Author Topic: Younger gamers and the gaming industry  (Read 7020 times)

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Offline The Doc

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Younger gamers and the gaming industry
« on: June 18, 2003, 12:00:18 PM »
I strongly feel that most younger gamers have no appreciation for this industry at all. They think they know it all, and they base a game on its graphics instead of its content. Anyone who has grown up with the Nintendo and Super Nintendo consoles should know what I am talking about when I say that most younger gamers do not posses half a brain when it comes to buying consoles or software. For example, they would buy a PS2 over a GameCube because the GameCube would be purple opposed to the PS2 being black, and while this sounds silly it is usually the truth. They altogether lack the knowledge when it comes to a purchase, and they usually buy what their friends buy so they can be "cool". I am glad to see that there are a great number of older gamers in gaming community who can better appreciate console gaming more so then the younger gamers. Older gamers have around longer and we know to that a game is not based on its graphics, but its content. In my opinion, if there were no older gamers then the gaming industry would be in real trouble because most younger gamers just do not appreciate games and consoles the same way as older gamers do. Older gamers made the gaming world what it is today, and now we need to deal with these younger gamers who think they know it all. Does anyone else feel the way I do ?

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Offline AgentSeven

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RE: Younger gamers and the gaming industry
« Reply #1 on: June 18, 2003, 12:21:48 PM »
The problem with many younger gamers is that they are seriously uninformed.  That, and they are quite vulnerable to a strong advertising campaign.  Still I don't think you give younger gamers enough credit.  Even though many are blinded by style over substance, there are still many more who are smart enough to see the truth.  The recent growth of the GameCube alone is proof.  People are starting to wake up from the Ps2 fog.

Still, Doc, I do understand your frustration.  There are a legion of ignorant fans out there, buying mindless games they can't even be bothered to finish.  Too many followers and not enough leaders.  Hopefully though, there are enough, strong willed, intelligent, independant thinkers out there to combat this ignorant mass.  Blindly following the flock leads only to despair.  Thinking for ones self is the best thing you can do.  Plus, those who take the lead and think for themselves reap all the rewards, while the flock goes hungry.  

 
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Offline AgentSeven

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RE: Younger gamers and the gaming industry
« Reply #2 on: June 18, 2003, 12:23:11 PM »
sorry, double post
 
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Offline The Omen

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« Reply #3 on: June 18, 2003, 12:31:26 PM »
I agree with most of your points, DOC.  But here on these very forums there are some younger(21 and under) gamers who i think understand the 'art of gaming'.  So it isnt really fair to impune an entire age group.  But i will say the majority of youngsters do what everyone at that age did-try and be cool.  And you're always much cooler if you're grouped with people who like the same things you do.  Thats why you'll see a group of friends who own only a PS2, or XBOX, or even GC.  Once you they get older, and go into the real world, they'll start to rely on personal preference more.  Nintendo no longer grabs gamers when they're teens, which is the major problem.   I think they do get adult support because people my age grew up on Nintendo, and we understand what they offer.  But if you're mid to late teens, you most likely grew up on PSX, and Nintendo is second fiddle.
"If a man comes to the door of poetry untouched by the madness of the muses, believing that technique alone will make him a great poet, he and his sane compositions never reach perfection, but are utterly eclipsed by the inspired madman." Socrates

Offline Round Eye

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« Reply #4 on: June 18, 2003, 01:07:49 PM »
Yah, young people suck!  Old people rule!

Seriously though,

I think only people living on their own should be able to purchase games and consoles.  Only when you have to balance a budget do you seriously start looking into spending your hard earned money on quality games only.

If you live at home you just have too much money to blow and you can buy all the crap that you want, with no worries.

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Offline WhoDey

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« Reply #5 on: June 18, 2003, 01:31:46 PM »
I think you are making a lot of assumptions about the younger crowd...and assuming the older crowd knows it all which is certainly not true.

First, when we were young what games did we buy? We bought the popular Atari and NES games. What made them popular? Either they looked better that most other games out there or we heard about them through our friends. Just like today's youth, we didn't buy games soley because they had good gameplay. I'm sure there are plenty of quality NES games I missed out on because I didn't realize these games were good. Take the NES game Balloon Fight for example. I never remember hearing about that game back then and only recently played it with Animal Crossing. I found it's a lot of fun and certainly better than a handful of NES games that I did buy back then.

