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Posted on Sep 19th 2013 at 04:23:01 AM by ( monkees19) Posted under gta v |
Now that the new Grand Theft Auto has hit the market and reviews are pouring in and everyone gushes over it I want to ask...am I the only one who just flat out doesn't care? I've watched the trailers several times and found the graphics to be comparable to that of a later Playstation 2 game. Maybe it's just the video I'm watching but it's looked the same no matter which site I watch it on and it even came on during a recent re-run of a Family Guy episode I had stored on the DVR and it still looked bad on my HDTV.
Back in the day, when GTA 1 first hit the market, people freaked. They wanted to know how a game company could put out something that was so unapologetically vulgar and brutal. Car jackings, gang violence, random murders and things of the like were everywhere. You could follow the story or just kill people, steal their cars and shoot policeman. And getting away was as simple as hiding in an alley for a few minutes. It was great. GTA 2 was more of the same, with very few noticeable differences. Pretty much the same game with a new coat of paint.
Then GTA III came out. And it was...every other third person shooter out there. Hitman and Max Payne for example were already on the market. Granted the detail of said games were relatively new at the time but by now, games had been able to get more and more gruesome due to the technology of the time. The Playstation, and perhaps the Nintendo 64 to a lesser degree, had brought these types of games into greater detail.
In short, I don't see what the fuss is all about. It's probably a good game but I doubt it deserves the review scores it is getting. It's just more of the same with a different skin. The first two games were a new innovative idea (ish) and was executed well. And those games got generally panned. Few publications scored it over a 6. Now the last three games, which are again comparable to any 3rd person shooter out there, routinely score well over 9.
I just don't get it. Maybe I'm wrong...
This week's episode focuses on a Mario title that really has it all when you want to talk SNES. Between the original release with 4 games on it , this title would later be re-released with a 5th title ( SMW ). Really adds to the quality of this cartridge.
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I've run into a problem lately as I play modern video games, the unusual desire to acquire trophies and achievements. Did we always need these rewards to enjoy our games?
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Let me know if you think video game rewards add something to modern games.
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Posted on Sep 13th 2013 at 01:35:47 PM by ( slackur) Posted under Early Adopters, NES,SNES,PS,PS2,PS3,PS4,XB360,BBQ,OMG,RLY |
Every time new video game consoles come out, we hear the same antagonism.
Why on earth would we functionally pay a premium for a brand-new piece of hardware that
a.) is at its most expensive upon the launch window,
b.) naturally begins with fewer games than any time in its lifecycle,
c.) has not been tested for longevity or long-term reliability,
d.) is unproven for consistent support in games and accessories,
e.) has full priced, first generation games that likely cannot compete with the slew of hardware pushing, cheaper games made during the last few years of the previous console,
f.) requires an entirely new batch of full-priced controllers, accessories, dongles, do-dads, batteries, pieces, parts, gumballs, etc.,
g.) almost always have a dreaded equivalent to the Great N64 Game Drought, and
h.) will have a better, cheaper, newer version out by the time it proves itself?
To that, I say: ...yup.
Really, if someone is not the type to buy a console at launch, they are probably not wired to be convinced by exciting sales pitches or exuberant fanboyism. I've worked in video-gaming retail for over a decade, including the two biggest retailers, as well as mom-and-pop stores (R.I.P., Endless Entertainment), and while I've convinced some folks who were on the fence about buying a launch console, I learned not to trying changing the mind of a level-headed nay-sayer.
And I understand their logic! If you're not 'into' a launch system, it would likely be a colossal waist of money. However, that does not mean early adopters are automatically being ridiculous either. This far into our industry's history, there are now visible trends that help make launch window purchases more palatable, even preferable.
(Keep in mind this is being written by a guy who bought an Atari Jaguar and all the trimmings at launch. If your name is not Redd, you probably just winced.  )
First off, the most important thing for a game console: games.
Everyone knows that it takes at least a year or two for a console to come out with some games that would make it worth owning. (Or longer, in the case of Game.com. We're still waiting.) Except, that's not universally true. Sure, it takes years for a console's library to pick up steam, but there are too many examples of launch window games that carried their respective systems enough to warrant the initial purchase, at least for many people.
