About 18 months ago, I made one final prediction as a games journalist. I was at a Nintendo event, and I told a reporter from USA Today that I thought "the Wii bubble was about to burst."
The next day, Wired's Chris Kohler took me to task in an online editorial. He talked about the rise of casual gaming and the differences between the Wii audience and the audiences for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
Well, clearly Kohler was right. The Nintendo Wii not only survived the rest of 2007, it was the clear winner in 2008.
What can I say? Even after nearly two decades as a games journalist and 30+ years as a video game addict, I misunderstood the market. I did not envision so much of the market choosing a console that had nothing better than Wii Music and a really solid port of the GameCube/DS game Animal Crossing for Christmas. Chris, you nailed it.
To those of you who had a merry Christmas pretending to play the tuba on your Wii, I wish you a wonderful 2009.
Back to apologizing for my mis-prediction... Since that comment may well have been the swansong of my journalistic career, I wanted to take a moment to explain why I made such a glaring mistake. As I said before, I met the reporter at an event in Seattle. Nintendo had just revealed its summer and fall lineup for Wii which included three highlights: Carnival Games; Big Brain Academy; and Pokemon Battle Revolution. As I recall, they did not let us play Metroid, but we knew it was coming. I took that as a bad sign.
This was mid-June, 2007, and Wii had been out for 18 months. Now in my experience, the 18 month mark was when you started seeing a generation of competent games for new systems, but Nintendo showed us nothing even remotely competent at this event. Well, there was Boogie, from Electronic Arts. That must have tickled some gamers' fancies.
(I have placed the above paragraph in bold because, Piehl points out, my math is wrong. This was the 7 month mark for WiiP, not the 18 month mark.)
Anyway, after 18 months on the market, Wii inventory was still nowhere near meeting demand; but the only things people were playing on their Wiis were tennis, bowling, and boxing. In other words, they were still playing Wii Sports.
At that time, I began calling the Wii the "Wii Sports Delivery System." The name was not entirely original. I was paraphrasing something an Electronic Arts executive once told me about the original Xbox. When Xbox first came out, the only thing people seemed to play on it was Halo. He took to calling the Microsoft console, "the Halo Delivery System."
But I stand corrected. I no longer think of the Wii as the WSDS, I now call it the WiiP--which rhymes with Bleep--which is what the censors would have done to my language had I woken up to a WiiP and a copy of Wii Music on Christmas morning. WiiP also sounds like weep which is what I think most real gamers are doing when they realize that Nintendo has abandoned them.
On October 6, 2006, I made some other predictions that raised the ire of Nintendo-ites everywhere. I said, and I quote:
In my mind, Nintendo is like a wonderful old friend who has a drinking problem. You like the friend, you like to spend time with the friend, but every so often bad behaviors come up and remind you that this friend has problems.
Like the old friend with the drinking problem, Nintendo is quick to fess up to old faults. "Yes, we really screwed up using cartridge format on N64. Yes, we did not support GameCube the way we said we would. Yes, we have been hard on third-party publishers in the past. Virtual Boy... oh, what were we thinking?"
And, like the old friend with the drinking problem, Nintendo bows its head after making these confessions and says, "We've learned our lesson."
Like the old friend with the drinking problem, Nintendo is quick to fess up to old faults. "Yes, we really screwed up using cartridge format on N64. Yes, we did not support GameCube the way we said we would. Yes, we have been hard on third-party publishers in the past. Virtual Boy... oh, what were we thinking?"
And, like the old friend with the drinking problem, Nintendo bows its head after making these confessions and says, "We've learned our lesson."
Chris Kohler, you were right. Call them casual games, or as I like to say, "tragic," apparently Carnival Games and Pokemon Battle Revolution were what the masses really wanted to play. Judging by the sales of Wii Fit, people really wanted to exercise with there game console, not play games with it.
If the latest batch of WiiP games are any indication, Nintendo still acts like that old friend with a drinking problem. Nintendo has now sold nearly 50 million WiiP consoles worldwide. Compared to Microsoft's paltry 30 million Xbox 360s and Sony's 20 million PlayStation 3s, Nintendo now rules the world.
As far as I can tell, Nintendo still has the same drinking problems that worried me back in 2006, but apparently the latest generation of gamers likes dealing with a company that dances on tables and wears a lampshade over its head.
*Photo taken from Chris Kohler's June 19, 2006 Wired Blog
122 comments:
The Wii definitely has a niche. It's geared towards more casual players, and fits in really well in the younger and older crowds. My mom got a Wii because her co-worker was talking about the Wii Fit game so much. When I'm over there we play the Wii Sports (bowling, mostly) and have a good time. The Wii games are meant to be picked up and learned in a matter of minutes, so anyone can play them.
I personally don't want a Wii, but when my son gets older, something like that would be good for him. I have had lots of systems over the years:
NES, TurboGrafx-16, Sega Genesis, Sega Dreamcast, Xbox, and Xbox 360. I love the 360, but the Wii is the only one that my folks have both tried and liked.
Speaking of games, I tried 'Left 4 Dead' the other night, and that's a fun one. The zombies are creepy in there because they aren't slow like in the 'Dawn of the Dead' movies or anything, more like in '28 Days Later'.
It's cool that you can admit that you were wrong, Steve. I still love you!
Happy New Year, Aaron. Good to see you back.
Left 4 Dead, like all Valve games, is brilliant.
Now to WiiP. WiiP is made for the non-gaming masses. If Yamaha came out with came out with a vehicle that had two seats in the front and a bench in the back, a cabin, and four wheels and called it "the motorcycle for the masses," it would be the WiiP of motorcycles.
Yes, grandmothers and others who have never liked gaming appreciate it. Non-Nintendo WiiP games routinely get buried in bargain bins quicker than 360 and PS3 games.
There have been a few authentically great WiiP games--Super Mario Galaxy, Twilight Princess (which was actually better on GameCube, Super Smash Bros., and Mario Kart are the only ones that come to mind but there may be more.
My point, though, is that while WiiP succeeds as the game system for non-gamers and little kids, it stinks for gamers.
Just the fact that it is the game system for non-gamers should tell you something about its ability to play good games.
Thanks, r.pad.
Yep, the Wii will definitely be limited, because as you said -- it's a non-video game system for those that don't play video games. To take that analogy further, I guess that the Wii is to video games what the candy cigarettes that I used to get as a kid are to real cigarettes?
On the topic of Valve stuff, I got The Orange Box for Christmas and played through all of it. My first experience to Valve's stuff and I was a little underwhelmed. When the Valve logo came up on Left 4 Dead I was worried at first, but no longer. Maybe it was just the Half-Life 2 that didn't quite blow my skirt up and not Valve?
When Half-Life 2 first came out, it was amazing. When the first Half-Life came out, it was nothing short of revolutionary.
Both games look a little ong in the tooth today, but I remember them in their original splendor.
That's kind of what I figured. I'd never played them before now and could tell they were a little dated, but back in the day when they were new they must have been great.
I can tell that the kinesis gun on Dead Space was inspired by the grav gun from Half-Life 2.
Keefer just told me what r.pad stands for. How are you doing? it's been a long, long time.
Aaron, the original Half-Life came out in 1999. It, along with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was my favorite game of the year.
Graphically, Half-Life 2, which came in 2004, was not up to par with Doom 3, but gameplay-wise, Half-Life 2 left Doom in the dust.
Ok, given the timeframe of original release, my opinion of the game has now gone up. Thanks for opening my eyes there a bit Steven.
That's what friends are for.
Congrats, you know how to rhyme. Want an emmy?
Now excuse me while I play the games I like instead of bitching about the ones I don't.
You're awesome, Steve. I'll play a Wii Music solo in your honor. - Kohler
A person calling him/her/itself "teppo holmqvist" tried to post the following:
It's nice to see that writer acts like an total a****le, and sees his job to be mocking intelligence of other human beings.
Here is a pro-tip for you. Playing Half-Life 2 or Halo 3 doesn't make you any smarter or better human being than anyone else. Playing FPS games doesn't make you cultivated intellectual, and neither it does get you laid.
Types like you exactly reason why gaming "journalism" is a f*****g joke.
Since I suspect he/she/it found my blog through GoNintendo.com, this is approximately the response I would expect.
Thanks, Mr. Kohler. Let's hope it's not a dirge.
Ian,
Would that be Wii Music?
Is it really Nintendo's fault? These guys are able to gauge the market and make money. That's business. And honestly, Nintendo has made games for the hardcore market; even if they haven't made NEW ideas, they have used up a large chunk of their known property.
Far as I can tell, it's up to third party developers to get on this wagon and make hardcore games for the Wii. They need to invest some money into this.
It can be done. Twilight Princess (which I think was better on the Wii), Mario Galaxy, Resident Evil 4, the Guitar Hero games, are all for the "hardcore" market. And people have been buying them.
As for the bubble issue, I've always looked at this as a business point of view. Bubbles normally happen when a sudden jolt of buying occurs. When you look at the housing bubble or the petroleum bubble, these events happened relatively suddenly and for artificial reasons.
The Wii wasn't that case. Its sales were initially large to begin with, and those sales increased over time. Those purchases were also not artificial; people actually liked the damn thing from the start. It's not like the PS3 where people bought the machine to sell it off again.
In any case, I think it's up to 3rd party companies to make games for the hardcore. Nintendo's done it already, and they've proved a point. People will actually buy really good games that appeal to hardcore gamers. Just don't give us another fricken Red Steel.
You have got to be kiddin me...
And here i thought only stupid young kids on the net cried bitter tears while using memes like kiddy and granmother console to justefy the fact that no one gives two sh!ts about their favourite system and/or games.
Well Mr Steven Kent proved me wrong. Preach on brotha, manbabies entertain me and your little rant is hilarious in a "look at that retard" kind of way".
Of course i just fell in your attention whore trap and gave your "article" yet another undeserved hit, but oh well.
