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Many years ago now a stupid stuck up company messed around with a CD giant, a giant that wanted a piece of the gaming market. Because of this said CD giant murdered the market, SEGA fell and Nintendo were forced to retreat from their headlined position. Sony was here.
Nintendo's survival depended on three things, their unique, totally different style to Sony meant Nintendo offered something Sony didn't. Nintendo also have the hardest dying fan base you'll ever see, a fan base filled with us lot. These two factors help but it was the Gameboy, a franchise left untouched by Sony's rampage that meant Nintendo could re-group and re-build.
Nintendo hid in their niche market, their fan base and their Gameboy franchise allowed them to soldier on as Sony's user-base tripled, quadrupled and whatever came after that. Could anyone stop this jugganaught?
Enter Microsoft. The biggest, richest company in the entire world... and all of a sudden Sony didn't look that strong. Microsoft has slowly chipped away at Sony over the past 2 years, eating more and more into both their and Nintendo's user base. Microsoft are a company that, no matter how hard they try, Sony cannot defeat even in their elevated position.
There is no room for 3 consoles, it is time for Sony to finish off Nintendo once and for all.
And this was the perfect time to do it. Despite unbelievable sales of the Gameboy Advance the Gamecube was falling. Nintendo's die hard fan based were annoyed, the company they loved so much was fiddling with franchises and ultimately creating games that were not up to the usual standard. Wind Waker, Sunshine and Pikmin... the Gamecube's self-proclaimed lead titles were, to some Nintendo fans, disappointing. Only Mario Kart and Metroid Prime proved that Nintendo did indeed still have it. The sale of Rare to Microsoft was another massive blow to Nintendo's fan base, the constant loss of third party developers every week made Nintendo appear doomed to failure.
Enter the death nail, the killer blow.... The PSP.
If Sony want to fight Microsoft then a handheld is the key. A platform that is said to be the future of gaming, a handheld would not only extend the already strong Playstation userbase but also cripple Nintendo beyond repair. Getting a massive head start over Nintendo's next Gameboy, introducing MP3 playability and what looks set to be the sexiest piece of kit ever created.
E3 2004
How Sony didn't expect this. Suddenly everything changed. Nintendo's third parties may be leaving but what at first seemed like a weak first party line up became stronger than ever. The die-hard Nintendo fans were happy with a line up that featured a brand spanking new realistic Zelda game, a fantastic looking Metroid Prime and what is set to be the best Resident Evil title ever made. With Mario Tennis, Donkey Kong, Geist, Starfox, Pikmin 2 and Paper Mario 2 all on the release list it was safe to say Nintendo have protected their die-hard assets.
Nintendo will also launch the next Gameboy before the end of the year.... sorry I mean the 'DS' before the end of the year... undercutting Sony. The DS may not look as cool as the PSP but for pure functionality the system is cool. The games looked gorgeous, the new way of holding games is fantastic and backward compatible with the GBA. Brilliant.
The PSP is launching with GT, Tekken and Metal Gear Solid. Despite those 3 games being some of the biggest in the world their popularity (a bit like Mario's) have taken a knock after their dissapointing latest outings. The PSP also needs to implement a jog proof system for the CD based hardware, a laser as well as an inbuilt memory. Could battery life be a problem? Yes the Playstation name sells, but can Sony sell a handheld console to an adult market? I won't underestimate them, they can do it but there is no way they can have as many PSP gamers as they have PS2 gamers... handheld gaming just is not popular with the adult gamers. Just look at the N-Gage. The DS is launching with Mario’s, Metroid and even Sony’s own Final Fantasy. It is also launching with Nintendo’s first full online mode, boasting touch screen, Wireless connection, a protected clam shape and an in-built microphone. Not all of that may appeal to the casual gamer. But some of it will.
Confessingly the Playstation Pocket looks more dangerous than I originally thought. It looks utterly stunning, lacks clutter (something the DS suffers from) with a beautiful screen. This alone could sell the system... but with the GBA SP set for a large price cut before the end of the year can the PSP defeat Nintendo’s massive, 95%, handheld empire?
If Nintendo are going down they are not doing it without a fight. If Sony’s PSP is forced out by the Gameboy, a system that has forced out many of Nintendo's competitors before, what can Sony do to stop Microsoft?
Dringo.
Nintendo's survival depended on three things, their unique, totally different style to Sony meant Nintendo offered something Sony didn't. Nintendo also have the hardest dying fan base you'll ever see, a fan base filled with us lot. These two factors help but it was the Gameboy, a franchise left untouched by Sony's rampage that meant Nintendo could re-group and re-build.
Nintendo hid in their niche market, their fan base and their Gameboy franchise allowed them to soldier on as Sony's user-base tripled, quadrupled and whatever came after that. Could anyone stop this jugganaught?
