Things that make me want to headbutt everything (albums, magazine)

WolfAtTheDoor · 10-01-2009, 03:58 PM

13: Nintendo.

My earlier memory is of a Christmas morning, sitting on the living room floor, inches away from the tv screen, playing Super Mario Kart with my Dad whilst my Mom made us bacon sandwiches. The Super Nintendo played a large part in my childhood, as I grew up opposite my Aunt, Uncle and cousins. My cousins used to visit frequently and we all used to play the SNES religiously. There was hours of fun to be had there, just sitting around of a Saturday morning taking it in turns to complete Super Mario World.

So I can sort of see what Nintendo was thinking. The Wii appears to be entirely dependant on you continuously having a group of people to share your videogaming experience with, everyone huddled around the tv, shaking the WiiMote furiously like bumbling idiots. The social experience is what made Nintendo so great for kids in the 90's, it was always so fun to play in groups with your friends.

So what's my problem?

Well, here's the thing. It is a known fact that the way in which we entertain ourselves is constantly expanding as technology becomes more sophisticated and user-friendly. Back in the 90's, a 16-bit machine was enough to have everyone ooh-ing and aah-ing but nowadays something needs to be pretty fucking impressive for it to even get a second glance. It was inevitable that videogames, the strongest selling form of media on the market (whoda thunk it?), were going to push the boundaries moreso than anything else. So whilst Microsoft and Sony went ahead and made logical steps, graphical enhancements etc, Nintendo threw away their leftover notes from the Gamecube and started from scratch. What they came up with, was the Wii.

Again, you can't blame Nintendo for thinking outside of the box, altering the way we play the game rather than the game itself. In fact, we should commend them for such originality. But it didn't quite please everyone, did it?

Today I went to HMV to find a new game for my Wii. It has been sitting here gathering dust, occasionally seeing the light of day when I fancy a quick round or 2 of Brawl. I scowered the shelves, and found nothing but limp-looking quiz games and Sea Bass Fishing. Which was made by Sega. My childhood has been shat upon.

THIS is the problem. I have been out and I have bought ALL of Nintendo's first-party games for this system, and the ones that manage to not be remakes of Gamecube games are brilliant, as would be expected. I'm not saying that Nintendo have lost their magic touch when it comes to making superb videogames, anyone who played Super Mario Galaxy would know that they are still the most imaginative and creative developer in the world today. But what I can't stand is the feeling that Nintendo is becoming another Coca-cola. The Wii Fit, the Brain Training, the endless amount of shitty half-hearted third party support vomiting out useless ways in which to use an equally useless peripheral.

With the Super Nintendo, you didn't need to point four controllers at the screen at once to have a good time with your friends. You didn't even need four controllers. All you needed was one, plugged in, playing A Link To The Past or any one of the dozens of fantastic titles in your arsenal and the family would gather round. That's the sort of stuff that makes memories and captures imaginations. Not Cheggers Party Quiz.

VEGANGELICA · 10-02-2009, 10:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WolfAtTheDoor

The Wii appears to be entirely dependant on you continuously having a group of people to share your videogaming experience with, everyone huddled around the tv, shaking the WiiMote furiously like bumbling idiots.
But it didn't quite please everyone, did it?

Today I went to HMV to find a new game for my Wii. I scowered the shelves, and found nothing but limp-looking quiz games and Sea Bass Fishing. Which was made by Sega. My childhood has been shat upon.

What?! You don't like the excitement and thrills of Sea Bass fishing?!

I chortled at your description of people playing Wii huddled around the TV shaking the WiiMote furiously like bumbling idiots, because that's exactly what it looks like to me when I see people playing Wii. I call the gaming system "Wii-Wii"...as in "I have to go Wee-Wee," because I think it is piss-awful, especially when it is advertised as a way to keep kids healthy because Wii "makes them move." To me it looks like Wii is just trying to teach a whole new generation the grand skill of making tiny tots suffer from Shaken Baby Syndrome.

Of course, my disdain for Wii may come from the fact that I appear to lack the "gaming" chip from my brain. I was satisfied enough with Pong when I played it centuries ago, when it first came out, but since then I have never felt the urge to play any video game.

*My* big gaming gripe is with these "Rock Band" games where you are supposed to buy all these fake instruments and fake-play other people's music...and the whole game costs about as much as a real electric guitar!!! GAA! A solid wall of some gaming store in my area is filled with boxes of "Rock Band" games. Meanwhile, a real music store not far away scrabbles for existence.