Wouldn't June 2007 be the Wii's 8-month mark, not the 18-month mark (it was released, at least in North American, in November 2006). That would make your threshold "18-month" mark fall around June 2008; still no great shakes compared to many other consoles, but Mario Galaxy had been released, Smash Bros. was a great graphical achievement, Mario Kart finally had implemented a great online scheme, and third-party software had greatly improved. Just sayin'.
I used to value your opinions, but you sir are now out of touch.
I agree that the wii offers a multiplayer experience for everyone of separate skill levels.
I've also enjoyed quirky titles such as Zack & Wiki, No More Heroes(one of the best games this year next to The World Ends With You) and Order Up
In fact, I bought more games for my wii this year than I did for my 360.
08 definitely fizzled out at the end, though there was Mushroom Men. Mid year we had the surprise of WarioLand as well.
There were also niche third party titles like Blast Works, de Blob, World of Goo
To be fair though, Nintendo released titles back to back during the beginning of 08 which is usually a drought. This was when they released their blockbusters.. it wasn't like they didn't have them in 08 at all.. they just didn't put them in the holiday season treating consumers like children waiting for toys on Christmas. If anything, there are simply too many games releasing in Q4 these days.
09 shows a lot of potential, third party support and original ips.. More Mature titles and with the announcement of Dragon Quest X on the wii, the platform will see even more third party support.
The problem is, the library is mainly ignored due to the lack of sequels.. which isn't entirely a problem, it just doesn't draw blockbuster crowds, and there isn't marketing behind the core products.
As for why I support the wii, this is my first personal owned Nintendo platform.. I'm actually one of those guys who bashed them year after year growing up during the PSX era and opting for a Sega Genesis.
Rather than choose a platform with an identity crisis.. 360 trying to cater to ps3/wii crowd, ps3 trying to cater to 360 crowd, the big money only going into shooters and following the pc gaming philosophy which I've just grown out of and come back to the age of consoles and single player gaming.
Last gen I noticed my priorities were exclusives since everything started getting ported to PC, specifically the support of Capcom and many 360 titles.
So I feel I've made a wise purchase with my needs owning a wii... just looking at 08 alone the wii has twice as many exclusives as the 360, and no these aren't shovelware, these are all titles over 7.0 ranking
Alex, you make some excellent points here.
Piehl, you are right. My month adding is wrong. That said, means that Mario Kart, Smash Bros. Brawl and Metriod came in under the 18 month mark. What good (or great) games have come out since?
Dan, that may well be true. But in touch or out to lunch, I still did not see anything worth playing on Wii over the holidays.
I totally know what you mean. I was drinking some Coke at the office today, and some joker was drinking Pepsi (or as I like to call it, 'Crapsi'). He was just so pathetic. I felt sorry for him. I guess it's fine, though, in a way. If he's never experienced the majestic glory of a good can of Coke, he won't know what he's missing. He'll just go on and live his life, happily quaffing his sugary swill.
Really, I just felt bad for him. Poor bastard.
Yup, Michael, you just go on playing Wii Music, or Animal Crossing, or Wario... whatever it is that keeps you coming back, I'm glad they have it on Wii.
BTW, you might try playing the games offered on your favorite website's banners. You may find them equally enthralling.
When exactly this this dichotomy between hardcore and casual gamers develop?
Really, all hardcore gamers really represent are holdovers from previous casual booms. (Nobody starts out as an obsessive snob.) Like SHUMPS? You're automatically hardcore. If you liked them when the Genesis was released, you were the same as anyone else at the time. Not necessarily anything but casual you could've been hardcore but that relatively tiny fragment of the audience has never really driven console sales.
I don't have much interest in owning a Wii personally, but I don't get any twisted sense of superiority out of that fact. The library simply doesn't appeal to me.
lol @ your comments, spoken like a true 12 year old.
Oh and what website, NeoGAF?
Cuz thats where i found this childish and desrespectful rant from a so called professional game journalist.
But hey, at least you provided many lulz there.
Watching someone else's credibility go down the crapper is always fun.
@Steven
Regarding this holiday, I'd like to think that Nintendo had a plan. I'd like to think that they left the holiday open for third parties to show off what they could do for the Wii without having to compete against Nintendo's self published games, and I've come to the conclusion the third parties just didn't step up.
Nintendo had to know their own capacity, and as a development house they had a couple of great hard-core games out for 2008 that they they could have easily pushed back, and several games in their "New Play Control" series that they could have pushed forward, but they didn't. I know what it says to me, but what does that to you?
Mr. Kent, for the two million people that bought a Wii in November in NA, I think for them, there actually WERE more titles available than Wii Music or Animal Crossing. In fact, for those two million people, there might be over two year's worth of games they can play!
Nintendo released Smash Brothers, Mario Kart and in the first half of the year, those are two major titles. Why is it ONLY up to Nintendo to constantly pump out compelling content? Third parties also need to step up, and they simply haven't. But I suppose they're too busy spending enormous amounts of money and not seeing significant returns on their HD only games. Unless of course, they are Activision, Rockstar, EA, or Valve.
Fortunately it seems 3rd parties are finally starting to realize they shouldn't have just bet on only one horse, just because it has more shaders and normal maps.
And it might seem crazy to you, but they were plenty of great games on the Wii this holiday season, but since they didn't have $50 million dollar advertising budgets, I'm assuming you have no clue what they are. Probably another good reason why you're so out of touch with the market.
Tales of Symphonia 2, deBlob, and Mushroom Men are all great titles. But again, I'll be surprised if you know them.
I also enjoyed Prince of Persia, and Mirror's Edge. Great titles as well.
Um, Kent? Can I call you Kent? I'm sorry, is this Stephen Kent? The former game journalist? Wow, because I thought I stumbled onto the blog of an angry 16 year old who's mad that not everyone in the world is playing the games they like the most.
Having your thumb so far from the pulse of the industry can be frustrating; there, there. Fact is, the 360 has made quite a lot of money over the past year, and the PS3 is doing...good. Not as good as year's past, but there's room for improvement, yes?
The "hardcore" is not going anywhere soon, as long as Valve, EA, 2K and Activision can keep up with ludicrous development, and most importantly, marketing budjets, you'll have plenty of FPS to enjoy for years. Don't you worry! Chin up!
As for me, I really enjoyed Prince of Persia and Mirror's Edge on my 360. And I had a great time with Tales of Symphonia 2, deBlob, and Mushroom Men. I don't expect you to have ANY clue what those last three games are. Considering you clearly are becoming more and more distant with the industry you claim to enjoy.
As a long-time gamer who remembers when the Atari 2600 was called the Atari VCS, I've long associated Steve Kent for "The First Quarter" (first edition), due to its comprehensive recording of the early history of video games.
I'm therefore disappointed to see that he's apparently suffered some form of personal problem, because now he's been reduced to being a bitter fanboy. Sheesh, Steve, do you spend all your time hanging out on ps3forums.com these days?
--R.J.
R.J., what exactly are you playing on Wii that has you so happy with the system? Judging by the responses, I must have missed a good game on the system for quite a while.
Matt, I'm not sure exactly how to respond to your rant except to ask if you actually read this post before you responded.
I was surprised to see this article, and my first reaction was to point out the 18 month error -- but someone's already done that. However, you ask what's come out since the 18 month period...
Myself, I have a Wii, 360, and DS. Since Summer 08, on the Wii, I have bought and really enjoyed De Blob, Order Up, Art Style: Orbient, World of Goo, Wii Music, Animal Crossing: City Folk, Warioland, Toki Tori, LostWinds, Dokapon Kingdom, and Samba de Amigo. I also got Lego Batman as my wife likes playing the Lego games in co-op with me...
On 360... Banjo Kazooie Nuts n Bolts, Braid, and Fallout 3. I also loved the Left 4 Dead demo, and plan to pick it up.
On the DS, Soul Bubbles, Lock's Quest, Civ Rev, and Ninjatown. And my personal Game of the Year: The World Ends With You.
I don't know, I think your claims seem really strange... almost like 3rd parties don't exist. Or is it that games HAVE to be marketed with AAA budgets to even be considered good?
Also, if you are not averse to games that came out in the first 18 months, I would recommend Boom Blox.
Shauntu, I was not impressed by many of the game you have mentioned, but the World of Goo stands out as a good one.
When it comes to third-party on Wii, I have been mostly unimpressed. Most of the games that have appeared on all platforms simply look and play better elsewhere.
I love Ubisoft's Rabbids, but I am not as impressed with the games as I am with the rabbids themselves.
In the past, Nintendo has always defined the character of its consoles with its first-party titles. I think that is still the case. I think Wii Sports defines the WiiP--a collection of mini games.
I am very impressed with Wii SPorts, by the way; but just as I moved on from Mario 64 on the N64, I also moved on from Wii Sports.
To your point about Super Smash Bros., Mario Kart, and Galaxy, I could not agree more. They are wonderful games.
Aren't you getting a little tired of waiting for the next A+ title?
@Steven
Another question for you - have you ever posted on NeoGAF? I know if you did in the past, you probably wouldn't have wanted to connect your identity there with your professional identity, but if have, I and many others would love to know what your post history was like.
Nope, I have never posted on NeoGaf. And to address somebody else's point, this piece is not an article, it was a posting on my personal blog.
Are you seriously saying you were unimpressed by De Blob? Or did you not even bother trying it because it came from an unknown developer, published by THQ, with hardly any marketing budget to speak off, and a completely charming presentation with 0 blood or guns?
If the later, I recommend giving it a shot. You might be surprised at how much fun the controls, sense of exploration, and even challenging it can be, while the story, full of revolutionary sentiments and nazi allegories...
Since you asked, Steve, I'm currently alternating between de Blob and Shaun White Snowboarding: Road Trip, two games I wouldn't hesitate to recommend. And I have no qualms in admitting that Mario Kart Wii can keep me endlessly entertained, thanks to the abundance of opponents online.
