Yeah, remember when Splinter Cell for Xbox was first released as an "Xbox Exclusive"? SC was the Best Game Evar, (released right alongside Metroid Prime for GameCube and Vice City for PS2, both of which turned out to be much better games.) SC was supposed to be the game that raised the Xbox to new heights, with snazzy lighting effects and stealth gameplay that was everything you loved about MGS2 without without you hated about MGS2.
And then two months later we get a PS2 version and a GameCube version, and everyone stopped talking about Splinter Cell entirely... particularly Xbox fans.
How about this: It's Nintendo's damn calendar, they'll put whatever they want into it. If they want to include a couple of new titles alongside all the classic NES stuff, then that's what they'll do. It IS a promotional giveaway, so guess what, it promotes.
The real mystery is why you idiots have your panties all bunched up about it.
it still shouldn't be stacked up next to the GBA for comparisons.
So what should we compare it to, a calculator? Nokia has been pretty clear that this is an Amazing Gaming Device (tm) and should supplant the GBA in all respects. The N-Gage TV ads aren't showing off the phone abilities, my friend.
Yeah, notice how suspiciously silent it's been on that front. Where's the press release detailing how great the launch day sales were? Where's the proud company statements about this exciting and successful new product?
The entire NGage division of Nokia is working on their resumes right now.
Whoa there. Even if you do not own the eReader, a 2nd GBA, and the cards, you're still getting the complete SMB3. That is plenty game right there. The card functionality is a bonus for those who have all the gear, not a punishment for those who won't buy it.
Once again, another ass who reads the posting and then instead on actually commenting on the article, decides to post a meaningless opinion turning it into an irrelevant Consoles Vs. PC argument.
Plus you reveals you're an idiot about console pricing. You're a credit to slashdot.
Except for the market that drives portable consoles: kids.
I just get incredibly annoyed when a news article gets posted and some high-and-mighty dork has to immediately chime in with "well, that's all very nice, but MY opinion completely discounts this article's intent."
Why would you think that? Has Nintendo said anything to that effect? I thought GC Four Swords was a game unto itself, an upgraded and enhanced (Wind Waker-ized, but still 2D) version, not simply a port of the entire GBA cartridge.
Sony put a standard DVD-ROM drive in the PS2 and gave its customers the added bonus of using the PS2 as a CD and DVD player.
I agree, that was a nice bonus when the PS2 launched. It's less of a bonus today - especially since the PS2 has garnered a word-of-mouth reputation as a somewhat sub-par DVD player - but still a feature nonetheless. I know my launch day PS2 is still the only DVD player I own. (Aside from my iMac.)
And their games don't constantly remind you that you can get added bonuses in your $50 game by paying for a peripheral, or their handheld system, or a set of cards... you buy the $50 game and that's it.
Here's where you and I disagree! I can turn that around and say that PS2 games offer *no* additional features beyond that $50... whereas some Nintendo games do offer extra features if you're willing to invest in GBAs, eReader cards, etc. It depends where your baseline is... you're saying that Nintendo is underrating their games at the $50 level by holding out features. I'm saying that Nintendo games are fine at the $50 level, and if you choose to spend more, you can get more.
but this doesn't address whether or not they actually NEEDED the cards.
I don't think that's the point. To many, the cards are a fun collectible. I would guess that the SMB3 "hidden levels" could absolutely have been included on the cart... but there is an inherant worth in the cards themselves! More Mario trinkets for fans to buy and collect. I don't think Nintendo is doing this because they've maxed out the GBA cartridge, but because they see an opportunity to provide fans with more stuff (and make money too.) There's also a huge benefit from a branding standpoint: more Nintendo-created junk in on the racks at EB and TRU. More available products adds worth to the Nintendo brand, and keeps them from fading away as they lose market share to so-called "adult gaming" fans.
Which sounds like exactly what you're against. So, yeah, I guess we're not disagreeing... I'm just trying to explain why I see this as a positive.
Card collecting/playing skews younger then video gaming anyway (if I'm to judge by the people I see playing Magic / Pokemon / Yu-Gi-Oh etc at national gaming tournaments I attend, and by the many fansites run by players). I'm guessing you're outside that demo of card collecting, so you see them as an unecessary way to milk the gamers. Me, I dig that kind of stuff, so I'll be snapping up all I see!
