I'll make this short and sweet (yeah right. I'm always too verbose):
We all have favorites. We're gamers, and we're passionate about our hobby. It's only natural to have a favorite.
And that's fine.
But when your favorite company does something shady, let's acknowledge it. Acknowledging the problem is what allowed the Xbox One to avoid being a completely melted carapace of failure. Acknowledging the problem is what transformed the PS3 from "lol Blu Ray trojan" to an exclusive-rich gaming machine. NOT acknowledging the problem is what led Nintendo to their missteps with the Wii-U (hopefully they can recover). The only way we can urge our favorite companies to improve is to let them know. Yes, yes, it can often get overblown. We're gamers! We're a passionate bunch, and sometimes we shout a bit louder than we should. But that does not mean we should sit down, shut up, and #dealwithit
It's bad enough not to acknowledge the problem, but to intentionally deflect accusations by saying "but but someone else did it too!" is pathetic. It's counterproductive in every way. It borders on shilling, honestly.
Back when Xbox One DRM was rumored, a lot of people sat on their hands and said "it's probably not true". When it became obvious that, indeed, the DRM scheme was true, these same people said "oh...well...I guess I'll live with it, since Sony will do it too."
Hence, Sony Too™.
But Sony didn't do it. Neither did Nintendo. The blame rested only on Microsoft's shoulders, and deflecting the blame did nothing to help the situation.
Whenever we see a negative news story (and I mean a real story, not an opinion piece like '5 reasons Wii-U is doomed') the excuses just come rolling out.
"If Sony had the chance, they'd do this too"
"Microsoft said something insulting? Well...back in 2006 Sony also said some really arrogant stuff"
"You think corporations are your friend? They're not."
"Everyone probably does this."
"No one will care. The internet's reaction doesn't matter" (lol that's why we still have Xbox One DRM amirite?)
"Steam does this anyway, so I don't see the problem."
OH! And there's always my very, very favorite. Someone always chimes in with a news story from years ago where such-and-such company did something bad, completely off-topic.
"Microsoft is a part of PRISM? Well, Sony put rootkits on people's
computers a decade ago".
So? Are you trying to say that it's okay, or are you trying to show everyone that all companies do bad things? What is your motivation for bringing this up? It does nothing to help the situation, and it certainly doesn't send the message to the company in question that they should stop their shady practices.
It's as if you're so mad that your favorite company is being criticized that you really need to "balance the scales" and bring up a bad thing from a competitor to your favorite company, as if that will make it all okay. After all, we can't have people thinking YOUR favorite company is the only one doing bad things. No, no, no. You'd better bring up a bad thing the other guy did back in 2007. That'll show 'em.
On and on. What is the value of crying Sony Too™? What does it accomplish? Does it make any of the game companies (including Sony) any better? Isn't this the same mentality that refused to protest the Xbox One's DRM plans?
And this isn't meant to be a dogpile on Microsoft (although they are the main cuplits for "Them Too" excuses). I know Sony got away unscathed, but PS+ being required for PS4 online was swept away with "Them Too" excuses. Very few stopped to question it, and those that did were brushed away with the wave of a hand.
EDIT: And in case people are confused, there is a time and a place to say "Them Too". For instance, if a news story leaked that Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft were bribing IGN editors for better reviews but the news articles coming out only said "Microsoft bribes IGN!", then...well...duh! Obviously that's a case of "Sony Too" and "Nintendo Too" because they are a part of the story. What needs to stop is when a story comes out about a company and then someone chimes in with a completely unrelated event from a different company as if to say "but they're doing it as well". That doesn't aid discussion in the least.
The point is, let's stop with the Sony Too™ excuses (or "Nintendo Too" or "Microsoft Too" or "Steam Too"). This attitude is damaging to the gaming industry. It allows big companies (and big companies aren't your friends, remember? That's what people keep mentioning) to continue infesting our communities with astroturfers and shills.
Speak up and discuss the problem. Don't simply cry Sony Too™
Copy pasted from blog on N4G. http://n4g.com/user/blogpost/dedicatedtogamers/525898
