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In this world gone mad, we are obsessed by labels and brand names. Just as clothes, mobiles and other gadgetry are mostly given more 'oohs' and
'aahs' if they are a designer name than say..Asda, so are games. A game made by Nintendo, Rare or Sony is more likely to get immediately publicity and praise (even if it's equal or worse to a same-genre counterpart). But as I said, this is a world gone mad, domineered by an obsession to have the latest and greatest. But what if some trend-setting companies decided to make games, or at least, base games on their products. It would certainly be a pretty mad thing, but would they sell still? Here are a few, er, 'examples'...
GAPMIN
Gapmin, a small and rather hip race of little creatures, live on their own little planet, originally called..Gapland. And on this planet, a spaceman crahlands, namely, Olinext. Now, at first, they Gapmin shun this rival, and try to kill him. But the attempts are in vain, and the only way to get rid of him is, within 30 days, to kit him out in the latest fashion. Take any longer, and the style will go out of fashion, leaving Olinext naked, which, although naked is rumoured to be in next month, isn't really that conventional. Of course, his spaceship is fine, he just can't leave the planet untrendy, or he'll be shunned out his own planet, the also oh-so-originally named Nextown. Can the 3 types of Gapmin, Formal (suits, ties, smart and neat), Casual (Baggy, low trousers, groovy t-shirts and baseball caps) and Randoms (as the name suggests) help him get home? Will Olinext still the Gapmin style for his own evil purposes? Find out when you play Gapmin, on Nintendo Gamecube, released...soon...
A scary thought..You thought that was bad?
FINAL FASCIA X
A band of fascias, with various different backgrounds (inlcuding the shy, blue metallic type, and the bright, outgoing, pink variety) meet each other and join on an mediumly epic quest to bring about the downfall of the great Emperor Fasceeia, with flashing lights and immense powers. Through your travels, you can pick up and combine items for your character/fascia, and battle boss creatures, such as the monstrous FascMuncher, who can use the 'Deactivate', rendering your phone, and subsequently it's fascia (psst...thats you) useless. If you want to fight these bosses, defend your right as a humbl piece of coloured plastic (and in the rarity, electronical equipment) them buy this game. From the makes of Munkiki, this game will bring small amounts of joy (but mainly frustration) and the mobile phone style graphics, but it's developer, Nokia, defended it with various Scandinavian insults.
Would you buy a game if a) everyone else did and b) it was by Nokia? How about this then?
SONY ADVENTURE 2 : BATTLE
(yes they make games, but what if they didn't..would you buy it as a designer logo game?)
2 groups...the Hero's, and the Dark side. The Hero's, a blue NET MD player, Memory Stick and Vaio desktop, try to defend the planet from the Dark's evil plan to monopolise the market, hike up prices and in some unconnected way sabotage all others and rule the world (sounds like a larf and a half). Or be the evil ones, trying to do this oh-so-great a favour by ridding the world of all other electronics makers and developers. The evil trio is the PS2 (obviously), the Vaio laptop (turned to dark side after father DT abused him) and the ever-nasty Walkman, rejected after the fall of tapes. In a journey which will take you to space, deserts and huge cities, it's a non-stop ride of excitement - and most of all, it's made by Sony (note note bracket at top). With less than average graphics, kind of dodgy gameplay and cheesy voice actors, but the ever so existent Sony brand, would you buy this game?
This may sound crazy, but some people...
PONG! (Special Levi's Edition)
With absolutely nothing added to the original game, except of course a hiked up price tag and a small (almost invisible) Levi's logo, it brings back retro memories (or so the blurb says). Note though the 2 player mode has been removed, in exchange for time reducing measures to just slap on a Levi's sticker so you'll buy it. And for only £39.99, who can refuse?
Me, for one. These games may sound a little exaggerated, but my point, or points, are these..Clothes, even if low quality, but with designer labels, are still bought. Even if they are ripped within days, they'll be bought again. So why are the above games such a crazy idea? They may be, as I said, a little exaggerated, but would people be so easily convinced that they would buy them? And why do first part developers always get more game publicity and better reviews (from only certain, unnamed magazines) than a sometimes obviously better third part option. Transferring it to say, Marks and Spencers. They make better quality clothes than Gap, but god forbid if a hip kid buys them there, unless, of course, he starts a trend. Then it all just reverses.
