I was planning on touching on the subject of Nintendo and the hardcore vs casual gamer on my own time or in an open blog post but since the opportunity has so delicately fallen into my lap I say to myself "why not". If there were any one topic I would take up with video game developers, it would be this. This is the itch on my nose, the torn in my side, my bone to pick, whatever you want to call it. I'll just get straight to the point though.
A hardcore gamer plays games to beat them, be the best at them, or just get better. Casual gamers play games for just about every other reason like just to waste time, because it's the cool thing (who knew, right?), to lose weight (yeah, look what wii fit has done to the world), or whatever else they want. The only thing that unifies the two groups is that they both have fun doing it (they are video games after all), and that is it. Plain and simple. To the hardcore gamer though, the casual gamers are the enemy. Why, you ask? It's because although we may have been picked on, bullied, or just isolated by everyone else for playing games, what we had was a form a entertainment/genre/whole other world all to our self; something that was ours and only ours. Plus, they dare say that they're gamers just because they play Wii Ski or Carnival Games Wii. After all those years of out casting us, NOW you want to be like us? ...No. Another reason why they are the enemy is that as we've seen with Nintendo, more time spent on those lame casual games means less time spent on awesome hardcore games, and we need our hardcore games. Not only that but they are major newbs (get that spell check out of my face, I know how to spell newb).
More on Nintendo now. Though I may be young compared to others and wasn't around when they started, I have loved Nintendo since I played the NES. They offered the world new and interesting games on every platform and because of this, dominated the video game market. They had everything from Mario, to Metroid, to Donkey Kong (my personal favorite as a wee-tot), to Legend of Zelda, the list goes on and on. If you didn't have a Nintendo, you were not a gamer. Nowadays, pretty much the opposite is true. If you own the newest Nintendo system you LOSE gamer credibility. All because Nintendo decided that they were more in it for the money than the satisfaction of their fans. Every year E3, Tokyo Game Show, or any other big video game event rolls around, Nintendo always fails their long time fans and the rest of the world loves it because they are getting Wii Sports Resort or a new peripheral (heart rate monitor, really?). Even when they try to please their fans with something like New Super Mario Bros. Wii, they flop in my opinion. You can't create innovative games for years; make that your norm; and then just develop a game that has already been made on your hand held system, touch it up, call it new, and expect your fans to be happy buying the exact same game twice but with multiplayer this time around. My word count limit is running low though, so I'll just wrap up by saying I don't despise the popularization of games. I think it's a step in the right direction (the legitimizing games direction). I'd be happy to share my hobby with the world. Just don't let down the people that made you what you are in the process....NINTENDO!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I'm on board with you for the most part, but I can't fault Nintendo for their business plan. They opened up a whole new market with the Wii, and as a company, why should they have to keep catering to the hardcore audience when casual gamers make them so much more money?
ReplyDeleteI also think that not showing a sort of brand loyalty, that ditching Nintendo because they went in a different direction, isn't giving them much incentive to put some real effort into better hardcore games. Why do that when gamers jumped ship anyway?
Not that I'm on Nintendo's boat. All I got is a 360, and I've been perfectly satisfied.
Also, I think the DS is where more of Nintendo's better work is this generation, not counting all the Final Fantasy ports.
Wow you really feel strongly that Nintendo has let you down over the years. To an extent I would have to agree that they have "sold out" to the casual gamers. Although they did themselves a diservice financially. If they would have made their newer systems(Wii and Wii fit) geared toward the hard core gamers and still managed to get attract the casual gamer they would be still be selling and coming out with more games! What they have done and made the Wii and when the hipsters and casual gamers get sick of it all they have done for Nintendo is buy the system and one game and they are done and they wont be purchasing anymore from Nintendo!
ReplyDeleteThis really hit close to home, because I feel the same way with Nintendo. I also started on the NES and was a huge fan of Nintendo. They just aren't making many games for the "hardcore" gamers anymore. This is what Nintendo has stepped down to: http://www.amazon.com/Imagine-Babysitters-Nintendo-DS/dp/B001D5DQJI
ReplyDeleteI don't think that casual gamers are the enemy though, because not everyone has the time to play games to be "hardcore."
I honestly am what you would call a Nintendo fan, but I am greatly disappointed. Every system I have ever owned was made by Nintendo (except the PSP I received as a birthday gift). I started out playing the games you listed Zelda, Mario, Donkey Kong, and expected great things. I scraped together enough money to buy a Game Cube when I was 15 so that I could play Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles, Super Mario Bros. Melee and a few other games... That's it. I got my Wii as a gift and honestly I own four games. But JohnMck21, you are quite right about the DS. That is were Nintendo's breaking through. There are so many games, while some are as we would claim for casual gamers, there are others that I have poured countless hours into. There are a great deal of good games for the DS versus the Wii, that are for more "hardcore" gamers.
ReplyDelete@JohnMck21 Sorry, I guess I didn't say where I stand exactly. I do own a Wii and I still continue to support Nintendo. The reason I feel the way I do is because my patience is wearing thin. I have about 4 games that could be considered "hardcore games" on the Wii over a span of almost 3 years now. That is a really sad result considering I buy almost every game I'm interested in.
ReplyDeleteAlso, maybe I'm just a bad businessman or maybe I'm just not as heartless as Nintendo but if I had a choice between loyalty to my fans or loyalty to my money, my fans would win every time.
Oh, and I agree about the DS comment also.
ReplyDelete@Sam Martin Haha, ok maybe I was exaggerating a little when I said enemy. After all, in order for games to expand we do need new fans and new fans must start somewhere.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe that Nintendo has entirely abandoned the older generation. I think that they have definitely put too much slack in the rope so to speak. The good games are there! Mario Galaxy, Twilight Princess, Brawl, re-release DS Final Fantasy titles, and other handheld titles. Although, I am with you that we need to see a competitive console from Nintendo for developers to work with.
ReplyDelete@orangexplosion Yeah, those are the three "hardcore" games I have plus Metroid Prime 3, and Brawl is the only one I still play due to replay value. People complain about how casual gamers ruin a certain game, well here they affected a whole system. And everyone in the business is trying to make money so you can't complain about one and not the other.
ReplyDeleteI think you should redirect your argument to 3rd-parties who developed the games for the Wii. Nintendo has always supplied its loyal fanbase with it's key franchises. In the Wii's first year alone, we got Zelda, Mario, Metroid, Mario Kart Wii, Fire Emblem, and Brawl. Everyone was still writing Nintendo off and labeling the Wii as a "fad."
ReplyDeleteI don't understand how you can be unhappy with Nintendo when they exhausted all of their titles. They haven't dedicated everything to this new casual gamer. The only casual games they have for Wii in my opinion is Wii Fit, Play, Resort, and Music. That's four games for casual and six for hardcore. They also just released Punch-Out, and Excitebots.
I'm not defending Nintendo, but to say that they're only catering to the casual I think is just wrong. It's 3rd parties, especially Ubisoft with their "Babiez-Party" shovelware and those other developers who still won't give the Wii the time of day because it doesn't compare in the graphics department.