Enter Microsoft. The biggest, richest company in the entire world... and all of a sudden Sony didn't look that strong. Microsoft has slowly chipped away at Sony over the past 2 years, eating more and more into both their and Nintendo's user base. Microsoft are a company that, no matter how hard they try, Sony cannot defeat even in their elevated position.
There is no room for 3 consoles, it is time for Sony to finish off Nintendo once and for all.
And this was the perfect time to do it. Despite unbelievable sales of the Gameboy Advance the Gamecube was falling. Nintendo's die hard fan based were annoyed, the company they loved so much was fiddling with franchises and ultimately creating games that were not up to the usual standard. Wind Waker, Sunshine and Pikmin... the Gamecube's self-proclaimed lead titles were, to some Nintendo fans, disappointing. Only Mario Kart and Metroid Prime proved that Nintendo did indeed still have it. The sale of Rare to Microsoft was another massive blow to Nintendo's fan base, the constant loss of third party developers every week made Nintendo appear doomed to failure.
Enter the death nail, the killer blow.... The PSP.
If Sony want to fight Microsoft then a handheld is the key. A platform that is said to be the future of gaming, a handheld would not only extend the already strong Playstation userbase but also cripple Nintendo beyond repair. Getting a massive head start over Nintendo's next Gameboy, introducing MP3 playability and what looks set to be the sexiest piece of kit ever created.
E3 2004
How Sony didn't expect this. Suddenly everything changed. Nintendo's third parties may be leaving but what at first seemed like a weak first party line up became stronger than ever. The die-hard Nintendo fans were happy with a line up that featured a brand spanking new realistic Zelda game, a fantastic looking Metroid Prime and what is set to be the best Resident Evil title ever made. With Mario Tennis, Donkey Kong, Geist, Starfox, Pikmin 2 and Paper Mario 2 all on the release list it was safe to say Nintendo have protected their die-hard assets.
Nintendo will also launch the next Gameboy before the end of the year.... sorry I mean the 'DS' before the end of the year... undercutting Sony. The DS may not look as cool as the PSP but for pure functionality the system is cool. The games looked gorgeous, the new way of holding games is fantastic and backward compatible with the GBA. Brilliant.
The PSP is launching with GT, Tekken and Metal Gear Solid. Despite those 3 games being some of the biggest in the world their popularity (a bit like Mario's) have taken a knock after their dissapointing latest outings. The PSP also needs to implement a jog proof system for the CD based hardware, a laser as well as an inbuilt memory. Could battery life be a problem? Yes the Playstation name sells, but can Sony sell a handheld console to an adult market? I won't underestimate them, they can do it but there is no way they can have as many PSP gamers as they have PS2 gamers... handheld gaming just is not popular with the adult gamers. Just look at the N-Gage. The DS is launching with Mario’s, Metroid and even Sony’s own Final Fantasy. It is also launching with Nintendo’s first full online mode, boasting touch screen, Wireless connection, a protected clam shape and an in-built microphone. Not all of that may appeal to the casual gamer. But some of it will.
Confessingly the Playstation Pocket looks more dangerous than I originally thought. It looks utterly stunning, lacks clutter (something the DS suffers from) with a beautiful screen. This alone could sell the system... but with the GBA SP set for a large price cut before the end of the year can the PSP defeat Nintendo’s massive, 95%, handheld empire?
If Nintendo are going down they are not doing it without a fight. If Sony’s PSP is forced out by the Gameboy, a system that has forced out many of Nintendo's competitors before, what can Sony do to stop Microsoft?
Dringo.
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To back up Mav on one point, the Triforce collecting section of Zelda could easily be one of the most tiresome gaming sections I've ever played.
Zelda controls wonderfully, looks good as a cel-shaded game, is animated to the highest standards, but is just plain easy and boring in certain segments of the game.
This sounds familiar, because I said exactly the same thing about Ocarina Of Time, brilliant game mechanics, let down, for me, by some seriously lengthy boring sections of the game.
No one has ever said Halo was perfect either, 10/10 by Edge doesn't represent perfection, again, you need to have a look into the Edge review policy, but like everything, you either like it or you don't, I've never read an Edge review that I could say I fundamentaly disagree with however.
Zelda controls wonderfully, looks good as a cel-shaded game, is animated to the highest standards, but is just plain easy and boring in certain segments of the game.
This sounds familiar, because I said exactly the same thing about Ocarina Of Time, brilliant game mechanics, let down, for me, by some seriously lengthy boring sections of the game.
No one has ever said Halo was perfect either, 10/10 by Edge doesn't represent perfection, again, you need to have a look into the Edge review policy, but like everything, you either like it or you don't, I've never read an Edge review that I could say I fundamentaly disagree with however.
Dringo, you need to stop bleating on about the fact that you and many other people don't think that Mario Kart was an average game.