So, to all the folk (few, but existent) folk out there who only buy official. The peripherals may break, but the games shan't. Give it a try, you might be surprised. I certainly was.
And well done to all the consoles, for putting a certain amount of trust in 3rd-party companies. Especially Nintendo. Handing over top franchises like F-Zero was risky, but I'm sure you're trust will be rewarded, even if it wasn't only trust, but other commitments, that made you decide to hand over the franchises.
But back to the topic. Not only games are like this, but even the smallest thing like shower gel. Once got that from Next, and it was horrible. Got some from Asda the next week and it was great. So sometimes you've just got to stray away from safety, be a *risk-taker*, get a third party games, to those who normally avoid. And you never know, it might just be good. If not? Take it back, try again.
Thanks for reading
Fuzzy (comments appreciated)
'aahs' if they are a designer name than say..Asda, so are games. A game made by Nintendo, Rare or Sony is more likely to get immediately publicity and praise (even if it's equal or worse to a same-genre counterpart). But as I said, this is a world gone mad, domineered by an obsession to have the latest and greatest. But what if some trend-setting companies decided to make games, or at least, base games on their products. It would certainly be a pretty mad thing, but would they sell still? Here are a few, er, 'examples'...
GAPMIN
Gapmin, a small and rather hip race of little creatures, live on their own little planet, originally called..Gapland. And on this planet, a spaceman crahlands, namely, Olinext. Now, at first, they Gapmin shun this rival, and try to kill him. But the attempts are in vain, and the only way to get rid of him is, within 30 days, to kit him out in the latest fashion. Take any longer, and the style will go out of fashion, leaving Olinext naked, which, although naked is rumoured to be in next month, isn't really that conventional. Of course, his spaceship is fine, he just can't leave the planet untrendy, or he'll be shunned out his own planet, the also oh-so-originally named Nextown. Can the 3 types of Gapmin, Formal (suits, ties, smart and neat), Casual (Baggy, low trousers, groovy t-shirts and baseball caps) and Randoms (as the name suggests) help him get home? Will Olinext still the Gapmin style for his own evil purposes? Find out when you play Gapmin, on Nintendo Gamecube, released...soon...
A scary thought..You thought that was bad?
FINAL FASCIA X
A band of fascias, with various different backgrounds (inlcuding the shy, blue metallic type, and the bright, outgoing, pink variety) meet each other and join on an mediumly epic quest to bring about the downfall of the great Emperor Fasceeia, with flashing lights and immense powers. Through your travels, you can pick up and combine items for your character/fascia, and battle boss creatures, such as the monstrous FascMuncher, who can use the 'Deactivate', rendering your phone, and subsequently it's fascia (psst...thats you) useless. If you want to fight these bosses, defend your right as a humbl piece of coloured plastic (and in the rarity, electronical equipment) them buy this game. From the makes of Munkiki, this game will bring small amounts of joy (but mainly frustration) and the mobile phone style graphics, but it's developer, Nokia, defended it with various Scandinavian insults.
Would you buy a game if a) everyone else did and b) it was by Nokia? How about this then?
SONY ADVENTURE 2 : BATTLE
(yes they make games, but what if they didn't..would you buy it as a designer logo game?)
2 groups...the Hero's, and the Dark side. The Hero's, a blue NET MD player, Memory Stick and Vaio desktop, try to defend the planet from the Dark's evil plan to monopolise the market, hike up prices and in some unconnected way sabotage all others and rule the world (sounds like a larf and a half). Or be the evil ones, trying to do this oh-so-great a favour by ridding the world of all other electronics makers and developers. The evil trio is the PS2 (obviously), the Vaio laptop (turned to dark side after father DT abused him) and the ever-nasty Walkman, rejected after the fall of tapes. In a journey which will take you to space, deserts and huge cities, it's a non-stop ride of excitement - and most of all, it's made by Sony (note note bracket at top). With less than average graphics, kind of dodgy gameplay and cheesy voice actors, but the ever so existent Sony brand, would you buy this game?
