Why are things automaticly bad once they are popular?

[Rednog]

I think it is partially due to the fact that popular things get more exposure and people who's taste really don't coincide with it for some reason bother to play/watch it and then are like wtf why is this considered good?
Example I've already seen some people being like omg wtf I don't like starcraft and there is a good chunk of people that don't play RTS games regularly and its like of course you won't like it and you won't think its the greatest thing ever, it isn't made for you. There are very few forms of media that is made for everyone. But because its popular the popular things gets commented on by people outside its intended audience and gets bashed over and over, go into a MW2 thread and you will find at least one guy who is like "yea bought it day 1, played it for a week, hated it, buy BC2 much better". To me its like...yea great...MW2 and BC2 and really different games when you boil it down. One is more concerned with a larger scale/ vehicles where the other plays more in the vain of close quarters (Counter-Strike Style) combat.

 

[koops]

I just used Halo and Call of Duty as a symbol for mainstream gaming in general. I appreciate that many of us have gripes with those two series in particular (for example I can't stant MW2 online) but the real issue is the blind hatred of anything beloved by the general public.

 

[Rednog]

The only thing i bash is twilight and i believe i have good reasons for doing so. I would like to write a book someday and whats popular in the world? A book that is terribly written, who makes vampires look like sparkly faires and werewolves are suddenly models.

When i hear Twitards say how great it is it makes my blood boil.

Take a step back and realize you probably aren't the intended audience of the book.
So you say that the plot of having vampires sparkle and werewolves be models sounds like a terrible story...
How about a story whose premise is that a billionaire playboy dresses up as a bat and runs around the city and beats up criminals?

 

[linkblade91]

At times, people begin to "hate" a particular installment in a game series, movie, etc., because of how those that find it popular act around others.

For example, I have never read Twilight or seen the movies. However, I am instantly put off at the idea of becoming acquainted with them, because of how people I know react when those books are mentioned. Their "fandom without restraint" ruins any interest, as their zeal causes me to back away slowly as I would from a zombie or someone with a disease. Every time you go too far in expressing your love for some franchise, such abuse hurts the image of both yourself and the very thing you care about so much.

My "hate" comes not from the subject matter itself, but from what it does to people.
See also: World of Warcraft; Final Fantasy VII; Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2; Facebook; ...

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

It makes you seem cool and aloof from the mainstream popular culture.

I hate things because I think they are terrible, not because they are popular.

[sub][sub]Twilight being the example here.[/sub][/sub]

 

[Miumaru]

When you like something, and someone you do not like likes the same thing, it makes the thing you like seem less appealing.
Especcially when its children. (Tween girls being the worse, not that its been an issue Ive had yet)

 

[cocoadog]

Well there are two versions of that things that are popular and really bad (twilight) And things that are popular and really good (hookers)

 

[IxionIndustries]

Because I doubt your indie cred.
Go and watch some underground films and maybe some B-movies if you want thrills.

 

[impcnrd]

any song off of rock band or guitar hero
which is sad because they've got a lot of good songs

 

[ElectroJosh]

It depends; there are a lot of people who hate things once they become popular especially in the music world (scenesters and the indie crowd are good examples of this). But some people hate things because their level of quality doesn't merit their sucess.

For example: Halo. I have played the first 2 (owned them in fact) and consider them above average as far as FPS games go.

But I understand the hate and where it comes from. The Mircrosoft marketing machine ensures that you don't just see ads on TV, print and the net. You also see "news stories" on TV about its release in which your local news network explains how this game is revolutionary and the biggest thing since Jesus. It makes sure game reviewers tell you how its the best game ever.

Suddenly the praise seems disproportionate to the game?s quality. From there it becomes easy to find its flaws because its success magnifies them. There are FPS you play more frequently and enjoy more that didn?t get noticed. You feel that those who embrace the game so much are limited in their knowledge and obviously have no taste. And so it goes.

I imagine its like that for a lot of things. If its successful there will always be detractors but if its successful and isn?t absolutely amazing there will be a big backlash (like with Halo).

 

[crimsonshrouds]

The only thing i bash is twilight and i believe i have good reasons for doing so. I would like to write a book someday and whats popular in the world? A book that is terribly written, who makes vampires look like sparkly faires and werewolves are suddenly models.

When i hear Twitards say how great it is it makes my blood boil.

Take a step back and realize you probably aren't the intended audience of the book.
So you say that the plot of having vampires sparkle and werewolves be models sounds like a terrible story...
How about a story whose premise is that a billionaire playboy dresses up as a bat and runs around the city and beats up criminals?

I know its not intend for me. Everytime i think of batman like that i laugh.

but twilight still pisses me off... i too be honest don't need to rage about it. i just point out the flaws of it to some of the fans i know and the reaction is priceless.

