Before I begin, I will list my credentials between me, graphics and gaming. The first console I ever played was a Nintendo 64. The second I played was an NES.
We are currently in the 7th generation of home video game consoles. The XBOX 360, Wii and Playstation 3 are all "competing for 'next gen' supremacy". Yes, another generation, another 5 years of nerds fighting with each other on an ever increasing scale thanks to the internet, but what makes this generation interesting is how pathetic "gamers" are becoming. Now, let's jump all the way back to gaming's infancy.
After Atari caused the American games market to crash in 1983, mainstream gaming was practically extinct in the West. Meanwhile, in the East Nintendo launched their Family Computer (FAMICOM). Gaming was still preserved in the US with PC gaming on the Commodore 64 (1982) and Sinclair ZX Spectrum (1982). At the time, this was considered gaming's "hardcore" market. Well informed computer users that couldn't be fooled by companies that year after year produced bad games. Computer gaming however, was considered a niche and real money was to be had selling mainstream (or today's casual) video game console platforms. This presented many problems as now people who were less informed would buy bad games and not really know about the company or if they were bad until they actually played them (sound familiar?).
The NES debuted in North America in 1985, being praised for its amazing graphics for its time. SEGA then released the Genesis in 1989, bashing the NES for being graphically superior and in 16-bit. Arguably, SEGA was out-done 2 years later with the release of the SNES, with superior sound compared to the Genesis.
As time goes on, technology gets better, "Console Wars" get bigger, and gamers become less about gaming and more about verbally fighting with each other. This generation is no different. These "hardcore" "gamers" think that they're all high and mighty, buying a "technologically superior" console and essentially having a fight over who has the biggest e-penis. Meanwhile true, sensible gamers who play games to actually have fun (something these games were designed to fucking do) are being overshadowed by assholes who play 2 games on 360/PS3 and all of a sudden call th
emselves "hardcore". Well guess what, they're not. They're just pathetic fanboys who are so disgruntled by their console's offerings that they have to attack others who have something else, like a bunch of whining babies.
These crazy loons are so focused on self-entitlement and "demanding" companies produce the same old shit year in and year out they make Jack Thompson seem like a reasonable guy in comparison. These "gamers" will go out and buy the same game every year and whenever something new and different comes out, they IGNORE IT. These fucking crybabies will complain and whine whenever a company doesn't fulfill their wishes that are hyped beyond belief that what is presented to them is never "enough". A true fan will hope for some things, and if they don't get fulfilled, you know what they do? They hold that wishing for next time and look at what's RIGHT IN FRONT OF THEM. A true gamer will not label games as "core" and "casual" and try to play only "core" titles. True fans and gamers will play anything so long as it's a game and they think it's good. That is the industry we need to have, not this pathetic one that will whine and bitch about there never being "core" titles on Wii and whenever such a "core" title comes out they never buy it and complain "it's not a game for me". Well fuck you. Stop playing games and get a job. If you don't like what you see, then GTFO.
I've said before that this generation of gamer has made me lose all hope in humanity and this has been further cemented today, when a 23 year old PS3 fanboy tries to tell ME that sales don't matter and people are gonna buy a more powerful system. That's wrong on so many levels, especially considering the PS2 was extremely underpowered compared to GCN and XBOX and sold incredibly well compared to those 2 consoles.
The future of the industry is looking bleak. Hopefully there will be a turn around. Maybe one day people will actually appreciate you have a different console than them and ACTUALLY PLAY IT WITH YOU and stop fighting over which is better. Each console has it's strengths and weaknesses and none is better than another. And stop trying to say X company is gonna win the console wars. I will reiterate, the only companies who will win the console war will be IBM, ATi and nVidia. So go out, buy/rent an interesting game, and enjoy it, no matter which console you have.