They might not be high-budget AAA-rank titles, but they're fun, and isn't that the whole point of video gaming is about?
But given your cavalier dismissal of Shauntu's list, I doubt I'll make any progress in turning your demenaor around. It appears you've become too wrapped up in the technological wonders of gaming to remember that what people want is to simply have fun -- and that other people's ideas of fun don't have to mesh with your own.
It's one thing to say that you prefer gaming on the XBox 360 and/or the PS3, but it's another to sneer down your nose at Wii gamers as unwashed masses who just want to exercise and pretend to play the tuba. It only reflects poorly on yourself...
--R.J.
rjung and shauntu, I have not played DeBlob as of yet. As I said at the beginning of this posting, I am no longer a full-time games journalist. Even when I was, I did not play every game on the market.
Shauntu listed:
De Blob,
Order Up,
Art Style: Orbient,
World of Goo,
Wii Music,
Animal Crossing: City Folk, Warioland,
Toki Tori,
LostWinds,
Dokapon Kingdom,
Samba de Amigo,
Lego Batman
I was unimpressed by Wii Music, Warioland, Animal Crossing, and Samba de Amigo. In truth, I would have been more impressed by Samba if I had not been so stuck on the Dreamcast version of that game.
I was impressed by Lego Batman and thought World of Goo was very good. I have not played the others.
Hello Mr. Kent. I have been watching your blog from behind the scenes for about a month(I was reading when Spiperrae was talking about giving back stuff) thoroughly enjoyed your book The Ultimate History of Videogames, it was never boring and was always relevant unlike another much expensive book which lacked passion which I also got. I have noticed that I enjoy following the industry and why games or consoles do better than others more than playing games. I have not read your science fiction Clone novels, although I picked up Clone Alliance a week ago only to realize that it was not the first in the series once I got home. I used to watch you on Icons, when G4 showed actual shows about the game industry not Cheaters and Cops, which gives the industry a bad image.
I thought npw would be a good time to introduce myself and post. I think that you bring up a relevant topic with relevant points. I was crushed when I watched the Nintendo 2008 E3 press conference. I liked the comparison you used. I agree when you say Wii is the new Home-Pong. While I got a Wii the first year it came out, I have lost faith and interest in the system due to lack of games. My history teacher would say that China was his son; sometimes China makes mistakes, but he still loves him because he is his son. That is how I feel about the current state of Nintendo. To those who think Mr. Kent is ranting, he is not; he is simply analyzing the industry. Nintendo seems to have thrown Mario on the backburner and their new mascot seems to be the Mii. Nintendo has created a whole new market, and in doing this they are smart. Yet, what happens when the Wii fades? Wii 2? I doubt people will buy the Wii 2 if it is ever released, it will be like Pong. It seems like by alienating its loyal fans, Nintendo is setting itself up for future failure. However the Wii may be just a plan of Nintendo's to generate profits to be able to research new technologies to implement in its next-gen console. This seems unlikely. Eventually the Wii bubble will burst. Consoles are like dynasties.
All of this bashing brought from GoNintendo is bringing a negative vibe to this blog. Please post respectfully.
On a different note, I think Sony is looking more and more like Sega everyday, in that they are losing third party exclusives. The necessity for Sony to publish unique first party games that have high quality is like Sega's position with the Dreamcast. The PSP reminds me of Sega's overextension and inability to suppoert many consoles at once. Your thoughts?
"I have not played the others."
But you had no qualms about dismissing the tastes of all the people who were playing the Wii over the holidays, eh? Just dismissed them all as a bunch of proles who ignored the glory of Bioshock for playing imaginary tubas, right?
And now you're wondering why your bitter little snit is attracting so much opposition, no doubt...
--R.J.
Let me give you comparison of the time I've spent on gaming over the course of the last year or so to put things into perspective... It's a long list so sorry about that in advance: MP3 Corruption 14 hours, Super Paper Mario 10 hrs, Brawl 50+, Mario Kart 20+, Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn 20+, Tales of Symphonia (GC) 50+, Galaxy 10+, Zelda TP 30+, Zelda OoT (VC) 10+, Zack & Wiki 10, Resident Evil 4 (Wii) 8+, Okami (Wii) 10+, Animal Crossing CF 15+, de Blob 5+. Wii Music 15+ I missed a few, but that's most of them.
Compare that to my time spent on the PS3/360: MGS4 10, Bioshock 7, CoD 4, GTA IV 6, Mass Effect 4, LBP 8, Resistance 6, Ratchet & Clank 4, SCIV 15+. Now, having said that, I'm just getting into Valkyria Chronicles which is pretty awesome, and I have Fallout 3, Eternal Sonata, and Disgaea to get through as well as Persona 4 for the PS2. Prince of Persia IS ONE OF THE WORST GAMES I HAVE EVER PLAYED. An Street Fighter IV and Resident Evil 5 are coming out (go Capcom!) so things are looking up for the PS3 now.
I know there are other games on the PS3 (my xbox died and I actually got a full refund), but not all gamers care about western RPGs or first person shooters. Those are PC style games. I want console style games. Nintendo has delivered exceptionally well and for someone like me they have the best exclusive lineup out there. I agree with everyone else that the holiday lineup wasn't the greatest (I enjoy Wii Music, the new Symphonia which I've just started, and Animal Crossing, however), but I really couldn't live without my Nintendo console.
You have to have two consoles though, as there is sometimes a drought... If they don't have some great titles this year, however, I will be very disappointed in them after getting all this attention. Brawl, Kart, Wii Music, and Animal Crossing were all pretty good this year IMHO.
Blaine, that is indeed an awesome list of games. We agree about some on some and disagree on others.
I find it interesting that so many people have assumed that I am big on FPS games. I'm not.
Actually, R.J., you are the one who sounds bitter.
First of al, NintendoXStation, thank you for reading my blog and books, I hope you enjoy the novel. Thanks also for the defense. I figured this blog would touch of a storm, and it has.
Sony has found itself in the Saturn chair, sort of. From everything I hear, Sony has impressive plans for 2009. I do think Sony initially suffered from falling too much in love with its hardware and not thinking about its software.
The really interesting element here is that we are already in
2009. Historically, the new consoles come out in years ending with 5 or 0, so we may see new systems next year. They are certainly under development.
It would be a very SEGA-esque move for Sony to punt on the PS3 and start pushing PS4.
I doubt that will happen.
"Actually, R.J., you are the one who sounds bitter."
Yes, Kent, of course, there's no possible way that you're in the wrong. People like me, and Chris Kohler, and Dan and Michael and Shauntu, we're all in the wrong who simply can't grasp the brilliance of your One True Gamer perspective. Why, as Wii owners, it's a minor miracle we even understand how to operate a computer, much less find your blog...
--R.J.
Interestingkly enough, R.J., Chris Kohler has commented on this very page... and he did not sound a bit like you.
That could be because Chris and I have been friends for many, many years.
Nice to see more commentary about games from you, Steven. I really enjoyed First Quarter and your articles back in the day.
I can't disagree with your take on the state of the Wii from a traditional gamer's perspective. Although I think there's a decent library of games on the Wii, long time gamers will find more on the PS3 and 360.
You do sound a bit bitter, though, when you're creating epithets for the Wii and calling casuals tragic. Still, it's a blog so I suppose it's as good a place to vent as any.
I'm not sure whether Nintendo has changed much, either, but if the guy with the lampshade on his head managed to get my parents to join the party, I'm happy. And if I get tired of the waggle scene, there's always other parties to go to.
"Interestingkly enough, R.J., Chris Kohler has commented on this very page... and he did not sound a bit like you."
I would hope not, since we're not the same person. I can only surmise that Chris has more tolerance for conceit than I do.
--R.J.
Ed,
Sorry if I came off as bitter. I am disappointed--not to have been proven wrong,by Chris, whom I respect; but I am disappointed by Nintendo's new direction.
That said, they went from controlling over 90 percent of the market with the NES to approximately 48 percent (until SEGA abandoned Genesis in 1995 for Saturn) with the SNES, to 33 percent with the N64, to 16 percent with the GameCube. I suppose they needed to do something different.
I'll give you that there wasn't anything spectacular for the holiday but they released the big guns in the spring - Mario Kart and Smash Bros. They could have held off those games until Christmas but they released them early.
I'm glad I didn't have to wait until November to play Mario Kart. And for those people that didn't yet have Mario Kart or Smash Bros., those would be great Christmas gifts. If Nintendo had another killer title for Christmas, it would have been a really stellar year.
not much to say that hasn't already been said other than Wii Music is a wonderful piece of software and possibly the most mis-understood piece of interactive entertainment there is. It's not a game - it should not be compared to GH or RB at all - it is a musical toy, surprisingly deep and, when you make use of the balance board, has the most in depth and flexible drum simulator of any music based game. Most people can't see past the cute veneer and the rythm gestures.
not much to say that hasn't already been. However, Wii Music is one of the deepest and best pieces of interactive entertainment available. Anyone who can't see past the initially simple and 'cute' veneer is really missing out on a deep and wonderful form of entertainment. Edge and 1UP seem to be the only publications that 'get it' and the rampant disdain shown to this piece of software, the lack of understanding is a clear demonstration of what is wrong with online gaming journalism. It should not be compared to GH and RB - it couldn't be any more different.
From what I gather, you're less disappointed by Nintendo's current direction than you are with the people who have chosen to support them. People who like "pretending to play the tuba on [their] Wii" or who "[like] dealing with a company that dances on tables and wears a lampshade over its head" and who, according to you, are not "real gamers".
If you don't like Nintendo's current direction, that's fine. Perfectly fine.
But my biggest disappointment is in how liberal you've allowed yourself to become in insulting those who do not share your perspective.
Every time you jeer that audience, for every "tuba" joke you make, for every mudsling-comment you say about how they enjoy the company of a drunken old friend, you insult them. And furthermore, you portray yourself as one whose ignorance, not understanding, of the opposition's perspective drives his point.