Some of the best examples include:
Combat (A26)
Donkey Kong (Coleco)
Super Mario Bros. (NES)
Tetris (GB)
Blue Lightning (Lynx)
Super Mario 64 (N64)
Ridge Racer (PSX)
Halo (Xbox)
For many gamers, the cost of the system was justified simply to play these launch games, with the expectation that other great games would eventually follow. Of course, no discussion on the topic is complete without mentioning the greatest selling video game of all time (as of April 2013), Wii Sports. Sure, it makes many of us groan just to mention it, but it cannot be denied than much like Tetris on Gameboy, gamers and 'non-gamers' alike bought the system just to play that game without really having an expectation to play anything else on it. There is such a mass appeal to play that one thing that the cost of the system is worth it, as if it were a machine built with just that game to play. I have to admit all these years later, I still enjoy a round of Wii Sports Bowling. My guess is that many of the 'haters' who initially liked Wii Sports before the Wii became known as the Great Waggle Shovelware Box would still have fun with a few rounds of multiplayer Wii Sports.
There are other reasons early-adopters are not necessarily unthinking fanboys. As much criticism (often earned) as Gamestop and its ilk get from their pre-order schemes, often folks use pre-orders as a lay-away plan to get a system they could not afford otherwise. $400+ is a lot to come off of at once, but $20 every two weeks for a few months? Much more do-able. Obviously, it would make more sense to just save that much out of each check and exert self-control, but I'm no money coach. Plus, often there are pre-order incentives for reserving, or perhaps the system is a gift for a specific date (Christmas, birthday) and the cut-off for system availability is much earlier. There are indeed a few scenarios in which buying a launch system makes practical financial sense, as much as buying video games ever makes practical financial sense. 
For 'core' gamers, there may be another incentive for early adoption. Historically, as consoles reach later redesigns of hardware, the thought that a console gets better with each iteration is a bit of a misnomer.
Sure, there are stacks of broken 1st gen 360s and PS2s to argue otherwise (many of them are stacked in my garage.) but consoles almost universally begin to lose features for every revision. The examples are everywhere;
As much desired as a top-loader NES is, it outputs exclusively in RF, and has visible line noise.
Buying a Sega Genesis with the best components requires a weekend college course and study guide (http://www.sega-16.com/fo...-Genesis-2s-from-bad-ones) but its pretty universal to say that the last versions, Model 3, are stripped down and incompatible with certain games and hardware.
My Super Nintendo Model 2 has no power LED and no native RF, S-Video, or RGB, all supported in the first model.
The original Playstation revisions lost ports used for cheat devices and (more importantly to me) system linking.
The PS2 lost its own system linking iLink port. The slim model, designed without the necessary expansion bay for the hard drive, was released the same year as Final Fantasy XI, a game that required the HD. (Boy, do I remember that. I finally convinced myself to invest in FFXI a week before the Slim was revealed.) As problematic as the PS2 system became for disc read errors, the lack of effective internal cooling meant that the Slims had their own hardware problems.
The PS3, in a rush to follow its lineage, has lost everything from USB ports, operating system options (linux), and video playback with anything besides HDMI, to backwards compatibility options (as has the Nintendo Wii.)
The Xbox360 lost its own propriety memory card ports (while gaining USB drive options, which did not help my stack of memory cards used for LAN profile swapping.)
I miss being able to play GBA games on the later DS models, and newer, brighter screens also included more ghosting.
Even the new, slimmer Vita is catching criticism for replacing the OLED screen for a newer LCD tech.
Admittedly, sometimes the difference is just personal preference; I like the feel of the original, wider Atari Lynx, and the second, smaller model (despite better battery life) was still way too big to be truly portable. Another example for me is the PS3; despite how monolithic the first generation was, all of the revisions felt cheaper and cheaper.) I prefer the heft and locking mechanism of the PSP 1000, and though it does have ghosting I like that better than the artifacts on the 2/3000.
Granted, most of what was lost in these revisions do not effect the majority of people playing games on them, and were dropped to save cost accordingly. Many features can be restored or even improved through hardware modification. And the last generation continued to add to a console's abilities (and ads) for everything from better video output to Netflix support. But a case can be made that early versions of gaming hardware include features that make them preferable to later models, and are therefore worthwhile investments. (I'm not joking when I say that part of my desire to buy an early model PS4 is directly related to Sony's history of re-designs.)
