Things I want to talk about with the new mailbag update:
1. Nick, the guy who mentioned competition: First, MS's gaming division is farther in the red then you believe. So far, only one quarter has been in the black since the launch of the original Xbox, and after last fiscal year, Microsoft added a one billion dollar loss to retroactively to cover the RRoD issues. That goes to show that Microsoft is actually at least over a billion dollars in the red, but if someone were to do all the numbers, we'd see it's well over that. It is even questionable whether Halo 3 and Christmas can pull them out for the second black quarter ever, at this point.
2. Furthermore, you don't have to worry about video game competition. There are other companies out there that can venture into the market, should others fall out. It's part of Capitalism, too. I've been saying that GE could, actually, as well as Apple, or EA, Square-Enix, or even Capcom or Bandai-Namco. However, if there were no lasting competition, this would not necessarily be a bad thing. In fact, it might be beneficial to all gamers. Take a look at video media. We have the DVD, which has faced no lasting competition. Anyone could buy one DVD player, and play any movie published between about 1998 up to now, as well as every re-release of earlier movies, too. Now, we're looking to a new generation of high definition video players, and two formats stand out. We've got HD-DVD and Blu-Ray, and right now neither is truly making great progress over the other. As a result, if a consumer wants to be able to play any new release in the current HD standards, that consumer is forced to pay at least three hundred dollars per machine, as well as forced to foot the bill for the movies on top of that. We went from having access to all the movies to only being able to play half of them without paying a great deal more for an extra, though unnecessary (in theory) device. Essentially, what I'm saying is that sometimes competition isn't best for consumers. While it was in earlier years, as game machines increase in cost, this competition is beginning to be harmful to the industry, which cannot support even one high-end machine, let alone two right now, mostly due to cost. Perhaps it might be better if we let the market regulate itself, and see what happens. Regardless, you don't need to be worried about the competition. Just make purchases that benefit you, and as long as everyone else does the same, the best should emerge.
3. Then, to Mr. Evil King Drool:
Remakes are not a bad thing at all. Again, I must cite movies. Ocean's 11. Godzilla. Miracle on 34th Street. Halloween. The Texas Chain-Saw Massacre. The King and I. Annie. The Manchurian candidate.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_film_remakes_A-M shows there's no shortage of successful movie remakes out there. Not by a long shot. Why can't the same happen with games? A remake isn't a port. It isn't like taking a black-and-white movie and technicoloring the whole thing. Look at the Japanese Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+, and you'll see a remake of Chain of Memories is included. Look at Super Mario All Stars. Look at StarFox 64. That's a remake, and it's a great one. Several games have awesome potential to be remade. Take the recent VC release, Sin and Punishment, for example. Everyone around here is clamoring for a remake of that one to happen.
Kirby's Super Star is an amazing game. It easily is the best Kirby game, for length, creativity, fun-factor, and innovation. The rest of the Kirby franchise after this game (with the exception of Dream Land 3 and Canvas Curse), has been abysmal in comparison. I'll be happy to own a remake of the game, and I hope that it will inspire a true sequel to it that follows up with the same types of Kirby abilities and game modes. I firmly believe that remakes of classic games should occur more often. It helps developers understand the original formulas that gamers loved so much. It keeps games from becoming bland, boring, and redundant. I'd love a remake of a classic Sonic title, and I think it would help Sega bring the character back to his roots, as well. Only time will tell, but I have a good feeling about game remakes.
Topic: The NWR Mailbag Talkback Thread (Read 51161 times)