They may be nameless, faceless people to you. But they are people. They have stories. They have lives they live, and families they care about. And many of them are regular, upstanding citizens. That is something I can guarantee, as I have firsthand experience of that audience, some of which are my own family. In order to make a tactful argument bereft of offense, I would advise you to remember that fact in the future. Don't just create a scarecrow to poke fun at.
* Note: I realize that in the light of the exchange of words between you and Ed, this may come off as somewhat harsh, and I truly don't wish for that. But I feel it's something that still needs to be said. And not just to you, but to those who feel troubled by the same sentiments.
I must agree with your opinion to the point that I am somewhat disappointed by the lack of 'Big' titles that have been released on the Wii, or to clarify, titles that I can get excited about before release. As a previous poster says however I am happy playing the likes of Mario Kart online.
I have always been against the distinction of the 'Hardcore'/'Casual' gamer distinction, as I feel you apparently only qualify as 'hardcore' gamer if you play certain genres of games and post obscene amounts on fan forums.
I have always been of the opinion that I will play what I like, as it happens I don't like FPS, I have tried Halo3, Bioshock, Call of Duty, but none of them really do anything for me, just like 'realistic' racers such as NFS, or project Gotham.
I have both a Wii and a 360 and have probably split my time pretty much equally between the two since I've had both, and I use my PC for RTS (waiting for Starcaraft II with bated breath!), and Football Manager.
Going back to the N64 Generation, I felt that Games Publishers were all jumping on the 3D bandwagon with their games, everything was coming out with a '3D' tagged on the end, and not very much of it was good quality. I feel the current generation is similar in that publishers are either jumping on the HD bandwagon and trying to make their games look really really pretty with no actual gameplay substance. The other bandwagon they may be jumping on is the Wii bandwagon. By this I mean the publishers who are not spending time/effort/money on produced dedicated titles for the Wii that take advangtage of the unique control system, but merely porting games and mapping one control function to a wave of the Wii-mote where possible, and this is what I feel is damaging the Wii above all else.
As an example of what can be done look at Resident Evil 4. Maybe a slight graphical downgrade from the likes of the 360 version, but the Wii adapted control system, imo, actually makes it a lot better to play than any of it's other format counterparts.
Some of the blame can be laid at Nintendos door, but I think more can be laid with developers and publishers.
As a mild side note I am hoping that our old drunk friend the Wii will be helped when the Wii-Motion Plus is release later this year.
Wow, I no way envisioned that this blog post would be such a sounding board for rabid fanboys and for people to go crazy about. Guess I'm out of touch.
That said, I agree that back in the day that Nintendo was KING, and maybe they still are in some parts of the world, but over here in America, they've taken a 3rd place seat to Sony and Microsoft. Growing up, when anyone mentioned video games, you probably thought of Nintendo. Even with the N64, Nintendo was still fairly strong. But it just seems that they've taken a different direction lately. Who knows, they may be ahead of the curve and this could pay off for them BIG TIME, but I can't tell yet.
Steven, been a big fan of your work since, oh, 2000.
I think the big difference with Nintendo's "drinking problem" right now is that no one is taking away the liquor. The company's making money, people are clamoring for more Wii, and -- well -- c'est la vie. Only, the people clamoring for Wii's are the ones who don't necessarily realize that Nintendo has a drinking problem in the first place. The company's found an audience that doesn't know what a drunkard is, and worse, why it's bad to be one.
Then again, in the world of business, if Nintendo's making torrential blasts of cheddar like never before -- and I really mean never -- then why should it stop doing what it's doing?
Actually I'd like to answer my own question... they don't really have to do anything, no, but as someone who's actually looking forward to The Conduit and Mad World, it really kind of does tick me off when not a single (unless something's hiding under a rock) high-profile Nintendo game this year wasn't dreck or a lazy sequel excepting Smash Brothers, since -- although it's a sequel -- it's of insanely high quality such that I'd hardly call it lazy. I like seeing efforts like de Blob, so where's more from the company manufacturing the damned machine? Oddly enough, I buy Nintendo machines because I like(d) Nintendo software -- I own other consoles for third party goodies. So while de Blob and No More Heroes are nice, I really, really want to see some of that original IP (done well, not lazily) being touted a few years earlier. We're entering Year Three, here, and I'm not even a quarter as happy with the Wii as I thought I'd be.
You sir fail at your job.
If you would like the world to view you as a real journalist and not a fan boy then please leave the insults to the drab sites like cnet and the sony defense force.
Surely someone with over 30 years in the video game world is better then this. The wii is not death tot eh industry, it is not the doom and gloom machine you make it out to be. I own one as well as the 360 and have to say this little fact. It is a fun machine that offers an escape. It is a fun system I feel safe letting my friends play with, letting my family play with, and letting my self play with. It is not this loaded gun ready to destroy any “real” gamer that might come in contact with it.
It astounds me that of the great games on the wii you name but a paltry sample that only major media has talked about. It does nothing but prove that you have not done research into the wii and anything it might offer to a “real” gamer such as yourself.
Please do the world a favor and take the time to educate yourself and open your mind to the fact that you don’t need hd graphics and dual analog sticks with a hearty supply of grenades to enjoy a game. Truly with that mentality I would have mistaken you for the twelve year old run into on live.
Nintendo seems to be the only company still embracing that it is a console for gaming. Third parties have not come around yet and found their place on the system but it's not because it's audience does not like hardcore games, they just don't like crappy PS2 ports with waggle.
So what are the Xbox 360 and PS3 doing right? in my eyes they are killing console gaming, now what we mostly get are dumbed down PC experiences that I would prefer on PC, Everything seems to be designed to be a one person on the internet gaming model and long gone are the days of 4 people having fun together around a console. THAT is what console gaming is about and THAT is what makes the wii strong, so the games are mostly casual? So be it but when you have 4 players around it, it's a lot of fun.
As a PC gamer I just don't see the purpose of these consoles if they are going to push the PC experience and just leave behind what made consoles so great in the first place.
NickName
On the most part, I am only posting people's comments at this point, but your comment calls out so strongly for a response...
Interesting assumptions have been made about me and my tastes in games. If there is one genre I enjoy above all others, it is RTS games--a genre best played on computers. I seldom play FPS games. I like adventure and arcade games.
My post is not meant as an assault on the market as much as a criticism of the marketeers. I do not even consider Wii Music a game, and Nintendo is a company that knows how to make great, great games.
Look, Nintendo can suport both the casual gamers and the hardcore at once if it wants to. Mario Galaxy and Smash Bros. were not accidents, and neither is the fact that Nintendo has only released on actual Mario Adventure per console for the last three generations.
I am not just down casual games as a genre but I am down on them as an excuse. I was equally harsh with Nintendo during the GameCube era when Starfox abandoned his fighter and became a Marine.
I don't see anywhere where Kent talks about the console being death to the industry. What were you reading? Or, were you just re-listening to an old episode of 1up Yours with the "Will Wii kill the industry" four-minute warning just to get your angry juices flowing enough to inspire your comment?
Also, for people chiding him for not being a proper "journalist"... wake up. This is his blog. I'm pretty sure he has the right to let his hair down in his own space. Did you see this on USA Today or anything? Or were you just a few of many angered NeoGAF guys who clicked in the link just to show Kent who's boss?
Dan makes an interesting point here--Smash Bros. and Mario Kart came out early. Had Nintendo finished off the year with a big game, he feels the year would have been stellar.
Have you ever heard the name Howard Philips? Howard was the face of Nintendo during the NES period. The first iterations of Nintendo Power featured a cartoon called "Howard and Nester" (http://hn.iodized.net/main.htm), and he appeared at all kinds of events.
Howard left Nintendo in frustration during the SNES period because he saw a weekness that the company was not willing to address. SEGA had opened up its American Games college and was pumping out as many as 75 games per year. Nintendo's response, in Howard's words, was to dig in tight and hold on until the next big Miyamoto title.
Sony during the PSX and PS2 era, and certainly Microsoft now, are not willing to do that. If you look, these companies release a dozen grade-A titles each year. They also work more closely and have better relations with third-party publishers.
I will not tell you that either Nintendo or Microsoft have put out anything to rival Super Smash Bros. or Mario Galaxy in quality. For my taste, those games go uncontested.
My problem with Nintendo is that once you get past the uber A list, there is a very sharp drop in quality.
Sports games like Madden and NBA Live play better on console. Grand Theft Auto is still alive and kicking. Sony deserves real credit for LittleBigPlanet.
Microsoft, and finally Sony, are able to give online gamers a rich and unique envioronment.
I think the spirit of console games is still alive and well on 360 and PS3.
My qualm with Xbox 360 to a great extent, and PS3 to a lesser extent, is that they have left younger gamers and the non-FPS crowd behind.
Interestingly, the analysts picked up on that very thing over a year ago. I John Taylor telling me that Microsoft had backed itself into this very corner.
You're very dumb, Steven Kent
I must say that I've extremely disappointed in this blog post. When I was first made aware of it, it looked like something I'd see posted by an uneducated fanboy on the average forum. Then I was informed that Steven Kent wrote it and I am still in a bit of disbelief. Whether I've agreed or disagreed with you in the past I've always respected your opinion.
This article reminds me of one those half hearted false apologies that a politician or athlete makes when they've down something of ill repute. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I think some of your experience and reputation could express without such condescending arrogance.
Nintendo has done what they've always done. They've churned out their traditional titles at a faster rate than in the past to be honest. They've done this while appealing to "casual" gamers that you seem to have such little regard for. If Nintendo was churning out nothing but WiiMusic, WiiFit, and WiiPlay type games I could see the reasons for your apparent anger but those games have come in addition to Super Mario Galaxy, Twilight Princess, Metroid Prime 3, etc.
