frat boy mentality-a plague on the gaming industry?

[Canadamus Prime]

It certainly isn't good for those of use who don't care for the hyper-"masculine" *sarcastic air quotes around 'masculine'* testosterone fueled gun wanks.

 

[Zeraki]

Popular stuff is popular for a reason. These "Frat boys" allow the publishers to get funded, and they pay developers to make more games. I swear, too many assume lesser known games are godly next to the latest CoD game.

Some are just getting into our medium. Big Budget AAA titles allow them to step in further as interesting things will catch their attention.

but all they do is make the same game over and over again. i like diffrent. i dont want my choices to only be "military shooter" "beta of a fighter that will be rereleased in months"

Whatever the most popular game is at the time, there will be endless people trying to copy them. It's an easy way to make money, and the industry has been like that since the NES days. This isn't really a new thing.

Just stick to playing what you enjoy, and to hell with what other people think. What matters is that you enjoy the games.

i agree fully, i love playing my games but im scared of the games i like becoming less and less existant because companies realize playing it safe with military shooters and fighters is better. i mean capcoms already doing that. theyre being stubborn with the release of AAI2

I wouldn't bee too worried about it. In a few more years time, FPS games will probably fall out of popularity and something else will take their place. It's happened countless times before.

Besides, even if the big companies abandon niche markets, we always have indie developers. Some of the indie games coming out are better than most AAA titles. Cthulhu Saves The World, Bastion, Torchlight and Amnesia: The Dark Descent for example.

Even something like Minecraft is insanely popular in the gaming community, and that's about as niche as you can get.

That would be a pretty cool name for a motorcycle in a game.

 

[YOUM@D123]

''Other people Don't like the games i like,they're all frat boys''


OT: You sir are the worst kind of person does it really hurt you that no one else likes (INSERT OBSCURE GAME HERE) just be happy their at least still making them also why does IGN opinion concern your interest at all IGN is full of so many inept and unprofessionals that it makes GameSpot look like well ...Er . The Escapist.. all I'm saying is ..enjoy gaming the way you do and play

 

[NiPah]

Eh some people out there are assholes, some people are nice, everyone in the service and retail industry are human. If a guy works at gamestop and thinks he can lose a sale and piss off a customer over his own personal taste in games? well he's an idiot and will lose his job soon enough.

As for Disgaea 4, hell they used to complain about graphics since the second one came out, it would be nice if they could pick something else to whine about after 4 successful titles.

As for the Frat boy mentality? I'm not so sure, its kindof funny actually, I don't think they are the ones who are actually the problem since most wouldn't even know about JRPGs.

 

[Ordinaryundone]

1. Disgaea 3 got middlin reviews because it had bad graphics and wasn't much of an improvement over 2. And a 7 IS NOT BAD. And before you jump me for saying bad graphics, its true. Low-res sprites do not fly when you have stuff like Blazblue on the market.

2. I'm not sure its fair to bash Street Fighter for updating, when both Blazblue and Guilty Gear did the exact same thing. Hell, Guilty Gear has update the same game (X) almost 5 times. X, XX, XX:Reload, Accent Core, Accent Core 2. Probably missed some.

3. So the employee doesn't like JRPGs and thinks they are "weaboo shit". Big deal. Opinions bro. But I'm proud of you for being the bigger man! Its not like you would go online and trash the series he likes as "frat-boy" right? Oh, wait....

 

[Moonlight Butterfly]

It's shocking to me that most people in this thread think graphics actually matter. Fun fact!; they don't! As long as they are suitable for the type of game.

Tetris.... yeah pixellated blocks falling from the sky getting faster and faster and sweet jesus if it isn't one of the most addictive games on the planet...

That said I don't think it's necessarily fair for you to knock people who play games like COD and Street Fighter (I'm not sure how one of the most nerdy games on the planet got included there but okay) surely that is as bad as them teasing you for liking Disgaea or whatever. Don't sink to their level.

I was shocked to find out that my friend loves Modern Warfare 2 and he won't stop going on at me to play it now. I actually felt a bit ashamed that I was so repulsed by his suggestion, it's a silly reaction when I haven't even played it. This guy is my best friend and I completely trust his taste in games.

We did have a laugh about COD BLOPS though and it's ridiculous plot. xD

 

[viranimus]

- actually, considering Catherine is the best selling Atlus game ever,

Hrm. Im not entirely sure if that is true. Demon's Souls has confirmed over half a million sales. Whereas as best as can be identified thus far, Catherine has "Shipped" not sold, Shipped 200,k with actual sales figures closer to 80k.

I mean I welcome some citable reference that confirms otherwise, but that seems to be where the figures (at least for the moment, considering Catherine hasnt been out that long)are at, so if these figures are indeed accurate, then that means Catherine is in fact not Atlus's best selling game.

A PlayStation 3 game must be on the market for 10 months and sell at least 500,000 copies to meet the Greatest Hits criteria.

On topic: As for the popular hurts the industry. I sort of agree in a way it does, but its not entirely the developers fault. Most blame lays with First the consumer who keeps paying for the same things being regurgitated at them, and the publishers who are unwilling to take any sort of risks to try anything different.

So, honestly if its fratboy mentality thats hurting the industry its really not because its the fratboys who keep rewarding the publisher by buying Madden 06-12, or CoD 1-18

 

[GenericPCUser]

I would agree to a change in the diversity of games, and a main character with more personality that his cardboard cut-out.