Second, whose to say the older crowd knows what good games are? I'm sure you do and probably most of the people that visit these gaming sites on a regular basis. But are they representative of the older crowd? I doubt it. I know 20 and 30 yr olds that buy games because they have cool realistic graphics and don't think twice about gameplay. It's because they aren't in to the gaming scene enough to realize how much of a difference good gameplay can make in a game. They haven't played 100 other games in order to judge and compare. They are casuaul gamers and many of them are the older gamers.

Finally, it's funny that you criticize the yonger crowd for liking games only because of good graphics. I've got a 10 yr old daughter that can sit down and play Super Mario Bro's for an hour and love it just as easily as she can a more glamorous Super Mario Sunshine. Meanwhile it's me that gets bored with the games with the outdated graphics after playing them for 10 minutes.

We were all young once. We all made mistakes but have learned from them. Younger gamers need time to learn their likes and dislikes, just like all of us did. And the industry definitely needs younger gamers to keep it thriving.

Offline Ian Sane

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« Reply #6 on: June 18, 2003, 01:42:17 PM »
You know the videogame industry is relatively young when I'm 21 and I'm considered an old gamer who used to play NES games at birthday parties back in the late 80s.

The "problem" stems a lot from what people are "raised" with.  Those of us who grew up with Nintendo or Sega systems have learned to value the quality of games because that's what the console makers pushed.  Nintendo and Sega were quality game makers so they taught us to like quality games (ie: their own games).  Sony on the other hand isn't a quality game maker.  That's such a common opinion it's practically fact.  Sony obviously couldn't raise their gamers on quality games because they didn't have any to offer (at least with the first party games).  Therefore they had to take a different approached and instead promoted games that were cool.  They raised their gamers on sports games and games games that have cool characters and themes.  Now there were still good games on the Playstation but I think they became more popular because they were cool and the fact that they were good just increased their popularity.  Games like Resident Evil, Final Fantasy VII, and Metal Gear Solid were both cool games and good games so they sold best.  However the order of importance is cool, good.

That's why GTA is so popular.  It's a cool game AND it's good so it sells really well.  The themes in it however are such that even if it sucked it probably still would sell alright (see State of Emergency).

Offline Grey Ninja

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« Reply #7 on: June 18, 2003, 01:45:57 PM »
Man, just give me a rocking chair and a cane.  I understand completely what you are saying Doc, and I empathize.  I see a bunch of kids buying Xboxes because it's more "mature", or the graphics are better, and I just want to puke.  The young people today just really don't understand the industry.  It's not really their fault, as they didn't grow up with it as we did, and they haven't seen it all unfold before their eyes.  They probably wouldn't care to learn about what we went through to make the gaming industry as big as it is today.

I just hope that one day when they grow up they will realize just what games are, and why the good ones should be protected.
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Offline NinGurl69 *huggles

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« Reply #8 on: June 18, 2003, 02:27:43 PM »
If only Nintendo & Friends advertised more effectively.  Their ability to build awareness for quality games is poor.  Why is it that it takes "bonus discs" and "free this/free that" to build considerable anticipation and interest?
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Offline Plugabugz

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« Reply #9 on: June 18, 2003, 02:31:33 PM »
I'm only 16 myself.

I have a cube, and a friend brought Enter the Matrix to play.
My friends' who bought Matrix said that game is better than Metroid Prime. They even said it's better than Animal Crossing.
I seriously disagree, the attention to detail on everything alone in Metroid's case, and the innovation in AC, before I even consider the storyline in either game, is enough to leave me in awe.

That said, my friends who bought Enter The Matrix, largely bought movie-franchise games.
Hulk, Nightfire, bla bla, and said they're all good.

Before you criticise all of us our age, there is a small market of educated teenagers who buy games not to their name, but to all the other factors involved. Coincidentally, those living around here all own a gamecube.

Offline gcnfreak

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« Reply #10 on: June 18, 2003, 02:40:25 PM »
Well actually, I am only 12. But I strongly disagree with you people. I do not base games on their graphics...and I don't have people buy me my own games. I have to buy my own. I love the gaming industry and don't wanna start an argument or anything, but why does this thread exist? The Doc must be wanting to start something. By the way I agree with ya Plugabugz.

Offline Matt

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« Reply #11 on: June 18, 2003, 02:55:04 PM »
Electronics are getting sleeker and cooler looking.

Example: Headphones now go behind your head, not over the top.

Example: Notebook PC's are now coming with cool silver chrome colors.


