I used to be the biggest naysayer of Steam, but now that I have a stable internet connection I just love it. I purchased Psychonauts for $20 this morning and all 3.5GB were downloaded in under 3 hours. I can't wait to get home to play it without requiring a CD in the drive.
Thus far Valve is a great publisher\distributor and I have no qualms about giving them my loyalty as a conusmer. However, it's a little disturbing to see in the EULA that I do not own any of the games I've paid for - I only rent them. I admire 3D Realms for shipping boxed copies to anyone who bought Prey over the now defunct Triton online distribution service, and I sincerely hope Valve will provide at least a means of playing games the sad day Steam evaporates.
My complaint was with the title. It's contracted as if there was limited space to write the headline, though this isn't the case. It could have said "Ubisoft's Wii Titles Instill Confidence Despite EA Competition" or something.
This "clever" title is confusing and misleading. It reads like EA is developing a console. "Wii" sounds like "we". Wii get it. Let's have an embargo on this homonym, please.
Gamespot reported a while ago that the first episode will be 2-3 hours. Even if the next 5 episodes in the season are only an hour each, $35 for 8 hours of play isn't a bad deal.
Fair enough. I didn't hear Symantec cry foul that their (ironically named, due to crapulance) SystemWorks application was outdated when MS implemented CPU and memory monitors in their task managers.
I hope Valve will make a trend of their idea to put out a major blockbuster followed by little spinoff episodes. It gives them a chance to wow the world with an impressive major release with all kinds of new technologies, scenarios, and gameplay mechanics, and then nurture the technologies a little bit further with subsequent optional continuations. The Half Life Episodes give even more bang for the buck since each is only $20, is optional, and works standalone in case you'd prefer a $20 "full demo" before buying the $60 game.
If Half Life is any example of the power of episodic continuations to an already full product, then I'm all for it. I was underwhelmed by the new Sin game, but will give the concept of a fully episodic series a chance with the upcoming Sam & Max games. However, I'm much more interested in a full standalone game that optionally lets me playing if I choose to keep paying.
Furthermore, Symantec and McAfee produce the "Internet Explorers" of antivirus products. Because their apps are so popular, virus authors target their software specifically, disabling them or even making them a vector for further distribution. Microsoft is doing these companies a big favour by locking them out of the kernel core because one nasty widespread virus could lead to thousands of comprimised systems, and ultimately a class-action lawsuit by furious PC owners.
You're absolutely right when you call AV companies bottom feeders (though not in those words) who rely on an insecure product for their relevance. Hopefully with Vista's increased security implementations (like running admin consoles in a virtual session) viruses will be downgraded from a danger to an annoyance.
It's a real shame that they didn't put an updated version of x64 up there. That's the version that really needs some tweaking. Maybe the problems I experienced are more on the driver side but I found 64-bit to be much slower up to and including release 5600.
My girlfriend and I somewhat enjoyed the first LSW. The combat is fun, death penalty is very minimal, and the option to jump in and out whenever you wish is a master stroke. The sequel boasts a lot more of everything which is a blessing and a curse. Levels are LONG!!! I haven't gotten past the 3rd level because after 45 minutes I find it a little tedious (or the game crashes [on PC]), but there are no intermediary save points!
I'd love to play this game through just to see the wretchedly adorable cut scenes but at this rate Han will never even make it to the computer generated jelloey Jabba!
I disagree with your arguments. Video games can be critiqued just like a famous painting or novel.
If the artist claims there is nothing else going on and the viewer insists that there is something else going on is it not possible that the viewer is creating hidden meanings to fulfill their own desires? Making something of nothing?
Tolkien wrote Lord of the Rings in chapters that he mailed to his children in the army and RAF during WWII. The story is full of war and genocide, yet Tolkien claims his book is not an analysis of the war. The conditions in which art is created are just as important as the literal meaning intended by the artist.
Or maybe it's because the game was done on the cheap and they didn't want to record audio tracks for all the languages - maybe they just wanted to do text.
(this was regarding the sound of record scratches in place of the King's voice) Have you heard the soundtrack to these games? Yes they are budget titles in that they are inexpensive when purchased brand new, but the soundtracks are unlike anything I've heard in a video game. They are songs with lyrics and orchestras. Rock and scat jazz and epic orchestral pieces and techno and ambient. Furthermore, humans speak audibly in English and in Japanese. The King (admittedly the most verbose character) is the only person who does not speak out loud. The record scratching sounds were done on purpose.
