Community Status Updates

Sorry, I wasn't talking about something different but I did use the phrase DLC as shorthand for both creator- and user-generated content out of brevity. You can look at my last post on blackjaw's blog entry to note that I explicitly mentioned it. And yes I know Blast Works has it, because it sits of my shelf virtually untouched. It pales in comparison to the level of interactivity that someone can put into a LBP level. And in this case more is better. Have you ever even played LBP content? It is not hard to find an amazing level like the ICO one. You may be happy being severely limited by the Wii's hardware, but that doesn't mean everyone is. The fewer limitations on creativity the better, and for this LBP moderation, bugs, etc. do absolutely get in the way, but those things are all fixable without buying new hardware and what it still lets an amateur do easily is a game landscape changer. I don't consider my last-gen games to suddenly become crap, but that doesn't mean I would be happy if developers do nothing but keep chugging out the same thing for the forseeable future. I already said the type who are happy, the ones who limit themselves to Madden and Wii Sports/Fit/Play, are irrelevant to my assessment of a console, because they are happy with just about anything. If the only games I saw in the PS3's future were shiny sequels like Virtua Fighter 5 I'd be pissed too. Sure they're nice games, but not dollar-investment-in-new-console nice. I want innovations in online, interactivity, audio, storytelling, graphics, content, the whole shebang. You claim developers of other platforms and people like me are faulty of believing shiny = "real" next-gen. I was tempted to use Animal Crossing as an example, but I have personal experience with Smash Bros and none with AC. Brawl's online is broken and to me that is the one innovation to the game that would have made a Wii entry anything besides an incremental update, and is a great example of the Wii superficially having a supposed next-gen feature yet failing to deliver. Rock Band DLC is another. Brawl doesn't even use motion controls, so a Wii seems entirely unnecessary except to push more polys. If you can justify your Wii purchase with noninnovative titles like Brawl, then you are proving that you derive more fun from a game because more computing power was thrown at it. Otherwise, why wouldn't you be satisfied with a sequel on GC or N64 instead? Since we both agree that more polish can make better games, then why settle for a 480p Wii with bad default controller, online, and storage capacity besides 1) money, 2) allegiance to Nintendo franchises despite their glacial output pace (which will probably result in next entries not even being on the Wii), 3) a feeling of superiority over who you think are idiotic for spending more money when "graphics don't matter"? Admit that if 1-3 are not important to someone looking to buy a new console, then a Wii is not the right option, and people like me are spending that money because it actually does make games more fun. Admit that assuming that a large number of people are leaving their Wiis off so they can brag about it online is a reach, and is an explanation that protects you from admitting that some combination of 1-3 are what are important to you. I'm not asking you to stop enjoying your Wii, just that you ease up on the paranoia and victim complex. Realize beyond the mob gruntle that there is some glimmer of truth to the state of the console. It's unhealthy and not just because people like me are upset (I'm not but you somehow think I am) at the new Wii-owner grandmothers (otherwise wouldn't the PS2 have suffered an equally bad fate gamewise?). I am engaging you in a conversation for legitimate reasons, despite your automatic assumption that I'm a troll because I think motion controls of this generation begin and end at gimmickry. Let me tell you more about myself so you won't automatically classify me as a raving PS3 fanboy who gets off on making fun of Nintendo fans. I have a Wii. I went from digging it (WarioWare) to being underwhelmed around the time of the first drought. I buy games for it and then don't end up playing them much because they're so damn shallow, compared to the PS2 games in my backlog. This makes no sense to me as the Wii is technically superior to the PS2 in so many ways, the architecture isn't a huge hurdle, and supposedly the demand and huge piles of money are there for the taking. The excuse that developers were caught off guard this late in its existence is getting less likely with every passing day. I've decided that I might as well play cheap PS2 games or PS3 games if I want to play recent games. The one Wii game that piques my interest is Muramasa, because I hope it fixes the Odin Sphere lag. If Muramasa ends up being a shallower version of Odin Sphere (less crafting, intricate storyline, lack of dual audio) or requires endless waggling, then I will change my opinion to "why bother?" and play Valkyria Chronicles or somesuch instead. Finally, if you believe the industry is sick because devs spend too much to top each other at the expense of fun, consider that XBLM, PSN, and WiiWare are all available for good games. The PS2 is slowing down but still has legs thanks to Atlus. Handhelds are healthy. No console stands out as the single savior on that front, but on the "what's going to be the next great game" front, some consoles are better suited than others.