Having cards unlock (or add) bonus features is no different than having skill unlock (or add) bonus features. Either you get really good at the game and unlock something, or you spend $3 and unlock something. What's the difference? Some people are better players and will achieve the skill unlock. Some people have more money and will buy the $$$ unlock.
Most people never finish their games anyway, much less become good enough to unlock hidden features (without cheating.) So why not whine about the "content you paid for" but can't reach because you're not skilled enough to unlock it?
What most people really object to is the capitalism at work here... and that's just because most people are cheap and think they're owned the world just because they paid $30-50 for a game.
As for those who can't believe that data can be held on a card, that's been a common misconception since the eReader was released. I remember people complaining about the NES game cards... saying that the games were already on the eReader emulator and the $5 card packs were a scam. As everybody eventually figured out, the NES games were in fact contained on the cards and not hidden in the eReader itself. Looks like SMB3 is the same, if IGN is correct.
And the solution that Nintendo has already used for this, of course, is to implement the e-Reader in its GBA games so that you need to pay $4 or so per pack for new cards just to unlock the features that are in the game that you already paid for, like the extra levels in the newest Super Mario Advance game or the special attacks in Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire.
Some people enjoy collecting the cards. Obviously a very huge market of people, given how successful the Pokemon card game is/was for years and years. You're looking at it backwards: the card features are a reward for those who choose to invest in buying everything, not a punishment for those who don't want to buy them.
That would be an interesting idea. Maybe in the future, your GBA will BE your memory card... or console memory cards will be the same size as a GBA game and therefore pluggable into either system.
Absolutely. Realistically, the Cube has been $100 for months now if you include the value of the "free" game in the bundle. And anyway, what GameCube owner would not have wanted Wind Waker, Metroid Prime, or Mario Party 4?
What the hell was the point of this survey? They begin with the usual shocking statement - boys who played GTA were more likely to be in fights - and then backpedal into saying there's no causality here. So what exactly was the study trying to prove? Rockstar should have paid for this study and called it successful market research.
The only genuine stat in there is that far too many underage kids are playing GTA... which is a dubious claim anyway if you consider how the underage kid's mind works.
Interviewer: "Have you ever played Grand Theft Auto 3?"
14 Year Old Kid thinks: I don't own a PS2 but I don't want to look like a dillweed in front of this scientist. "Oh yeah, beeyotch. The shizzle nizzle GTA roxors. I'm also considering suicide and cigarettes."
Slashdot Mirror
And then two months later we get a PS2 version and a GameCube version, and everyone stopped talking about Splinter Cell entirely... particularly Xbox fans.
Where's Mike Hawk with the rant about how this proves Nintendo has lost touch and is doomed to fail?
The real mystery is why you idiots have your panties all bunched up about it.
Mario Party 3 was N64, not GameCube.
It's a new /. tradition: toy train scale gags on N-Gage threads.
So what should we compare it to, a calculator? Nokia has been pretty clear that this is an Amazing Gaming Device (tm) and should supplant the GBA in all respects. The N-Gage TV ads aren't showing off the phone abilities, my friend.
The entire NGage division of Nokia is working on their resumes right now.
Whoa there. Even if you do not own the eReader, a 2nd GBA, and the cards, you're still getting the complete SMB3. That is plenty game right there. The card functionality is a bonus for those who have all the gear, not a punishment for those who won't buy it.
Plus you reveals you're an idiot about console pricing. You're a credit to slashdot.
I just get incredibly annoyed when a news article gets posted and some high-and-mighty dork has to immediately chime in with "well, that's all very nice, but MY opinion completely discounts this article's intent."
Congratufrickinlations. Unfortunately, this isn't an article about Users Who Prefer Laptops To Portable Consoles.
Why would you think that? Has Nintendo said anything to that effect? I thought GC Four Swords was a game unto itself, an upgraded and enhanced (Wind Waker-ized, but still 2D) version, not simply a port of the entire GBA cartridge.
