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Microsoft cracks me up because they really have no idea what to do with the Xbox brand. When the original system came out, they were trying to be the console that thought it was a PC as well as trying to be like the Playstation in the “mature hardcore” console. Then Halo came out and was a big hit and soon it was the go to system for FPSes hence it’s nickname “the shooter box.” It was often a joke in the industry and how the Xbox only appealed to frat boys who liked the shoot stuff. And as we know the system despite success in the US could sell consoles outside the US to save its life. Of course Bill Gates’s answer was “throw more money at it and it will eventually make us money.”
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Of course when it came time to get the 360 out there, MS was convinced that the secret to winning the console war was to get out first even if the launch lineup was crap and the system had a high failure rate, their idea was get on the market first and get a head start. I also liked MS’s idea that it didn’t sell in Japan because of it’s asthetics and having only shooters so they redesigned it and got a bunch of RPGs on board and yet it still sunk in Japan. Of course they failed to realize that disinterest in gaming was on the rise in Japan and everyone assumes Xboxes don’t sell in Japan because they don’t like American electronics. Japanese sure like Ipods though.
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But MS also was trying to shake the whole “console only for adult men” stigma especially after the Wii became a massive hit with everyone who wasn’t a dorky teenage white boy who likes shooting stuff. Cue the obscene amount of money MS spent to buy Rare from Nintendo. First they were trying to be a PC, then a Playstation and now they were trying to be the Wii. I remember the massive marketing they did for Viva Pinata which was going to be their Pokemon, so much they made a horrid 4Kids tv show based on it that was released first in hopes kids would like it and buy the game and a new Xbox 360 to go with it. Viva Pinata bombed and the Wii began selling and never stopped.
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Rare of course became a lost cause for MS, they were too suck up their own butts making what they wanted to instead of what consumers wanted. Consumers wanted Banjo Kazooie 3 not “Build a Car Banjo” as well as they wanted Killer Instinict 3 instead of two pinata farming sims. Rare has clearly lost touch with what the consumer wants. Probably best they die.
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Of course this didn’t stop Microsoft from pursuing their “casual family” approach. Then came the 360 Arcade packaged with what few decent “kids” games were out there. Some come with Kung Fu Panda, or Lego Indy or Sega Superstar Tennis though I find a lot of those in used bins, mainly because all those are available for the Wii as well and kids don’t care about HD. Plus everyone knows the Arcade package is a ripoff because if you want to get any real mileage out of the system you need to shell out $100. And then there were their hilarious attempts to “Wii-ify” the 360 with their Miis that shopped at Abercrombie and Fitch which Rare claimed that in NO WAY were taken from Nintendo’s Miis. And their birdman games of You’re in the Movies and Lips. Microsoft has no idea how to appeal to the expanded audience, do they?
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But what really cracked me up was this
Sega is basically making a Mario Kart clone with Sonic and Sega characters and apparently despite Nuts and Bolts bombing in sales, it’s clear that MS is now making Banjo and Kazooie their mascot but what’s really funny is the giant green Xbox 360 Family Games on the box. This is similar to the games they have that say “Family Hits.” It’s like they’re saying “see we have more than guns and blood! Why waggle your Wiis when you can have a system for everyone!!” Imagine if Nintendo put a label on Madworld or No More Heroes that said Wii Hardcore Games actually Sega’s ad campaign for Madworld and House of the Dead Overkill was basically saying that.
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Microsoft’s marketing has always amused me though. They love to tout that they “sell the most third party games” and “have the highest rated games” but then turn around and hire the Jonas Brothers to endorse the system and having them say it’s a “family friendly brand.” Stephen Colbert lampooned this by showing footage of Left4 Dead too. The Wii knows exactly who it’s appealing to. Sony just seems to limp along praying to survive but MS is having a freakout and trying to appeal to everyone and of course Xbox fanboys will go on about how when Natal comes out, it will be the end of
Nintendo for good.
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Microsoft is funny.
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Microsoft has, indeed, become a source of great entertainment to me. Even now they are losing ground to the PS3. Microsoft has given up entirely in Japan. However, I want everyone to prepare for Microsoft’s Natal. Microsoft has been quiet for a while and that means they are readying a big marketing push. Boy, I can’t wait.
So as we prepare for the big fat Natal, I think of the presentation as something like this:
The above image also reminds me of the “Industry” itself.
Let us say that Natal is going to be as big as the Wii. It will still fail. Why? The economy. The “Game Industry” is in uncharted territory with this big recession. Inflation is going to be a factor soon. Unemployment keeps going up. The last time it was like this was in the early 1980s… the same time when the original “Game Industry” crashed (not saying it is going to crash, just pointing out how gaming has no experience with this economic environment). Releasing new hardware now is extremely risky. When the NES came out, the economy was already recovering. The so-called “recessions” of 1992 and 2000 were recessions more political than fact. Those “recessions” are nothing compared to what is going on now.
So we are going to see Natal be launched right in the middle of a massive recession. Damn! I love Natal! It is just so bad.
