Rubbish Game Charts
(AKA Good Games Falling By The Way Side)
Looking at the Top 10 Games Chart each week and realising that the Sims really aren’t going to go away any time soon is saddening to say the least. Equally, examining the sales of Brain Training games and realising that more people are interested in those than classics such as Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, Okami, Persona, Killer7... The list goes on.
"I love Okami more than cherry cheesecake and blowjobs and it’s a travesty it wasn’t absolutely huge. The graphics, gameplay and story are nothing short of superb but I don’t even know anyone that’s played it, let alone finished it. It’s a shame because I’d love to share stories of Issun’s boob obsession and Susano’s tragicomic tale, but unless it’s GTA, Gears or Pro Evo, I’m out of luck with my gaming friends"
- mrkez
It’s not strictly a games related problem, of course, the general public will always lap up what’s being advertised, and company’s such as EA will always have enough money to put a purchase in someone’s head. It’s upsetting to see some real gems get squashed out by unlimited Fifa updates and boxes of Wii Fit, but at the end of the day, the less people who get to play them, the more self important you can feel about yourself as you climb the tower of elitism. Go hardcore!
"Anything that’s innovative and bucks the trend always gets lost in the sea of EA updates and generic racers"
- Miss Marvellous
The "New" Nintendo
A pure gaming force, Nintendo sits on a stack of classic franchises so high it could drink clouds. Legend of Zelda, Super Mario, Metroid, Smash Bros, F-Zero, Donkey Kong, Wario... Kid Icarus... A medley of instantly recognisable characters and games that have always made gamers froth at the mouth.
Things have changed, however. While Nintendo see’s fit to release a few games for the "Hardcore", its real audience is now your mother, your grandmother and your sister who says "Meteoroid" instead of "Metroid".
Brain Training, Wii Fit, Vernan Kaye, Patrick Stewart, Healthy Living, Wii Play... These are the new franchises and recognisable characters that Nintendo is throwing at us. While it’s making them a healthy profit, it’s making most gamer’s rabid.
"My biggest disappointment has been the Wii. Rather than creating a revolution in how we play games it has become the cozy home of rampant recidivist bullcrap. Wii Sport’s version of tennis may have opened up gaming to the mainstream but when it is less interactive than Pong you really have to question its value. The Wii hasn’t brought about any revolution. It’s just replaced button presses with random flailing and devolved games into nothing more than a novelty"
- BertyBottyBiter
When the "Revolution" was announced, it had many gamer’s excited. An entirely new way to play games, being able to interact with items directly. The DS was a glimmer of hope next to the PSP’s "Hardware is Heaven" approach, offering, essentially, a handheld version of the Wii, where your direct input would effect the game.
Third party developers floundered, however, mustering no more ingenuity than a map on the dual screen, or unnecessary waggling minigames for the Wii. Nintendo, equally, were no more masters of the hardware, titles such as Mario Galaxy and New Super Mario Bros were huge sellers and critical successes, but neither truly used the new hardware to any real advantage.
Then the real revolution came. Adverts featuring heart-warming celebrities playing on their DS’ together. Family’s gathering round an open Wii as they warm their hands. Ordinary middle class citizens using the DS as a glorified recipe book. Then, to top it all off, and E3 showing that consisted of new hardware that makes the Wii do what Nintendo always promised it would do, and a new Wii Sports. Hidden beneath all the flash and glamour, a solitary line of "Oh, yeah, we’re working on another Pikmin" and that was that.
"Playing Twilight Princess on my brand new Wii and realising the controls arent as revolutionary as I had hoped. Rather fumbly and awkward as I have found with every Wii game I’ve bought so far (hence my Wii collecting dust for the past 6 months)"
- adrian79
"For me, the Nintendo Wii was a huge disappointment. I had always supported Nintendo since the NES days, and loved their games / consoles, and I was excited when it was in the ’Revolution’ stages, but eventually the hardware specs (basically being a souped up Gamecube), and the controller put me off. I’m sure people will disagree, but I can’t see myself ever owning one now"
- ASC