In the end, its about what a gamer wants to play. The same rules apply to a launch console as it does to every other console: don't buy a system if nothing is out or on the horizon that you want to play. I'm excited for Battlefield 4 and Destiny, and I don't game on PC, so a launch PS4 fit my parameters, especially since I have one reserved and pay a little at a time. With the Playstation Plus service promising free games starting at launch, it made the most sense to me.
Even if a difficult economy wasn't a concern, any large entertainment purchase should be a matter of thoughtful consideration, and not a snap-decision. Perhaps the same could be said about being critical of early-adopters. 
I wanted to share some of my new gaming videos with the RF community. So here is one of my first gaming memories about making a huge video game regret.
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I'm sure we've all made the huge mistake of missing out on a piece for our collections, or getting rid of something that we didn't realize the value of. What are your video game regrets?
I figured out some of the bugs with my video editing software and got this video up. ( Better intros to come ).
In this episode : This week's moment is dedicated to a cart that did more than just play a game but opened up a whole library to the Super Nintendo System. Even though this isnt the first time a gaming company made a cart that made a system backwards compatible but this was the first time for Nintendo and this was a big thing for me growing up.
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Episode 17 discussion thread: http://www.rfgeneration.c...rum/index.php?topic=12633
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Each time a new HD remake or Digital Remaster gets released, if you listen closely you will hear a collective sigh of disappointment that comes from long time collectors. The common thought is that this diminishes the value of the original release of a game. Is there any merit to this though?
This month we take a look at HD remakes, compilations, remastered games and digital re-releases and see how each affects the value of the original release prior to, during and long after the new release is available. Is your Earthbound cart going to depreciate drastically after the Wii U e-shop release? Let's find out!
As always, for your listening pleasure is several hours of the finest gaming scores dug up by the deal hunters on the rfgeneration.com forums!
Show notes:
Genesis Audio Comparison: http://youtu.be/WuIjwgPIQtg
Price Charting: http://videogames.pricecharting.com/
Action 53: http://www.infiniteneslives.com/aux20.php
Music: Blades of Steel (NES)
0:25 Intro
20:07 Small Scores
3:55:15 Main Topic: Do rereleases impact collectable values?
5:57:15 Outro
Hey guys! I'm late on this one, but we have another set of thanks to give out for August!
In August, we had 2550 submissions! 2324 of those being games and the other 226 were hardware. That's back up from our summer lull of July! This month also pushed us over 30,000 submissions on the year! Thanks to everyone who submitted!
The top submitters for August were: ApolloBoy with 1043 submissions! Nearly half! Then there was Shadow Kisuragi with 328, thegreatska with 236, Sirgin with 154, and ericeskapade with 127 to round out the other members with over 100 submissions.
The top approvers for August were: Shadow Kisuragi with 390, Tynstar with 215, Paully3433 with 198, and ApolloBoy with 118!
Great job everyone! Let's keep up the awesome work!
Video game collecting can be a strange thing, no?
Here's my reflection that produced the above thought (not that its the first time I came to said conclusion.) I just finished the DLC chapter of Dead Space 3, called Awakened. I completed the game once solo and a second time co-op, which is how I played the latter.
The DLC chapter was well written for what it was, quite short (2 to 2.5 hours or so), and mostly served as a story lead-in to a theoretical sequel, since DS3's original conclusion brought a sense of definitive closure to the series. I'm glad I played it, and given my head-shaking, nope-nope attitude toward gaming's digital future (and present) I'm glad I waited until the DLC was on sale before picking it up.
As a consumer, I have sent the message to Microsoft and EA that I absolutely refuse to purchase digital-only gaming content... unless I really want it and I can get it for cheap. Looking back, that's the story of my purchase history. Fair enough. I may be hypocritical, but at least I'm consistently so.
What I find even more strange is my willingness to purchase retro games for much more than digital content, even games I know I will likely put little to no time into playing.
A rough but telling example; both me and my DS3 co-op buddy refused to pay more than $5 for the Awakened DLC. It is something we desired to play, but we likely would have never budged on our plan if the content did not go on sale.
And yet if I ever saw Cheetahmen II or, heaven forbid, Stadium Events, for $10, Of course I'd buy them. Or $15, or $50, or... yeah. Keep in mind, if I bought them, I would not 'flip' them, selling at profit, so I would not be operating under the obvious financial motivation. It would be part of the media collection we use to connect with people.