P.S. I agree with you about the dangers of doors. I once got my thumb broken by a big heavy door.

boo boo · 10-02-2009, 01:37 PM

I played Guitar Hero III yesterday, fun stuff, and I think the criticism of it is stupid. I hate all these metalhead douchebags who constantly whine "Why don't you just get a real guitar?".

Because I suck at guitar and always will, video games is about escapism, assh*les. Obviously Guitar Hero is not meant to be a substitute for the real thing, it's just a game and anyone who thinks they can play a real guitar because they beat Guitar Hero is clearly an idiot. It's just a simple (but hella addictive) rhythm game that anyone can pick up and have fun playing. Stop looking at it like it's some serious threat to real guitar players.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WolfAtTheDoor

13: Nintendo.

So what's my problem?

Well, here's the thing. It is a known fact that the way in which we entertain ourselves is constantly expanding as technology becomes more sophisticated and user-friendly. Back in the 90's, a 16-bit machine was enough to have everyone ooh-ing and aah-ing but nowadays something needs to be pretty fucking impressive for it to even get a second glance. It was inevitable that videogames, the strongest selling form of media on the market (whoda thunk it?), were going to push the boundaries moreso than anything else. So whilst Microsoft and Sony went ahead and made logical steps, graphical enhancements etc, Nintendo threw away their leftover notes from the Gamecube and started from scratch. What they came up with, was the Wii.

I don't think better graphics and DVD add ons is what the industry needs, it needs to take a step back and remember the age old philosophy of KISS. Keep it simple stupid.

And guess which console best lives up to that? I'll give you time to think about it.

Quote:

Again, you can't blame Nintendo for thinking outside of the box, altering the way we play the game rather than the game itself. In fact, we should commend them for such originality. But it didn't quite please everyone, did it?

I think they knew damn well that they were gonna piss off the "hardcore" gamers by going for the casual market, and I can at least understand why people are mad about that. But when people say Nintendo are selling out their fans, well that's stupid. They're not alienating anyone, they're just expanding their horizons a bit.

However Nintendo has always been the "family" game company, their targets has always been the kiddies and their attempts to appeal to casual gamers goes way back to the days of Tetris and Duck Hunt.

Nintendo are the easy target because now the gaming community consists of 20 somethings and so Sony and Microsoft like to pick on Nintendo and call them the "little kid's choice". Well, Sega did the exact same thing, so have a lot of companies who failed at the console market. Nintendo didn't need a "mature" image back then and they don't need one now.

The "casual" gaming community is not to be underestimated, they're here to stay and people need to get used to it.

Quote:

Today I went to HMV to find a new game for my Wii. It has been sitting here gathering dust, occasionally seeing the light of day when I fancy a quick round or 2 of Brawl. I scowered the shelves, and found nothing but limp-looking quiz games and Sea Bass Fishing.

While I agree that the Wii is suffering from quality control issues (which is ultimately what undid the Atari 2600) I do think there are are some very excellent games and not just the obvious ones, you just have to look harder. Yes aside from Sega and Capcom the third party support is very nonexistant.

But Nintendo has had this problem since the N64, a console that is now considered a classic even though I can't think of any good non-Nintendo published games for it off the top of my head, except for Turok, Rayman 2, Harvest Moon 64, Resident Evil 2 and a fantastic library of sports and racing games.

So since then Nintendo has relied solely on their first party games to wow gamers, and their current success is built on those games alone, with help from only a few third party games. That's pretty damn impressive that they have managed to do that for over a decade now and comes to show that not everybody cares how big a console's library is. I'd rather have a few masterpieces than thousands of games that are just rentals at best.

Casual gamers can't afford to buy games every goddamn week like the spoiled rich brats who make up the modern community of gamers, so they don't have very large libraries of games anyway. I'm like that as well. I favor quality over quantity, and I don't really care if I could fit all of the Wii's great games into a dresser drawer, I consider that enough.

Quote:

Which was made by Sega. My childhood has been shat upon.

Well then, that's Segas fault (and your fault for still buying their games), not Nintendos fault.

"Hey Sega still makes shite games, curse you Nintendo". Seriously you think it's Nintendo's job to get Sega to stop making bad games? Nintendo is just a video game company dude, they're not miracle workers.

To be fair to Sega though, Madworld looks awesome, and Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games looks like a fun multiplayer game.