Yes, it is true that games are more diverse than ever before, and characters have more depth than ever before. But thats supremely obvious - only someone who knowss literally nothing about gaming and has pusposefully ignored every game to have been made for the last 10 years could disagree with that

I never said games were more diverse in the past, but I think most would agree that games are still pretty stagnant when it comes to diversity. The small changes aren't enough and the games that do include "diversity" tend to market it as if these "diverse" characters are little more than freak shows for the "normal" people to ogle at.

So far, Skyrim may have had the most respectable way of including homosexuality, but I digress.

RPG's are generally more open to something different than something like a First-Person shooter, and the only time I've seen a possibly gay character in a shooter that was done well was (I'm not kidding) Bulletstorm. (And maybe Heavy in TF2)

I fully expected it to be bland and muscle headed, but at least it was fun. However, there was one, miniscule, almost insignificant part that showed they at least tried. Ishi, the cyborg teammate of the main character, mentions that he may be attracted to the main character on some level. The main character, who I would have to assume was heterosexual, merely states that he is not there one judge.

It's never brought up again, but the mere fact that I remembered it and not all of the bland story and all the other bland characters must mean something.

Diversity is just supposed to be there, it's not supposed to be the direct focus of the story.

That's what separates Star Trek from The Help.

 

[viranimus]

How about the fact that Demon Souls isn't an Atlus game? Demon Souls was made by From Software. Atlus published the game in America. Sony published it elsewhere.

Perhaps.. but look at some of the patch notes from DS around halloween last year. Atlus considered it at that time its best selling game ever.

 

[mjc0961]

Games I like that are considered "niche" are getting bad reviews based on the fact that theyre not endorsed by a redundant football announcer, theres no space marines, theres no kung fu hobo beating up russian bear wrestlers* or because it dosent look like its Michael Bays latest masturabatory aide**.

You're just as bad as the GameStop employee you're complaining about, so to be quite honest I find it hard to care about your problem. Your mentality is just as bad as his was, the only difference being which games you're bashing. If it annoys you so much, maybe you should start with the one person who you can most easily get to stop acting like that: yourself. After you stop, then you can preach and complain about others.

 

[GenericPCUser]

I would agree to a change in the diversity of games, and a main character with more personality that his cardboard cut-out.

Yes, it is true that games are more diverse than ever before, and characters have more depth than ever before. But thats supremely obvious - only someone who knowss literally nothing about gaming and has pusposefully ignored every game to have been made for the last 10 years could disagree with that

I never said games were more diverse in the past, but I think most would agree that games are still pretty stagnant when it comes to diversity. The small changes aren't enough and the games that do include "diversity" tend to market it as if these "diverse" characters are little more than freak shows for the "normal" people to ogle at.

So far, Skyrim may have had the most respectable way of including homosexuality, but I digress.

RPG's are generally more open to something different than something like a First-Person shooter, and the only time I've seen a possibly gay character in a shooter that was done well was (I'm not kidding) Bulletstorm. (And maybe Heavy in TF2)

I fully expected it to be bland and muscle headed, but at least it was fun. However, there was one, miniscule, almost insignificant part that showed they at least tried. Ishi, the cyborg teammate of the main character, mentions that he may be attracted to the main character on some level. The main character, who I would have to assume was heterosexual, merely states that he is not there one judge.

It's never brought up again, but the mere fact that I remembered it and not all of the bland story and all the other bland characters must mean something.

Diversity is just supposed to be there, it's not supposed to be the direct focus of the story.

That's what separates Star Trek from The Help.

Kanji Tatsumi, Persona 4. And I will remind you, the height of older gamings appraoch to difference in sexuality was when Final Fight had you go beat the crap out of transvestites.

Oh, and - Veronica Santangelo and Arcade Gannon from Fallout New Vegas - the most sane, levelheaded and pleasent people you will come across in the entire damn game, easily two of the most dependeable and interesting companions each having numerous chances to kick ass, and a lesbian and a gay man, respectively.

I never knew Persona 4 and Fallout: NV were shooters.

Also, Kanji being gay is still fairly debatable in the American version of the game (The Japanese version they were a little more blunt about it, but with the changes they made to the American release Kanji seems more like a heterosexual man with feminine tendencies.)

 

[Aprilgold]

So you are mad because a game store owner didn't know about some obscure as hell game, and because the stuff you like isn't popular? Did I get that right?

Also, what the crap is wrong with Street Fighter?

its because niche games get automatic bad reviews or are considered crap by the consumer because theyre not popular. and that douchebag judged the game on its cover alone

also, street fighter is mediocre to me, although ive been hating it because capcom rereleased SF4 twice already yet said when it was first released they wouldnt be pulling this crap

Agreed. I think reviewers should only focus on gameplay, nothing else. The problem is, to a extent, the "HARDCORE" audience, you know, the guys who take a billion steroids before playing the next GRITTY REALISTIC shooter for only MEN! Instead of, you know, playing for fun, or playing to experience something different?

*not ALL hardcore gamers are like above, just the loudest ones are.*

 

[Dfskelleton]

If you don't like those games, then don't freaking buy them. Those games have an audience, your favorite games have an audience, and if the other group thinks your game is crap, who cares? You like it, why does someone elses opinion have to influence yours?
And no, it's not "Ruining Gaming", plenty of games come out each year for everyone to enjoy. Michael Bay stil makes movies, and flims haven't been ruined as far as I can tell.

 

[Cid Silverwing]

Absolutely. Yahtzee referred to this as the "clueless dipshit demographic" during his Prince of Persia 2k review.

Fratboy mentality is also referred to as dudebro, and it is rapidly devolving the industry into shitty regurgitations of cover-based health regeneration and teabagging someone while micspamming profanities from pre-teens.

Don't even get me STARTED on what it's doing to MMORPG's either...