Sometimes it is not what you say, but its how you say it. Frankly Mr. Kent, you come off as snobbish and arrogant. You don't like the Wii and Nintendo's direction. That is fine. However, you don't have to be insulting to the people that do enjoy what Nintendo has done.
Your admission of being wrong basically amounted to you saying. I was wrong, the Wii isn't a fad, but it's only because Wii owners are not real gamers. People are individuals Mr. Kent. They are unique and if they don't share you taste in games, it doesn't make them wrong and you right.
I find it interesting that among self styled "gamers" the Wii is met with such disdain, or as a niche product not really aimed at the market.
Personally, I feel that "gamers" themselves live in a niche of the video game world that just keeps narrowing and narrowing itself to only appreciate "1337" games.
Wii appeals to a far broader audience - the audience outside the uber-gamer experience. There will always be a bleeding edge of gaming where the "gamers" will live, but there hasn't been much tapping of the mainstream market behind that edge.
Nintendo is filling a gap that insanely addictive flash games are also filling - fun, easily accessible games that don't require a system that could run Skynet.
Just because two companies have been competing for who makes a better filet mignon, doesn't mean there isn't a huge market out there for hot dogs and cheeseburgers.
"Hardcore games" are the niche, really, as hardcore gamers are a minority in the world at large. That they are losing their majority status among "people who buy game systems" should be a positive sign of more global acceptance of their chosen form of entertainment.
Nintendo is doing to hardcore gamers what AOL did to BBS sysops - making a closed-community world open to the public at large.
Given that a lot of "core" games apparently got lost amongst the recent holiday-shopping-season glut (Tomb Raider: Underworld and Mirror's Edge being but two examples), I wonder if this vindicates Nintendo's 2008 release schedule. Their "core" games (Mario Kart, SSBB) were released earlier in the year and didn't get lost in the shuffle, and Nintendo devoted their Fall advertising to casual-friendly fare -- just when all those casuals were doing their Christmas shopping.
"My problem with Nintendo is that once you get past the uber A list, there is a very sharp drop in quality."
Blame the third-party publishers, then. Nintendo left the 2008 holiday season wide open for them to sell "traditional" games to the Wii audience, and they futzed it. As but one example, a new, Wii-exclusive Burnout (building upon the PS2 titles) could've easily drawn in the crowds. With more than 20 million Wiis in North America alone, just selling to 3% of that audience would've been a blockbuster.
--R.J.
Matt,
Ihis is a response I can appreciate. It is well-thoughtout, well-reasoned, and well explained.
I do not completely agree, but I find your points impossible to ignore.
Interestingly, Nintendo is filling a niche that Sony and Microsoft abandoned in the last generation. In fact, it is a marketing niche that Nintendo itself started to leave behind whe it turned to games like Eternal Darkness and arranged for exclusives on the Resdident Evil games.
Microsoft and Sony effectively shut Nintendo off from the 20+ hardcore crowd in the PS2 Generation, and Nintendo responded by expanding everything that was left in the market.
You make a very strong argument.
How many of you are going to still be equating "blog post on a dude's personal blog" with an "article"? Yes, this is still on a public forum, but that doesn't mean he has to put his job hat on when he posts here.
R.J.
You make some strong points here as well.
For a very long time, Nintendo has not had the best relations with its third-parties. There have been exceptions to this. Capcom's Shinji Mikami liked working with Nintendo.
On the most part though, Nintendo is said to hard on third-party publishers. This largely stemmed from Hiroshi Yamauchi's view of third parties as poachers he was permitting to enter his territory.
I think it is fair to say that on the most part, games that have appeared across all three major platforms have both looked and played better on PS3 and 360. You may disagree.
The reverse is true, too. With few exceptions, the third party publishers have not capitalized on the Wiimote as successfully as Nintendo.
In the end, the main reason for buying any Nintendo platform in the past was for access to Nintendo's original games. That places a heavy onus on Nintendo that Sony and Microsoft do not share--simply put, in order for a Nintendo platform to succeed, Nintendo must shoulder a larger part of the burden.
Microsoft can get away with a only a Halo and a Gears of War or a Forz in one year because 360 owners happily buy up Madden and KOTOR and Mass Effect.
Nintendo does not have that luxury.
BTW, Nintendo sort of pioneered the move toward spreading the big releases out through the year. The original Game Boy was released in August. More recently, Goldeneye 007 was an August release. The success of Goldeneye caused the entire industry to rethink summer releases.
A few years later, such noteable failures as Between Good and Evil and Prince of Persia caused the industry to change strategies. The glut of big games over the holidays has caused many great games to under perform.
I play video games, mainly on the PC. Then I had a child and ... no time for video games.
The Wii provides some casual game time that while not as all immersive, certainly has its place.
But ... I even liked/enjoy Wii Music (not as a game, but as a creative activity) so maybe I'm just too far removed from gaming now.
Nintendo has released a number of projects that were less about gaming and more about experience. Certainly Endless Ocean and Electroplankton come to mind. there may be more. I think Wii Music fits into this catergory.
"On the most part though, Nintendo is said to hard on third-party publishers. This largely stemmed from Hiroshi Yamauchi's view of third parties as poachers he was permitting to enter his territory."
Last I looked, it's 2009, and Yamauchi hasn't been at Nintendo for nearly five years now. Today's Nintendo is the same one who supported Rockstar's Manhunt 2 on the Wii and Grand Theft Auto on the DS, teamed up with Sega for Mario and Sonic at the Olympics, and has pledged to support Square-Enix in promoting Dragon Quest IX among Western audiences. At this point, blaming "big bad Nintendo" for the cluelessness of third parties just looks like pitiable buck-passing, a desperate attempt to shift the blame in order to cover up their own bad management decisions.
It is no surprise to me that the third-party developers currently suffering the most from financial problems are the ones who've offered little to no quality products on Nintendo's systems. The landscape is changing; evolve or die, kids.
--R.J.
R.J., are you saying that the Yamauchi regime left no lasting impression on Nintendo culture? Satoru Iwata has certainly revitalized things; but for better or for worse, much of the culture Yamauchi created still remains.
Nintendo is outselling the competition nearly two-to-one these days (NPD may well report that they outsold the competition more than two-to-one over the holidays), do you really think EA, Ubisoft, THQ, Activision, and Rockstar are not taking Wii seriously?
It has been too long Steve! I miss seeing you on the road. Everything here is going well -- hopefully getting ready for a big move (which I believe you know about already).
Getting back on topic (somewhat). As a rule, I try to disagree with Kohler as much as possible (except when it comes to food and karaoke). Sometimes I don't even bother to form my own opinion for editorials. Just disagreeing with Chris's usually works out for me.
(Just kidding Kohler.)
R.Pad, there are times I miss the old life.
Your reasons for moving are excellent and I think you will hve a grat time.
Doesn't that move you nearer to everyone's favorite ex-professional wrestler?
hey steve, it's danny frazier. it took me 45 minutes to figure out how to contact you on this blog stuff. i found your books looking for orson scott card stuff. didn't even know you'd been published. because of availability i read the second clone book first, then the third second and then the fourth. i just got the first one and am starting to read it! the books are the bomb and of course my favorite character is ray freeman. can you get my email address or can i just give it to you? i really don't know how blogs even work.
Danny, I hope you read this. If so, send me your email or phone number. I will not post it, but I will call or email you directly.
I take it you have left Utah. I tried to look you up several times but had no luck.
BTW, Do you remember Steve Yose from your days in Oakland?
Steven Kent DESTRUCTION:
Games I played 2007 and 2008 on Wii:
Okami, Galaxy, Godfather, Scarface, Bully, Call Of Duty World At War, MOH Heroes 2, Red Steel, Driver 3, Nights, DewysAdventure, Sam And Max 1, Shaun White, Tomb Raider, Mario Kart, No More Heroes, Metroid Prime 3, Alone In The Dark, Smash Brothers, Umbrella Chronicles, De Blob, Endless Ocean, Elebits, Pro Evolution Soccer.
Games I will play on Wii:
Endless Ocean 2 - Red Steel 2 - Monster Hunter 3 - Fragile - No More Heroes 2 - Demon Blade - Dragon Quest 10 - Cursed Mountain - Mad World - Tenchu 4 - Fatal Frame 4 - The Conduit - Sadness - Klonoa - Kore - Cosmic Walker - House Of The Dead Overkill - Sam And Max - Sonic The Black Knight - Ghostbusters - Dead Rising - Sin And Punishment 2 - Punch Out - PES 2009 - Dynamic Slash - Rune Factory Frontier - Overlord - The Calling - Ougun No Kizuna - Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers - Spy Borgs - Sky Crawlers - Deadly Creatures - TMNT - Mizuguchis QJ - Ready 2 Rumble Revolution - Colin Mcrae Dirt - Trace Memory R
plus yet to be announced stuff by
Retro Studios, Monster Games, Factor 5, Nintendo, EA, Sega, Ubi Soft, Avtivision, Capcom, Konami, Tecmo, Atari, THQ, Eidos etc.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM
**Steven Kent's head explodes**
;-))
Steven Kent DESTRUCTION:
Games I played 2007 and 2008 on Wii:
Okami, Galaxy, Godfather, Scarface, Bully, Call Of Duty World At War, MOH Heroes 2, Red Steel, Driver 3, Nights, DewysAdventure, Sam And Max 1, Shaun White, Tomb Raider, Mario Kart, No More Heroes, Metroid Prime 3, Alone In The Dark, Smash Brothers, Umbrella Chronicles, De Blob, Endless Ocean, Elebits, Pro Evolution Soccer.
