23rd February 2003, 5:36 AM
The year 2002 has taught me many things about this industry. The first is that market share is not proportional to the "quality" nor the quantity of games on the system. I put "quality" in quotes because this number is the judgement of the hardcore fans, not the mass consumer market. Yes, software is a factor, but I think everyone can agree that hype surrounding a title sells merchandise more than the "quality." We can argue about the quality of the Xbox lineup v. GCN lineup all we want, but I think we can all agree that Microsoft's lineup does not outstrip Nintendo' lineup to the magnitude of the sales numbers (4.5:3.5).
I say this because it has brought me to the conclusion that no matter how many mature titles Nintendo has on its systems, no matter how many amazing games are released on its systems, the games alone do not have the voice to create popularity. The game only gains a voice once it speaks through a person. Once it gains word-of-mouth. But that does not seem to be working in Nintendo's favor this generation. It's not enough. The people that are really enamored with Nintendo are either ashamed to spread the word or huddled in the dark corners of the Internet discussing Link's eyebrows.
Voice...it is an interesting quality. We come to these Internet homes because they give us a voice in a world where we seem to have none. Nintendo needs a voice that will carry to the mass market. And we, as a collective Nintendo internet fanbase, are the best people to do it. We are many. We are opinionated. The disconnect is that this mass group refuses to claim its voice outside of its secluded Internet home. If Nintendo could truly inspire these people to spread word-of-mouth in a consumer-accepted way...Wow.
I say this because it has brought me to the conclusion that no matter how many mature titles Nintendo has on its systems, no matter how many amazing games are released on its systems, the games alone do not have the voice to create popularity. The game only gains a voice once it speaks through a person. Once it gains word-of-mouth. But that does not seem to be working in Nintendo's favor this generation. It's not enough. The people that are really enamored with Nintendo are either ashamed to spread the word or huddled in the dark corners of the Internet discussing Link's eyebrows.
Voice...it is an interesting quality. We come to these Internet homes because they give us a voice in a world where we seem to have none. Nintendo needs a voice that will carry to the mass market. And we, as a collective Nintendo internet fanbase, are the best people to do it. We are many. We are opinionated. The disconnect is that this mass group refuses to claim its voice outside of its secluded Internet home. If Nintendo could truly inspire these people to spread word-of-mouth in a consumer-accepted way...Wow.