This may sound crazy, but some people...
PONG! (Special Levi's Edition)
With absolutely nothing added to the original game, except of course a hiked up price tag and a small (almost invisible) Levi's logo, it brings back retro memories (or so the blurb says). Note though the 2 player mode has been removed, in exchange for time reducing measures to just slap on a Levi's sticker so you'll buy it. And for only £39.99, who can refuse?
Me, for one. These games may sound a little exaggerated, but my point, or points, are these..Clothes, even if low quality, but with designer labels, are still bought. Even if they are ripped within days, they'll be bought again. So why are the above games such a crazy idea? They may be, as I said, a little exaggerated, but would people be so easily convinced that they would buy them? And why do first part developers always get more game publicity and better reviews (from only certain, unnamed magazines) than a sometimes obviously better third part option. Transferring it to say, Marks and Spencers. They make better quality clothes than Gap, but god forbid if a hip kid buys them there, unless, of course, he starts a trend. Then it all just reverses.
So, to all the folk (few, but existent) folk out there who only buy official. The peripherals may break, but the games shan't. Give it a try, you might be surprised. I certainly was.
And well done to all the consoles, for putting a certain amount of trust in 3rd-party companies. Especially Nintendo. Handing over top franchises like F-Zero was risky, but I'm sure you're trust will be rewarded, even if it wasn't only trust, but other commitments, that made you decide to hand over the franchises.
But back to the topic. Not only games are like this, but even the smallest thing like shower gel. Once got that from Next, and it was horrible. Got some from Asda the next week and it was great. So sometimes you've just got to stray away from safety, be a *risk-taker*, get a third party games, to those who normally avoid. And you never know, it might just be good. If not? Take it back, try again.
Thanks for reading
Fuzzy (comments appreciated)
In this world gone mad, we are obsessed by labels and brand names. Just as clothes, mobiles and other gadgetry are mostly given more 'oohs' and
'aahs' if they are a designer name than say..Asda, so are games. A game made by Nintendo, Rare or Sony is more likely to get immediately publicity and praise (even if it's equal or worse to a same-genre counterpart). But as I said, this is a world gone mad, domineered by an obsession to have the latest and greatest. But what if some trend-setting companies decided to make games, or at least, base games on their products. It would certainly be a pretty mad thing, but would they sell still? Here are a few, er, 'examples'...
GAPMIN
Gapmin, a small and rather hip race of little creatures, live on their own little planet, originally called..Gapland. And on this planet, a spaceman crahlands, namely, Olinext. Now, at first, they Gapmin shun this rival, and try to kill him. But the attempts are in vain, and the only way to get rid of him is, within 30 days, to kit him out in the latest fashion. Take any longer, and the style will go out of fashion, leaving Olinext naked, which, although naked is rumoured to be in next month, isn't really that conventional. Of course, his spaceship is fine, he just can't leave the planet untrendy, or he'll be shunned out his own planet, the also oh-so-originally named Nextown. Can the 3 types of Gapmin, Formal (suits, ties, smart and neat), Casual (Baggy, low trousers, groovy t-shirts and baseball caps) and Randoms (as the name suggests) help him get home? Will Olinext still the Gapmin style for his own evil purposes? Find out when you play Gapmin, on Nintendo Gamecube, released...soon...
A scary thought..You thought that was bad?
FINAL FASCIA X
A band of fascias, with various different backgrounds (inlcuding the shy, blue metallic type, and the bright, outgoing, pink variety) meet each other and join on an mediumly epic quest to bring about the downfall of the great Emperor Fasceeia, with flashing lights and immense powers. Through your travels, you can pick up and combine items for your character/fascia, and battle boss creatures, such as the monstrous FascMuncher, who can use the 'Deactivate', rendering your phone, and subsequently it's fascia (psst...thats you) useless. If you want to fight these bosses, defend your right as a humbl piece of coloured plastic (and in the rarity, electronical equipment) them buy this game. From the makes of Munkiki, this game will bring small amounts of joy (but mainly frustration) and the mobile phone style graphics, but it's developer, Nokia, defended it with various Scandinavian insults.
