, cell phones, or broadband? $50 a year isn't such a bad deal to pay for a unified online infrastructure. Just because Sony and Nintendo don't plan to charge doesn't mean you won't get dinged some other way, nor does it say anything about how robust it will be. The Microsoft camp has problems to deal with, but the cost of Live isn't one of them.)
What always amazes me, though, is the outright devotion to whatever Nintendo does. It isn't even unique to the news sources - pick a typical gaming community and you will find slaves to the Nintendo brand name. I'm not knocking the Nintendo fans out there - everyone has different tastes, and your palate prefers their brand of delicacies. The amazing part is the almost rabid brand loyalty people will show to a Nintendo product, simply based on the name or the franchise.
Take a step back for a moment. Let's say Sega decided to get back into the hardware market, and they are the ones who came up with the whole idea for the Wii. Remote, nunchaku, backwards compatibility at a per-title premium, and even the silly name. They'd get laughed all the way out of E3. But because the Nintendo brand is attached to the project, and it's the only hardware that plays Mario, Zelda and Pokémon, it's heralded as amazing and innovative.
Why? Sure, Nintendo was pretty much synonymous with video game in the 80s, has done some really great things in the handheld market, and has juggernaut first-party franchises. But like any other mortal company, they have made some equally amazing blunders - Virtual Boy, the snubbing of Sony that lead to the Playstation, and almost the entire implementation of the Gamecube (except for a few stand-out exclusive games and the price, it's a bust as a console compared to the other two options). Heck, they even misstep with their franchises - everyone can name a Zelda game they didn't like, and the Gamecube never really got a good Mario platform game (I'm sure someone liked Sunshine, but I don't know who they are).
I was reading the articles on Zelda and the Wiimote, and bemusement befell me. So, um, Link can travel to another world and do things there. Didn't we already cover this in Metroid and a number of other games? Why is this amazing? I'm sure it will be done well, but getting to play part of the game in a washed-out mirror world as a different type of character isn't exactly heaven-sent innovation. How long has this game been delayed? Why isn't anyone crying for bloody decapitation like every other company that delays a game release?
And seriously, the guy showing off how you could use the Wiimote nunchaku like a bow and arrow just looked uncomfortable. Having actually earned the Archery merit badge, what that guy was doing was only slightly similar to using an actual bow. Not to mention, the cord looks too short for derring-do. The speaker-in-the-controller bit is a neat way to emulate three-dimensional sounds, but most of the people showing what you can do with this thing just look kind of silly to me. Then again, people like spazzing out in front of the Eye Toy, so what do I know?
Does Nintendo stay afloat as a company simply based on the fanaticism of their loyal fan base? I doubt there would be a way to accurately report the data, but I think you could easily measure this by comparing the user bases between iterations of their handheld devices. The DS Lite launches this month. How many of the people purchasing a Lite in the first thirty days already own a perfectly functional first-generation DS? I would hazard to guess that the percentage is not trivial.
I'm not anti-Nintendo. Heck, we have a Super Nintendo, a Nintendo 64 and a Gamecube in the house, with a decent library for each. I'd probably buy a DS this month if I had a reason to own one (I don't use public transportation, and my gaming time is usually at home, the place where I can play full-blown console games on an HDTV).
The mystery to me is the Nintendo mindshare - a sales and marketing wet dream made real. I just don't understand how they manage to keep an image of infallibility.
Link of the moment: In celebration of devotion, why not vote for your favorite deity? (Not for those intolerant of good-natured deity ribbing.)
(Although, I continue to be confused by the constant digs at the cost of Xbox Live. Do these people not have other bills like cable, cell phones, or broadband? $50 a year isn't such a bad deal to pay for a unified online infrastructure. Just because Sony and Nintendo don't plan to charge doesn't mean you won't get dinged some other way, nor does it say anything about how robust it will be. The Microsoft camp has problems to deal with, but the cost of Live isn't one of them.)
