Nintendo, hey Nintendo! It’s me. GlossGreen. Remember me? We used to play together as kids. Remember the time we used to play Zelda? No? How about Metroid? You don’t remember that either? I know, it was a long time ago, but you seem different these days. It seems like you’re trying to be someone else these days. What happened to you? I remember first meeting you way back in grade school. You were there to pick up the pieces after the whole Atari thing. Damn E.T., why did it have to be that bad? Luckily, you were there to swoop in and pick up the pieces. Seeing you in the store for the first time, I think it was a Sears, I remember being excited (as only a grade schooler could). I used to spend hours looking at the box art of games, heck, I even thought R.O.B. looked cool. I know, I was young and didn’t know better. Playing the games were great, I could actually tell the difference between my character and a rock. That was a huge improvement over the other guys stuff. We spent hours and hours having fun, and then things got better.

A few years later, you got a slight bit more mature and grew a tad bit bigger. You got smarter and became able to do some pretty cool things. Zelda looked better, Mario could do more things, and Samus had more toys. Those were the good old days, some say the best. I have many good memories playing through those years, but changes were on the wind. A new media for games was on the horizon and you tried to join in. CDs were going to be the next big thing for games. They were cheaper, had more storage, and hell, people just thought they were cool. Too bad you made the wrong choice.

I still stuck by you…for a while. I didn’t care that you still used cartridges while the other systems started using CDs. You still had some great games. All the usual suspects were there, and some new ones too. I spent many, many hours playing Rogue Squadron, my favorite Star Wars game to date. Unfortunately, all was not well. At the time, I was starting a family and had a job that didn’t pay so well, and there in lies the rub. New games for you ended up costing nearly $70. I couldn’t believe it. Why the heck were you so expensive? I know things weren’t going well for you against your former partner, but did you really have to cost so damn much? Were you trying to alienate all your friends? Let me tell you, price gauging is not cool. After that things got worse.

I didn’t even recognize you the next time you hit the spotlight. You went from a cherished family friend to…a toy. That’s what I thought. Sure, Resident Evil looked pretty good, but a cube shape? With a handle? Let’s get one thing straight, you were not a portable system. The handle was just stupid. What really got me was the fact that you didn’t learn your lesson from the last time. Hello, remember the CD fiasco? Anyone? Why the miniature discs? That’s just like a racehorse on the track with a broken leg. You can get some mileage out of it, but it won’t go far. I an not ashamed to admit that I turned my back on you then. I thought you’d be done for sure.

Revolution. Now that was a cool name and it showed that you were going to try something new. I was interested, even though I’d sworn you off the last time. You had some big plans and ideas that really impressed me. But you let me down again. What did you choose instead? Wii. What the hell were you thinking? Underwhelming hardware with a stupid name. Looking back at it now, I’d say you were in it for the money. Go cheap with the hardware and take advantage of everyone with garbage software. Even with the occassional Mario, Zelda, or Metroid game you have still lost me. I know you are making money hand over fist these days, but let’s be honest. How long do you think this can possibly last? I can see it now, death by shovelware. With games like Gingerbread Man, who needs enemies?

Things aren’t over yet, I know you are only half way into your second year and there is still plenty of time to fix things. First, get quality back. Remember the Nintendo Seal of Quality? I took heart knowing that you actually looked at the games that developers were trying to get on your system. Sure, the occassional bad game made it through, but nothing like the old 2600 days. Nothing like an E.T. to be seen. Second, get some games that people like me would actually play. Wii Sports? No. Cooking Mama? Hell no. Ging…Stop right there. You see my point? Remember the old days. Strive for excellent, fun games. Don’t just do it because you can. I know Nintendo could slap the Wii name on a rock and sell millions of them, but it doesn’t mean they should.

Adam addresses the issue of racist and homophobic comments that are seemingly running rampant on Xbox Live. The Sess is asking anyone who feels this behavior to be appropriate to write in and let him know why he or she thinks so.

This week, Adam explores the movement for video games to tell their stories in episodic segments, much like a season of a television show.

This week, Sessler talks about the game that is so addictive, it made him put down GTA IV. That’s right; it’s Boom Blox for the Wii.

In this Special Edition of Sessler’s Soapbox, Adam addresses some factual errors made by Jack Thompson during Talk of the Nation on NPR on May 1, 2008.

When the Wii first hit shelves in November of 2006, everyone was excited about the door of motion control that had just been opened. According to the commercials we saw leading up to that holiday season, the possibilities seemed endless.

Now, we’re a year and half in and it seems that aside from Nintendo, developers seemed to have been more interested in wedging in motion-controlled moments to otherwise conventional videogames rather than trying to get the heart of what the Wii can actually do. Well, that’s why WiiWare is here, and that’s what’s got Adam excited in this week’s Sessler’s Soapbox.

No doubt some of you read about the recent controversy regarding Newsweek columnist N’Gai Croal’s statements regarding the trailer for Resident Evil 5.

Well, in this week’s Sessler’s Soapbox, Adam’s got something to say on the issue.