He's - rolling - a - ball - around. Sooooo deep.
Have you played this game? Rolling a ball is what you do in this game, but there is a surprisingly rich story surrounding the circumstances. Although cut scenes are drawn in cutesy art, there are some very heavy themes depicted such as a father pushing his son too hard, the son leaving home and living on the rough streets, reconciliation, the joy of childbirth... That's why this game is so deserving of in-depth critique - it is basically the bible in Lego clothing.
It is in fact a fabrication of hidden meanings, non of which were intended by the creator. And this is my least favorite form of writing. The same is done with art as famous as the Mona Lisa. It's a picture of a woman with a smirk. Why does there have to be a deeper meaning?
There certainly doesn't have to be a deeper meaning, but it's fun to try to find it! Why not argue the merits and messages, implied or otherwise, in modern art? Why not expand our horizons and understand our world better by analyzing an artist's rendition of the place we spend our entire lives? Creative expression is meant to be enjoyed and understood on emotional, tactile, and even intellectual levels.
The bottom line is that there may or may not be more to life than we see on the surface. If you are content with the beauty of the red petals of a rose then that's perfectly fine. Some of us, however, prefer to stop and examine it more closely and learn that it smells pretty as well.
One could deconstruct video games in a marxist light - even simplistic games.
Take Pacman for example. He eats dots and gets chased, or if he's lucky he eats a big dot and temporarily chases his persecutors. In the end, he is chased again and must run for his life, eating what he can in the mean time. Why does he do this? Because he must! Maybe Pacman is representative of a proletariat activist - he forages in his daily life while dodging his oppressors, but now and then he strategically sticks it to the man. In the end it only makes them more angry and they pursue him even more aggressively.
You can't win Pacman. You play as well as you can, oppressed and chased all the while, until you die. But without Pacman the ghosts would have nothing to do all day. The ghosts rely on Pacman just as the elite rely on the proletariat.
Okay, that was pretty dumb, but I'm just making a point. If a picture is worth a thousand words then a simplistic scenario like those presented in Pacman can tell a story about a similar situation in real life.
Games are important in different ways to different people. You've focused on their place in the economy which is a perfectly valid viewpoint. Others see them as a way to relieve stress, to be told a story, to be social with their friends, or to improve their own abilities.
You've accurately pinpointed the relevance of video games and given your own opinion on the matter. You've critiqued video games. Therefore you've disproved your own argument.
Video games are creative expression and are a depiction of the creator's impression of society, just like any painting or book or movie. Games are perhaps the most philisophically deep medium of all time since they are designed to challenge our physical bodies and mental abilities at the same time, all the while placing us in a state of suspended disbelief while we control someone who is not ourselves. That's a pretty tall order!
Don't take video games for granted. They're pretty amazing when you think about them.
While I'm disappointed that I have to wait to read the other two parts of this critique, I'm glad it's being posted at all. This is a game worth in-depth analysis.
One of my favourite aspects of video games is the representation of the real world. Many people are enthusiastic about this aspect of gaming but most don't share my take on the subject. I wouldn't be a Slashdotter if I wasn't wowed by pixel shaders and bump mapping and advanced AI, but what really fascinates me is the artistic representation of reality - the statement made about our world facilitated by creative use of limited resources.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is one of the greatest contenders in this field as its depiction of a fictional California-esque state is totally astounding, replete with buildings, streets, varied geography, natural wonders, rolling landscapes, and all juxtaposed by a pissed-off populace. There's a great scene in Lucasarts' Grim Fandango where Manny Calavera, protagonist and reaper, travels to the realm of the living to collect the souls of recently poisoned fast food patrons, and the real world is quite a ridiculous caricature that is completely alien through the eyes of residents of the land of the dead.
Katamari Damacy is unique in that the protagonists are not human at all, but permanent residents of deep space. To The King of All Cosmos and The Prince, Earth is one planet of millions, but it is not just any planet. The Earth is populated by excitable little people who have absolutely littered their entire planet with stuff, and it is this stuff that makes Earth a suitable place to collect materials to repopulate space with stars.
Stuff here, stuff there, stuff everywhere! Not only can anything smaller than your katamari be rolled-up and added to the clump, but every collected item can later be examined replete with a concise but innocently baffling description in the limited omniscient of the space-faring royal family. Some such descriptions of the hundreds upon hundreds of ordinary objects and creatures include:
Coconut Crab -- "A crab with strong claws. It doesn't look anything like a coconut at all..."