Would you buy a game if a) everyone else did and b) it was by Nokia? How about this then?
SONY ADVENTURE 2 : BATTLE
(yes they make games, but what if they didn't..would you buy it as a designer logo game?)
2 groups...the Hero's, and the Dark side. The Hero's, a blue NET MD player, Memory Stick and Vaio desktop, try to defend the planet from the Dark's evil plan to monopolise the market, hike up prices and in some unconnected way sabotage all others and rule the world (sounds like a larf and a half). Or be the evil ones, trying to do this oh-so-great a favour by ridding the world of all other electronics makers and developers. The evil trio is the PS2 (obviously), the Vaio laptop (turned to dark side after father DT abused him) and the ever-nasty Walkman, rejected after the fall of tapes. In a journey which will take you to space, deserts and huge cities, it's a non-stop ride of excitement - and most of all, it's made by Sony (note note bracket at top). With less than average graphics, kind of dodgy gameplay and cheesy voice actors, but the ever so existent Sony brand, would you buy this game?
This may sound crazy, but some people...
PONG! (Special Levi's Edition)
With absolutely nothing added to the original game, except of course a hiked up price tag and a small (almost invisible) Levi's logo, it brings back retro memories (or so the blurb says). Note though the 2 player mode has been removed, in exchange for time reducing measures to just slap on a Levi's sticker so you'll buy it. And for only £39.99, who can refuse?
Me, for one. These games may sound a little exaggerated, but my point, or points, are these..Clothes, even if low quality, but with designer labels, are still bought. Even if they are ripped within days, they'll be bought again. So why are the above games such a crazy idea? They may be, as I said, a little exaggerated, but would people be so easily convinced that they would buy them? And why do first part developers always get more game publicity and better reviews (from only certain, unnamed magazines) than a sometimes obviously better third part option. Transferring it to say, Marks and Spencers. They make better quality clothes than Gap, but god forbid if a hip kid buys them there, unless, of course, he starts a trend. Then it all just reverses.
So, to all the folk (few, but existent) folk out there who only buy official. The peripherals may break, but the games shan't. Give it a try, you might be surprised. I certainly was.
And well done to all the consoles, for putting a certain amount of trust in 3rd-party companies. Especially Nintendo. Handing over top franchises like F-Zero was risky, but I'm sure you're trust will be rewarded, even if it wasn't only trust, but other commitments, that made you decide to hand over the franchises.
But back to the topic. Not only games are like this, but even the smallest thing like shower gel. Once got that from Next, and it was horrible. Got some from Asda the next week and it was great. So sometimes you've just got to stray away from safety, be a *risk-taker*, get a third party games, to those who normally avoid. And you never know, it might just be good. If not? Take it back, try again.
Thanks for reading
Fuzzy (comments appreciated)
'aahs' if they are a designer name than say..Asda, so are games. A game made by Nintendo, Rare or Sony is more likely to get immediately publicity and praise (even if it's equal or worse to a same-genre counterpart). But as I said, this is a world gone mad, domineered by an obsession to have the latest and greatest. But what if some trend-setting companies decided to make games, or at least, base games on their products. It would certainly be a pretty mad thing, but would they sell still? Here are a few, er, 'examples'...
GAPMIN
Gapmin, a small and rather hip race of little creatures, live on their own little planet, originally called..Gapland. And on this planet, a spaceman crahlands, namely, Olinext. Now, at first, they Gapmin shun this rival, and try to kill him. But the attempts are in vain, and the only way to get rid of him is, within 30 days, to kit him out in the latest fashion. Take any longer, and the style will go out of fashion, leaving Olinext naked, which, although naked is rumoured to be in next month, isn't really that conventional. Of course, his spaceship is fine, he just can't leave the planet untrendy, or he'll be shunned out his own planet, the also oh-so-originally named Nextown. Can the 3 types of Gapmin, Formal (suits, ties, smart and neat), Casual (Baggy, low trousers, groovy t-shirts and baseball caps) and Randoms (as the name suggests) help him get home? Will Olinext still the Gapmin style for his own evil purposes? Find out when you play Gapmin, on Nintendo Gamecube, released...soon...