Last week, X-Play reviewed Crisis Core for the PSP and, well, apparently the review generated a little controversy amongst fans of the show and the Final Fantasy franchise. In this week’s Sessler’s Soapbox, Adam takes on his critics and explains why he gets so worked up about being accused of “not being in line with other reviewers.” 

Read the rest of this page »

One thing I have to say about Nintendo, they really know how to get their fans into a frenzy. Earlier this week Nintendo’s president and COO, Reggie Fils-Aime made some coy statements about what’s planned for E3 this year. In an interview on Game Trailers TV, Reggie says: “There’s gonna be a big game for the holiday that the gamers will want. All I can tell you is what we announce during E3 is gonna be fantastic. The gamer is gonna be excited and the expanded audience is gonna be excited.” Talk about a big tease.

So what is the big secret? Reading all sorts of articles and message boards over the last few days I’ve surmised that it could be just about anything. Every classic Nintendo game and franchise from Kid Icarus to Starfox to F-Zero, and everything in between. With the incredibly vague statements from Mr. Fils-Aime, we will just have to wait until E3. And no, he won’t spill the beans before then. He’s too good of a marketing man for that. Seeing the complete lack of any tangible information from the Game Developers Conference and Play.com Live, it looks like E3 is going to be the big push for Nintendo (not to forget Nintendo’s self sponsored events) for the second half of this year.

2008 for Nintendo is going to be an interesting year. First up is Super Smash Brothers Brawl, the multiplayer game for the Wii. Grab four controllers, a couple of people to hold them, and have a great time kicking the tar out of them. Nintendo has done a great job at making a fun experience for groups with this series. The same could be said for Mario Kart Wii. From the previews I’ve read, this game is going to be huge, at least for a little while. For a little third party love, Okami is going to be released in April of this year. This was a greatly under-appreciated game that was released for the PS2 way back in 2006. It’s great to see great games get a second chance with gamers. The last huge experience (I won’t call it a game, because much like the Nintendo Wii itself it’s in a class all it’s own) is Wii Fit in May. Wii Fit is launching in the U.S. after having sold over 1.5 million units in Japan. That is an incredible achievement considering it was just released there this last December. And that’s about all we know for the big titles for the first half of the year. Second half line-up to be revealed soon. Keep your eyes open for big announcements this summer.

A lot of people sure hate GameStop.

The Grapevine-based video-game retailer is probably the best-known buyer and seller of used games, and that side of the company’s business has angered a lot of people.

Gamers, for one, are ticked that the company generally offers just a couple of bucks to repurchase games that originally sold for $50 or $60. The other factions peeved at GameStop right now are the actual game publishers and developers, who don’t get any revenue when GameStop resells a used game rather than a new one.

The first group, the gamers, has a (slightly) legitimate point, but the second group needs to stop being such a greedy bunch of idiots.

Shopping blog Consumerist.com ran a long exposé this week from an anonymous GameStop store employee detailing all the ins and outs of working and shopping at the chain.

When it came to the issue of buying used games, the employee noted that GameStop’s low-ball prices are notoriously unpopular.

The source does mount a somewhat valid defense on GameStop’s behalf, noting that the retailer buys every used game that comes through the door, even if it’s a title that will be extremely difficult to resell.

The employee then goes on to note that, if you really want to get full value for your used titles, you’re going to have to do some work on your own by selling your games through eBay or some other outlet. That’s because when you sell a used game to GameStop, it’s basically acting as a facilitator, a middle man, taking its cut before it sells the game to someone else. It’s just a question of whether you prefer the convenience of GameStop or the additional profit of selling on your own.

But I definitely understand the pain of getting three bucks back for a game you spent $60 on.

As I mentioned, game makers are also angry at used-game dealers, although with much less justification. Steve Ellis – a director at developer Freed Radical Design, makers of the upcoming PS3 title Haze – whined to U.K. game site MCV a few days ago about retailers that buy and sell used games.

“Of course it isn’t fair that retailers are claiming all of the profits from the sale of second-hand titles, and it is bizarre that our industry tolerates it,” Mr. Ellis said.

You know, if Mr. Ellis can prove that he’s never bought a used car, used CD, used DVD, used house or apartment (construction crews are being ripped off!) or rented, well, anything, then I’ll grant him points for intellectual sincerity.

But it’s beyond insulting to act as if used games should be exempt from the same sales model as almost every other physical product ever manufactured.

I know computer software makers have tried to dance around this issue with the concept of software licensing rather than ownership – you buy the right to use the software, rather than the software itself – but that, too, is a dishonest scam and, if there were any justice, it would be abolished.

I don’t think there’s any organized movement among the game publishers to pressure GameStop and other retailers to stop buying and selling used games, much less any intent to lobby to make doing so illegal. But it seems like there’s been more complaining from the industry in the last year or so, perhaps testing the waters for a more aggressive campaign.

If that happens, gamers may realize that GameStop is one of the good guys. Then we can go back to arguing how much this used copy of Gears of War is worth.

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