Hello, Malstrom! I thought you might get as good a laugh from this
“analyst report” as I did:
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/27247/Analysis_Nintendos_Evergreens_Keep_Getting_Greener.php
I was hoping against reason that they would finally, so many years in,
at least TRY and make some effort to say what was clearly obvious
about these Nintendo evergreen titles, but obviously they did no such
thing. They simply refuse to state the obvious: that the third party
software just doesn’t compare with Nintendo’s, and they are ready to
blame and make an excuse out of anything and everything to prevent
them from saying that. It’s absolutely ludicrous, hilarious, and
simultaneously incredibly sad to see a comparison of “Just Dance” and
“Lego Star Wars” to Mario 5 and Wii Resorts Resort. Are they joking?
How is it possible to make such a claim with a straight face? They
then go on to say that third parties need to have, in order:
(1) “easily recongizeable premises” ==> example: Just Dance
(2) “marketable brand recognition” ==> example: Lego Star Wars
(3) “hype” ==> curiously, no example given.
In order to get third party software to sell. Really? REALLY? This is
what they come up with? It’s downright outrageous and blatantly
idiotic to compare those games to Mario 5. These are clearly not the
real reasons, and I am at a loss as to whether these people are
actually deluded enough to think they actually ARE, or whether it is a
deliberate ploy.
Anyways, keep up the good work, there Malstrom! I’m glad to see you
haven’t yet fully left. As the only voice of reason in a sea of
mediocrity and viral messengers, you are sure to continue and get
under their nerves in all kinds of ways should Nintendo hopefully
continue on their disruptive path.
P.S. I sincerely hope you are right about Nintendo and the Zelda team
looking at old design documents. I played Zelda II again recently and
was in awe of how much fun it was.
All the best,
Virtual Malstrom-fan
Matt Matthews doesn’t do anything in his ‘analysis’ pages except to compare one bar graph to another bar graph and make assertions. You read these things and you don’t feel you have come across with anything new or insightful. Nothing is being said.
Take a look at this ‘article’ that claims the Industry is ‘stable’: http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/27248/Analysis_Years_Comparisons_Shows_Fairly_Stable_Games_Biz.php
In 2007, there was a joke that the Wii was always left out of ‘Next Generation’ terms (people were always grouping Wii with the PS2, Xbox, and Gamecube generation) but when it came time to measure the ‘Industry’, all of Wii’s sales were included so analysts could orgasm: “Yes! The industry is growing like never before!”
For all the disdain and talk about the ‘casuals’, i.e. the Expanded Audience, everyone sure is quick to include them in the total “Industry” numbers. Since everyone, forum dweller, analyst, and third party, have spoken volumes about Core Gaming and Expanded Audience Gaming, why don’t they make this distinction to the Industry as a whole?
How much of the Industry total is ‘Expanded Audience’ versus ‘Core Audience’?
We know at least half of the Wii is Expanded Audience. It is probably more than that, but let us give the Industry a handicap (since it will need one). All the growth for the “Industry” has been on the DS/Wii side since 2006. The PS2 has been in, understandable, decline. The PSP is dying in America. The Xbox 360 sales are relatively flat despite price cuts. The PS3, which is 50% off of its initial price in only three years, is still relatively flat. While the Wii dropped year over year, it is still putting out huge numbers.
The question everyone is avoiding: What happened to the PS2 gamers? Where did they go? We were told they would go to the PS3 once it had a price cut and revision. That isn’t happening. They aren’t going to the Xbox 360. And we know they aren’t going to the Wii as the Wii sales are coming from the Expanded Audience. So where the hell did all these gamers go?
No one is asking this question. No one. If the Industry is so ‘stable’, then why does all the stability rely on the Expanded Audience? Why is it when the Wii hiccups with the Expanded Audience, the Industry suddenly falls?
The answer is that the Core Market is dying. And the Expanded Audience is slowly but surely replacing it.
“That will never happen! What a Nintendo fanboy! Ahr har har har!”
Then explain PC gaming to me, fool. The Core Market of PC Gaming is now the niche.
And it is happening with console gaming too. With the exception of Modern Warfare 2, most new core games are not performing as well as they did in the past.
It isn’t the end of gaming. Gaming will live on. But it is the end of hardcore gaming.
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