 

[sketch_zeppelin]

The only practical reason i can give for this is that when somthing becomes mainstream thats when the assholes get envolved. it gets picked up by some big name company and they start advertising it and merchandising it and they also tend to enfluance the direction they want the property to go based on what they think will sell. Even if said thing doesn't turn into somthing it wasn't to begin with, seeing it everywhere your bound to get sick of it and want to turn to somthing new.

 

[koops]

On a side note, I'm really impressed with the level of insight that has gone into everyone's comments. Most of us are considering alternate opinions instead of the usual "Halo and Xbox sucks I only PC game because consoles r crap" shtick that goes on far too often in gaming forums.

 

[wickes666]

this being the internet, if we all agreed something was good with no possible criticism for it. the very universe as we know it would cease to exist.

 

[Vrex360]

Partly it's because there's that old 'popular to hate' thing going on but it can also be because people who genuinely didn't like something that is popular feel that they have to vocalize that fact much louder than the fans who think it is good. Pretty soon people start to notice this and think it'll make them look cool so they join in and eventually threads and blogs and so many other things are built to hate on something and eventually guys who make, let's say, gaming review videos start to notice that people ragging on POPULAR GAME X get more hits so they join in too and the people watching who think it is funny start doing it too.

It's an endless cycle, as soon as something is popular it gets lots of attention that eventually evolves into very harsh criticism until eventually it is absolutely reviled. That's my theory of it anyway.

What's ironic though is that the people hating popular stuff to 'go against the mainstream' are unwittingly doing the same thing as thousands of other people under the same mindset and are ending up becoming even more mainstream then the thing they were originally hating on.

 

[AcacianLeaves]

From my experience, once a game or movie becomes popular with "regular people" others who consider themselves as better than the general public instantly consider it akin to the antichrist. For example, popular series such as Halo and Modern Warfare are among the most frequently bashed games on sites such as the escapist. I for one think that this cultural phenomenon occurs because of an anti conformist attitude that runs deep within the hardcore gaming niche. It all comes down to certain individuals not wanting to accept anything mainstream in my opinion.

My question is: what do you guys think?

You're wrong. It's not a case of 'just hating on popular things to seem cool', for the most part. People just have different opinions.

The more vocal the fans are about how a piece of entertainment is 'the best', the more vocal the people who didn't like it will be. It's completely reasonable.

For instance, I'm not a big fan of World of Warcraft, but I love MMORPGs. I'm vocal about my dislike for WoW because of how much of an influence it has had on the genre that I enjoy. I realize I'm in the minority, but that doesn't give me any less of a right to voice my opinion.

The same can be said for Halo. To many older gamers, Halo made FPS games much easier than they previously were by adding automatically regenerating shields and health. If you did not like this mechanic, you're pretty much SOL because since the release of Halo nearly every FPS has added this mechanic.

Things that are popular can't be just ignored if you don't like them. Popular games influence trends in gaming, and if you don't like the trend then expressing your dislike clues developers in that there is a niche of gamers who want to see something different.

For instance, if more gamers had been vocal about their distaste for WoW during the development of Warhammer Online, Mythic may have got a clue and changed the development to something unique - rather than a WoW clone.

 

[Nautical Honors Society]

Because I doubt your indie cred.
Go and watch some underground films and maybe some B-movies if you want thrills.

Oh should he go watch the edgy dysfunctional family movie? Or the "so bad it's good" action movie?

I like a lot of indie and B movies, but these things are just as generic as the popular stuff.

OT: People just need something to rebel against, they need to feel cool. Stuff is popular for a reason, why it is worth at least giving a chance.

 

[Veylon]

It seems to be a matter of exclusivity to me. When you and a small group appreciate something together, it creates a bond between you, something that outsiders don't have. You make inside jokes about it, quote it, and talk about it. It's a subculture that you share, unknown to others. It makes you special.

And then it gets popular. Everyone jokes with it, everyone quotes it, everyone talks about it. It's like your secret's been given away; you've been betrayed by that which you once loved. It's not special anymore.

Granted, there are instances in which the franchise is simply gutted of it's thematic elements to make it be mainstream, but that's a whole different kettle of fish.

About the only things I can think of that haven't become reviled despite becoming popular are older works, like Monty Python or Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Everyone quotes them all the time, but nobody seems to hate them for it.

 

[skitzo van]

I dislike a load of popular things. Not because they're popular, but because of the actual reasons they're hated for (i.e. bad quality, little thought put in).

 

[Ham_authority95]

Any media, food, tampon, etc, has the ability to be "good" when its popular.

Besides, "good" is subjective and someone obviously thinks its good if its popular...