Commentary on the current state of the Gaming Industry

• 3Dec 07

  Jeff Gerstmann Fired and Gamespots Excuse

  http://www.gamespot.com/news/6183603.html?action=convert&om_clk=latestnews&tag=latestnews;title;0

  So, this article.
  
  Basically, this is supposed to be for what purpose?
  
  I suppose Cnet thought they could slip the canning in under the radar, when that didn't work, they ordered this little tidbit, which breaks down to "nothing."
  
  Instead of telling us the reason he was fired, which they obviously cannot, because it is, of course, because of they Kain and Lynch review, they say he was fired for reasons we can't tell you, but your reasons you came up with are wrong.
  
  Here is why Jeff was fired:
  
  At the end of the K&L video review, Jeff blatantly stated for the audience to only play the game for free, because it is not worth the money.
  
  That statement broke a rule in his contract. A black tape rule that honestly has never, and probably should never have been applied, and which Jeff himself I'm sure didn't realize he was breaking at the time of the video review for the mediocre game.
  
  However, when Kain and Lynch developer Eidos Interactive saw the review, they demanded the video be pulled, or they would drop their ad support of Cnet now, and in the future.
  
  The video was pulled.
  
  The bigwigs at Cnet, who obviously had their feathers ruffled, needed a head to roll for this. The loophole in the contract was brought to their attention and enacted.
  
  Jeff was fired.
  
  This article doesn't deny that.
  
  That is all.
  
  Also, no gaming site is completely unbiased. This site, particularly, favors certain people in the industry and the games they develop, but only very slightly. Lucky for it, the games that Cliffy has developed so far, have been outstanding.
  
  Or maybe I just don't know what I'm talking about.
  
  What do you guys think?

  • Posted Dec 3, 2007 9:16 pm GMT
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• 9Oct 07

  Next Gen Wars vs Last Gen Stigma

  This gen, as a Nintendo fan for far too long, I think the most important thing to note is, last gen, Gamecube had arguably the best graphics of all 3 systems. The Gamecube failed miserably, it was a laughing stock in third place of a 3 man race. This was largely due to the incorrect stigma related to it. This, of course, was the contention that all Gamecube games were intended for children. However, owners of the Gamecube will tell you that it had some of the most mature and excellent games of last generation. To those that would attribute the Wii's success to pricepoint, the Gamecube was also considerably cheaper than the PS2 and the Xbox during last generations console cycles but it didn't help a bit. Of course online capabilities had something to do with it, but Sony's online support last gen wasn't top notch either, and they did just fine. Xbox has a similar stigma in Japan. According to the average consumer, all Xbox games are difficult and boring, according to a recent gamespot article.
  
  These stigmas are incorrect.
  
  However, my point is this. If Nintendo would have continued to compete with only its graphical capabilities, they would still be stuck in that rut that Gamecube was in. They had to differentiate themselves with the Wii, and it couldn't just be better graphics like the Gamecube had. It had to be with an entirely new type of console, that appeals to a broader audience than the other Next Gen consoles would do.
  
  Fortunately, Nintendo came through with shining colors, not only with its product differentiation, innovation, and evolution, but also with its marketing campaign, which includes, yes, the price point. Even Wii games are cheaper.
  
  Now, last gens leader is easily getting beaten, with Nintendo considerably in first place. As for the Xbox, lets face it. People buy an Xbox for Halo. Everything else is icing on the cake. Luckily for 360 owners(soon to be myself) Halo this time around is very good, and the icing is definately the best part of the cake.
  
  What MS needs to do now is to create a new franchise, because I believe Halo is done. Knowing Bungie like I do, I would venture to guess there will never be another Halo with them at the development helm. They're genre hoppers, and they've been sick of developing Halo since halfway through 2. Gears of War could be it, but they need to STOP the porting of their games to PC. MS has moderate to poor PR, though their exclusive lineup after Halo is looking decent, no doubt. Simply ask the public opinion of Microsoft to learn what the average gamer thinks of their "nickle and dime" tactics.
  
  Sony needs games. Period. They need at least one killer app for their system that will bring people in. Luckily, the Wii launched with its killer app, which was Twilight Princess. That game sold consoles, and it sold the Wii. Metal Gear Solid might not do it alone, for the PS3. Diehard fans know that MGS is the king of all games, but unfortunately, we have tons of gamers out there that have never even played the game. They've lost DMC and GTA exclusivity, or so the rumor mill spins. These games are important. Final Fantasy is years away, and their aces in the hole might come too little too late. Things are grim at Sony, and I don't see them pulling out of last place in the years to come.
  
  Either way, the very things most people flame Nintendo for doing(lower quality graphics to accomidate price point, casual gamer inclusion, innovative control schemes), are the things that have brought them out of obscurity once again, to become the number one home console in the world. It's not as if Nintendo isn't making a quality product. Any Nintendo fan knows that you'll go through 5 playstations and 3 Xboxes before your Nintendo breaks down. Just look at the plethora of CA lawsuits currently in litigation against both companies, and the relative absence of them against Nintendo. Their products are sound and excellently, but not falsely, advertised. Their first party games are some of the best in the world according to most accredited sources, their third party support is nearly equivelant, or greater, than the Playstation 3s and they don't port their exclusive titles to PC, ever. Besides that, their controller is pretty sweet too. Kinda different and original. Different is good.
  
  Because Playstation and Xbox have given us sequels to their old consoles with upgrades. Nintendo has given us a whole new console, and the people are digging it.

  These are all my humble opinions. Sorry for any factual/spelling/grammatical errors in this blog. I hope Nintendo fans, as well as fans of all home consoles and video games in general enjoy it, and if you didn't, I'm sorry for wasting your time. /offers pie

  • Posted Oct 9, 2007 8:31 am GMT
  • Category: Games
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