[quote name='Mr Durand Pierre']As pretty much all gamers know Nintendo these days is considered to be the loser of the videogame market these days. It seems just about everyone rags on them. My question is this: why?
They're hyping up the Revolution as being a little low in terms of system specs and high in gamepley/ideas, but lets forget all that for a minute since this is all specualtion/hype for a system that hasn't come out yet. More particularly, why do people hate the Gamecube?
The only "bad" thing I can think about it is that it doesn't have online capabilities, but it's not like the PS2 uses that for much more than FFXI. Xbox live is nice, but expensive and not for everyone, and at least it doesn't only have 2 controller ports ala the PS2. now that's archaic.
But in my opinion Nintendo products these days are as good as they've ever been, with games like the Metroid Primes, RE4, Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat, The Wind Waker, Super Smash Bros, etc, etc... but for some reason they just don't sell that well. Is it only bad marketing, or is there something I'm missing in why Nintendo is suddenly so uncool?
And if you're wondering why this isn't in the Gamecube forum it's because I want honest opinions from people who aren't fanboys who presumably chose the Xbox over the GC (or just own both), and the Xbox seems to be more different from Nintendo than the PS2. Thoughts, opinions?[/QUOTE]
Pretty much everything Nintendo does, I hate.
Let's look at their recent history :
They put out a handheld that IMMEDIATELY requires a redesign because it has no backlight. They then make the GBA SP, probably the greatest handheld ever created. They then make a handheld (The DS) that is so retarded it looks like monkeys with down syndrome designed it. Wow, two screens. My eyes can only focus on one thing at a time. The second screen is being used exactly as I figured it would - as a map. Wupie ding. What innovation.
The Gamecube. Ugh, the Gamecube. Nintendo is built upon their first party development, which is fine, but I got tired of Mario games around the end of the SNES era. Nintendo has to put stupid Mario in EVERY game - its annoying. Not to mention the fact that all their games have to be bubbly and bright and colorful like a 3rd grade art class created it. Of course, there are exceptions to the rule for GC games. Eternal Darkness, Resident Evil 4, and Metroid Prime all come to mind as fantastic games that show what the console SHOULD have been designed around. Instead you get Mario Golf 13 and Mario Party 37 and Mario Goes To Mushroom Land 391. But that's what Nintendo fans want, so thats what they get. Being very anti-Nintendo, it keeps me at a far distance knowing if I got a Gamecube I'd be limited to maybe 4 or 5 games on that system I wanted that I couldn't get anywhere else.
You mention Donky Kong Jungle Beat, Smash Brothers, and Wind Waker. When I go to Fry's or Best Buy and they have Jungle Beat demonstrated, you know who I see playing it? Children. Young, young children. Teens and adults are playing the other systems. Why? Because MOST teens or adults would rather play a game like Halo or Madden than a game where you smash a bongo controller and clap. Its just simple fact, no arguing it. Wind Waker even pissed off hardcore Zelda fans who wanted a more adult Link. Smash Brothers never interested me. If I wanted to play a fighting game I'd play Mortal Kombat or DOA. No need to fight Pikachu against Luigi. Besides, a lot of stuff is too little, too late for Nintendo. Putting out Resident Evil 4 and the new Zelda games NOW was such a bad, bad move. If they had done it closer to the release of the system, it would've probably sold better because people would've assumed it had a more diverse userbase. Basically here's how it is - my little brother should own a Gamecube, and when he "graduates systems", he'll move UP to a PS2 or Xbox. That's how it's seen right now in the games industry.
I hate the fact that Nintendo TELLS GAMERS what they want. "Gamers don't want complex, thoughtful games. They don't want online play." Those are similar to quotes we've been hearing from Nintendo for what, two years now? That's bullcrap. Don't tell me what I do and don't want Nintendo. I TELL YOU. That's why I'm the consumer. Its just cocky bullcrap on Nintendo's part and I HATE IT.
And the "Revolution". Again Nintendo is going to pull out their gimmick card and try to create something where it isn't needed. This goes back to the days of the Power Glove. Nobody wants to control a game by waving their arms around. The Eyetoy pretty much failed, the Power Glove failed, and your stupid motion controller or whatever its going to be for Revolution is going to fail.
I used to be very anti-PS2. But after some serious thought, and looking at the quality of the games on the system, I decided to buy a PS2. And now? I love it. I love the different games I can get for PS2 that I can't for my Xbox. I love the way it plays "differently" than my Xbox. I love everything about it. Do I go online with PS2? Nope. Do I like knowing I have that option? Yes. Do I play DVDs on my PS2? Never. Do I like knowing I can if I want to? Yes. That's why I put aside my negative feelings for the system and gave it a shot. But there's absolutely no positives to owning a Gamecube. Its a dead system, barely kept afloat by its first party software - none of which I'm interested in. If Nintendo actually could admit they *gasp* did something wrong, and instead of doing MORE GIMMICKS actually design a console a person over 13 would want to own, then sure I'd give them a shot. But as it stands I think I'll stick with my Xbox and PS2.