Games I will play on Wii:
Endless Ocean 2 - Red Steel 2 - Monster Hunter 3 - Fragile - No More Heroes 2 - Demon Blade - Dragon Quest 10 - Cursed Mountain - Mad World - Tenchu 4 - Fatal Frame 4 - The Conduit - Sadness - Klonoa - Kore - Cosmic Walker - House Of The Dead Overkill - Sam And Max - Sonic The Black Knight - Ghostbusters - Dead Rising - Sin And Punishment 2 - Punch Out - PES 2009 - Dynamic Slash - Rune Factory Frontier - Overlord - The Calling - Ougun No Kizuna - Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers - Spy Borgs - Sky Crawlers - Deadly Creatures - TMNT - Mizuguchis QJ - Ready 2 Rumble Revolution - Colin Mcrae Dirt - Trace Memory R
plus yet to be announced stuff by
Retro Studios, Monster Games, Factor 5, Nintendo, EA, Sega, Ubi Soft, Avtivision, Capcom, Konami, Tecmo, Atari, THQ, Eidos etc.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM
**Steven Kent's head explodes**
"Satoru Iwata has certainly revitalized things; but for better or for worse, much of the culture Yamauchi created still remains."
I suspect neither you nor I know what the corporate culture is like at Nintendo these days (Chris Kohler would be the go-to guy for that one), but to suggest that what Nintendo did in the distant past takes precedence over what they're doing today is disingenuous -- you might as well say that the Obama Administration is doomed because of the atrocities of George W. Bush from the last eight years.
"Nintendo is outselling the competition nearly two-to-one these days (NPD may well report that they outsold the competition more than two-to-one over the holidays), do you really think EA, Ubisoft, THQ, Activision, and Rockstar are not taking Wii seriously?"
Of the four companies you listed, the only one who I'd say is taking the Wii seriously is THQ, with original games like de Blob and Deadly Creatures showing a strong commitment to the console.
EA is apparently throwing everything at the Wii and hoping something works, but releasing tripe like Celebrity Sports Showdown or releasing Rock Band 2 months after the other versions does not inspire confidence. Activision is in a similar boat, with missteps like omitting online co-op modes from Call of Duty: World at War and pushing dreck like Monster Jam and Monkey Mischief.
As for Ubisoft and Rockstar, Ubi's reputation among Wii owners is primarily as a purveyor of shoddy PS2 ports and condescending petz gamez (though I admit Shaun White is the first good Wii title they've done in years). And Rockstar? Their only Wii game for 2008 was a port of Bully -- which doesn't sound anything remotely like putting your best teams and your best efforts on the market leader.
For all I know, these companies will surprise me in 2009 by finally taking the Wii seriously (which means they'd be playing catch-up to Japanese developers, who are moving to the Wii like their livelihood depend on it). But if you want to make the case that Western developers are "taking Wii seriously," you'll need to do better than this.
--R.J.
And to say that the culture of Nintendo from the past has no effect on the present is entirely naive.
Look, like it or not, Yamauchi hired Imanishi, Mori, Takeda, Miyamoto, and Iwata. You don't think his views influenced them?
Also, R.J., are yuou suggesting that these companies do not want to make money. Wii is the number one console in the world. What are you saying, that Rockstar, EA, and Ubisoft are too busy making games for the number two and three consoles to concentrate on the big one?
like rockstar said due to Wiis massive install base they "just can't ignore it anymore"
The 2009 3rd party line up is easily the best line up I have seen since the SNES days.
The fact alone that AAA killer games like MH3 and DQ10 are now Wii exclusives is a huge blow for the competition.
The line up is almost creepy considering how much stuff is still to be announced in the coming months!
A Wii exclusive Black 2 anyone?;-)
Imagine Duke Nukem Forever exlusively for Wii with motion plus support! or Day Of The Tentacle 2 - ;-)
BIG TIME
"What are you saying, that Rockstar, EA, and Ubisoft are too busy making games for the number two and three consoles to concentrate on the big one?"
Dunno about you, Kent, but I didn't recall seeing any third-party Wii titles comparable to Mirror's Edge, Midnight Club L.A., Prince of Persia, Dead Space, or GTA 4 when I went Christmas shopping. Or perhaps that's why Nintendo's first-party titles sell the best on their consoles -- because they actually make an effort.
--R.J.
It totally does. He actually works for THQ now as creative designer for the WWE games. I wrote a few of the stories for this year's game. It was fun stuff!
All the best Steve!!!
@Steven:
We can hope, and right now have seen, that whatever previous culture Nintendo has decided to keep has generally been beneficial to the company.
You just have to look at the Wii and its construction to see that they've basically taken their old adage and simply have made it work. Nintendo, for years, has been attempting to simplify games so that everyone can play. You can sort of see this in the N64 and Gamecube, except the problem here has been a general horrible reconciliation between both appealing to "hardcore" gamers and everyone else. The result has been this hybrid of both rather than a new idea that fits both criteria.
It's not until now that they've actually made something that has the ability to do both, and twice for that matter (the Wii and the DS both coming out and being really out from left field, yet working so well, is more than a fluke). The appeal and understanding for the "everyone else" crowd is definitely obvious. But I also think the implementation of more mainstream games proves this (RE4 and Metroid Prime 3 are excellent examples of this, and I think those that have understood how to treat the controls for Twilight Princess and Okami also appreciate this).
Whether it's a sign of the times, an implementation of the technology, or both, is difficult to gauge, but Nintendo has somewhat changed some aspect of its culture.
As for third parties taking it seriously, they may be starting to at this point. It clearly makes no sense for them not to do so.
The biggest money maker right now is Nintendo. We can all pretty much agree, based on game sales, that developers that make high quality games on the Wii are capable of selling at least on par with the other consoles, if not more. Development for the Wii is also far cheaper than for either the 360 or the PS3, while arguably still making the quality of graphics relatively high. The payoff, therefore, is significant.
The graphics situation may be the thing that fears people the most. But at this point it's far less polygon count and more artistry that makes the quality of graphics. The Wii has had some beautiful games (Mario Galaxy is the easiest to point out), and while they might not be as "real" as Gears of War 2, they still have the ability to look great.
There are some signs that the Wii is starting to take precedence for these companies. The fact that EA has actually spent time to make Rock Band 2 a full game in the Wii version versus the horrid first iteration they dispensed is one sign, even if it was delayed.
Personally, I think companies need to take advantage of this situation now. Spend the money to make a Halo-esque or GoW game on the Wii, something as epic, and people will buy it.
You make some excellent points, Alex.
My personal view is that "better graphics" would have been wasted on Mario Galaxy. The game was meant to be artistic, not real.
Now that I know how to get in contact, let's stay in touch.
Dunno about you, jung, but I think those companies are in business to make money; and if they did not have good games for Wii, I suspect it has something to do with Nintendo's version of third party relations and third party support.
Imaginary Tubas > Plastic Guitars
But yeah, we can't deny Nintendo didn't have good titles this Holiday season.
Are you seriously trying to say that Imagine Babiez and all the other shit Ubisoft sprout is not as good as Mirror's Edge, only because Nintendo are not supporting Ubisoft enough?
What exactly does it take for you to blame an actual developer or publisher for their own games instead of the system they try to put it on? I'm fairly sure all systems have a vast amount of shit games, with Sony's past consoles having even more, so how does that somehow not mean Microsoft and Sony also suck as much as Nintendo and instead means that the developers are at fault in that case? Why, because it has good games also, showing nothing's wrong with the systems. Guess what, the Wii has those too.
No matter how shit a system is, games made for it should be good, should have a smooth frame rate not trying to push visuals further than it can handle, should have, above all, good gameplay.
Ubisoft's (as ane example, many companies follow suit) titles for the Wii had none of that, and not once did I see them blame Nintendo for it, so how exactly do you come out saying that shit quality of third party games is Nintendo's fault and not Ubisoft's?
What exactly do the third parties lack on the Wii? Don't they have developer kits? I'm sure they've bought them as they're damn cheap. What else do they need from the first party manufacturer? Does Microsoft and Sony fund third parties by themselves? Sure they do for licenced titles, but most games they do not as most are multi platform anyway.
What else then? Market them on their own? I think each publisher gets their own adverts, sans some first title promotion deal for system seller games, but that requires a good game to be made first you know, not all of Ubi's Z games.
Not to mention so many companies have their gamecube experience to put to use. How come then most of their games are lower quality than cube games? I think all this just screams a) second rate teams b) low budgets and c) crappy intentions to make a buck for investing nothing. Little to do with Nintendo's support for them.
It's very rare to see a shitty game come out from good intentions, for example Mushroom Men (then again, this isn't shitty, it's just not as grand as higher budget bigger company titles). Imagine Babies and countless other shit third parties sprout are not in that league and the fault lies on Ubisoft and the other developers not Nintendo.
Anyway, the bottomline is that a) you haven't played most of the good games the Wii has to offer, or if you've played them you just go "it didn't impress me" according to your responses here. So what? At least acknowledge the solid development and that they're examples of core titles, whether they impressed you or not. Most titles mentioned by others were critically acclaimed and sold good, or were overlooked for one reason or another (hey, good games get overlooked on all systems, remember beyond good and evil and okami on PS2 too). Most games aren't impressive these days anyway, all using tried and true formats and not doing anything new, aside from shiny grafix on the HD systems. So, you not being impressed by some of the games here shouldn't also mean Nintendo and Wii sucks.
You mention the "latest batch of games" to act like you're up to date with what's happening with the Wii, yet you fail to note all the 2009 megaton announcements. Did you not see the Nintendo Media Summit? That had an equal amount of core and casual games to show, if not more core games. Did you not see CAPCOM investing in Monster Hunter 3 and Tatsunoko vs CAPCOM? Square-Enix getting Dragon Quest X and continuing Crystal Bearers? Namco doing a new main (first rate team) Tales of game and Fragile and Sky Crawlers? Countless other titles like Little King's Story, Oboro Muramasa Youtouden, Arc Rise Fantasia, Deadly Creatures, Swords & Soldiers, Rune Factory Frontier, EA's Cursed Mountain.