Now, I'm well aware of how awful Cheetahmen II plays, and that I already own Stadium Events in all but name and cart-label with World Class Track Meet. Therefore, aside from morbid curiosity, I have no desire to play either. I would not be interested in selling them. I don't consider myself a hoarder. (Why are you laughing?) I also do not like the idea of flaunting physical possessions in the face of someone who desires but does not own such things.
So why on earth would I pay much, much more for something I would not play, and inversely I am reluctant to purchase something I am ready and willing to enjoy?
Its easy to use the ''because I don't want to support digital instead of physical copies" excuse, but that doesn't apply to the games that are already out on disc, and I am awaiting a sale or price-drop. Of course money is the next, or even first excuse, but why then do I still spend money on old games I won't play? I'm sure I'm not alone on this site when it comes to occasionally scouring the 'net to find some retro games for cheap, even games I have no desire to actually play through.
For some, it can be a fun meta-game, looking at huge collection numbers, comparing or even competing on collection size or subgenre completion. Much like achievements or trophies, these arbitrary numbers are part or even most of how these gamers enjoy gaming. Why?
For the same reason an RPG fan is at a loss to explain how grinding and random-looking number screens are fun when discussing such with a non-fan.
Or when an MMORPG player is discussing guilds and patches and expansions to someone who thinks Azeroth is a term they forgot in Geometry class.
Or when telling a Battlefield fan how their preferred game is a sub-par Call-of-Duty clone, and witnessing how virtual violence can in fact translate to IRL violence.
Or the annual Madden/Fifa fan discusses at length to me how great/disappointing their game/franchise/team/player/mascot is this year.
Or the same reason I still go to movie theaters, despite having a home entertainment system that outclasses many of them:
We are all wired to not only enjoy different things, but also with preferences on how we enjoy them. And not just for acquiring or collecting; some of us have a favorite chair/couch/plastic crate/floor/nimbus cloud that we game from, and cannot fully enjoy otherwise. Some refuse to play on anything but original hardware, including arcade cabs; some will not pay more than $10 for any video game period, and for some of us, the hunt for cheap retro games we'll probably never play is a game itself, and is as fun as actually playing a game.
My current 'Holy Grail' gaming search is for a CIB Beyond Shadowgate, the last game of my youth that was stolen and never replaced. And yet, even if I could, I wouldn't trade for it a single memory of the gaming hunts my beloved and I have enjoyed. And we've shared countless ones.
Some things are just far more valuable to me.
Video game collecting can be a strange thing.
This week I focus on something out of my Atari 2600 library that has been a big part of my early on video game collecting ( Late 90s ). This is one of the launch titles that would help make Activision a staple in the homes of millions. This week I feature for everyone.....
Dragster by Activision ( AG-001 , 1980 )
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The Orange Box
Valve Corporation, 2007
Xbox 360
I was pretty late to the party as far as ‘modern’ First Person Shooters go. I think this had to do with the fact that the rise of Halo and similar games seemed to happen during a time when I was paying a lot less attention to gaming. However once I did finally get exposed to Half-Life a year or so ago, I was very surprised at how much I enjoyed it. A few months back I played through Half-Life in its entirety for the first time ever and that only led me to start delving deeper into more of Valve’s output. So what better place to do that than The Orange Box - a single disc with three full games as well as two add-on episodes?
The first game I decided to play was Portal. Although I had started it (and enjoyed it immensely) a year or two ago, I had never managed to finish it. So I figured I’d just start it over again from scratch. Although I knew the good old ‘cake’ meme, what I didn’t know was how long the game was. This created a really cool experience, always wondering how close I was to the end. And although it only took me two sittings to play through, I had an absolute blast.
I’ve just realized that I’m writing this with the assumption that everybody in the world got around to playing Portal before I did. Just in case that’s not the case, you should know that Portal is basically an FPS without the ‘S.’ Or to be more accurate, the shooting you do is not a gun filled with bullets that are taking out aliens, zombies and soldiers. Instead you’ve got the ingenius Portal-gun which shoots - you guessed it - portals. Enter one and exit there other. Simple, right?
This is the sort of game that offers up puzzles that you might breeze right through, or then sit there for fifteen minutes trying to make sense of everything and then feel like the smartest person alive for doing so. It’s also full of hilarious personality. And although deaths can happen in Portal, for the most part it’s a first person game with very little action. It’s a game that encourages you to move around slowly and explore and think. And although it’s a short game, I can honestly say that the last level alone is just as much fun as everything leading up to it.