Peach -- "A butt-shaped fruit that is more tasty than butts."
Faucet -- "Hot and cold water comes out of the same place. We are amazed."
Loud Momma -- "Her voice is loud and when she laughs, babies start screaming."
This is why the game is deserving of critique - because the game itself is a critique of urban civilization. It patently points out how much more complex and frivolous and ludicrous our lifestyle is compared to the orderly motion of the galactic ocean.
Furthermore, this analysis goes to show how effective the game is at alleviating stress! Consider all the things you worry about in a day - the cost of living, pollution, rush hour traffic, long lines, crime, the environment, the fact that you'll never visit all the places you want to see, etc. All these things become insignificant in Katamari Damacy. You needn't worry about any issues - any objects - larger than your katamari until later on because for now they are simply obstacles, and anything smaller is all but an insignificant bump. To The Prince, ignorance is bliss. All that matters is to keep on rolling. Put your frustrations aside, block out all unneccesary data, and just keep on rolling. Just push and push, your katamari grows and grows, and before you know it you're towering over people and cars and buildings and mountains until the very curvature of the planet is a minute detail of the great cosmic tapestry.
There are a million possible interpretations of this depiction of reality. One could argue that the game is an advocate of Buddhism, declaring earthly luxuries as mere white noise. Or pe
I suppose you could argue that the Wii gives the player more power to move their avatar more precisely. It's not easy to adjust the yaw 112 degrees with anything but a spatially sensitive controller.
Point being, don't go to the marketing guy for the facts.
There knows its clientelle well and devised the perfect way to ensure people are nice to noobs - they created a "Noob Helper" skill that you can level up in! It simply checks the seniority of the person you're talking to and looks for keywords, and if you talk to new people long enough you gain experience in the skill. Gaining a level earns you free stuff like clothing and hair styles. Positive reciprocity is the way to go, not cutting costs on a percieved lost cause.
I can't speak for NCSoft as a developer, only as a support agency, since Guild Wars is only published by NCSoft. However, it seems incredibly dumb that they would give broken invites to a superhero game at GenCon of all places. You have every right to be incredibly pissed about that.
But that's your experience and I've told mine. Our stories together paint a picture of the company and we have therefore assisted others in their purchasing decisions. Good for us!
ArenaNet has 2.5 million customers to support and they don't demand a monthly fee.
WoW chokes $15/month from me and I'm not their number one priority? What kind of sucker are you?
The paying customer is ALWAYS #1 on the list. That's why I'm so impressed with AnenaNet's support. I bought the game for $40 and they've worked their asses off to keep me happy for about 14 months now. In that time you've paid Blizzard $190 so that you can upload patches to other paying customers, and you were locked out of the game until you were finished downloading 200MB patches at 10KB/s. THAT'S what kind of sucker you are.
You pay Blizzard $15 a month so that you can use Google to resolve your own technical issues? Because Blizzard's built-in system that YOU PAY FOR is inadequate? And I'm the one lacking a braincell?
Blizzard sucks ass. They are a shadow of their former selves. Now you have to pay them for the privilege of regular and unscheduled downtime, sending patches to other users, installing re-re-reissues of broken patches, waiting for over an hour to start a PVP game, and most off all, NONEXISTANT support. Lately the game has been stable for me but previously I had a terrible time getting anything to work.
I'm speaking from my own experience. I am not wrong, you are just a skeptical fanboy.
And for the record, Guild Wars is the second biggest MMORPG out there with over 1/3 WoW's population. Their support is incredible and I don't have to pay extra for anything.
In my opinion Blizzard has no respect for their subscribership. If you feel like you're getting your money's worth please give me your billing address so I can charge you the next time you connect to my bittorrent seeds.
They were talking about genuinely powerful systems back then, though. SNES might not have had "blast processing" (whatever the hell that Genesis BS meant) but it had the Mode7 scaling and rotation engine plus it could render 256 colour graphics unlike the Genesis' 16. Today, the Wii is in fact a powerful system but not so much as the competition.
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I used to be the biggest naysayer of Steam, but now that I have a stable internet connection I just love it. I purchased Psychonauts for $20 this morning and all 3.5GB were downloaded in under 3 hours. I can't wait to get home to play it without requiring a CD in the drive.
