| JRock3x8 said: I think there is merit to this concept, not that hardcore gamers who frequent these sites will acknowledge it :) I probably fit somewhere in between a midcore and a hardcore. I love multiplayer gaming on the 360 but I am frequently frustrated by the difficulty (and crazy mad aggression) of it. But I can't play iPad games all day either. Hero Academy is a surprisingly deep asynchronous game but at the end of the day there's not enough action there to keep me engaged for long periods of time. I have another point here which I am taking the REALLY long way to get to : (take a deep breath everyone) Hardcore gamers are too small of a market to grow the larger video game universe. And you guys are absolutely batpoop crazy. Let me give you an example : Kinect Star Wars vs Journey (Full disclosure : I haven't played ANY of these yet) Kinect Star Wars is going to be one of the best selling games of the year. You may not like it, you may scoff at me for saying so, but it's Star Wars and it's incredibly accessible/easy to play. Those two things alone appeal to a HUGE audience. This is also why the Madden franchise is so successful (also blasted annually by hard core gamers). Now let's take Journey, a recent PSN title. The gaming press is literally going bonkers over Journey and that game looks and sounds completely impenetrable to your average gamer. Your average (casual) gamer looks at that game and goes "What in the world is going on here?". This game will make money (I assume) but not a lot of it. If it doesn't make scads of money, there eventually won't be more of them. Why? Because publishing companies are run by stockholders and stockholders love MONEY. The point is that hardcore gamers cannot continue to dictate and demand the direction of video games as they do today - Video games must attain broader appeal for the medium to move forward. Ok, zipping up ye old flamesuit - have at it! |
Ok, sure I'll bite.
Journey vs SW Kinect, the difference is sales is 99% in the name and the marketing. Journey is easier to play, but it does allow you a lot more freedom to get lost, maybe that's a negative. Sure if it were c3po and r2d2 gliding off those sand dunes instead of a figure wearing something resembling a burqa it would probably have sold more too.
Anyway I don't see how SW Kinect is moving the medium forward, it's a side step at best. Hardcore gamers may be a smaller group but word of mouth is still very important. Plus plenty hardcore gamers buy several full price games each month. The industry can't survive on $2 iPad games alone either.
And now they're on Kickstarter fighting back against the grip stockholders have over their favorite developers.
If they want to retain the 30-50 market maybe they should invest more in mature adventure games and simulation games imo.
