Does SuperSmash Brothers Brawl (SSBB) make other fighting games seem dated?

[Bodhesatva]

Words Of Wisdom said:

Bodhesatva said:
Are you suggesting that MK should take the advice of internet forum folks? That's almost always trouble, WoW. That's exactly how things become niche. Don't listen to the ardent followers of a genre unless you are absolutely willing to go down the niche path.

These series are no longer as popular as they used to be. Their followings have dwindled over the years as they've fallen into neglect. These companies can either make games akin to the originals or games that are different. If the games are too different, then the companies can't even cash on what little following their franchises have. Even worse, the people most likely to talk about the games in the media mainstream are the ones who will remember the originals and they'll be the ones most disappointed. Disappointment will lead to bad reviews. You'll see a lot more of "Why did they change XYZ?" and "They should have stuck with ABC."

If these companies want to reinvent the wheel, they're better off starting with a new IP so as to avoid the negative publicity backlash.

This gets back to the edit I made to the first post you replied to. I'll quote that here, because I'm fairly sure I made the edit after you'd already begun replying to me. 

I'm not saying you're necessarily wrong, by the way. Here's the central question: is it better to play it safe and milk something like Tekken, knowing it will be a dead property in 5-10 years? Or is it better to risk alienating the remaining core fans in attempt to revitalize a dying genre? There isn't a correct answer to that one until we're 10 years down the road and can look back and see.

 

This central question can be applied to practically anything on Wii, by the way. Which is better, to stay with the safe shooters/fighters/RPG/action games that these companies have been churning out for decades now, with the same type of controller and gameplay style, or take a risk with something new on the Wii? Again, I'm not sure there is a right answer here. While the Wii is riskier, it's clear that the rewards are higher, as Nintendo continues to embarass the rest of the industry by making more profit than everyone combined, thrice over. But you don't necessarily achieve what Nintendo does; you can fall flat on your face instead. By contrast, the older, more traditional styles of games have seen profits shrink and shrink for years now (this isn't just true of fighting games, but especially so there), but at the same time, these smaller profits are safe. You can depend on them. Companies know how to make these games good, and they can expect to reap the rewards of it.

Take your pick.