Thus far Valve is a great publisher\distributor and I have no qualms about giving them my loyalty as a conusmer. However, it's a little disturbing to see in the EULA that I do not own any of the games I've paid for - I only rent them. I admire 3D Realms for shipping boxed copies to anyone who bought Prey over the now defunct Triton online distribution service, and I sincerely hope Valve will provide at least a means of playing games the sad day Steam evaporates.
My complaint was with the title. It's contracted as if there was limited space to write the headline, though this isn't the case. It could have said "Ubisoft's Wii Titles Instill Confidence Despite EA Competition" or something.
I'd always thought homonym and homophone were synonyms. Thanks for the wikipedia link!
Ubi Says Wii Will Beat EA
This "clever" title is confusing and misleading. It reads like EA is developing a console. "Wii" sounds like "we". Wii get it. Let's have an embargo on this homonym, please.
Inconceivable!
Gamespot reported a while ago that the first episode will be 2-3 hours. Even if the next 5 episodes in the season are only an hour each, $35 for 8 hours of play isn't a bad deal.
Fair enough. I didn't hear Symantec cry foul that their (ironically named, due to crapulance) SystemWorks application was outdated when MS implemented CPU and memory monitors in their task managers.
I hope Valve will make a trend of their idea to put out a major blockbuster followed by little spinoff episodes. It gives them a chance to wow the world with an impressive major release with all kinds of new technologies, scenarios, and gameplay mechanics, and then nurture the technologies a little bit further with subsequent optional continuations. The Half Life Episodes give even more bang for the buck since each is only $20, is optional, and works standalone in case you'd prefer a $20 "full demo" before buying the $60 game.
If Half Life is any example of the power of episodic continuations to an already full product, then I'm all for it. I was underwhelmed by the new Sin game, but will give the concept of a fully episodic series a chance with the upcoming Sam & Max games. However, I'm much more interested in a full standalone game that optionally lets me playing if I choose to keep paying.
Furthermore, Symantec and McAfee produce the "Internet Explorers" of antivirus products. Because their apps are so popular, virus authors target their software specifically, disabling them or even making them a vector for further distribution. Microsoft is doing these companies a big favour by locking them out of the kernel core because one nasty widespread virus could lead to thousands of comprimised systems, and ultimately a class-action lawsuit by furious PC owners.
You're absolutely right when you call AV companies bottom feeders (though not in those words) who rely on an insecure product for their relevance. Hopefully with Vista's increased security implementations (like running admin consoles in a virtual session) viruses will be downgraded from a danger to an annoyance.
Doesn't it need more than an apostrophe? It should be "company's".
Thanks for reprinting the link.
It's a real shame that they didn't put an updated version of x64 up there. That's the version that really needs some tweaking. Maybe the problems I experienced are more on the driver side but I found 64-bit to be much slower up to and including release 5600.
My girlfriend and I somewhat enjoyed the first LSW. The combat is fun, death penalty is very minimal, and the option to jump in and out whenever you wish is a master stroke. The sequel boasts a lot more of everything which is a blessing and a curse. Levels are LONG!!! I haven't gotten past the 3rd level because after 45 minutes I find it a little tedious (or the game crashes [on PC]), but there are no intermediary save points!
I'd love to play this game through just to see the wretchedly adorable cut scenes but at this rate Han will never even make it to the computer generated jelloey Jabba!
Vinyl has already outlived 8-tracks and cassettes. Why is it surprising that it will outlive CD?
I disagree with your arguments. Video games can be critiqued just like a famous painting or novel.
If the artist claims there is nothing else going on and the viewer insists that there is something else going on is it not possible that the viewer is creating hidden meanings to fulfill their own desires? Making something of nothing?
Tolkien wrote Lord of the Rings in chapters that he mailed to his children in the army and RAF during WWII. The story is full of war and genocide, yet Tolkien claims his book is not an analysis of the war. The conditions in which art is created are just as important as the literal meaning intended by the artist.
Or maybe it's because the game was done on the cheap and they didn't want to record audio tracks for all the languages - maybe they just wanted to do text.