If you read the post I had written about Edge's reviews, it might have made a bit more sense. The 5/10 score was justified by the writer, if you want to know why go read it.
If you want to know why they gave Halo 10/10, go read it.
If you don't agree that Mario Kart Double Dash was exaclty the same as Mario Kart 64, just with the ability to switch weapons an dhave two people controlling a single Kart in multiplayer, then don't.
The fact that I finished the whole thing in one sitting winning every single race along the way means that I didn't enjoy it all that much. I have never questioned the fact that it is simply the best multiplayer game on the Gamecube though. I've never said the gameplay was bad, just that the single player mode was very weak, a point which I have seen raised by more than one person also.
At the end of the day, what other people think of the game doesn't really count for much, it's your own take on the game that matters.
If you read the post I had written about Edge's reviews, it might have made a bit more sense. The 5/10 score was justified by the writer, if you want to know why go read it.
If you want to know why they gave Halo 10/10, go read it.
If you don't agree that Mario Kart Double Dash was exaclty the same as Mario Kart 64, just with the ability to switch weapons an dhave two people controlling a single Kart in multiplayer, then don't.
The fact that I finished the whole thing in one sitting winning every single race along the way means that I didn't enjoy it all that much. I have never questioned the fact that it is simply the best multiplayer game on the Gamecube though. I've never said the gameplay was bad, just that the single player mode was very weak, a point which I have seen raised by more than one person also.
At the end of the day, what other people think of the game doesn't really count for much, it's your own take on the game that matters.
Rickoss, AfroJoe, Strafio...
None of us deny its brilliance, but I don't think anybody can convince themselves that it was thoroughly enjoyable throughout.
None of us deny its brilliance, but I don't think anybody can convince themselves that it was thoroughly enjoyable throughout.
I was disappointed with the lack of an epic feel in Zelda, and true the lack of two (or was it three?) dungeons did take away from it's length, but it's still a brilliant game.
Hopefully with Link growing up the next title will be a little harder though...
Hopefully with Link growing up the next title will be a little harder though...
Dringo wrote:
> "The storyline was silly and they missed out a dungeon".
I didn't say that...
> "The storyline was silly and they missed out a dungeon".
I didn't say that...
I gave up at the triforce peices, and, to this day, it remains unfished becuase of those shards...
Mav wrote:
> To be honest, unless you can back that up, I don't think that I
> am in the minority. As I said above, it's brilliant... but at
> times I was, to put it simply, bored. And in this respect the game
> felt somewhat unfinished and I was, as a result, disappointed that
> the experience couldn't be wholly satisfying. I expect, therefore, if
> you asked many of the people on this site about how enjoyable they
> found the aforementioned triforce piece collecting they'd grant you
> with a similar response.
I visit many forums Mav, not as much as this... and despite the Zelda backlash that exists here most places love Zelda... though they discuss more the implications of a future Hyrule, and why Gannondorf looked more friendly rather than.... "The storyline was silly and they missed out a dungeon".
Wind Waker is still the most fun Zelda... it felt slightly unfinished but the fact it was so much fun meant the game reached my high expectations...
I even kinda miss the boating... will we not get the talking fish in the new Zelda game?
"Kay"
> To be honest, unless you can back that up, I don't think that I
> am in the minority. As I said above, it's brilliant... but at
> times I was, to put it simply, bored. And in this respect the game
> felt somewhat unfinished and I was, as a result, disappointed that
> the experience couldn't be wholly satisfying. I expect, therefore, if
> you asked many of the people on this site about how enjoyable they
> found the aforementioned triforce piece collecting they'd grant you
> with a similar response.
I visit many forums Mav, not as much as this... and despite the Zelda backlash that exists here most places love Zelda... though they discuss more the implications of a future Hyrule, and why Gannondorf looked more friendly rather than.... "The storyline was silly and they missed out a dungeon".
Wind Waker is still the most fun Zelda... it felt slightly unfinished but the fact it was so much fun meant the game reached my high expectations...
I even kinda miss the boating... will we not get the talking fish in the new Zelda game?
"Kay"
Nintendo have announced 100 DS developers and 40+ games
Sony have announced 99 PSP developers and 45 Japanese games
Bring on the console wars.
Sony have announced 99 PSP developers and 45 Japanese games
Bring on the console wars.
Bah. That's Game Central for you then! :)
Solskjær wrote:
> Plus, I hear it's battery life is s'posed to be only 2-and-a-half
> hours, fully-charged - what a joke!! And it's set to retail at
> the best part of £100-more than the DS will. :P ;)
Two and a half for playing movies.
Games - over 8.
Music - over 10.
> Plus, I hear it's battery life is s'posed to be only 2-and-a-half
> hours, fully-charged - what a joke!! And it's set to retail at
> the best part of £100-more than the DS will. :P ;)
Two and a half for playing movies.
Games - over 8.
Music - over 10.
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