Nintendo's problem was the GCN didn't get a cool sleek look (compared to PS2/Xbox).  Rather it got a cube which isn't as appealing.  That turns off many.
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Offline Bartman3010

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« Reply #12 on: June 18, 2003, 04:34:29 PM »
And a PS2 and X Box are just a couple of rectangles with ridges, big deal. The fact that the hardware and stuff is small IS appealing.

Ah well I bought an indigo one just because its the system's 'standard' color. At least way back when the console was released. I wanted to have matching colors with the other pieces, but I guess I wont with my BLACK broadband adapter and my BLACK Game Boy Player.
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Offline Termin8Anakin

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RE: Younger gamers and the gaming industry
« Reply #13 on: June 18, 2003, 05:02:54 PM »
One of the things about Enter the Matrix is that it is actually pretty cool.
The animations and the graphics could have been better, but the game is pretty cool. I played the PS2 version, and haven't played the GCN version yet. Are the graphics on the GCN version good as Metroid?
Stupid question, i know, but i have to ask.

I, on the other hand, didn't really grow up with the NES, since I didn't own consoles until 1995 with the SNES. But it was the NES that sparked my love of games - quality ones too, cause my uncle had one.
Moreover than not, teh NES was cool back then, so we all got one. THe catch was that basically all the games we played were really good ones.
The PSX/PS2 are cool, and that's why every kid has one. Catch is, most of the games are crap.
I commend them, however, that they lik games with inferior graphics and like the 'gameplay', but when that gp "PS2 graphics are better than Gamecube", that's the icing on my temper cake, and I'll bash the nearest PS2 (or PS2 lover).
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Offline aoi tsuki

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RE: Younger gamers and the gaming industry
« Reply #14 on: June 18, 2003, 06:10:15 PM »
We've all played some games when we were kids that we thought were great, only to play them a decade later and realize how crappy they were. The difference is that now, after years of playing games, we've developed a sense of what makes a good game, and can apply that to any game we play. In a sense i see it as maturation; in the same way that a kid will cry when his mom tells him he can't play now, games that offer instant gratification (GTA for example), will appeal to more immature audience. (Not to say that's the only appeal GTA has.) However, as we get older we gain patience and even appreciation for anticipation, which opens up appeal for games like Eternal Darkness.

The maturation process also applies to indepent thought, as someone pointed at earlier. As we get older, ideally we're more aware of advertising and less susceptible of it, due in part because we can confidently form our own opinions. Heck, i preordered Mortal Kombat on Genesis to get it on Mortal Monday after having played it a few times at the arcade. i returned it a few days later, after beating it repeatedly without much effort, and discovering several bugs. i fell for the hype then, but never again.

Termin8Anakin, it's hard to say which game looks better because they're two completely genres and don't even share the same style camera. The environments in Metroid look much more convincing, although the character models in ETM look pretty good. i'd give the nod to Metroid overall though; ETM as a whole wasn't as graphically satisfying.
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Offline The Doc

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« Reply #15 on: June 18, 2003, 06:13:43 PM »
Hey everyone. I read all of your posts and enjoyed reading what you had to say. Keep in mind, I said most younger gamers do not appreciate the gaming industry, I did not say all. I am sure a lot of the readers who posted under my thread are around around my age (22+) and grew up around the NES and Super NES, and have seen all of the changes that have happened in the gaming industry. It seems to me that a lot of younger gamers are just mislead, and they would buy a PS2 or an Xbox over a GameCube just becuase their friends have Xbox or PS2. Another thing I want to clear is up although younger gamers do not know everything about the gaming world, the same holds true for us older gamers as well. The main difference between the older gamers and the younger gamers is that the older gamers have been around longer, thus we can better appreciate the consoles as well as the software. People need to stop buying consoles becuase they look "cool" or because their friends have that console, and they need to form their own indentity in the gaming world. I am not trying to attack all younger gamers, I am just simply saying that most younger gamers are mislead about the industry, and therefore they have no real clear cut reason for the purchases they make and that is just sad. It looks like it is up to the older gamers to show the younger gamers the way in the gaming world.