Arguably, the star of The Orange Box would be Half-Life 2 which is included here with its Episode 1 and 2 expansions as well. This was my first experience with the game. The original Half-Life I had played a year or so ago for the first time, and only actually beat it earlier this year. But in that time I grew to really love the game, and consider it one of my favorite FPS games of all time. With that in mind, I was certainly looking forward to playing the sequel.
I’ve yet to actually beat Half-Life 2 (which means I’ve also not played the expansions yet either), but the solid time I have spent with it has been great. I will say however that I’m not yet convinced that I like it better than the first game. Although HL2 definitely improves upon its predecessor in many ways, it’s also hard for me to shake the excitement of experiencing the world of Black Mesa for the first time. I also think I lean towards liking the claustrophobia of the research facility more than the more open-world given to you in the sequel. I’ve also noticed that Half-Life 2 feels a lot more “survival horror” than the first game. Ammo seems a bit more limited here for instance.
But all that aside, Half-Life 2 is an incredible game as I said. It looks glorious and runs smooth on the 360. And of course this is just personal preference, but the 360 pad is definitely now my preferred way of playing FPS games. Sorry keyboard & mouse purists. One thing that really stands out in the second game is the writing. The characters definitely have a lot more personality than in the first game. Oh, and the barnacles still creep me out.
Interestingly enough I had recently started playing Halo for the first time ever (seriously). And one thing that really stuck out to me about Halo was just how bad the driving sections were. I just could not grasp them and constantly found myself crashing when I should have been cruising. As it happens I hit the driving (a boat) part of Half-Life 2 around the same time and it was night and day compared to Halo. Thankfully the driving section there was actually really fun, even if a bit longer than need be.
One addition to the sequel that’s really nice is the Gravity Gun. This thing lets you pick up and shoot objects that would otherwise be far too heavy or too far away for you to do so. In that regard, Valve successfully incorporated puzzles into a true FPS similar to what would be come the standalone game of Portal. It definitely makes you think about how to approach certain sections. For instance in one area I was low on bullets, but there were saw blades all over the place stuck in walls. Turns out you can suck up a saw blade with the Gravity Gun and send it violently shredding through a zombie (these are zombies, right?).
As a bit of a diversion I figured I should at least see what this Team Fortress 2 game was all about. So I hopped on the XBLA server one weekend morning and to my surprise, there were several games going on. What started as a simple capture-the-flag game with a red team and a blue team quickly turned into a pretty decent time-suck. A half hour or so later I realized the appeal to such a game. And now that I was feeling at least somewhat comfortable controlling an FPS, I could even enjoy such a game! Of course I was only playing with strangers, and I’m sure that a much bigger bit of enjoyment would come from playing with a group of friends. Something I’ll have to look into in the future.
And speaking of the future - not only does this mean that The Orange Box has this online game that I can enjoy indefinitely (or until the servers are shut down), but I’ve still got Half-Life 2 to beat and the expansion episodes to delve into. When you look at the number of quality hours of gaming that are on this single disc, it becomes quickly apparent that The Orange Box is one of the finest compilations you get on the 360.
Greetings, friends and readers. Today, I bring you a not-so-fun tale...a tale of a disgusting habit, regret, and re-acquisition. Listen...
NOTE: This is a true story. Those of you with weak constitutions may want to turn back now.
Trading Video Games...a disgusting, dark, messed up habit that may bring many problems. Why? Here's why...
Sometime back, I had an Atari Jaguar with the works. What are the works? A working CD Unit, several great games, lots of memorabilia, and then some. I loved that thing even more than my NES for a time. I played it by myself most of the time, but sometimes, I would hook it to my capture card, and play games for the users here, and for the users of AtariAge. I had a blast with it, plain and simple.
So what went wrong? Real life got in the way. I was short on money, and I needed it to live, as we all do. I had sold/traded games before to live, and as such, trading and selling them became a bad habit. I eventually started doing it just for thrills. I don't know how it got so out of control, it just did.
However, I eventually managed to break the habit, but then I needed money again. Sad as it was, I had to sell my precious Jaguar, and everything that went with it. This saddened me. Not only did my disgusting habit rear it's ugly head again, but now I no longer had the device that provided me with endless hours of fun.
Perhaps that sounds strange to you all, considering most people hate the thing, but as I'm sure you all know (and agree), everyone has they're own opinion on what fun is.