A scary thought..You thought that was bad?
FINAL FASCIA X
A band of fascias, with various different backgrounds (inlcuding the shy, blue metallic type, and the bright, outgoing, pink variety) meet each other and join on an mediumly epic quest to bring about the downfall of the great Emperor Fasceeia, with flashing lights and immense powers. Through your travels, you can pick up and combine items for your character/fascia, and battle boss creatures, such as the monstrous FascMuncher, who can use the 'Deactivate', rendering your phone, and subsequently it's fascia (psst...thats you) useless. If you want to fight these bosses, defend your right as a humbl piece of coloured plastic (and in the rarity, electronical equipment) them buy this game. From the makes of Munkiki, this game will bring small amounts of joy (but mainly frustration) and the mobile phone style graphics, but it's developer, Nokia, defended it with various Scandinavian insults.
Would you buy a game if a) everyone else did and b) it was by Nokia? How about this then?
SONY ADVENTURE 2 : BATTLE
(yes they make games, but what if they didn't..would you buy it as a designer logo game?)
2 groups...the Hero's, and the Dark side. The Hero's, a blue NET MD player, Memory Stick and Vaio desktop, try to defend the planet from the Dark's evil plan to monopolise the market, hike up prices and in some unconnected way sabotage all others and rule the world (sounds like a larf and a half). Or be the evil ones, trying to do this oh-so-great a favour by ridding the world of all other electronics makers and developers. The evil trio is the PS2 (obviously), the Vaio laptop (turned to dark side after father DT abused him) and the ever-nasty Walkman, rejected after the fall of tapes. In a journey which will take you to space, deserts and huge cities, it's a non-stop ride of excitement - and most of all, it's made by Sony (note note bracket at top). With less than average graphics, kind of dodgy gameplay and cheesy voice actors, but the ever so existent Sony brand, would you buy this game?
This may sound crazy, but some people...
PONG! (Special Levi's Edition)
With absolutely nothing added to the original game, except of course a hiked up price tag and a small (almost invisible) Levi's logo, it brings back retro memories (or so the blurb says). Note though the 2 player mode has been removed, in exchange for time reducing measures to just slap on a Levi's sticker so you'll buy it. And for only £39.99, who can refuse?
Me, for one. These games may sound a little exaggerated, but my point, or points, are these..Clothes, even if low quality, but with designer labels, are still bought. Even if they are ripped within days, they'll be bought again. So why are the above games such a crazy idea? They may be, as I said, a little exaggerated, but would people be so easily convinced that they would buy them? And why do first part developers always get more game publicity and better reviews (from only certain, unnamed magazines) than a sometimes obviously better third part option. Transferring it to say, Marks and Spencers. They make better quality clothes than Gap, but god forbid if a hip kid buys them there, unless, of course, he starts a trend. Then it all just reverses.
So, to all the folk (few, but existent) folk out there who only buy official. The peripherals may break, but the games shan't. Give it a try, you might be surprised. I certainly was.
And well done to all the consoles, for putting a certain amount of trust in 3rd-party companies. Especially Nintendo. Handing over top franchises like F-Zero was risky, but I'm sure you're trust will be rewarded, even if it wasn't only trust, but other commitments, that made you decide to hand over the franchises.
But back to the topic. Not only games are like this, but even the smallest thing like shower gel. Once got that from Next, and it was horrible. Got some from Asda the next week and it was great. So sometimes you've just got to stray away from safety, be a *risk-taker*, get a third party games, to those who normally avoid. And you never know, it might just be good. If not? Take it back, try again.
Thanks for reading
Fuzzy (comments appreciated)