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Offline NinGurl69 *huggles

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« Reply #16 on: June 18, 2003, 06:50:56 PM »
There's a lot to learn and appreciate from history.  Us 21+ gamers have been through a lot of gaming history, so many might know what's worth appreciating and will stand the test of time, with the rest to be forgotten and laughed at.
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Offline fire73chic

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RE: Younger gamers and the gaming industry
« Reply #17 on: June 18, 2003, 06:53:05 PM »
the doc needs how to write better.....lol
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Offline KrazyJ1098

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RE: Younger gamers and the gaming industry
« Reply #18 on: June 18, 2003, 07:26:19 PM »
i have been around for a while. i got started playing games on the atari 2600 with "river raid". i enjoy it to this day. but my point is. the cube isnt really that popular amongst adults either. the only demographic it really appeals to is the family groupings. or the ones who dont want to spend extra money on another console. it just boils down to game selection nowadays. people who come in my store go, gamecube? it doesnt have that many games. they then glance at the ps2 section and say "now i have a great selection har har"
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Offline Don'tHate742

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RE: Younger gamers and the gaming industry
« Reply #19 on: June 18, 2003, 08:14:18 PM »
I"m 16, and I owned a NES when I was young. Though it broke, and I don't have it anymore, I still play at my friends house every so often. We play all the oldschool hits, like contra, battletoads, and TTMNT. As I grew up, yes, I did gain a sixth sense of how to tell if a game is worth a purchase, and over the years I have made it more acute and accurate. As you possibly already know, I own a Gamecube. Sure the Xbox and PS2 are fad game consoles, they do have alot of appealing features (more so the PS2 than the Xbox). The Ps2 seems to satify the RPG fan, I myself am one and that's the main reason why I own a PS2. The Xbox is not as appealing, the only game I would want is Halo, but I play that every so often at my friends house. The Gamecube stuck with me, I have a pretty good sized library and recently added my tentative purchase of Capcom vs. SNK: EO, I  should have bought the game earlier. Anyways, I still play my old consoles, but unlike what Aui Suki said I still think there great and more fun than some games to date. Like Chrono Trigger, possibly one of the greatest RPG's     along side EarthBound still set the standard for most RPG's I play. They are better than the recent FF's (hopefully not CC though). Anyways, I hope I made whatever point I made clear, and I hope that you guys know me alittle better on this forum.
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Offline joeamis

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« Reply #20 on: June 18, 2003, 10:00:14 PM »
Right on there about Chrono and Earthbound Don'thate742!
I consider myself an old gamer despite the avg game players age now being 28...(I turned 23 on June 18th...hours ago)  I've played since the Atari 5200...and owned virtually every single system since the NES came out...  I think one factor (mentioned already somewhat) in the games kids/teens/adults buy is how much money they have.  For instance when I owned the NES I had no money of my own, so my parents bought me games... sometimes they decided and surprised me on birthdays/christmas...other times I picked the games.  I was very young then and that really has nothing to do with the point I'm getting at but once I got the SNES (around age 12), the only time my parents got me games was when it was a holiday...so that left it to me to buy my own games... so I chose wisely and bought quality titles.  My two friends on the other hand lived in rich families and they recieved games from their parents all the time, and they were often very mediocre at best. (they chose them not their parents)  

Another thing I'd like to say is that you can't really expect young game players to know/understand/and buy or ask for quality titles.  They're young and when it comes down to it, they just want to play games that seem cool to them or are fun for them to play.  Most don't know about any gaming sites on the internet and especially not forums, I stress only most...because some do know about sites/forums.  I'd say about a third of young gamers get a gaming magazine/or read one at stores each month, so that's yet another factor against them knowing about quality titles (we all know where we go to learn about what quality titles are coming or just released).  

So really I'd say the one main factor that actually gets young gamers to learn about quality titles with great gameplay is when they actually get to play one for a decent amount of time.  I remember when I was about 6 years old I went to a Lechmere (its like Walmart but more upscale and it went out of business) they had a NES there with a cartridge that had roughly 30 FULL (not demos) games on it for people to try.  My previous experience was with only my two Ataris (5200 and 7800).  Well my bro and I played game after game trying out each one, but the one and ONLY game there that I was actually GA GA over was this weird game with a bunch of bricks everywhere and little mustached people running about... so as my bro cycled through all the games asking me which one I wanted to play again, I would keep yelling "THE ONE WITH THE BRICKS!, THE ONE WITH THE BRICKS!"

