The Wii U's Rotten Start & the Industry's Rotten Maturity

Phil here with an opinion piece that I'm passionate about. Now, don't get me wrong and think SPC's other works aren't passionate. This subject is simply one that really gets my proverbial goat. The Wii U has not had a good launch or even a good week. We've heard developers flat out laugh at the system, and we've heard big time publishers admit that they have no games in development for the system (EA). It seems the industry absolutely loves dirty laundry, as Don Henley once sang. They especially love it when it's against a system they don't care for, because let's face it-- it doesn't matter if you're a ten-year-old kid or a "professional games journalist" (oxymoron there), fanboys come in all shapes and sizes. This piece talks about a number of topics, including premature Wii U death calls, the idiocy of killing off the Wii U already, unprofessional Twitter tirades,  and the overall immaturity of the video game industry in general. Prepare to be holier-than-thou'd.

I've always hated it when consoles or platforms are derided and chastised because they are perceived as weak. That never bothered me, as what is most important is the games. We've seen this with the NES, the Game Boy, the Super Nintendo, the original PlayStation, the PlayStation 2, and recently the Wii and Nintendo DS. The Wii U is no doubt underpowered when compared to what Sony (and possibly Microsoft) are planning. However, as long as there are great games coming eventually, then while waiting sucks, they WILL finally arrive.

By far the most idiotic idea that I have seen in a long time comes from those who think Nintendo should just kill off the Wii U now and start fresh with a new console. We all know that this idea would work really well because it would give consumers, gamers, fans, and investors a lot more confidence in future Nintendo products if Nintendo pulled the plug on that current system. Oh, wait. It would actually do the exact opposite. We already have people who won't buy a Nintendo platform at launch because of the 3DS mess, which involved a quick price drop and Ambassador games for early adopters. Could you imagine the repercussions of Nintendo just stopping hardware and game production and starting fresh? You think people were mad when the 3DS went down in price, just think of how bad this would be.

I say this because Nintendo hasn't even put out their big hitters yet, but people (usually those invested in the demise of companies they hate, regardless of whether their games provide millions of others with fun and happiness) have already been calling for a time of death. Quite premature, no? There's been little in the way of big games for the Wii U, but they are finally coming. I'm referring to games like the first 3D Mario for the system, Mario Kart (which was a big system seller on the Wii), Super Smash Bros. 4, and even smaller titles like Pikmin 3 and the Platinum Games-developed The Wonderful 101.

Pikmin 3 screenshot

When I see people crying that the Wii U has no games, and then go right into whining when the system gets an exclusive that they want, I am dumbfounded. I know fanboys don't use proper logic, but damn if I'm lying when I say it's embarrassing behavior. Don't get me started on the Bayonetta 2 Wii U exclusive death threats. Exclusives are what makes a system worth owning, and suddenly it's a bad thing when a console gets them to improve its worth, value, and image that it has "no gaems" (as the kids spell it)?

Bayonetta 2 wouldn't have been possible with Nintendo

backing it, but who cares? Nintendo stole our game, and if we

can't have it, no one should!

Another thing that bothers me is when people ask Nintendo to go third-party. The fact of the matter is that Nintendo develops their hardware and controllers with their own games in mind first and foremost. This understandably ticks off a lot of third-parties, but it allows Nintendo to create the excellent games they do. It's my belief (and there's no way to prove this until Nintendo ever goes third-party) that Nintendo's software quality would diminish much like Sega's did. The reason for this is because Nintendo's games are so closely developed with their own hardware in mind. Having to learn something foreign would make for a difficult transition. For goodness sake, Nintendo is having trouble with HD development for their own console, and people think they could handle hardware not even made by them?

What I can imagine is how many people who have a beef with Nintendo must have suffered through the Wii and DS generations. This was when Nintendo was on top of sales charts and leading the industry. Heck, we heard so much from them: "The bubble is about to burst!", "It's a fad", and my personal favorite, "Attach rate sucks!" despite the Wii for the longest time having a similar attach rate to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. It seems now that Nintendo is vulnerable and in a weak state, these same people are flocking in like vultures on a rotten corpse.

