2006 GameSpot ‘April Fools’ joke correctly predicts everything we now know about gaming in 2010
We expect Nintendo’s Revolution, based on its price and immense catalog of downloadable games, to be the market leader by 2010,” Runte told GameSpot News. “Nintendo is going to be one heck of a competitor for the gaming pie, and from the looks of it, I think they are going to get a rather huge slice.”
- Ike Kidd, April Fool’s: Analyst: Revolution will take lead in 2010 – GameSpot.com
It was just too easy back then.
In 2006, Nintendo was an easy target. The current generation of players seemed weary of their unsophisticated and innocent content – especially in a post-Resident Evil and Metal Gear Solid world.
Instead, Sony came into the previous decade as the biggest name in the biz, with few able to imagine their throne being usurped by anyone, let alone Nintendo of all companies – not even Sony itself.
Maybe that ugly black Xbox would take a slice of the delicious gaming pie chart; but Nintendo? Not likely.
So when Wii’s predecessor, the GameCube, trailed behind both the PlayStation 2 and Micosoft’s original Xbox in the early millennial console race, it all but confirmed the imprudent conclusion that Nintendo was a dinosaur of a different era, on a slow march toward extinction.
And for some commenters, 2010 couldn’t come soon enough:
OMG HAHAHAH!!!!111!1!!! And to think i believed this for a second!!! OMG!! Good job GameSpot! This was nice!”
- NFunspoiler
April 1=Worst day ever!!! The internet is filled with this crap!”
- kubebot
‘Nintendo is going to be one heck of a competitor for the gaming pie and from the looks of it, I think they are going to get a rather huge slice.’
I thought I was going to wet myself after reading that.”
- firebird23
But at least one soothsayer foresaw the irony of the ‘joke’:
I think this is hilarious! But I think it would also be funny if it did come true. Just think, we’ll just sit back and remember that this April fool’s joke came true and laugh long and hard. At least I will, although I do have a twisted sense of humor.”
- sonic86
Hindsight reveals the only real error in the piece – that it would only take Nintendo until 2008 to become market leader, and not 2010.
For this find, I credit the archives of enigmatic strategy analyst Sean Malstrom. Malstrom, whose corner of the Internet plays host to one man’s war against dimwitted game journalists and commenters everywhere, has been observing Nintendo since early 2005.
Now, this article hasn’t been dragged out of the great Internet time capsule to help stoke the fan-war flames – instead it should be used as a cautionary tale for those who think they are gifted with the absolute understanding of what makes games ‘work.’
So then, care to take a shot at 2020 anyone? Anyone…?
http://trueslant.com/josephhayden/2010/01/12/2006-gamespot-april-fools-predicts-2010-gaming/
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HILARIOUS
even more funny comments.....I'd like to go the article & comment on it now!!!!
They should do another one of these in 2012 with SONy in it & maybe PS4 will dominate?!!!!