Quote:

THIS is the problem. I have been out and I have bought ALL of Nintendo's first-party games for this system, and the ones that manage to not be remakes of Gamecube games are brilliant, as would be expected. I'm not saying that Nintendo have lost their magic touch when it comes to making superb videogames, anyone who played Super Mario Galaxy would know that they are still the most imaginative and creative developer in the world today. But what I can't stand is the feeling that Nintendo is becoming another Coca-cola. The Wii Fit, the Brain Training, the endless amount of shitty half-hearted third party support vomiting out useless ways in which to use an equally useless peripheral.

Again this is nothing new. Weird and whacky peripherals have been part of the industry since day one. NES had a LOT of them, so did the Genesis. And this is not a trend that just the Wii continues to adopt, the PS3 and 360 are just as guilty. In fact 360 is now going into the motion capture biz as well, so to say Nintendo are no longer relevant to their competitors is obviously wrong.

Quote:

With the Super Nintendo, you didn't need to point four controllers at the screen at once to have a good time with your friends.

You don't need to do that with the Wii either, there's still a handful of quality games that are compatable with the GC conroller if the wiimote is not your style. Mario Kart and Brawl for example. Some people actually do like that white piece of plastic (like me) however so it's nice that Nintendo gives options.

Quote:

You didn't even need four controllers. All you needed was one, plugged in, playing A Link To The Past or any one of the dozens of fantastic titles in your arsenal and the family would gather round. That's the sort of stuff that makes memories and captures imaginations. Not Cheggers Party Quiz.[/CENTER]

Well I do agree that single player games don't seem to be as important anymore and that is very sad, not everybody has friends to play with all the time.

But one thing I love about the Wii is how many of it's multiplayer games encourage REAL social gameplay. As opposed to the other consoles which is just...

ONLINE ONLINE ONLINE!

But I guess that's something for people who don't have any real friends.

VEGANGELICA · 10-02-2009, 03:40 PM

Oh, boo boo, boo boo...I hate to whine, but...

why don't you just get a real guitar?!

I do understand the desire for escapism, though. Hey, that's why I'm on MB! Sometimes you can find yourself by escaping. <--My deep thought for the day.

Seriously, though, I wonder how many kids (or 20-somethings) might play more instruments (or play instruments more often) if they weren't hooked up to a Wii or Guitar Hero III. Guitar Hero may just be a serious threat to real guitar players and the future of music!!! When you wake up in 2030 and find all music is dead, you'll know what happened. And then you'll headbutt everything because you'll realize I was right. Say, who made you think you suck at guitar and always will?

boo boo · 10-02-2009, 03:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VEGANGELICA

Oh, boo boo, boo boo...I hate to whine, but...

why don't you just get a real guitar?!

I do understand the desire for escapism, though. Hey, that's why I'm on MB! Sometimes you can find yourself by escaping. <--My deep thought for the day.

Seriously, though, I wonder how many kids (or 20-somethings) might play more instruments (or play instruments more often) if they weren't hooked up to a Wii or Guitar Hero III. Guitar Hero may just be a serious threat to real guitar players and the future of music!!! When you wake up in 2030 and find all music is dead, you'll know what happened. And then you'll headbutt everything because you'll realize I was right.

I have a real guitar.

But if I want to play Sunshine of Your Love without sounding like someone trying to start up a lawnmower. I have to play Guitar Hero.

VEGANGELICA · 10-02-2009, 03:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boo boo

I have a real guitar.

But if I want to play Sunshine of Your Love without sounding like someone trying to start up a lawnmower. I have to play Guitar Hero.

I thought a lot of guitar playing these days *sounds* rather like a lawnmower starting up. I should think your "Sunshine" song would sound just dandy, boo boo.

Mojo · 10-02-2009, 07:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boo boo

I played Guitar Hero III yesterday, fun stuff, and I think the criticism of it is stupid. I hate all these metalhead douchebags who constantly whine "Why don't you just get a real guitar?".

Obviously Guitar Hero is not meant to be a substitute for the real thing, it's just a game and anyone who thinks they can play a real guitar because they beat Guitar Hero is clearly an idiot.

Couldnt agree more. You know the only difference between Guitar Hero/Rock Band and any other rhythm game is that these games came with controllers styled as a guitar rather than the old school standard controllers? The premise is the same.

The price may be a little much admittedly, and expanding from just the guitar to guitar, bass, drums and mic MAY be taking it a little too far (?) but its just for fun at the end of the day.