(this was regarding the sound of record scratches in place of the King's voice) Have you heard the soundtrack to these games? Yes they are budget titles in that they are inexpensive when purchased brand new, but the soundtracks are unlike anything I've heard in a video game. They are songs with lyrics and orchestras. Rock and scat jazz and epic orchestral pieces and techno and ambient. Furthermore, humans speak audibly in English and in Japanese. The King (admittedly the most verbose character) is the only person who does not speak out loud. The record scratching sounds were done on purpose.
He's - rolling - a - ball - around. Sooooo deep.
Have you played this game? Rolling a ball is what you do in this game, but there is a surprisingly rich story surrounding the circumstances. Although cut scenes are drawn in cutesy art, there are some very heavy themes depicted such as a father pushing his son too hard, the son leaving home and living on the rough streets, reconciliation, the joy of childbirth... That's why this game is so deserving of in-depth critique - it is basically the bible in Lego clothing.
It is in fact a fabrication of hidden meanings, non of which were intended by the creator. And this is my least favorite form of writing. The same is done with art as famous as the Mona Lisa. It's a picture of a woman with a smirk. Why does there have to be a deeper meaning?
There certainly doesn't have to be a deeper meaning, but it's fun to try to find it! Why not argue the merits and messages, implied or otherwise, in modern art? Why not expand our horizons and understand our world better by analyzing an artist's rendition of the place we spend our entire lives? Creative expression is meant to be enjoyed and understood on emotional, tactile, and even intellectual levels.
The bottom line is that there may or may not be more to life than we see on the surface. If you are content with the beauty of the red petals of a rose then that's perfectly fine. Some of us, however, prefer to stop and examine it more closely and learn that it smells pretty as well.
One could deconstruct video games in a marxist light - even simplistic games.
Take Pacman for example. He eats dots and gets chased, or if he's lucky he eats a big dot and temporarily chases his persecutors. In the end, he is chased again and must run for his life, eating what he can in the mean time. Why does he do this? Because he must! Maybe Pacman is representative of a proletariat activist - he forages in his daily life while dodging his oppressors, but now and then he strategically sticks it to the man. In the end it only makes them more angry and they pursue him even more aggressively.
You can't win Pacman. You play as well as you can, oppressed and chased all the while, until you die. But without Pacman the ghosts would have nothing to do all day. The ghosts rely on Pacman just as the elite rely on the proletariat.
Okay, that was pretty dumb, but I'm just making a point. If a picture is worth a thousand words then a simplistic scenario like those presented in Pacman can tell a story about a similar situation in real life.
Games are important in different ways to different people. You've focused on their place in the economy which is a perfectly valid viewpoint. Others see them as a way to relieve stress, to be told a story, to be social with their friends, or to improve their own abilities.
You've accurately pinpointed the relevance of video games and given your own opinion on the matter. You've critiqued video games. Therefore you've disproved your own argument.
Video games are creative expression and are a depiction of the creator's impression of society, just like any painting or book or movie. Games are perhaps the most philisophically deep medium of all time since they are designed to challenge our physical bodies and mental abilities at the same time, all the while placing us in a state of suspended disbelief while we control someone who is not ourselves. That's a pretty tall order!
Don't take video games for granted. They're pretty amazing when you think about them.
While I'm disappointed that I have to wait to read the other two parts of this critique, I'm glad it's being posted at all. This is a game worth in-depth analysis.
One of my favourite aspects of video games is the representation of the real world. Many people are enthusiastic about this aspect of gaming but most don't share my take on the subject. I wouldn't be a Slashdotter if I wasn't wowed by pixel shaders and bump mapping and advanced AI, but what really fascinates me is the artistic representation of reality - the statement made about our world facilitated by creative use of limited resources.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is one of the greatest contenders in this field as its depiction of a fictional California-esque state is totally astounding, replete with buildings, streets, varied geography, natural wonders, rolling landscapes, and all juxtaposed by a pissed-off populace. There's a great scene in Lucasarts' Grim Fandango where Manny Calavera, protagonist and reaper, travels to the realm of the living to collect the souls of recently poisoned fast food patrons, and the real world is quite a ridiculous caricature that is completely alien through the eyes of residents of the land of the dead.
Katamari Damacy is unique in that the protagonists are not human at all, but permanent residents of deep space. To The King of All Cosmos and The Prince, Earth is one planet of millions, but it is not just any planet. The Earth is populated by excitable little people who have absolutely littered their entire planet with stuff, and it is this stuff that makes Earth a suitable place to collect materials to repopulate space with stars.
