Too many Casual-Games ! Hardcore-Gamers are outraged

Most of the hardcore Nintendo fans are disappointed from Nintendo`s new formula- making games everyone can play easily. I might sound dumb, but only hardcore gamers might understand me. Well, just read on to know what I mean, because I don`t want a such long intro..... You could buy yourself a yo-yo and have more fun....if you`re a hardcore gamer. What does the industry say to this "casual boom"?


How did it come to this? Can Nintendo turn the casual-truck in hardcore-paradise ? What`s a casual truck ? I don`t really know. What happened with "quality",with "wit", with "oh my god, what the hell?!"-moments ? Let me tell you how it was back in the Nintendo 64 era with reviewing video games :

As we reviewers decided which games we review and which we push under the blanket, we just needed to take a look at release dates. Back then there wasn`t any big assortment of releases - de facto every new release was worth a preview, because every game was a potential hit.

Well, that changed over the years: Everyday the postman drags a bunch of Wii and DS-games into the editorial department or whatever. Games that don`t really bring our "gamer-heart" into a surge of emotions: crude, immature, callow and half-baked mini-games for the younger audience, soulless quizzes, "come hell or high water"-programmed hopping games with butt-ugly box-art and so on. In short, we have appetite for good games on the Wii or DS.

On the following bunch of 50+ sentences ( I counted:)), Gamesfurk will show you what my readers, but also the gaming industry says to this "casual phenomenon". Here is my opinion : I like games that are accessible for everybody. What I blister on are insubstantial, little games without any tiny piece of wit, that are only produced for the fast cash now and then.

One thing: Edutainment. I hate that genre. It is nice to learn things, for example Brain Age or English Training. But that is the limit. The Wii and DS features decline to a "Well, let`s use the new technology,because every game has it"-type of working. The Wii and DS now are pretty similar to a educational computer. The whole formula is nice, but the developers forgot the actual goal: good video games that make fun. Take a look in the past: The only edutainment Nintendo games I know were Donkey Jr. Math and a Mario game where you learn to type.

I am showing the red card to following bad habits of the gaming industry:

Opening doors via Wii-Mote

In some games like Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None you open the door as if your Wii Remote is a doorknob. That works bad, but is also pretty stupid after 3 hours of playing the game. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption solved this problem, so why can`t the casual industry do it ?

Not even a twist of challenge

I know a few games that are really hard. Super Metriod, Ninja Gaiden, Cybernoid, and almost every arcade game I have played over the years. But I also know a few games that you can literally play from not even thinking. Or puzzles that can be nearly solved by there selfs! Nancy Drew and the Deadly Secret of Olde World Park is one of these games. The difficulty of the game is so low, that there isn`t even one challenge in the game, let alone a part where you have to think.

Minigames without any substance

No one had a problem with the stone mini-game in Ocarina of Time. The slides in Super Mario 64 was a excellent diversion from jumping on goombas and kicking King Bowser Koopa`s virtual butt to save the princess. It was only a tiny, fun element in a humongous game. But at present, humongous games around the mini-games are vanished, disappeared and mostly forgotten. I have nothing against mini-games, but they must be good. A good mini-game collection: Warioware. A bad one: Game Party from Midway.

Game Over after five hours

Really a bulky, big, comprehensive, enormous, extensive, heavyset, large, wide-ranging and lengthy game: Iron Man for the Wii. You can`t never finish this game. Star Trek: Conquest is also lengthy. I have got to cry if some doesn`t know that this is meant ironic. :( Dear Publishers, please dare to make longer games !

Piece of plastic

The Rolling Rocker was the stupidest accessory ever. Only a piece of plastic. After twenty years, the same crap happens again : Why do I need a plastic wheel ? Why do I need a synthetic billard queue or a plastic tennis racket for my Wii-Mote ? Does make more fun? No. Controllers are still the best.

Well, some readers think we are only cosseted:

"Hello. Are you guys dumb? We have got Alone in the Dark, Okami, The World Ends With You, Secret Files: Tunguska, Final Fantasy IV, Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicals: My Life as a King, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Mario Kart Wii, Bully, Apollo Justice, Sonic Chronicles, Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword, Boom Blox, Lego Indiana Jones, Fire Emblem, Deadly Creatures, De Blob, Star Wars:The Force Unleashed, Fire Emlem DS, Lego Batman, Dragon Quest IX, Viva Pinata 2, Pikmin 3, Wario Land Wii, Wii Sports Resort, GTA: Chinatown Wars, Animal Crossing: City Folk and so on ! Cool off !

Now let`s go to the opinion of the industry !!

Note: I collected best of clipping form tons of interviews and bunched them into five.


Here clippings of interview put together from 2K people:

"2K is going to be on the hot seats of Nintendo in near future. These titles will approach to diverse audiences, but I don`t want to classify gamers strict into "casual" or "core", because I personally don`t want to get labeled like that. Fans of strategic games will love Civilization Revolution for DS, while sport enthusiastic gamers will play games like Top Spin, Don King presents Prizefighter, or NHL2K."

Same here with SEGA:

"Sega thanks hardcore gamers, because of them, Sega has its successes. What we do is a mix:Dinosaur King, or games like Sonic Chronicles".

Well, that is enough. Bye.

Wii MotionPlus Question & Answer

After I researched a while in the far.away nirvana called "Internet", I found some interesting news and facts about the near-future Nintendo homeconsole peripheral named Wii MotionPlus. If you don`t know what it is, read this post.

Here we go answering a few questions :
[Your dumb if you need to read following parenthesis(Q=Question,A=Answer)]

Q: How long will this attachment be?
A: Estimated 1.6 inches.

Q: How the hell do you attach the classic controller or the nunchuk to a Wii-Remote with MotionPlus ?
A: Damn, you`re cranky, Mr. Question-Taker. Well, it will have a pass-through extension...port.


Q: Do I have to buy Wii Sports Resort? If yes, how much will it cost ?
A: You can buy it with the Wii Sports Resort, but I would expect it also separate available. Just think how blockheaded it would be to play Wii Sports Resort alone. Not to mention buy Wii Sports Resort two times......I`m not sure how much MotionPlus will cost separate from the Wii Sports Bundle, but the bundle itself will cost 50 $ (Estimated 50€ in Europe).

Q: Can you plug it in a Wii Zapper, which would be useful for shooting more accurate in upcoming games like Call of Duty: World at War ?
A: It would be simple-minded to ask a stupid question like that. "There aren`t dumb questions, only dumb answers. Except by people a lá Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus or Adam Sandler..."-a citation by a paparazzi interview I saw on CNN. Back to topic: I never tried the Wii Zapper out. I don`t want to waste my money on an accessory that only mediocre games support. I would wait until CoD: World at War comes out and read a review on a site called Gamesfurk. That sentence was crap. Really crap.Back to the question, I don`t think so. I trust Nintendo. but maybe the Wii Zapper isn`t accurate after all. If only someone would comment this post and would particularize his experiences with the Wii Zapper....

Q: When will MotionPlus come out?
A: Spring 2009.

Q: I am highly skeptical. Will this piece of plastic be something fun, or will it be just a piece of plastic like the Wii Wheel ?
A: Figur out,only casual gamers use the Wii Wheel....Wii MotionPlus is produced in collaboration with AiLive. AiLive produced this tool for gaming developers working with MotionPlus. It is named LiveMove 2. Watch and enjoy



PS: I wrote following text in this article:

[...]Do you still remember the times, were you thought Red Steel would transfer your movements 1:1?[...]

Well, guess what: Red Steel 2 is one of the first games that will support Wii MotionPlus. What a fortuitousness.