I'm not saying the criticism isn't well deserved, but when you have an EA employee flat out say the system is crap and other incredibly bitter, juvenile, GameFAQs, NeoGAF or N4G troll-worthy, unprofessional nonsense and have a bunch of gamers applaud him instead of saying, "Hey. Maybe THIS is why our industry isn't taken seriously", then you can see why it gets obnoxious (and why the industry isn't taken seriously by anyone with a brain). On a side note, publishers, you might want to teach your employees how they should behave on social media. Having an "all views are my own" disclaimer in your Twitter profile is not a get-out-of-jail-free card or free rein to act like a total douche.

How inappropriate. Everyone knows 

the name "Wii U" has a space in it.

The Wii U has a lot to dislike about it-- the empty and broken promises of Nintendo president Satoru Iwata (e.g. "We won't make the same mistakes as the 3DS"), the launch window games being delayed beyond their original intended release time periods, the laughable third-party support that is somehow worse than the freaking Wii, the anemic Virtual Console lineup, and the general "rushed" feeling the system has overall. However, there's some good things too, such as the comfortable and innovative Wii U GamePad, Miiverse, the improved online, the better relations Nintendo has with indie developers, among others.

Look at those huge hands. They must be 

where Iwata holds all of his broken promises.

I don't have any emotional involvement to corporations. I do, however, have an emotional attachment to the games industry, and hope that one day a lot of us stuck in the childish male adolescent mindset will finally grow up or at least shut up. That will finally make our industry one that the average person won't mock and laugh at. Currently, we deserve all of the laughter and ridicule we get. Just look at any message board (especially one that declares itself as the prominent gaming discussion community, yet it acts just as horribly as everywhere else) or comment section for evidence. We behave like children arguing on a playground, frat boys who never grew up, and people so attached to pieces of plastic and game companies that it blinds them completely.

A typical example of a typical fanboy, made
possible by the preeminent community for video game
news and discussion. The sad part is not this post,
but that posts like these are way too easy to find.

We need to grow up as an industry together, and Twitter tirades, message board arguments, and wishing death to systems and publishers you don't like even when they make millions of others really happy are getting in the way of doing just that.

Top Five Annoying Types of Gamers

Okay, okay. I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "Phil. PHIL. You complain and lambast gamers on a constant basis. Why do I need to read another article of you whining about a group that really does no harm to you?" My answer would be, "Touche, worthy adversary." Actually, I have found that there are five types of the gamer subculture that I find most obnoxious. Perhaps you will agree with me on some of these choices, but probably not.

5) The Overly Competitive Gamer

Mad or constipated? You be the judge.

When I play a multiplayer game online, I hate it when I get teamed up with someone who takes the nature of the game way too seriously. Don't get me wrong, it's okay to be competitive, but when you get to the point where you are literally screaming at your teammates, opponents, and the TV and breaking controllers over less than satisfactory multiplayer scenarios, you've got problems. I used to have this issue with games when I was younger, but then I realized that nothing good could come out of getting angry over a game. I can get frustrated and go, "Come on, game..." but I don't go all The Shining Jack Nicholson on people anymore. Games are supposed to be fun, and there is nothing worse than having that fun spoiled by someone who is overly aggressive. I have had death threats from people I've beaten, kids calling me homophobic slurs, and being told to casually "get raped." That's sort of the reason I steer clear of online multiplayer usually unless its of the cooperative nature. Then there's that awkward moment when you are the same tangible (not virtual) room as the person getting upset. You feel for them and understand their frustration, but you still just want them to shut the hell up and cool the hell down. 