EDIT: And i dont have Rock band or the FULL Guitar Hero by the way, i just have GH2 and GH3 with one lone guitar controller but if i could actually afford ALL of the gear and decided to buy it, it would still be for shits and giggles rather than thinking i could actually play of the real instruments.

WolfAtTheDoor · 10-03-2009, 01:44 PM

I understand that casual gamers are a much larger portion of the market these days than they ever have been, and that Nintendo are catering to that. I haven't got a problem with them doing such a thing, because at the end of the day it gives them more money to put out more quality games.

But that's the thing. It seems to me that there is a lack of quality games. The biggest title that Nintendo has released in a loooooooooooong time is Wii Sports Resort, which says a lot doesn't it really?

Plus, this whole range of 'new control' games, that are basically just rehashes of old Gamecube games, is a bit of a slap in the face. Give us a NEW game, rather than a half-arsed re-release of a Gamecube title.

I also heard through the grapevine that at this years E3, aside from announcing Super Mario Galaxy 1.5 (why?) and the New Super Mario Bros (which I am genuinely excited about) their only other major announcement was some sort of unnecessary sensor system.

I just can't be bothered to see any more games involving throwing frisbees at dogs when there hasn't been a new Legend of Zelda game since the GC.

boo boo · 10-03-2009, 04:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WolfAtTheDoor

I understand that casual gamers are a much larger portion of the market these days than they ever have been, and that Nintendo are catering to that. I haven't got a problem with them doing such a thing, because at the end of the day it gives them more money to put out more quality games.

Exactly. Sony and Microsoft get the job done by appealing to the mature crowd, I have nothing against that, they're just continuing the marketing strategy that Sega started way back in the Genesis days.

Nintendo have always been the exact opposite, some think their conservative approach is a bad thing, I don't. It makes them distinctive and it's what has always set them apart from their competition. Nintendo have tried to capitalise on fads in the past and failed horribly (cashing in on the virtual reality fad with Virtual Boy), since then it's best that they start the trends rather then follow them.

Quote:

But that's the thing. It seems to me that there is a lack of quality games. The biggest title that Nintendo has released in a loooooooooooong time is Wii Sports Resort, which says a lot doesn't it really?

Meh, I disagree. Of the first party games for the Wii. Galaxy, Brawl, TP, Mario Kart, MP3, Super Paper Mario and Punch Out have all been crowd pleasers. Capcom and Ubisoft has put out some quality games on the system as well, even Sega has put out a few good games among their usual crap.

Anyone who won't at least admit those first party titles are all good games is probably not a Nintendo fan to begin with, and their opinions are as meaningful to me as my opinions are to PS3 fans.

Quote:

Plus, this whole range of 'new control' games, that are basically just rehashes of old Gamecube games, is a bit of a slap in the face. Give us a NEW game, rather than a half-arsed re-release of a Gamecube title.

I would like to see them devote more time to new games yes. And they are, Nintendo don't put out as many first party titles as Sony does, but that's because they take their time. They delayed Brawl so many times it was ridiculous, sure it pissed us off, but we knew that in the end they didn't want to release an unfinished product, and they didn't.

Also there's still some new Wii games to get excited about. Super Mario Galaxy 2 being the main one, more than one Mario platformer on a Nintendo console is quite a rarity and a pleasant surprise. There's also New Super Mario Bros Wii, Sin and Punishment 2, Pikmin 2, the new Metroid by Team Ninja, a new Kirby game, and even a new Zelda game.

That's right, we're getting another Zelda for the Wii, SUCK ON THAT.

Quote:

I also heard through the grapevine that at this years E3, aside from announcing Super Mario Galaxy 1.5 (why?) and the New Super Mario Bros (which I am genuinely excited about) their only other major announcement was some sort of unnecessary sensor system.

Super Mario Galaxy 1.5? Ok that's just stupid.

It's a full fledged sequel, so far we don't know much about it, but from the video I've seen there's tons of new gameplay mechanics and powerups and the new environments look like an absolute blast to play. Seriously how can you not be excited about it?

NintendoFE3 2009î•ñ | o“Wƒ^ƒCƒgƒ‹ | Super Mario Galaxy 2

*orgasm*

Quote:

I just can't be bothered to see any more games involving throwing frisbees at dogs when there hasn't been a new Legend of Zelda game since the GC.

