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According to the Chinese calendar, 2002 is the year of the Horse. Supposedly quick witted and fun-loving, this could explain the amount of games and consoles we have seen released this year. We've seen two consoles, and a huge plethora of games to choose from. But with respect to Chinese beliefs, I believe that this year is the year of the Dragon. Not the Chinese Dragon, the noble character representing emporers, but the red dragon (not a welsh regional Capital Radio spinoff), Nintendo.
Before I get starry words hurled at my direction, both by some Chinese who may not understand my metaphor, and by some Sony or Microsoft fans, just hear me out. You never know...you might agree with me!
Sony started this year very well. They had the only major videogames console out in the UK, with the Dreamcast fading into the shroud of history and the Nintendo 64 selling as many units as Charlotte Church has fans. Microsoft, at the beginning of the year, were ready to release their X-box, doing so in March, but not pleasing the crowds as expected, selling very few consoles in the UK. Nintendo weren't doing anything other than releasing one or two Game Boy Advance titles, whilst the hype was building up over the release of the GameCube in May.
As many Game Boy Advance fanatics will tell you, the Game Boy Advance hasn't really been up to much this year. There's been the release of Super Mario World, but nothing else has really tested the new Vauxhall's rear suspension in terms of thrills and excitement since the beginning of the year.
So what has got the fertile juices flowing for many a gamer in the year 2002? Well the release of two massive consoles (one literally massive) has already excited gamers to the point where their trousers feel a little too tight for comfort, plus more than a lifetime's collection of games have been released for all major systems. The Playstation 2 already has a large back catalogue of games both designed for the 128-bit and the 32-bit systems, whereas the X-box, although it doesn't yet have enough triple-A titles to get hoards of gamers into the shops, has one or two titles, such as Halo and Jet Set Radio Future which grab people's attention. Nintendo are the big winners in terms of games for the year 2002, boasting an estimated one-hundred releases in the seven months it will have been out 'til the new year.
Nintendo do seem to be going all for noting this year, releasing most of their biggest names in under six-months. It has been said that the reason the Nintendo 64 'failed' in comparison to the Playstation, was because of it's lack of third party support and new titles. Well, Nintendo seem to have taken more than enough notice by all this, releasing big name titles such as Luigi's Mansion, Super Smash Bros, Super Mario Sunshine, Mario Party 4, Eternal Darkness, Pikmin, Starfox Adventures, and more, including the huge amount of third party games that have and will be released. No normal gamer could afford all these titles, and even if they bought one per month, they'd still be going through to the end of 2003 before they've got all the major titles, including next year's Zelda and December's Metroid Prime. Not saying that every gamer with a 'Cube should buy these, but most will want the majority of these titles. But what's going to happen in Spring 2003 when Nintendo's well of games has dried up? Are Nintendo going to be relying on third party support until the Autumn again where they'll no doubt be releasing more of their tripple-A titles?
Saying that, multi-console gamers are in for an even harder deal this Christmas, being there so many new games of high quality due to be released. Many a gamer will have been amazed by the quality and realism involved in the drug-dealing, prostitute-feeling, Grand Theft Auto 3. Very soon, Rockstar games intend to impress us all again with their very nice looking, all improved, Grand Theft Auto Vice City, reliving the 80's scene. Ofcourse, that game will seduce many gamers into parting with their cash - hopefully in exchange for the game and not for the simple pleasures involved in the back-seat of a car. But as well as that, we have the very recent Timesplitters 2, released multi-format, made by some of the makers of Goldeneye. Set to be one of the best first person shooters of modern gaming, this is bound to attract gamers this Christmas.