Well, fast forward to now, about 2 years later (or so, I wasn't counting), I found a Jaguar with the works in the local Retro Game Store. To make it mine, I have agreed with the owner to pay Layaway on it. As of this writing, I am about 150 Dollars away from the prize.
Despite needing money, I ultimately regretted giving the thing up. I learned a harsh lesson through all this: If I need money that bad, I will sell a more common console, or find some odd jobs to do. I am a Freelancer after all.
So here is some advice for you all: If you have a game you truly love, and appreciate, something that has done it's job and given you a fun, entertaining experience, KEEP IT. Never let it go for anything. You WILL be sorry. Take my word for it. To this day, my habit still rears it's ugly head once in a while, trying to make my gaming life harder. That being said, I will continue trying to break said habit.
Thanks for reading.
P.S.
Once again, this is a true story. If you think it's a pathetic one though, keep it to yourself. I don't need the criticism right now. Thank you.
Hey everyone. It's been a while since I posted a blog or felt like blabbering on about things. As I know there are a lot of collector's that like to collect PAL items I am actually one that wants only a few pieces of PAL in my collection. I did obtain a few PS2 titles locally at a Pawn Shop here in Omaha, Nebraska of all places. Yeah they are cool nice to have some nice art work, the blue cases are pretty sweet. But Honestly I am not a huge fan of PAL sorry to those who are.
NOW don't get me wrong PAL is pretty cool nice to collect for but it's just not a huge thing for me, now Japanese heck yes, USA or NA releases of course, and sadly not really into Mattel release or even certain Canadian releases, as some look as though there is cluttering on the label. I love NES stuff but I'm not even a fan of Asian/Hong Kong stuff I mean if someone offers me stuff sweet I'll take it sure...same goes for PAL or Canadian.
I am not trying to be mean by all means I am just stating how I feel. I DO HOWEVER admire anyone who collect PAL, Canadian, Hong Kong, etc. As some of that stuff is just awesome, especially the PAL collector's edition of Majora's Mask!! Mighty sweet.
Here is a list of stuff I would love to own in my collection from PAL Releases mostly NES Stuff.
-Asterix - NES - CIB
-Aladdin - NES - CIB
-Beauty and the Beast - NES CIB
-Lion King, The - NES - CIB
-Noah's ARK - NES - CIB
-Adventure Island 2 - NES - CIB (Love the box art for this one)
-New Ghostbusters 2 - NES - CIB (Would love to get my hands on this one and not a repro)
-Asterix - Atari 2600 - CIB
-Pretty much anything Asterix and Obelix related as I am a fan of that series of games. I would love to have all of the SMS games that were PAL
-Another note on SMS - ANY PAL Game would be awesome to have as there is so many that were never released in the USA
-Also big on C64 Cassettes for PAL as well.
SO see not so bad I do love PAL Stuff but only certain things just don't see myself having a huge section of it but those things I do want you bet I will try to get them!!! I am proud of those who do collect NA, PAL, Japanese, so on and so forth for a complete total overall stuff. Keep it up! I just wish I had to room to actually buy a ton of PAL stuff that looks cool especially some RPG's that were never released here or even some pretty sweet collector's editions.
(With the kiddies back in school, I've finally gotten a chance to sit down and return to my fun job; writing for RFGen!)
I can easily follow the internet collective's double-take on the 2DS. As has been commented (predicted? ) here, the 2DS comes across more like Nintendo's engineering department accidentally following up on discarded notes from R&D's drunken April Fools party. When offical pictures of your product look photoshopped right out of the gate, with a concept pulled from the punchline of an old joke, it's easy to question whether any publicity (bad) is still good publicity.
And yet, as I shook my head over how wacky Nintendo can be, I quickly realized who they intended to buy this thing;
Me.
After the touch screen to our original Mario Kart DS system lost sensitivity, I gave it to my six-year-old (whose favorite game, Mario Kart DS, didn't need the touch controls anyway). He carried it around everywhere, and despite my consistent warnings, he'd carry it by pinching the corner of the top half. Sure enough, after one drop the hinge broke off, and then later the top screen gave up the ghost and went all-white. Now its in a corner of my project room, waiting a resurrection as a modified GBA.
Which means my son fits squarely in the announced demographic for this new wedge-shaped oddity. Will we get this new square peg for our little square hole? (That felt weird to write. I gotta get an editor.)
