Microsoft refers to core audience as "Sweaty thirty year olds in Metallica t-shirts"

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Aptspire

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Mar 13, 2008
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I for one am a 22 years old, non-sweaty gamer who used to play my 360, but now I'll see how Sony treats their core gamers
better than that, as I am told AND have seen : /
 

Jonatron

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Sep 8, 2008
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Sony's giving us great speeches from that guy in the adverts and Microsoft is insulting us? Groovy. *scowls at his 360*
 

WaywardHaymaker

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I honestly don't care anymore. This is just part of Microsoft's "Dohohoho, Kinect is sooo cool, it's for everyone!" campaign in which they perpetuate the stereotype of the ordinary gamer.

Which is the Xbox's number one fucking customer! If the Xbox weren't actually a quality system, I'd have switched to a PS3 rather than be abused by Microsoft's awful PR division.

It's actually funny how stupid this is PR thing is. It's basically throwing all of your chips in that the Kinect will be SO good, SO accessible, and SO wide spread that your current core audience will be an insignificant amount to lose. Are we dealing with the same business-savvy corporation I know here?

EDIT: And, please, get your insults right Microsoft! I'm a decidedly sweat-free sixteen year old in plain t-shirts. If you're going to alienate me, then alienate ME. Not who you THINK I am. Come on!
 

Jiefu

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May 24, 2010
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Now it's for fifty year olds who are frightened of change and think the President is a Muslim! Yaaay stereotypes!

And that sweat is because of my medication, Microsoft. Man, I should sue this guy so Microsoft can have some free publicity.
 

noodles loves you

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Nov 20, 2008
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to be fair they're not gonna be 100% honest by adding "AND pissy little whinging 13 year-olds who yell racist, sexist and homophobic slurs at anyone who'll listen online" to their quip now, are they
 

tlozoot

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Generic Gamer said:
tlozoot said:
Truth be told, I'm kind of surprised at all the people here saying. "Well...I am wearing a Metallica t-shirt right now."

o,O
Thing is, as a collective this is why gaming is intimidating to get in to. As a group (or at least the public-facing segments) we are like that. I mean, we can't really cry out about nerds not being that way when they are can we? That's no way to fight a stereotype, to be fought it has to be false.

I mean, it's kind of a nuisance to have a small group of weirdos representing everyone who has ever held a pad but you can't deny that they exist and they're noticeable.
I agree with you. I also think that 'gaming' is quite cliquey (I'm British so...er...might be using that in the wrong context...) and thus pretty intimidating to an outsider. I think the term 'gamer' goes some way in establishing this. "Look at us!" it seems to say "We've got our own club, and we even have our own special name!"

It doesn't help that we're so hostile towards 'casual gamers'...especially to the point where we've invented a new, sub, inferior label for them.
 

LightspeedJack

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May 2, 2010
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Funny, Sony's marketing makes me chuckle with it's Kevin Butler bits. Even if I'm not interested in the product at least they're trying. Microsoft however are just saying "FUCK YOU!" to their loyal audience and it's pretty sickening.

And also I barely ever sweat, even when I've been exercising. And I'm 17. And OK I do have a Metallica T-shirt. They're a good band dammit!
 

Karousawai

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You know I've always known in the back of my mind big companies just eat loyalty and shit money, but I can normally ignore it when I'm making decisions about what to buy. But this... this is honestly kyrptonite.

How people can say it isn't an insult is beyond me. Anyone who has spent enough time talking, socialising and just generally living in the real world can clearly see the context of that comment and why it could be considered hurtful.

Screw Kinect. I've said it before and I'll say it again. If Microsoft are gonna be this blunt about how they view their consumers as manipulatable stereotypes then I'd like to see how they refer to their Kinect audience when they leave after they see how shallow it is, as it only takes another more sparkly gimmick to yank that precious crowd away. 'Gamings all about you, our loyal fans!' they'll chirp 'It was always about you! Not about those pretentious tosspots with a gadget fetish.'

Maybe they just thought all the gamers would be too busy playing MF or Halo to care about their Eyetoy ripoff. Do they really think they can actually win in a market dominated for four years by the Wii, a cheaper console with a huge existing game library for the pointless motion flail crowd? Althought as this demographic has a short enough attention span for that to work.