You're so out of the loop, yet you continue to judge the Wii and Nintendo harshly. 2009 brings the second generation of Wii games, (not to say that the first wasn't grand with many gems that don't fall short of other systems' AAA titles) whixch was only delayed thanks to "critics" like yourself bringing the online opinions down with them and making the publishers and developers misunderstand the market. The games I mention here however show they finally wake up and realise carnival games and shitty PS2 ports aren't the way to go, thus serious development of new exclusives, new IP or sequels, keeps raising.
I think Square understand the market a little better than you and likeminded fanboys do, hence Dragon Quest X for Wii. That and Monster Hunter 3 alone ensure the format's future as both a core and casual pleaser. Other devs follow suit as it only took a few big ones to wake up for the rest to understand also.
Your criticism is identical to what people used to bash the DS with, yet the DS is as much of a casual pleaser as it is a hardcore games treasury with genres lost on other systems, like our beloved 2D castlevania, dungeon crawlers, a wealth of JRPGs, adventure games, shoot em ups, and anything an aware gamer may want. The Wii follows suit.
Good luck missing the PS2 of this generation Kent.
Hi,
It's nice to see that you are petty enough to pull site that I don't even visit to this discussion. Do you have some kind petty vendetta against GoNintendo? I came to your lovely blog from Neogaf, where there is whole thread (http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=348194) dedicated at your post. If you want to complain, write big angry letter on your blog, post on Neogaf thread, or answer directly to me, but don't try to pull other sites to this. Stupid guesswork like that makes you look even more unprofessional.
Thank you.
Yours sincerely,
Teppo Holmqvist
"...if they did not have good games for Wii, I suspect it has something to do with Nintendo's version of third party relations and third party support."
"I suspect" is weaselspeak for "I'm pulling unfounded speculation out of thin air to support my anti-Nintendo bias," Steve.
In any event, your hypothesis doesn't stand up to scrutiny. Are you seriously attempting to claim that EA was all set to develop Wii versions of Dead Space and Mirror's Edge to be released with the HD versions last fall, but the plans fell through when Nintendo denied them development kits and APIs and John Riccitiello said, "Okay, screw Nintendo, let's get three interns to churn out Celebrity Sports Showdown instead"? Seriously? Especially since Riccitello was saying as recently as July that he regrets not investing more effort into the Wii sooner?
You really don't get it, Steve...
--R.J.
It's a myth that the wii are owned by "casual" gamers, the thruth is that probably 50% of wii owners are hardcore/core gamers.
The strategy of third parties to only develop casual , low-budget niche titles or cheap ports of games are a real shame. AAA budget exclusive mainstream hardcore games would sell well on the wii, if only publishers would recognize it. But they have all been fooled by the casual/fad myth the system have suffered under since its unvealing.
The wii is here to stay as the dominant platform of this generation, and sooner or later third parties must jump on.
@Alexander
Well said, I totally agree with you.
Strangely enough, 3rd parties pretend that hardcore core titles don't sell on Wii when in reality 3rd parties have not released ONE SINGLE truely ambitious exclusive AAA blockbuster title like Gears Of War or Metal Gear Solid 4 for a Nintendo console since the SNES and N64 days that wasn't either a multiplatform title like Prince Of Persia,Beyond Good And Evil or Splinter Cell, a low budget game like Zack and Wiki or Viewtiful Joe, a Nintendo published title like Rogue Leader, a ps 2 port like Okami or Bully, a rush job like Red Steel, a mainfranchise spin off like Chrystal Chronicles or Umbrella Chronicles, a first party game like Retro Studio's Metroid Prime, a second party game like Rare's Goldeneye, or a title that came out way too late in the console's lifecycle like Resident Evil 4 to have an impact!
(and if you disagree with me I challenge you to name one single killer AAA 3rd party effort for a Nintendo console since the N64 days)
And this means that 3rd party cannot make any assumption whether a truely ambitious, high budget, ,AAA blockbuster 3rd party game would eventually sell on Wii because no such thing exists.
The last 3rd party game that comes to mind that was exclusive and pretty ambitious at the time was Acclaim Entertainment's Turok Dinosaur Hunter for N64 imo.
2009 will mark a turning point in that respect with really promising stuff like MH3, DQ X, Cursed Mountain, Red Steel 2 and hopefully Conduit (if they get the art direction right ;-)) )
Thank you Steve Kent for proving to everyone that (1) you're a sore loser and a crybaby and (2) you don't know anything about what is going on with the Wii these days and you don't understand what Nintendo is doing this generation. For someone who wrote a book about the history of video games you sure can't recognize when history is being made by Nintendo today. Nintendo is taking a wrecking ball to whatever preconceived notions you have of games and slowly rebuilding the industry from scratch, just like they did in the 80s. You've seen with Playstation Home and with XBox Avatars. Everyone wants a piece of what Nintendo is doing, but no one understands Nintendo's strategy as well as Nintendo...
...except maybe Sean Malstrom:
http://seanmalstrom.wordpress.com/
and the readers of GoNintendo:
http://gonintendo.com/?p=68717
(and if you disagree with me I challenge you to name one single killer AAA 3rd party effort for a Nintendo console since the N64 days)
Uh, Mr. My destruction, ever heard of Resident Evil?
R.J., EA spent millions of dollars making Madden NFL, it's banner game, for Wii. The only evidence that supports your thesis at all, and I hate to arm you like this, is that it generally takes years to create a AAA title, and if publishers did not take Wii seriously at launch then realized their mistake, they might well only be coming out with them at this time.
Oh yeah, but wouldn't that be "weaslespeak?"
Dragon Quest IX and X prove to be significant, as does MH3. Yet, I do not think these games will resonate well with a Western audience. If Nintendo helps market Dragon Quest in America, it could be a global hit. Yet, if it fails to make a splash in the U.S., it will not encourage other developers to attmpt to develop quality titleson the Wii, and stop making crappy minigame collections. Due to the lack of quality third party motion-control implementation, motion control on the Wii seems to be a gimmick. While Nintendo has done revolutionary things with the motion controls, the announcement of MotionPlus creates a negative image, as Nintendo is essentially saying that the first motion controls are inadequate and need refining. The problem with the Wii series of software, is that each title is little more than a tech demo for the motion controls. When the Wii Sports was released, I saw it as Nintendo saying, "Hey this is only the beginning, motion controls have endless possibilities". With the announcement of Wii Sports 2 (essentially a tech demo for Motion Plus) it seems that Nintendo is less interested in implementing motion controls than making quick $. While this is not wrong (they are a company), it is extremely disheartining While Nintendo has implemented motion controls creatively and well in some notable titles, the company's past E3 left many long-term fans feeling abandoned. E308 is when the crap hit the fan for many. I think No More Heroes did not help the Wii's situation. A BloodBath does not mean quality. No More Heroes gave up substance for style. I bought NMH over Endless Ocean, and I regret that decision. While there is nothing wrong with "casual" games, there is something wrong with third party attempts at trying to hop on the casual bandwagon. Third Parties for the most part have churned out glitchy minigame collections. As long as Nintendo is making more money by selling WiiPlay than Mario Galaxy, third parties will have little incentive to make games such as the Conduit or Dragon Quest X (assuming it will be a quality title) on Wii. With Playstation Home and the 360's interface redesign, it is apparent that Sony and Microsoft want a slice of the casual pie also.
I reread your original post and you did sound slightly bitter (not with Chris Kohler, but with Nintendo, and this is YOUR BLOG, where you are allowed to express your opinion). I was so angry after watching the E3 2008 Nintendo press conference that I considered boycotting Nintendo. I remember Reggie saying something along the lines of "How can fans feel alienating when we're giving them Animal Crossing?" Like I said earlier, Nintendo for me seems like a son or daughter who has done something to make me extremely disappointed and disallusioned. Sometimes, a parent is extremely disappointed with what their child is doing, yet no matter what the parent will still love the child.
NintendoXStation, as I said before, Chris and I have known each other for a long time. I laughed when he took me to task for predicting the bursting of the Wii bubble--a prediction Famitsu repeated a few months later--and he clearly has taken this post in stride. He's a good guy... and clearly a smart guy.
As to the bitterness in my writing voice, I am guilty of hyperbole here.
"R.J., EA spent millions of dollars making Madden NFL, it's banner game, for Wii."
I'd believe that if the engine and content wasn't recycled from the PS2 version. While I think it's a decent effort (especially the "Call Your Shots" feature), it's far from what anyone would call a flagship Wii game.
"The only evidence that supports your thesis at all, and I hate to arm you like this, is that it generally takes years to create a AAA title, and if publishers did not take Wii seriously at launch then realized their mistake, they might well only be coming out with them at this time."
I agree with you on that, but since neither of us know what EA's (and Ubisoft's, and Activision's, etc. etc.) plans for the Wii, we can only judge them from what they've released and announced at this point in time. I doubt that even you would try to defend MySims Racing and NASCAR Kart Racing as representing the best EA can do on the Wii.
I just find it laughably amusing how you continue to give EA a free pass on their Wii support while whining about Nintendo and Wii Music -- apparently, "Super-Secret EA Wii Game" trumps Sin & Punishment 2, Punch-Out!, Dynamic Slash, and the next Zelda, eh?
--R.J.
Interesting, I've read your rant around 4 times so far and can't understand why you'd write it. That aside, per your content I can say that you at least know what your apologizing for, but you should exercise making clear that you do not like anything on the Wii and you are annoyed that anyone can like the Wii, I also believe you do not like or I may go so far as to say you 'hate' anyone who likes the Wii in it's current form.
This paragraph is dealing with your replies:
I wouldn't blame the platform for your lack of interest in it's games, I'd more blame your ignorance as to what is on the platform. I may not own one myself but I do look forward to purchasing one soon, out of anecdote I can say that there are three platforms that you are shooting down; virtual console, wii ware and Wii software, I'm certain there has to be at least ten games that would be worth your interest.