The fact is, no matter what consoles you like, what consoles you want, and what games you are hoping for, this Christmas, all three systems are going to sell well. Some not as well as others, being it virtually impossible for all three systems to sell as well as each other, but each company will deem the second year of the second millenium a success. I would predict that figures will show Sony's Playstation 2 to be the biggest seller, followed by the GameCube, then the X-box, but by no means does that mean Sony will have done the best. Afterall, most UK gamers will have Playstation 2s by now - my cousin has two so that he can watch DVDs and play games in both his bedroom and his livingroom! And the sales of consoles mean little to the developers as much as the sales of games do. As most of you are well aware, it's the sales of games that counts, and Nintendo are going to find it hard not to sell many copies of Super Mario Sunshine, Starfox Adventures and Metroid Prime this Christmas.
To continue with predictions, I cna see Microsoft starting to catch up next year with their lowered price and more releases. No doubt the naive parents are going to believe the X-box to be better than the Playstation 2 and GameCube by comparison of the specifications. So the kids will want games and will be spending their Christmas money on X-box games and periphenalia. Sony know that their reign of power at the top of the sales charts is going to slowly deminish over the next couple of years, and have leaked out tiny bits of information about a Playstation 3 just to keep in the news.
So 2002 looks like the year of the dragon. Nintendo's most profitable year for a long time, unless ofcourse they suprise us with just as many new but original game titles next year, and make use of online compatability to compete with Sony and Microsoft in the online market. Microsoft still have a reputation to fight against. Gamers still aren't too sure of the X-box, being made by a company that knows how to make PC games, but is still at novice status when it comes to TV-gaming in the eyes of the console gamers. Ofcourse there are brilliant titles on the X-box just waiting to be experienced, but maybe Microsoft need to do something to boost their fanbase in the mean time. Sony, however, have the huge fan base and now need to make sure that their games sell very well and their console sales stay relatively high to continue to compete. Ofcourse this will only take place until the Playstation 3 is released and we'll see a repeat performance of the PSOne (i.e. reduced prices whilst games are still made for the PS2 until the PS3 becomes a bit more popular).
2002, the year of Nintendo.
Before I get starry words hurled at my direction, both by some Chinese who may not understand my metaphor, and by some Sony or Microsoft fans, just hear me out. You never know...you might agree with me!
Sony started this year very well. They had the only major videogames console out in the UK, with the Dreamcast fading into the shroud of history and the Nintendo 64 selling as many units as Charlotte Church has fans. Microsoft, at the beginning of the year, were ready to release their X-box, doing so in March, but not pleasing the crowds as expected, selling very few consoles in the UK. Nintendo weren't doing anything other than releasing one or two Game Boy Advance titles, whilst the hype was building up over the release of the GameCube in May.
As many Game Boy Advance fanatics will tell you, the Game Boy Advance hasn't really been up to much this year. There's been the release of Super Mario World, but nothing else has really tested the new Vauxhall's rear suspension in terms of thrills and excitement since the beginning of the year.
So what has got the fertile juices flowing for many a gamer in the year 2002? Well the release of two massive consoles (one literally massive) has already excited gamers to the point where their trousers feel a little too tight for comfort, plus more than a lifetime's collection of games have been released for all major systems. The Playstation 2 already has a large back catalogue of games both designed for the 128-bit and the 32-bit systems, whereas the X-box, although it doesn't yet have enough triple-A titles to get hoards of gamers into the shops, has one or two titles, such as Halo and Jet Set Radio Future which grab people's attention. Nintendo are the big winners in terms of games for the year 2002, boasting an estimated one-hundred releases in the seven months it will have been out 'til the new year.
Nintendo do seem to be going all for noting this year, releasing most of their biggest names in under six-months. It has been said that the reason the Nintendo 64 'failed' in comparison to the Playstation, was because of it's lack of third party support and new titles. Well, Nintendo seem to have taken more than enough notice by all this, releasing big name titles such as Luigi's Mansion, Super Smash Bros, Super Mario Sunshine, Mario Party 4, Eternal Darkness, Pikmin, Starfox Adventures, and more, including the huge amount of third party games that have and will be released. No normal gamer could afford all these titles, and even if they bought one per month, they'd still be going through to the end of 2003 before they've got all the major titles, including next year's Zelda and December's Metroid Prime. Not saying that every gamer with a 'Cube should buy these, but most will want the majority of these titles. But what's going to happen in Spring 2003 when Nintendo's well of games has dried up? Are Nintendo going to be relying on third party support until the Autumn again where they'll no doubt be releasing more of their tripple-A titles?