What always amazes me, though, is the outright devotion to whatever Nintendo does. It isn't even unique to the news sources - pick a typical gaming community and you will find slaves to the Nintendo brand name. I'm not knocking the Nintendo fans out there - everyone has different tastes, and your palate prefers their brand of delicacies. The amazing part is the almost rabid brand loyalty people will show to a Nintendo product, simply based on the name or the franchise.
Take a step back for a moment. Let's say Sega decided to get back into the hardware market, and they are the ones who came up with the whole idea for the Wii. Remote, nunchaku, backwards compatibility at a per-title premium, and even the silly name. They'd get laughed all the way out of E3. But because the Nintendo brand is attached to the project, and it's the only hardware that plays Mario, Zelda and Pokémon, it's heralded as amazing and innovative.
Why? Sure, Nintendo was pretty much synonymous with video game in the 80s, has done some really great things in the handheld market, and has juggernaut first-party franchises. But like any other mortal company, they have made some equally amazing blunders - Virtual Boy, the snubbing of Sony that lead to the Playstation, and almost the entire implementation of the Gamecube (except for a few stand-out exclusive games and the price, it's a bust as a console compared to the other two options). Heck, they even misstep with their franchises - everyone can name a Zelda game they didn't like, and the Gamecube never really got a good Mario platform game (I'm sure someone liked Sunshine, but I don't know who they are).
I was reading the articles on Zelda and the Wiimote, and bemusement befell me. So, um, Link can travel to another world and do things there. Didn't we already cover this in Metroid and a number of other games? Why is this amazing? I'm sure it will be done well, but getting to play part of the game in a washed-out mirror world as a different type of character isn't exactly heaven-sent innovation. How long has this game been delayed? Why isn't anyone crying for bloody decapitation like every other company that delays a game release?
And seriously, the guy showing off how you could use the Wiimote nunchaku like a bow and arrow just looked uncomfortable. Having actually earned the Archery merit badge, what that guy was doing was only slightly similar to using an actual bow. Not to mention, the cord looks too short for derring-do. The speaker-in-the-controller bit is a neat way to emulate three-dimensional sounds, but most of the people showing what you can do with this thing just look kind of silly to me. Then again, people like spazzing out in front of the Eye Toy, so what do I know?
Does Nintendo stay afloat as a company simply based on the fanaticism of their loyal fan base? I doubt there would be a way to accurately report the data, but I think you could easily measure this by comparing the user bases between iterations of their handheld devices. The DS Lite launches this month. How many of the people purchasing a Lite in the first thirty days already own a perfectly functional first-generation DS? I would hazard to guess that the percentage is not trivial.
I'm not anti-Nintendo. Heck, we have a Super Nintendo, a Nintendo 64 and a Gamecube in the house, with a decent library for each. I'd probably buy a DS this month if I had a reason to own one (I don't use public transportation, and my gaming time is usually at home, the place where I can play full-blown console games on an HDTV).
The mystery to me is the Nintendo mindshare - a sales and marketing wet dream made real. I just don't understand how they manage to keep an image of infallibility.
Link of the moment: In celebration of devotion, why not vote for your favorite deity? (Not for those intolerant of good-natured deity ribbing.)
posted by Kojubat at
09:16
2 Comments:
And it began with the blurb on the cover, don't remember exactly but it was something like "the two most important things in gaming team up: The Wii and Link". Most important, eh? I actually agree with you, as one of the few people who still have yet to be blown away by the Wii. The E3 stuff just didn't impress me, nothing I've seen for the system has impressed me yet.
Oh, and if you can get a brother a free sub to Wizard, go ahead and hook that up.
By
Mister Bones, at 07:55
Nice read. You have to remember though, there are fanboys for every console. Which makes being positive for a certain company hard. Once a person has something nice to say about a product, they are usually labeled a fanboy by someone who wrote the book on fanboy behavior.
By
Frozin, at 08:27
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