- x Lord Revan x
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- Forum Ninja
Posted by: Fos Tis Krisis
Posted by: x Lord Revan x
Just look at Wii sales and see how they are through the roof.
Not quite, the Wii came out, and everyone bought it cause of the new stuff. Then when the Novelty wore off the console crashed and burned. It's made slim to no sales in nearly a year. (Considering the only decent games on it are smash bros, metroid prime, zelda, and mario galaxy)
But anyway on-topic. So long as the whole game isnt made specifically for MLG, I will be happy. MLG can stay what it is, a tournament I dont have to play in, and a playlist I can ignore. (They are a ripoff of the Cybergames anyway, Cybergames are INTERNATIONAL, MLG is American)
Well, it is true that the novelty of the motion controller has started to wear out. That isn't my argument however. The Wii itself is still primarily dominating in sales (source). They have sold over 50 million Wii's world wide whereas only 23 million PS3's and only 30 million Xbox 360s have sold world wide.
Their sales in April however did demonstrate that their power is starting to falter, but the Xbox 360 and the PS3 have a lot of catching up to do. Xbox 360 could do quite well considering it is now only 200 dollars in comparison to the Wii which remains around 250. However, the Wii itself, since launch, has become cheaper to produce. According to Koya Tabata of Credit Suisse, in a recent note to clients, "the cost to Nintendo of producing a Wii has fallen by about 45 per cent since its launch(source)." That would allow a price cut or a lower priced model to be introduced into the market and bolster sales.
Still, the Wii is seeing tremendous sales when game launches, popular game launches that is, occur. With Super Mario Galaxy 2, a new Legend of Zelda in the works, two new Metroid Games in the works (although only one is really known about as of now: the collaborative effort between Team Ninja and Nintendo to produce Metroid: Other M), sales for the Wii won't be dropping any time soon, at least not significantly. It is still dominating the industry.
Hence why Microsoft and Sony both are retaliating with new motion controls to further develop the concept of more interactive gaming. Both are obviously gimmicks, but they may be more involving. Although, Nintendo too has the Wii Motion plus releasing. All three companies are aware of the growing casual market who desires to use their games for more entertaining purposes.
The Wii demonstrates that graphics and difficult, high end, hardcore games aren't necessary to sell a console. Why spend millions on high end graphics, a ton of workers, a big budget high tech game, when you can produce something more interactive and reap the same sales figures?
Don't get me wrong though. The hardcore gaming industry is still kicking. Each console still has sales through the roof for their hardcore games. They make a ton of money there, however, if you not how games have changed, you'll note that they have become easier to play. The Hardcore games themselves aren't as hardcore anymore. Its as simple as noting the difference between coin op classics that were difficult enough to get you killed a bunch and force you to keep throwing in another quarter to continue and todays games that you sit on your couch and play continuously without dying, or even if you do die, you get to continue from a saved checkpoint.
That very distinction, the ability of games to be beaten by any gamer of any age due to different difficulties, recharging health, and checkpoints demonstrates a desire to (A) appeal to more people and (B) keep them playing through to the end and after wards and (C) the desire not to piss them off through frustration. Gamers come in all sorts. There are good and bad players. Games nowadays have to be easy enough for bad gamers to still beat them and offer at least a mild challenge to the good gamers. The only thing to note is how much is being given to the casual "bad" gamer who isnt necessarily capable of running through, lets say, Halo 3 on Legendary. They are getting a lot of attention since games are becoming more mainstream and acceptable.
The sales figures alone on all three consoles together represent that a lot of the world is gaming nowadays. Looking back, there werent that many sales for any other generation. Nailing the market that never used to play games or only casually enjoyed them at a friends house is the key to making more sales. Therefore, even if a game is appealing more to the hardcore fanbase, it will make some minor concessions to allow for casual gamers to still enjoy and play the game.
Halo 3 is a prime example. It offers a multitude of difficulties and offers an online play with a ranking system. Having an easy difficulty instead of just normal, hard, legendary, demonstrates that they are making available a story experience that is aimed for poor players. The Assault rifle itself is an aim at making not only a balanced weapon, but a weapon thats easy to use for players. It allows the whole "pray and spray" methodology. It has a large reticule, a lot of autoaim, and it doesnt require pumping like the battle rifle. While I may get flamed for making such a comment, the differences between using the Battle Rifle and using the Assault rifle are apparent even if they are minor. The Battle Rifle takes just a tiny bit more ability to use due to the need to pump the trigger, aim a smaller reticule, and learn to counteract a spread. Its extremely minimal, but it is mathematically more difficult.
Just note some of the other changes in games over the years that note a small nod to the less hardcore community. Will Halo:Reach be the same? Who knows. Perhaps it will be the hardest game of the Halo games and take a ton of skill. Maybe it will depart from the trend started with Halo 2 and Halo 3 towards developing a game that people of all skill levels can play together. Personally, I doubt it will.
However, if it does, it will surely be an MLG game. If not, it will probably open up options that allow it to become more challenging and open it up for MLG play. Who knows at this point.
Personally, I hope they do the latter. It is important to open up a game to allow for a more casual base to play it as well as a more hardcore base. It makes gaming more integral in everyday life and gives people something to do when they get together. However, I personally hope, that they also include enough options (preferably more than halo 3 had) to develop a more intense mode of play garnered for the Hardcore crowd. Allow the skill gap to be a bit more intense.