Saying that, multi-console gamers are in for an even harder deal this Christmas, being there so many new games of high quality due to be released. Many a gamer will have been amazed by the quality and realism involved in the drug-dealing, prostitute-feeling, Grand Theft Auto 3. Very soon, Rockstar games intend to impress us all again with their very nice looking, all improved, Grand Theft Auto Vice City, reliving the 80's scene. Ofcourse, that game will seduce many gamers into parting with their cash - hopefully in exchange for the game and not for the simple pleasures involved in the back-seat of a car. But as well as that, we have the very recent Timesplitters 2, released multi-format, made by some of the makers of Goldeneye. Set to be one of the best first person shooters of modern gaming, this is bound to attract gamers this Christmas.
The fact is, no matter what consoles you like, what consoles you want, and what games you are hoping for, this Christmas, all three systems are going to sell well. Some not as well as others, being it virtually impossible for all three systems to sell as well as each other, but each company will deem the second year of the second millenium a success. I would predict that figures will show Sony's Playstation 2 to be the biggest seller, followed by the GameCube, then the X-box, but by no means does that mean Sony will have done the best. Afterall, most UK gamers will have Playstation 2s by now - my cousin has two so that he can watch DVDs and play games in both his bedroom and his livingroom! And the sales of consoles mean little to the developers as much as the sales of games do. As most of you are well aware, it's the sales of games that counts, and Nintendo are going to find it hard not to sell many copies of Super Mario Sunshine, Starfox Adventures and Metroid Prime this Christmas.
To continue with predictions, I cna see Microsoft starting to catch up next year with their lowered price and more releases. No doubt the naive parents are going to believe the X-box to be better than the Playstation 2 and GameCube by comparison of the specifications. So the kids will want games and will be spending their Christmas money on X-box games and periphenalia. Sony know that their reign of power at the top of the sales charts is going to slowly deminish over the next couple of years, and have leaked out tiny bits of information about a Playstation 3 just to keep in the news.
So 2002 looks like the year of the dragon. Nintendo's most profitable year for a long time, unless ofcourse they suprise us with just as many new but original game titles next year, and make use of online compatability to compete with Sony and Microsoft in the online market. Microsoft still have a reputation to fight against. Gamers still aren't too sure of the X-box, being made by a company that knows how to make PC games, but is still at novice status when it comes to TV-gaming in the eyes of the console gamers. Ofcourse there are brilliant titles on the X-box just waiting to be experienced, but maybe Microsoft need to do something to boost their fanbase in the mean time. Sony, however, have the huge fan base and now need to make sure that their games sell very well and their console sales stay relatively high to continue to compete. Ofcourse this will only take place until the Playstation 3 is released and we'll see a repeat performance of the PSOne (i.e. reduced prices whilst games are still made for the PS2 until the PS3 becomes a bit more popular).
2002, the year of Nintendo.
Ah, I haven't used that axe for quite a while now...
Yeah you laugh... (polishes Edgy's old axe)...
A Notable Hunter Story: Battle of the Brothers.
When I can be bothered to write it.
A Notable Hunter Story: Battle of the Brothers.
When I can be bothered to write it.
Nintendo boasts many a thing - it's whether or not they provide that counts. If they, and third parties, can keep up with the same rate of games per month, we'll end up with atleast two-hundred more games to choose from next year for the GameCube alone!