4) The Gamer Trapped Within Their Comfort Zone

This type of gamer irritates me. I mean, truly. One of their most popular buzzwords to say is "gimmick." This doesn't mean an innovative feature or gameplay element to them. No, it really means "something about this that I don't like." The November 2011 release of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (SPC's GotY 2011, by the by) was one of the most egregious moments of this type of gamer's history. Rather than try to comprehend a new control scheme, a vocal minority argued that the game had horrible controls and all you did was waggle. For anyone who has invested some serious time into the imperfect title, you know that if all you are doing is shaking the Wii remote around like you're having convulsions to try to do delicate swordplay, you're doing it wrong. This gamer type just doesn't like trying stuff out of their comfort zone. Touch controls? Ha. Motion control? Keep dreaming! Tablet controller? Gimmick! It's a shame that this gamer won't allow him or herself to try different gaming experiences. If gaming was up to them, we'd be using dual analog on consoles for all time instead of evolving to better and more comfortable solutions.

Even Link hates when people try to "waggle" through his game.

3) The Gaming Snob

Well, at least he is a handsome devil.

You probably have met this type of gamer. They will turn up their nose at you for playing a game that they deem inferior to their tastes. And don't even get them started on casual gaming experiences. Not only do they call it all shovelware, but they feel insulted when "soccer moms and grandpas" enter their hobby. Far be it from anyone to allow new players to enter our hobby. No, this type of gamer wishes for his or her hobby to remain clean. What I find humorous about all of this is that the gaming snob acts all high and mighty on high tech toys, which video games and the consoles and handhelds that play them essentially are. I imagine this person wearing a top hat, monocle, and a fine suit, sipping their vermouth from a thin-lipped wine glass. So keep fighting the good fight, gaming snob, telling people that playing Wii Fit, LEGO games, and Just Dance makes them beneath you and your superior gaming tastes.

2) The Entitled Gamer

I don't want to delve too deeply into the Mass Effect 3 ending-gate, but it sort of goes along with what this type of gamer is all about. The developers essentially had to change their vision of the series just because of the cries of some entitled gamers. That isn't the way I see how art should work. Now, it is fine to not want to take garbage from developers and publishers. It is fine to want things. But when you cross the line into desire everything and immediately so, you become more annoying and come across as overly entitled.

Don't worry. We'll fix that ending right up for you guys!

Reggie Fils-Amie of Nintendo stated last month that gaming culture is insatiable (among other things). I agree because no matter what a company pushes out onto the market or reveals, the entitled gamer always wants more. There is never enough. Continuing with Nintendo, recently the Club Nintendo prizes for America were revealed. However, the entitled gamer once again moaned and groaned. Now, free stuff that doesn't have to be given to you is not enough? Seriously? I sort of would be interested to see the Club Nintendo program shut down. Then we would truly see some considerable whining and disappointed gamers.

1) The Console Warrior

We all have biases towards our gaming tastes. We prefer one platform over another, or we enjoy games from one company and not another. However, while this is normal and acceptable behavior, defending your console of choice to the death/attacking a console you dislike to extremes is most certainly not. In the Nintendo VS. SEGA days, playgrounds were filled with heated debates regarding which was better. This was one of the earliest and most prominent console wars. It basically came down to kids and families only being able to afford one home console, either the Super Nintendo or the SEGA Genesis. Essentially the root of all console wars for non-adults stems from not being bable to possess all platforms. With the advent of the Internet and for better or worse, it became easy peasy to get involved in intense conversations that are riddled with personal attacks and the like. But this time around you had anonymity on your side to hide behind. And we all know that anonymity + audience = total ****wad.

The sad part is that this guy is not joking.

Then there's trolling which is rampant on message boards. To troll is to illicit a response from someone in an incendiary way. "I used to like Nintendo, but I'm not ten anymore." "Halo is great if you are a racist, homophobic 12 year old who enjoys vast quantities of Mountain Dew." "Poor Vita. Like the rest of the world, even Sony doesn't care about you." And so forth. This is sort of reason why I don't like to frequent comment sections or message boards. This kind of material is standard form at these places.

===

Surely you have your own sets of gamer that you don't like. How about smart-mouthed blogger? Enlighten the SPC community with your insight below!