Truthfully, probably not. At least, not soon; our Wii U Zelda Edition was just pre-ordered (family Christmas present to each-other) and with the 2DS announced at $30 past that magic number 99, I'll loan him the DS Lite for awhile. But for the holidays, this newfangled contraption actually fits a niche more than we may know. Its no more designed for the folks making fun if it than a Leapster or Jitterbug Phone. Its sturdier and purposefully more disposable than our sexy 3DSXLs or Vitas. Its Nintendo doing what Nintendo does; finding a market that could be better targeted and going after it. We here at RFG may be mostly 'core' gamers, but when Angry Birds and Just Dance are two of the best-selling franchises of all time, businesses are more interested in where the money is coming from now and where is the next potential source of revenue.
Its the same reason the XBox One was not primarily designed with the 'core' gamers market at the, well, core. 'Core' gamers no longer pay the bills; the millions of Netflix and Cable/Satellite subscribers are now the bigger, and bigger paying, market. There is simply not enough money to be made in a console exclusive to games in today's 'connected' world. When a developer sees the crazy money made from service providers, mobile games, and FTP models, it becomes impossible to justify to their investors a model that, at best, won't pull in the same revenue numbers as the competition. I hate to say it, but the Wii U's biggest hurdle is not the ridiculous name, the confusion of whether it is a new system or an upgrade, or market awareness; the problem is that all it really does is play games. No Blu-ray movies, no fancy TV watching, limited social media integration, no real life outside of gaming. (Netflix may be present, but its so ubiquitous now it almost doesn't count.) The success of mobile gaming has taught game developers what marketeers have always known; the largest, most lucrative demographic will sacrifice quality for convenience and accessibility every time. (Hello McDonalds, Subway, etc.) The reason Microsoft has spent decades trying to get a 'One' service provider box into the home is obvious; most folks will eventually forget (and not put money into) an extra box they do less with.
I'm excited for the PS4 and Wii U (now that the game library is picking up steam [not Steam, but boy, talk about a killer 'app']) precisely because I prefer a gaming system for gaming, but I'm well aware of how, and why, the gaming industry has changed. The backlash on the XBox One shows that the 'future' of gaming is not quite here, but it is inevitably coming. We're no longer just seeing the signs, we're already turned on the off-ramp and picking up speed to merge onto the highway.
Hey, if we're already on this road, someone in our car will much more likely be playing a 2DS than a phone game...
OK, maybe some Words with Friends.
Hello all. It's been a while. Some of you may not even know me. Let me reintroduce myself. I am David Murnan, and was the former Site Director. Much of what you see is my creation. Ah, memories, but that's not why I am back. No, I am back because I called it. I freaking called it.
In 2011, RF Generation decided for a day that it would be the in extra special 2D. We went so far to announce the Nintendo 2DS over two years early!
There it is, our concept, created none other than by our resident graphic artist den68. So imagine my surprise yesterday when Nintendo Officially announced the Nintendo 2DS. Deja vu, anyone? I mean, we called it in 2011. 3D was just so ahead of its time. Too, out there. Too, headachy. Either way, it appears as though someone at Nintendo saw our mock up and decided to create their own, final version.
The thing is, after Nintendo officially announced the 2DS, the internet sort of went apeshit. Some people, including major gaming blogs, noticed our concept, and well, we are flattered. Did Nintendo rip us off? Nah, I simply think they took our concept to the next level, and I thank them for doing that. Thank you internet for also taking interest in den68's concept design. You all truly are the best.
We have since come to our senses and realized that 3D is perfectly okay. But, again, it's nice to see that people are taking notice of our day in extra special 2D.
Keep it on channel 3!
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We are a community of collectors, gamers and the likes, and some of us enjoy to let the world know what is on our mind. For those members, we have the community blogs, a place where they can publish their thoughts and feelings regarding life, universe, and everything. Some of those members might even choose to write about gaming and collecting! Whatever they write about, you can find it on their blog. You can either see the latest community blog entries in the feed you see to the left, or you can browse for your favorite blog using the menu above. Interested in having your own blog hosted on RF Generation? It's rather simple, first be a registered member, and then click the "My Blog" link that you see in the navigation above. Following those two steps will certainly get you on your way to blogging.
Sit back, relax, and enjoy our entries, rantings, and completely unrelated series of thoughts. We write for you to read, so we certainly hope that you enjoy our material.
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