Uh, you're wrong. Phantom Hourglass on the DS, and there's another Zelda game for that system coming this December, called Spirit Tracks. And like I said another Zelda for the Wii is on the way.

Nintendo are not neglecting their franchises by any means, it's just that Mario and Zelda isn't like Sonic or Madden NFL, they're not putting out a rushed, incomplete game every millisecond, they actually take their time polishing their games, and the fans are rewarded for their patience.

10-01-2009, 03:58 PM	#1 (permalink)
WolfAtTheDoor ironing your socks Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: I'm in a rocknroll band. huh. Posts: 396	13: Nintendo. My earlier memory is of a Christmas morning, sitting on the living room floor, inches away from the tv screen, playing Super Mario Kart with my Dad whilst my Mom made us bacon sandwiches. The Super Nintendo played a large part in my childhood, as I grew up opposite my Aunt, Uncle and cousins. My cousins used to visit frequently and we all used to play the SNES religiously. There was hours of fun to be had there, just sitting around of a Saturday morning taking it in turns to complete Super Mario World. So I can sort of see what Nintendo was thinking. The Wii appears to be entirely dependant on you continuously having a group of people to share your videogaming experience with, everyone huddled around the tv, shaking the WiiMote furiously like bumbling idiots. The social experience is what made Nintendo so great for kids in the 90's, it was always so fun to play in groups with your friends. So what's my problem? Well, here's the thing. It is a known fact that the way in which we entertain ourselves is constantly expanding as technology becomes more sophisticated and user-friendly. Back in the 90's, a 16-bit machine was enough to have everyone ooh-ing and aah-ing but nowadays something needs to be pretty fucking impressive for it to even get a second glance. It was inevitable that videogames, the strongest selling form of media on the market (whoda thunk it?), were going to push the boundaries moreso than anything else. So whilst Microsoft and Sony went ahead and made logical steps, graphical enhancements etc, Nintendo threw away their leftover notes from the Gamecube and started from scratch. What they came up with, was the Wii. Again, you can't blame Nintendo for thinking outside of the box, altering the way we play the game rather than the game itself. In fact, we should commend them for such originality. But it didn't quite please everyone, did it? Today I went to HMV to find a new game for my Wii. It has been sitting here gathering dust, occasionally seeing the light of day when I fancy a quick round or 2 of Brawl. I scowered the shelves, and found nothing but limp-looking quiz games and Sea Bass Fishing. Which was made by Sega. My childhood has been shat upon. THIS is the problem. I have been out and I have bought ALL of Nintendo's first-party games for this system, and the ones that manage to not be remakes of Gamecube games are brilliant, as would be expected. I'm not saying that Nintendo have lost their magic touch when it comes to making superb videogames, anyone who played Super Mario Galaxy would know that they are still the most imaginative and creative developer in the world today. But what I can't stand is the feeling that Nintendo is becoming another Coca-cola. The Wii Fit, the Brain Training, the endless amount of shitty half-hearted third party support vomiting out useless ways in which to use an equally useless peripheral. With the Super Nintendo, you didn't need to point four controllers at the screen at once to have a good time with your friends. You didn't even need four controllers. All you needed was one, plugged in, playing A Link To The Past or any one of the dozens of fantastic titles in your arsenal and the family would gather round. That's the sort of stuff that makes memories and captures imaginations. Not Cheggers Party Quiz.

10-03-2009, 01:44 PM	#8 (permalink)
WolfAtTheDoor ironing your socks Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: I'm in a rocknroll band. huh. Posts: 396	I understand that casual gamers are a much larger portion of the market these days than they ever have been, and that Nintendo are catering to that. I haven't got a problem with them doing such a thing, because at the end of the day it gives them more money to put out more quality games. But that's the thing. It seems to me that there is a lack of quality games. The biggest title that Nintendo has released in a loooooooooooong time is Wii Sports Resort, which says a lot doesn't it really? Plus, this whole range of 'new control' games, that are basically just rehashes of old Gamecube games, is a bit of a slap in the face. Give us a NEW game, rather than a half-arsed re-release of a Gamecube title. I also heard through the grapevine that at this years E3, aside from announcing Super Mario Galaxy 1.5 (why?) and the New Super Mario Bros (which I am genuinely excited about) their only other major announcement was some sort of unnecessary sensor system. I just can't be bothered to see any more games involving throwing frisbees at dogs when there hasn't been a new Legend of Zelda game since the GC.