Basically what I'm saying is that not until a young kid experiences a quality game do they actually learn what good games are.  After that, they will still get the games that are "cool" and not so good, but they will also begin to ask for games that are good and a little less cool.  As time goes by, they will begin to make the trend from "cool" games to quality games, until they reach an age where they finally just buy games that are quality.  I guess you could call it "growing up", mentally "maturing", or simply the evolution of a gamer!  (casual gamers are less likely to experience the "evolution" to quality games however lol, their loss not mine)
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Offline Plugabugz

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« Reply #21 on: June 19, 2003, 01:21:57 AM »
The teenage market is split into two, mostly of 90/10.

That 90 largely havce an Xbox or PS2 anbd buy a game simply coz it's "in fashion".
Halo, GTA, both examples of games that into this 'icon status'. A buys game, WOW its cool!, tells B, WOW it's great!, tells C, bla bla bla.


I bought Animal Crossing, and I got called mad for buying it. No problem with me!
It's incredibly naive of people to assume that teenagers are all the same. Fair enough, I'm human, and the only mistake I have made was to buy Crash Bandicoot.
But within that huge void of teenagers who buy fashion titles, there is a group who know what we're doing, and buy to a more rounded reason rather than "My friend says its got good graphics!".

Offline PIAC

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RE: Younger gamers and the gaming industry
« Reply #22 on: June 19, 2003, 02:06:33 AM »
it wouldn't be 90/10 ps2/xbawx thats not quite right, its about like 70/15/15 (roughly)

i remember a time ago (im only 18 so wasn't that long ago) when i was deciding which console to get, Snes or Mega Drive (having never owned a console prior) and what sold me was partially which look liked it had more/better games and also proir experiances with consoles (played a fair bit of shinobi and sonic on sega and enjoyed, also played a fair bit of mario 1 and 3). as a young uninformed gamer i could have read some magazines but i just didn't know about any(i ended up getting a snes). that little story has no real point, but some newer gamers are probably going though such a decision right now, give them time to grow and gain some experiance and they will see good games over hype games (though those two words can rightfully belong togeather (ie wind waker))


also happy birthday Joeamis ^_^

Offline thecubedcanuck

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« Reply #23 on: June 19, 2003, 02:13:21 AM »
I think you guys are once again reading way to much into gaming.
I honestly dont think more than 1% of consumers even think about the "industry" when they buy a console. They are simply buying a machine/toy to play video games on.

I am 32 years old and have been gaming since the vic 20 days, and could care less about the industry. I dont base my purchases on what is the better choice for the industry, hell I dont even think that is really possible.

Who's to say buying the gamecube is the better choice anyway?
The gaming industry is in the midst of its biggest boom in history, the industry is doing just fine, in fact it is smoking.

To many here believe the "industry" is in trouble simply because Nintendo is not doing as well as they like. Their assumtions about peoples choices are flawed because those choices dont coincide with their own.

Ninja said
Quote

I see a bunch of kids buying Xboxes because it's more "mature", or the graphics are better, and I just want to puke.


why should you care? how do you that these were their reasons? Maybe they like the games better?

Why is it so hard to believe that a lot of people just dont like what nintendo has to offer anymore, including their first party titles?

As far as I am concerned Sony has been the biggest benifit to the industry, they have opened the door to the general public, they are the reason you see so many third party developers, they are the reason their are so many games.
The mainstream video playing crowd is not stupid, they dont just walk around blind folded buying games that smell like blood, they buy games that they will like to play. They just dont care about gaming as a whole they way some here do, and there is nothing wrong with that. I drive a car and dont care about that industry either.
The problem is that gaming use to be a geek only hobby, only gamers played games. Many now seem bitter that that has been taken from them, especially when the mass consumers dont agree with their choices, so they blame the industry, the media, who ever they can to help them feel justified.
I say who cares, all is well on this side of the fence.
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Offline Termin8Anakin

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RE: Younger gamers and the gaming industry
« Reply #24 on: June 19, 2003, 02:48:41 AM »
They have opened up the gates of the industry to the mainstream, sure, but look at it now. It's been flooded with developers only out to make a quick buck. Heck, there are STILL games being made for teh PSX cause they don't want to leave the relative safety of the PSX, for fear that they may have to make a decent game.

Of course there's nothing wrong with not caring about the industry. It's just that too many developers are focusing only on the mainstream that they usually forget what making a game is about. We are not angry/bitter because our "geek-only hobby" has been taken away from us into the mainstream.

Man, I'm too tired to rant and complain more. I'm in a sarcastic mood today. I've got so much more fanboy thoughts for this post, but I just can't be bothered. I'll let Mario, Infernal, Grey Ninja, and any other million word posters take care of this.
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