Stuff here, stuff there, stuff everywhere! Not only can anything smaller than your katamari be rolled-up and added to the clump, but every collected item can later be examined replete with a concise but innocently baffling description in the limited omniscient of the space-faring royal family. Some such descriptions of the hundreds upon hundreds of ordinary objects and creatures include:
Coconut Crab -- "A crab with strong claws. It doesn't look anything like a coconut at all..."
Peach -- "A butt-shaped fruit that is more tasty than butts."
Faucet -- "Hot and cold water comes out of the same place. We are amazed."
Loud Momma -- "Her voice is loud and when she laughs, babies start screaming."
This is why the game is deserving of critique - because the game itself is a critique of urban civilization. It patently points out how much more complex and frivolous and ludicrous our lifestyle is compared to the orderly motion of the galactic ocean.
Furthermore, this analysis goes to show how effective the game is at alleviating stress! Consider all the things you worry about in a day - the cost of living, pollution, rush hour traffic, long lines, crime, the environment, the fact that you'll never visit all the places you want to see, etc. All these things become insignificant in Katamari Damacy. You needn't worry about any issues - any objects - larger than your katamari until later on because for now they are simply obstacles, and anything smaller is all but an insignificant bump. To The Prince, ignorance is bliss. All that matters is to keep on rolling. Put your frustrations aside, block out all unneccesary data, and just keep on rolling. Just push and push, your katamari grows and grows, and before you know it you're towering over people and cars and buildings and mountains until the very curvature of the planet is a minute detail of the great cosmic tapestry.
There are a million possible interpretations of this depiction of reality. One could argue that the game is an advocate of Buddhism, declaring earthly luxuries as mere white noise. Or pe
I suppose you could argue that the Wii gives the player more power to move their avatar more precisely. It's not easy to adjust the yaw 112 degrees with anything but a spatially sensitive controller.
Point being, don't go to the marketing guy for the facts.
Very well stated.
There knows its clientelle well and devised the perfect way to ensure people are nice to noobs - they created a "Noob Helper" skill that you can level up in! It simply checks the seniority of the person you're talking to and looks for keywords, and if you talk to new people long enough you gain experience in the skill. Gaining a level earns you free stuff like clothing and hair styles. Positive reciprocity is the way to go, not cutting costs on a percieved lost cause.
I can't speak for NCSoft as a developer, only as a support agency, since Guild Wars is only published by NCSoft. However, it seems incredibly dumb that they would give broken invites to a superhero game at GenCon of all places. You have every right to be incredibly pissed about that.
But that's your experience and I've told mine. Our stories together paint a picture of the company and we have therefore assisted others in their purchasing decisions. Good for us!
ArenaNet has 2.5 million customers to support and they don't demand a monthly fee.
WoW chokes $15/month from me and I'm not their number one priority? What kind of sucker are you?
The paying customer is ALWAYS #1 on the list. That's why I'm so impressed with AnenaNet's support. I bought the game for $40 and they've worked their asses off to keep me happy for about 14 months now. In that time you've paid Blizzard $190 so that you can upload patches to other paying customers, and you were locked out of the game until you were finished downloading 200MB patches at 10KB/s. THAT'S what kind of sucker you are.
You pay Blizzard $15 a month so that you can use Google to resolve your own technical issues? Because Blizzard's built-in system that YOU PAY FOR is inadequate? And I'm the one lacking a braincell?
Blizzard sucks ass. They are a shadow of their former selves. Now you have to pay them for the privilege of regular and unscheduled downtime, sending patches to other users, installing re-re-reissues of broken patches, waiting for over an hour to start a PVP game, and most off all, NONEXISTANT support. Lately the game has been stable for me but previously I had a terrible time getting anything to work.
I'm speaking from my own experience. I am not wrong, you are just a skeptical fanboy.
And for the record, Guild Wars is the second biggest MMORPG out there with over 1/3 WoW's population. Their support is incredible and I don't have to pay extra for anything.
In my opinion Blizzard has no respect for their subscribership. If you feel like you're getting your money's worth please give me your billing address so I can charge you the next time you connect to my bittorrent seeds.
They were talking about genuinely powerful systems back then, though. SNES might not have had "blast processing" (whatever the hell that Genesis BS meant) but it had the Mode7 scaling and rotation engine plus it could render 256 colour graphics unlike the Genesis' 16. Today, the Wii is in fact a powerful system but not so much as the competition.