Finally, I'm sorry for your situation, also I'm wondering how you managed to post 18 months rather than 8 months... it's puzzling as well... I'm imagining you put your text through a word processor for spell checking but never actually read what you wrote... Seems like a childish thing to use words so light heartedly... You do understand your position as a 'journalist' correct? Prehaps you do not live in reality as far as responsibilities go?
It is also very narrow of someone to only mention the games they can make compelling arguments against, and act as if those are the only games available for the Wii. The equivalent would be to pretend that all the 360 has going for it is Yaris or something. Reality however presents additional first-party gems like Mario Kart, Metroid Prime 3 and Super Smash Bros Brawl — which are brand-new for millions of new Wii buyers — and third-party titles of the No More Heroes, World of Goo and De Blob caliber. Granted, perhaps they’re much less than other systems’ offerings, but still there’s more than enough for people genuinely looking for such games, unlike the casual majority which, I have to agree, seems content with Wii Sports, Wii Play, Wii Fit, and little else.
Yet, this is the same situation we have had with the Nintendo DS. It too was accused as the short-term casual crowd pleaser thanks to pseudo-educational software like Brain Age, and even non-games like Nintendogs. In the coming years however, it’s also become a home for serious 2D games (think Castlevania & Metroid), a treasury of JRPG titles, and even a haven for genres I can’t help but describe as hardcore, such as the dungeon crawlers Etrian Odyssey and Shiren the Wanderer. The DS really offers something for everyone, from your grandmother to your obsessed nerdy video gamer friend, and that’s probably both the secret and the result of its success. Developers go where the money is after all, and just as Sony stole the crowds from Nintendo and SEGA in the past, Nintendo, by applying the same strategy for the Wii, seem to have returned the favor in spectacular fashion, just when people least expected it to.
You mention the “latest batch” of Wii games to show you're up to date, but you also fail to make a note of the shift we have seen in development from many major development and publishing houses. Sure, mini games and bad ports are still created, but we also have the likes of Square-Enix announcing Dragon Quest X and the continuing development of Crystal Bearers, CAPCOM working on Monster Hunter 3, a “stolen” PlayStation 3 exclusive, and Tatsunoko Vs. CAPCOM, Namco Bandai is bringing us Fragile and a brand-new Tales of “mothership” title, SEGA is publishing The Conduit, Mad World, and House of the Dead: Overkill, imageepoch has Arc Rise Fantasia, Electronic Arts is bringing Cursed Mountain, THQ’s Deadly Creatures is still going strong and Neverland’s Rune Factory Frontier looks great. There also are many perhaps less known games, like Little King’s Story, Swords & Soldiers, Oboro Muramasa Youtouden, Last Flight, and Cave Story.
We also recently experienced the Nintendo Media Summit, where Nintendo pretty much made amends for the horrible E3 showing, including grand announcements with sequels for Sin & Punishment, Punch-Out!! and Endless Ocean among others, as well as new exclusives such as Cosmic Walker and some of the games in the previous paragraph.
To me, it merely seems that the Wii simply took a little longer to see its “second generation” of titles -- no thanks to "critics" like yourself affecting online communities and helping the development studios misjudge the market in the same way you did -- and 2009 is the year this finally happens. Companies were content with doing Wii Sports clones, casual games, and bad PlayStation 2 ports, but the trend has been shifting and new exclusive titles seem to pop up all the time, coupled with megaton announcements like Dragon Quest X and Monster Hunter 3, which pretty much seal the console’s future as both a casual pleaser and a hardcore haven. Again, much like Nintendo’s other often accused and abused system, the DS.
Acreb,
You do realize this is his personal blog and not written for a magazine or newspaper, right? Typos happen.... 18, 8 -- just the "1" key was missed. Big deal, move on, get over it.
whoa, its only been a few days and over 100 replies! i see what you think about the wii also; i thought that it would not do well, ever since the N64 and the Gamecube came out. im a 360 fan, and i cant get into the wii without being bored.
Acreb, Alex: this is Mr. Kents blog. He is letting you talk to others about what he has written, and that is a privilege. Please do not insult him about his posts; lets just talk about it.
Wow, you really stirred up a figurative hornet's nest Mr. Kent.
I for one don't see what everyones getting all upset over myself. If you're a pouty child, what does that make them who clearly had their ire risen by a few "childish" words?
But on the bright side, your blog got like a jillion hits.
I am not a big video gamer. The only thing i p;ay is Starcraft, Warcraft, and Age of Empires, so this is all over my head. In my opinion however, the Wii is stupid.
What does that say about our society that to get kids to be active, we have to make video games that make them move? The Wii Fit is even dumber.
Mr. Kent, you are right, there is a Wii bubble. It will pop, not like the Housing or Oil bubble did, but just as the older games and consoles ended, so too will end the Wii.
And these buttfaces complaining about you will still be idiots and still not realize that this is a private blog where you, let me stress the "you", approve their messages.
You will have my support as long as you keep writing good books.
Oh yeah, and I forgot to mention in my last post.
Wii music? WTF?
You want to create music? You want to feel like you're playing an instrument? Go out and get a freaking instrument. Recorders are very cheap and easy to learn. I play a real horn and a video whatever you want to call it, will never be your own music. It will never be you playing.
Music is an extension of emotion through knowledge. It is thought and feeling in one. No machine can ever duplicate that. No machine, no programming will EVER give you the ability to truly express that. And besides, practice a bit on that Wii thingy and then try to play my trombone. You will fail no matter how many times you run the trombone simulator bull whatever on the Wii.
I don't see any Alex insult kent. In case you meant Alexander, well, same for that. In any case, why jump to defend him from anything? Comments have to be approved prior to showing, and I'm sure he's denied a fair share of them which were only insults or whatever else, so before you attack others as being uncivil, be aware there've already passed the check of the one authority in this space, the same person you try to defend. Duh.
Kit:
Wii Music has its place.
I have a young daughter, and she learns the instruments, rhythm, where notes are on a chart, what notes are, how instruments sound - in a fun way.
We, as a family, can play it together, each on our own pretend instrument. It isn't so confining that there isn't an opportunity for some inventiveness. It is a great family activity.
The cost is $50. That is cheap compared to an instrument and lessons.
This is only music at a very basic level unfortunately (so much more they could have done - maybe they will do with a Wii Music II) but this is a great, "fun" introduction to music.
Doesn't replace those years of piano lessons, but it does bring some iniital understanding.
I had told myself that I would not answer any more posts but, Pooka, I could not agree more.
Yes, Wii Music most certainly has its place. I wrote a iece for United Airlines Hemispheres Magazine about the music game craze. Whikle writing it, I interviewed Wedbush Morgan technology analyst Michael Pachter who said he would not let his youn daughter play Guitar Hero because she would only become frustrated. He thought, however, that she would love playing Wii Music.
Any family-appropriate game that the entire family can enjoy together gets high marks from me. In my home, where my youngest is well out of the Wii Music demographic, that would not be Wii Music; but if is in your house, that is excellent.
And no, that last comment was not another snide remark.
I can play guitar some, and tried Guitar Hero for the very first time on New Year's Eve. Boy did I suck at Guitar Hero. Wow, I sucked big time.
But I can play a real guitar... I forget which song it is on GH, but in an interview a while back, the guitarist for that band admitted that he cannot play the song he wrote on Guitar Hero. I can now relate to him.
ah, guitar hero. i remember playing number one when i was just a lad. I dont play it anymore though; i feel that they are now releasing too many on the discs; id rather just download new songs or Tours from XBL.
If it makes any difference, it was GH for the Wii.
Steven Kent, you and game journalists still working would be wise to listen to the feedback of the Teppo Holmqvists out there. For several years now, the video games media has been alienating themselves from the average consumer, and started pandering to a very specific subset of gamers, the vocal majority of game forums and blogs but a minority of all video gamers. I, as someone who has been playing almost 20 years, have been almost completely alienated by the current video game media, and while I used to subscribe to 1 or 2 game magazines (and read even more when I was a teen!), these days I don't even read them at the library. Maybe it doesn't come as a surprise to you that my favorite home console these days is the Wii.
Alexander, you are absolutely correct. But I doubt some of those other people are as smart as you.
And about Wii music. If its a family thing, great! Families these days need reasons to stick together.
However, I believe anything good in this life comes with hard work and diligence. The Wii music game does not even come close to matching the hard work truly learning music requires. The Wii will never be able to give you the feeling you get as they place medals on your neck at state marching finals. sorry, but that's just my view on it. And perhaps the Wii music thing is better than I had thought, but if it is anything like GH, then it is as pointless a music teacher as I had thought.
Ever crossed your mind that it's not meant to be a teacher, but instead only entertainment? Just like Guitar Hero, but in a different way. Sure, it gets on our nerves when we see idiots think they're important because they're good in one of these games, when they can't under hold a real guitar properly, but the majority is not like that and they enjoy the games for what they are. Simple entertainment.
Just like there are war games which are obviously not meant to be real soldier boot camps or officer schools -- and I guess you've played some of them -- yet you don't see professionals go all "dude, a game will never give you the real sensation of danger and the smell of death and..." because even they, for the most part, understand games are entertainment, and don't even attempt to pass as tools for anything.
The only game of the sort that tries to pass as a "tool" is Wii Fit, and it succeeds as well. So, you keep putting games down merely because they aren't things they didn't want to be in the first place... Ha?
Aw my comment didn't get posted. Probably got lost in the mess with all these others. I have no idea what I said now anyway, but I feel like making sure people know that I did, at one point, have something to say! And it wasn't mean! lol
You're right there too.
As entertainment, its fine, but let me tell you something.
I have been playing my trombone for 6 years now. It is still challenging as all get out. It still keeps me occupied. How long do you think someone will remain occupied and "entertained" with that Wii music game? I doubt six years. I doubt even 18 months.
And yes, those GH losers are really annoying when they try out for Jazz band guitarist and first thing they do with their tryout is ask where the "whammy bar" is.
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