Ugh, I'm gettng to angry to make a coherent arguement.
 

Mr. Gency

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JaymesFogarty said:
I'm not succumbing to this. Honestly people, don't react. It's what they want.
Kenko said:
People sometimes say stupid shit. Leave it at that and dont bother getting angry. If this is true, then just boycott kinect. No point in raging about it.
Yeah, I guess your right...
 

bam13302

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Dec 8, 2009
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*sigh*
Am i gona have to stop buying microsoft products now...
*sigh*
Open office here i come!
Gota keep windows 7 though, steam doesnt work well on linux and steve jobs is a prick, no offense to u mac users, but if im gona dump microsoft for that, steve isnt much better
hes the guy behind apple/mac for those of you that dont know

at least i never bought the xbox360 (and wont ever now)
 

DNA

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Jun 8, 2009
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Sexual Harassment Panda said:
DNA said:
Diddy_Mao said:
Wait why are we getting upset about this?
Microsoft said that gaming isn't for Sweaty 30 year olds in Metallica T shirts. How is that a bad thing?

There's been a steady uphill battle to prove that "gamers" aren't a bunch of socially retarded morons with the attention spans of Ritalin kids. So why does this statement suddenly make people upset?
Because microsoft said it, and the internet hatemachine is so blind by microsoft hate it canont even tell when its being defended.
"Gaming's not just for sweaty thirty year olds in Metallica t-shirts".

I've highlighted the part that makes this an offensive statement to the core audience, because the word "just" is what implies that that is their current demographic.

This could have been worded a thousand ways that wouldn't have been so divisive. If they want to be Nintendo, that's fine, but they probably shouldn't burn the bridge...especially since they're not even half way across it.
They aren't even ON the bridge you think they are on is why this is blind hate. I didn't know a console could have a demographic. Because as it stands, screaming 12 year olds playing halo and MW2 online is the most populace "demographic" which then in turn, eliminates you as a "core demographic".

Its an ice breaker addressing, in a marketing standpoint, an issue of stereotype prejudice that is portrayed on "the new hardware" every time hardware gets released.
 

TheDrunkNinja

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DNA said:
TheDrunkNinja said:
DNA said:
Yeeeeeah... but it was said. And it was an insult to everyone, not just fanboys who hate Microsoft.
Strange, I am not insulted by it. Your argument is invalid.


Sorry, couldn't help myself. Especially since both claims are so similar in that they are equally irrelevant.

My god, was the point truly so hard to grasp that you really need this to be explained in detail? I already said Microsoft was deliberately insulting all those that disagree with them. You incorrectly equate that to just fanboys who hate Microsoft. I was telling you that it is the whole, anyone who simply has an opinion opposed to Kinect, not just your narrow perspective of what they represent.
 

Snarky Username

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Apr 4, 2010
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Nwabudike Morgan said:
Somebody show me where he calls hardcore gamers "sweaty thirty year olds in Metallica t-shirts". That's right, he doesn't, it's your whole us vs. them CASUALS ARE RUINING EVERYTHING mentality making it so he said that.
It's the context that it was in, mostly. He was insinuating that just because you buy kinect, that doesn't make you one of those other gamers that are sweaty 30 year olds in metallica shirts.

I honestly don't care about casual gamers. If people find casual games fun, they should play them. I just don't find them to be that fun.
 

DNA

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Jun 8, 2009
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TheDrunkNinja said:
DNA said:
TheDrunkNinja said:
DNA said:
Yeeeeeah... but it was said. And it was an insult to everyone, not just fanboys who hate Microsoft.
Strange, I am not insulted by it. Your argument is invalid.


Sorry, couldn't help myself. Especially since both claims are so similar in that they are equally irrelevant.

My god, was the point truly so hard to grasp that you really need this to be explained in detail? I already said Microsoft was deliberately insulting all those that disagree with them. You incorrectly equate that to just fanboys who hate Microsoft. I was telling you that it is the whole, anyone who simply has an opinion opposed to Kinect, not just your narrow perspective of what they represent.
And everyone is being offended by puffed up pride and some sense of self-importance claiming "core demographic". Its not marketed toward you, boohoo, why so blue brown bear?