You're a complete jackass. Deal with that.
Does this comment mean people are still playing PS1 games?
You like two genres (FPS, RTS) and you kinda like two other genres (driving, "simple" RPGs). And you long for a fifth genre (shooter).
Your gaming universe is very, very small.
I agree, that was a nice bonus when the PS2 launched. It's less of a bonus today - especially since the PS2 has garnered a word-of-mouth reputation as a somewhat sub-par DVD player - but still a feature nonetheless. I know my launch day PS2 is still the only DVD player I own. (Aside from my iMac.)
And their games don't constantly remind you that you can get added bonuses in your $50 game by paying for a peripheral, or their handheld system, or a set of cards... you buy the $50 game and that's it.
Here's where you and I disagree! I can turn that around and say that PS2 games offer *no* additional features beyond that $50... whereas some Nintendo games do offer extra features if you're willing to invest in GBAs, eReader cards, etc. It depends where your baseline is... you're saying that Nintendo is underrating their games at the $50 level by holding out features. I'm saying that Nintendo games are fine at the $50 level, and if you choose to spend more, you can get more.
but this doesn't address whether or not they actually NEEDED the cards.
I don't think that's the point. To many, the cards are a fun collectible. I would guess that the SMB3 "hidden levels" could absolutely have been included on the cart... but there is an inherant worth in the cards themselves! More Mario trinkets for fans to buy and collect. I don't think Nintendo is doing this because they've maxed out the GBA cartridge, but because they see an opportunity to provide fans with more stuff (and make money too.) There's also a huge benefit from a branding standpoint: more Nintendo-created junk in on the racks at EB and TRU. More available products adds worth to the Nintendo brand, and keeps them from fading away as they lose market share to so-called "adult gaming" fans.
Which sounds like exactly what you're against. So, yeah, I guess we're not disagreeing... I'm just trying to explain why I see this as a positive.
Card collecting/playing skews younger then video gaming anyway (if I'm to judge by the people I see playing Magic / Pokemon / Yu-Gi-Oh etc at national gaming tournaments I attend, and by the many fansites run by players). I'm guessing you're outside that demo of card collecting, so you see them as an unecessary way to milk the gamers. Me, I dig that kind of stuff, so I'll be snapping up all I see!
Most people never finish their games anyway, much less become good enough to unlock hidden features (without cheating.) So why not whine about the "content you paid for" but can't reach because you're not skilled enough to unlock it?
What most people really object to is the capitalism at work here... and that's just because most people are cheap and think they're owned the world just because they paid $30-50 for a game.
As for those who can't believe that data can be held on a card, that's been a common misconception since the eReader was released. I remember people complaining about the NES game cards... saying that the games were already on the eReader emulator and the $5 card packs were a scam. As everybody eventually figured out, the NES games were in fact contained on the cards and not hidden in the eReader itself. Looks like SMB3 is the same, if IGN is correct.
Some people enjoy collecting the cards. Obviously a very huge market of people, given how successful the Pokemon card game is/was for years and years. You're looking at it backwards: the card features are a reward for those who choose to invest in buying everything, not a punishment for those who don't want to buy them.
That would be an interesting idea. Maybe in the future, your GBA will BE your memory card... or console memory cards will be the same size as a GBA game and therefore pluggable into either system.
At least throw in a couple of stinkin' eCards.
The random whistling tune.
Every video game sales chart ever made disagrees with you on that "most ain't" comment.
Personally, I don't see a way Microsoft could lose with their gaming strategy in the long run.
I do. Suppose they continue to make lousy games.
The only genuine stat in there is that far too many underage kids are playing GTA... which is a dubious claim anyway if you consider how the underage kid's mind works.
Interviewer: "Have you ever played Grand Theft Auto 3?"
14 Year Old Kid thinks: I don't own a PS2 but I don't want to look like a dillweed in front of this scientist. "Oh yeah, beeyotch. The shizzle nizzle GTA roxors. I'm also considering suicide and cigarettes."
And someday there'll be a slashdot topic devoted to that opinion. Today is (surprisingly) not that day.
Boy, thanks for jumping in with your veiled "GC sucks" comment.