"dumbed down for the console gamer"

[shootthebandit]

this is a phrase i see alot on the escapist but what exactly does it mean, i think as a console gamer its a misrepresentation, the majority of console gamers are mature but there is a loud majority that gives us a bad name.

i can understand that keyboard and mouse is more accurate and your average PC can process alot more than a console which is fair enough but when you say "dumbed down for console audience" its implying that they will simplify the gameplay to suit us and suggests that we are not as mature

so i want to know why this phrase is used, i can accept if it relates to the control scheme or the processing power but its misrepresenting to say that its because we are dumb

EDIT: its good to see that people are taking this well and not resulting to blind fanboyism

 

[Aphex Demon]

I am PC Gamer and a Console gamer, unfortunately like you said little twats on the console mic's give us a bad name.

EDIT: I <3 Pre-pubescent kids voices, Such a soothing tone. -_-

 

[Who Dares Wins]

No, it's easier if you have a mouse to choose what to click on and 15 times more keys for other actions, that's something a console game-pad cannot do, so to make it easier for console gamers, interfaces and other stuffs I cannot think of right now are simplified. Its not the console gamer that is stupid but the game-pad is not suited for more complicated things, but it's definitely awesome for some types of games. (eg. easier to play platformers on the console, easier to play RTSs on a PC)

 

[KnowYourOnion]

I always assumed it was to do with the capabilities of the consoles rather than anything to do with the players........RTS games and the like really really really really do not end well on a consoles unless the developers are genii.

 

[Baby Tea]

It's used because people are ridiculous. I did a blog post on this recently, and the entire notion is beyond silly. 'Dumbed down for consoles' is just the insecure PC elitist's excuse to push blame from poor development (Because they love the developer) to other, 'inferior' platforms. It's a joke.

 

[bue519]

Its probably because you have ruined every awesome franchise, EX: look at Fallout 2 compared to 3. One was awesome, the other was a dumbed down buggy piece of trash. Just please play Halo Wars, and leave the rest of the RTS's alone.

 

[harv3034]

I find that insulting.

I do a fair share of console gaming my self and I feel it's more like "made complicated for the PC gamer"

I mean, who can keep track of all those randome buttons???????

 

[King Toasty]

It's the douchebag Gears of War people and the screaming midgets that give us Consolians a bad name.

 

[repeating integers]

It's used because people are ridiculous. I did a blog post on this recently, and the entire notion is beyond silly. 'Dumbed down for consoles' is just the insecure PC elitist's excuse to push blame from poor development (Because they love the developer) to other, 'inferior' platforms. It's a joke.

That's a nice blog post - I agree with pretty much everything you said there.

I sigh in irritation whenever I hear a PC elitist say "OMG DUMBED DOWN 4 CONSOLES!!!" the same way I sigh whenever I hear a an idiot fanboy say "OMG HALO SUCKS HALF-LIFE 2 IS SOOO MUCH BETTER AND YOU'RE A COCKFAG FOR LIKING ANYTHING ELSE!!!". Elitism annoys me to no end.

 

[EHKOS]

I love analog sticks, I even use it for some of my pc games.

 

[Pingieking]

It's not dumbed down for the console gamer. It's dumbed down for the console. There is a huge difference.
It's not fair to blame the user for the shortcomings of the system, which in this case is the lack of several dozen buttons and a mouse. The users have no say in how the developers want to make their game. If the devs really wanted to put mouse and keyboard into their console games, they probably could (not sure about X360, but PS3 has keyboard and mouse support).

 

[shootthebandit]

in response to most of the comments, im glad you agree that its a small minority (a very loud minority) that gives us a bad name and also that its to do with the controller rather than gamer

but i like the game pad, it sucks for RTS but its good for FPS its not as accurate as mouse but it has all the buttons so much closer and its much more ergonomic. its actually not too bad for racing although a wheel is million times better and its great for games like GTA etc

 

[Erana]

It's not dumbed down for the console gamer. It's dumbed down for the console. There is a huge difference.

You took the words out of my mouth! D:

Still, that's just silly. However, it does give you a good indication of someone's arrogance and insecurities, allowing you to use this understanding while trying to interpret what they're saying. Its a free psychoanalasys, really.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

It's used because people are ridiculous. I did a blog post on this recently, and the entire notion is beyond silly. 'Dumbed down for consoles' is just the insecure PC elitist's excuse to push blame from poor development (Because they love the developer) to other, 'inferior' platforms. It's a joke.

great damn post. agree completely

personally i play every system in this generation, and i mean every system, and honestly i can't fucking stand it one bit when people have to go and be elitist pricks about something and try and twists the facts and OPINIONS to suit there own bitching and flame it directly at other platforms.

wow. i mean just wow, your going to blame the consumer, for a shitty product? Splendid.

the games are not dumbed down in any possible way, i have TONS of pc gamer friends who i've convinced the controller/console is a decent platform, its just anything that isn't what you prefer automatically gets trashed into something less than what you THINK is the best. seriously go back under your bridge and roll around in the dirt you trolls

 

[Vuljatar]

It's used because people are ridiculous. I did a blog post on this recently, and the entire notion is beyond silly. 'Dumbed down for consoles' is just the insecure PC elitist's excuse to push blame from poor development (Because they love the developer) to other, 'inferior' platforms. It's a joke.

Bullshit.

Look at Supreme Commander 2 and Oblivion. Then look at Supreme Commander and Morrowind.

Denying that multiplatform development hurts PC gaming is just foolish.

Its probably because you have ruined every awesome franchise, EX: look at Fallout 2 compared to 3. One was awesome, the other was a dumbed down buggy piece of trash. Just please play Halo Wars, and leave the rest of the RTS's alone.

See, this is a terrible example.

Fallout 3 is a totally different genre of game than Fallout 2, and quite good in it's own right.

 

[EightGaugeHippo]

Its about the console itself. If your porting a PC game to a console, you have less buttons or visual threshold ect. So you have to make the game simpler so that the console will support it. Face it, no console will ever support as much stuff as a gaming Rig.

 

[linwolf]

I have always assumed that it means that the control are made easier for a game pad. And it can get annoying when you are playing on a PC and an action that you could do with a single mouse click are set to use the arrows.

 

[Robyrt]

There are different kinds of dumbing down:

1. Designing the menus and UI for analog stick navigation, not mouse navigation. This is very common and part of many bad PC ports.

2. Simplifying the story and mechanics to "appeal to the console market." In truth, this isn't consoles' fault, it's pure economics: the market for late 90s style PC games hasn't expanded, but the cost of development has skyrocketed, so it's no longer worth the money to make that kind of game unless you turn it into a shooter or third-person brawler and put it on the Xbox. (See: Bioshock, Fallout, Deus Ex.)

3. Lowering the difficulty level and adding a level grind to appeal to 12-year-olds screaming into their headphones. This is the exact opposite of the real reason: the aging of the game-buying demographic. Most people spending $60 on a game are in their 20s and 30s, and simply don't have the time to spend 50 hours on a video game in ten 5-hour chunks. They have a few hours a week, and they want to see visible progress towards the end of the game every time they turn on the Xbox.