Hehe, I forgot about the NH story with the same title...I don't even know what made me come out with this title to be quite honest - just an idea that popped into my head :)
Hehe, I forgot about the NH story with the same title...I don't even know what made me come out with this title to be quite honest - just an idea that popped into my head :)
I'm also impressed Edgy that the name of the post is in fact the title to a Notable Hunter Story :)
Nintendo is boasting the most original software line up next year... but of course you knew that.
I was going to post this earlier, but as I was about to finish typing it and click that 'submit' button, my dad called up the stairs and shouted "Get off the internet, I need to call some customers."
I still posted it in the end :)
I still posted it in the end :)
And edgy sneaks in with moments to spare. Another Gad to that Edgy! good post
According to the Chinese calendar, 2002 is the year of the Horse. Supposedly quick witted and fun-loving, this could explain the amount of games and consoles we have seen released this year. We've seen two consoles, and a huge plethora of games to choose from. But with respect to Chinese beliefs, I believe that this year is the year of the Dragon. Not the Chinese Dragon, the noble character representing emporers, but the red dragon (not a welsh regional Capital Radio spinoff), Nintendo.
Before I get starry words hurled at my direction, both by some Chinese who may not understand my metaphor, and by some Sony or Microsoft fans, just hear me out. You never know...you might agree with me!
Sony started this year very well. They had the only major videogames console out in the UK, with the Dreamcast fading into the shroud of history and the Nintendo 64 selling as many units as Charlotte Church has fans. Microsoft, at the beginning of the year, were ready to release their X-box, doing so in March, but not pleasing the crowds as expected, selling very few consoles in the UK. Nintendo weren't doing anything other than releasing one or two Game Boy Advance titles, whilst the hype was building up over the release of the GameCube in May.
As many Game Boy Advance fanatics will tell you, the Game Boy Advance hasn't really been up to much this year. There's been the release of Super Mario World, but nothing else has really tested the new Vauxhall's rear suspension in terms of thrills and excitement since the beginning of the year.
So what has got the fertile juices flowing for many a gamer in the year 2002? Well the release of two massive consoles (one literally massive) has already excited gamers to the point where their trousers feel a little too tight for comfort, plus more than a lifetime's collection of games have been released for all major systems. The Playstation 2 already has a large back catalogue of games both designed for the 128-bit and the 32-bit systems, whereas the X-box, although it doesn't yet have enough triple-A titles to get hoards of gamers into the shops, has one or two titles, such as Halo and Jet Set Radio Future which grab people's attention. Nintendo are the big winners in terms of games for the year 2002, boasting an estimated one-hundred releases in the seven months it will have been out 'til the new year.
Nintendo do seem to be going all for noting this year, releasing most of their biggest names in under six-months. It has been said that the reason the Nintendo 64 'failed' in comparison to the Playstation, was because of it's lack of third party support and new titles. Well, Nintendo seem to have taken more than enough notice by all this, releasing big name titles such as Luigi's Mansion, Super Smash Bros, Super Mario Sunshine, Mario Party 4, Eternal Darkness, Pikmin, Starfox Adventures, and more, including the huge amount of third party games that have and will be released. No normal gamer could afford all these titles, and even if they bought one per month, they'd still be going through to the end of 2003 before they've got all the major titles, including next year's Zelda and December's Metroid Prime. Not saying that every gamer with a 'Cube should buy these, but most will want the majority of these titles. But what's going to happen in Spring 2003 when Nintendo's well of games has dried up? Are Nintendo going to be relying on third party support until the Autumn again where they'll no doubt be releasing more of their tripple-A titles?
Saying that, multi-console gamers are in for an even harder deal this Christmas, being there so many new games of high quality due to be released. Many a gamer will have been amazed by the quality and realism involved in the drug-dealing, prostitute-feeling, Grand Theft Auto 3. Very soon, Rockstar games intend to impress us all again with their very nice looking, all improved, Grand Theft Auto Vice City, reliving the 80's scene. Ofcourse, that game will seduce many gamers into parting with their cash - hopefully in exchange for the game and not for the simple pleasures involved in the back-seat of a car. But as well as that, we have the very recent Timesplitters 2, released multi-format, made by some of the makers of Goldeneye. Set to be one of the best first person shooters of modern gaming, this is bound to attract gamers this Christmas.
The fact is, no matter what consoles you like, what consoles you want, and what games you are hoping for, this Christmas, all three systems are going to sell well. Some not as well as others, being it virtually impossible for all three systems to sell as well as each other, but each company will deem the second year of the second millenium a success. I would predict that figures will show Sony's Playstation 2 to be the biggest seller, followed by the GameCube, then the X-box, but by no means does that mean Sony will have done the best. Afterall, most UK gamers will have Playstation 2s by now - my cousin has two so that he can watch DVDs and play games in both his bedroom and his livingroom! And the sales of consoles mean little to the developers as much as the sales of games do. As most of you are well aware, it's the sales of games that counts, and Nintendo are going to find it hard not to sell many copies of Super Mario Sunshine, Starfox Adventures and Metroid Prime this Christmas.
To continue with predictions, I cna see Microsoft starting to catch up next year with their lowered price and more releases. No doubt the naive parents are going to believe the X-box to be better than the Playstation 2 and GameCube by comparison of the specifications. So the kids will want games and will be spending their Christmas money on X-box games and periphenalia. Sony know that their reign of power at the top of the sales charts is going to slowly deminish over the next couple of years, and have leaked out tiny bits of information about a Playstation 3 just to keep in the news.
So 2002 looks like the year of the dragon. Nintendo's most profitable year for a long time, unless ofcourse they suprise us with just as many new but original game titles next year, and make use of online compatability to compete with Sony and Microsoft in the online market. Microsoft still have a reputation to fight against. Gamers still aren't too sure of the X-box, being made by a company that knows how to make PC games, but is still at novice status when it comes to TV-gaming in the eyes of the console gamers. Ofcourse there are brilliant titles on the X-box just waiting to be experienced, but maybe Microsoft need to do something to boost their fanbase in the mean time. Sony, however, have the huge fan base and now need to make sure that their games sell very well and their console sales stay relatively high to continue to compete. Ofcourse this will only take place until the Playstation 3 is released and we'll see a repeat performance of the PSOne (i.e. reduced prices whilst games are still made for the PS2 until the PS3 becomes a bit more popular).
2002, the year of Nintendo.
Before I get starry words hurled at my direction, both by some Chinese who may not understand my metaphor, and by some Sony or Microsoft fans, just hear me out. You never know...you might agree with me!
Sony started this year very well. They had the only major videogames console out in the UK, with the Dreamcast fading into the shroud of history and the Nintendo 64 selling as many units as Charlotte Church has fans. Microsoft, at the beginning of the year, were ready to release their X-box, doing so in March, but not pleasing the crowds as expected, selling very few consoles in the UK. Nintendo weren't doing anything other than releasing one or two Game Boy Advance titles, whilst the hype was building up over the release of the GameCube in May.
As many Game Boy Advance fanatics will tell you, the Game Boy Advance hasn't really been up to much this year. There's been the release of Super Mario World, but nothing else has really tested the new Vauxhall's rear suspension in terms of thrills and excitement since the beginning of the year.
So what has got the fertile juices flowing for many a gamer in the year 2002? Well the release of two massive consoles (one literally massive) has already excited gamers to the point where their trousers feel a little too tight for comfort, plus more than a lifetime's collection of games have been released for all major systems. The Playstation 2 already has a large back catalogue of games both designed for the 128-bit and the 32-bit systems, whereas the X-box, although it doesn't yet have enough triple-A titles to get hoards of gamers into the shops, has one or two titles, such as Halo and Jet Set Radio Future which grab people's attention. Nintendo are the big winners in terms of games for the year 2002, boasting an estimated one-hundred releases in the seven months it will have been out 'til the new year.
Nintendo do seem to be going all for noting this year, releasing most of their biggest names in under six-months. It has been said that the reason the Nintendo 64 'failed' in comparison to the Playstation, was because of it's lack of third party support and new titles. Well, Nintendo seem to have taken more than enough notice by all this, releasing big name titles such as Luigi's Mansion, Super Smash Bros, Super Mario Sunshine, Mario Party 4, Eternal Darkness, Pikmin, Starfox Adventures, and more, including the huge amount of third party games that have and will be released. No normal gamer could afford all these titles, and even if they bought one per month, they'd still be going through to the end of 2003 before they've got all the major titles, including next year's Zelda and December's Metroid Prime. Not saying that every gamer with a 'Cube should buy these, but most will want the majority of these titles. But what's going to happen in Spring 2003 when Nintendo's well of games has dried up? Are Nintendo going to be relying on third party support until the Autumn again where they'll no doubt be releasing more of their tripple-A titles?
Saying that, multi-console gamers are in for an even harder deal this Christmas, being there so many new games of high quality due to be released. Many a gamer will have been amazed by the quality and realism involved in the drug-dealing, prostitute-feeling, Grand Theft Auto 3. Very soon, Rockstar games intend to impress us all again with their very nice looking, all improved, Grand Theft Auto Vice City, reliving the 80's scene. Ofcourse, that game will seduce many gamers into parting with their cash - hopefully in exchange for the game and not for the simple pleasures involved in the back-seat of a car. But as well as that, we have the very recent Timesplitters 2, released multi-format, made by some of the makers of Goldeneye. Set to be one of the best first person shooters of modern gaming, this is bound to attract gamers this Christmas.
The fact is, no matter what consoles you like, what consoles you want, and what games you are hoping for, this Christmas, all three systems are going to sell well. Some not as well as others, being it virtually impossible for all three systems to sell as well as each other, but each company will deem the second year of the second millenium a success. I would predict that figures will show Sony's Playstation 2 to be the biggest seller, followed by the GameCube, then the X-box, but by no means does that mean Sony will have done the best. Afterall, most UK gamers will have Playstation 2s by now - my cousin has two so that he can watch DVDs and play games in both his bedroom and his livingroom! And the sales of consoles mean little to the developers as much as the sales of games do. As most of you are well aware, it's the sales of games that counts, and Nintendo are going to find it hard not to sell many copies of Super Mario Sunshine, Starfox Adventures and Metroid Prime this Christmas.
To continue with predictions, I cna see Microsoft starting to catch up next year with their lowered price and more releases. No doubt the naive parents are going to believe the X-box to be better than the Playstation 2 and GameCube by comparison of the specifications. So the kids will want games and will be spending their Christmas money on X-box games and periphenalia. Sony know that their reign of power at the top of the sales charts is going to slowly deminish over the next couple of years, and have leaked out tiny bits of information about a Playstation 3 just to keep in the news.
So 2002 looks like the year of the dragon. Nintendo's most profitable year for a long time, unless ofcourse they suprise us with just as many new but original game titles next year, and make use of online compatability to compete with Sony and Microsoft in the online market. Microsoft still have a reputation to fight against. Gamers still aren't too sure of the X-box, being made by a company that knows how to make PC games, but is still at novice status when it comes to TV-gaming in the eyes of the console gamers. Ofcourse there are brilliant titles on the X-box just waiting to be experienced, but maybe Microsoft need to do something to boost their fanbase in the mean time. Sony, however, have the huge fan base and now need to make sure that their games sell very well and their console sales stay relatively high to continue to compete. Ofcourse this will only take place until the Playstation 3 is released and we'll see a repeat performance of the PSOne (i.e. reduced prices whilst games are still made for the PS2 until the PS3 becomes a bit more popular).
2002, the year of Nintendo.