Gaming by GlossGreen

Nintendo, hey Nintendo! It's me. GlossGreen. Remember me? We used to play together as kids. Remember the time we used to play Zelda? No? How about Metroid? You don't remember that either? I know, it was a long time ago, but you seem different these days. It seems like you're trying to be someone else these days. What happened to you? I remember first meeting you way back in grade school. You were there to pick up the pieces after the whole Atari thing. Damn E.T., why did it have to be that bad? Luckily, you were there to swoop in and pick up the pieces. Seeing you in the store for the first time, I think it was a Sears, I remember being excited (as only a grade schooler could). I used to spend hours looking at the box art of games, heck, I even thought R.O.B. looked cool. I know, I was young and didn't know better. Playing the games were great, I could actually tell the difference between my character and a rock. That was a huge improvement over the other guys stuff. We spent hours and hours having fun, and then things got better.

A few years later, you got a slight bit more mature and grew a tad bit bigger. You got smarter and became able to do some pretty cool things. Zelda looked better, Mario could do more things, and Samus had more toys. Those were the good old days, some say the best. I have many good memories playing through those years, but changes were on the wind. A new media for games was on the horizon and you tried to join in. CDs were going to be the next big thing for games. They were cheaper, had more storage, and hell, people just thought they were cool. Too bad you made the wrong choice.

I still stuck by you...for a while. I didn't care that you still used cartridges while the other systems started using CDs. You still had some great games. All the usual suspects were there, and some new ones too. I spent many, many hours playing Rogue Squadron, my favorite Star Wars game to date. Unfortunately, all was not well. At the time, I was starting a family and had a job that didn't pay so well, and there in lies the rub. New games for you ended up costing nearly $70. I couldn't believe it. Why the heck were you so expensive? I know things weren't going well for you against your former partner, but did you really have to cost so damn much? Were you trying to alienate all your friends? Let me tell you, price gauging is not cool. After that things got worse.

I didn't even recognize you the next time you hit the spotlight. You went from a cherished family friend to...a toy. That's what I thought. Sure, Resident Evil looked pretty good, but a cube shape? With a handle? Let's get one thing straight, you were not a portable system. The handle was just stupid. What really got me was the fact that you didn't learn your lesson from the last time. Hello, remember the CD fiasco? Anyone? Why the miniature discs? That's just like a racehorse on the track with a broken leg. You can get some mileage out of it, but it won't go far. I an not ashamed to admit that I turned my back on you then. I thought you'd be done for sure.

Revolution. Now that was a cool name and it showed that you were going to try something new. I was interested, even though I'd sworn you off the last time. You had some big plans and ideas that really impressed me. But you let me down again. What did you choose instead? Wii. What the hell were you thinking? Underwhelming hardware with a stupid name. Looking back at it now, I'd say you were in it for the money. Go cheap with the hardware and take advantage of everyone with garbage software. Even with the occassional Mario, Zelda, or Metroid game you have still lost me. I know you are making money hand over fist these days, but let's be honest. How long do you think this can possibly last? I can see it now, death by shovelware. With games like Gingerbread Man, who needs enemies?

Things aren't over yet, I know you are only half way into your second year and there is still plenty of time to fix things. First, get quality back. Remember the Nintendo Seal of Quality? I took heart knowing that you actually looked at the games that developers were trying to get on your system. Sure, the occassional bad game made it through, but nothing like the old 2600 days. Nothing like an E.T. to be seen. Second, get some games that people like me would actually play. Wii Sports? No. Cooking Mama? Hell no. Ging...Stop right there. You see my point? Remember the old days. Strive for excellent, fun games. Don't just do it because you can. I know Nintendo could slap the Wii name on a rock and sell millions of them, but it doesn't mean they should.

Part 2

Continuing with my series on the history of innovation in gaming, we reach the silver age of gaming. Gaming since 1983 had been in a very bad place. Atari had lost some of it strength and other consoles, such as the Intellivison, ColecoVision, and the Odyssey systems, just ceased to be. The videogame industry's fortunes were about to change.

The Nintendo Entertainment System (third generation 1983-1992) was released in 1985 and quickly began to turn things around. The graphics were improved, the games were fun and (dare I say it?) innovative. Other manufactures soon took notice and released systems of their own. Sega began it's console history with the Master System in 1986 as did the continuing Atari series of consoles with the 7800. This generation was to be the last successful one for Atari.

The fourth generation (1987-1996) brought innovation in the form of a new type of game media. An add-on was available for most of this generation's consoles included a drive to play games on Compact Discs. The TurboGrafx-16, Sega Genesis, and the Neo Geo all sold a CD drive add-on for their consoles. At this stage though, the add-ons supporting the new format weren't very successful, but it did show us a bit of the future. Out of the numerous game systems released, one significant system didn't add a CD drive in the U.S. The Super Nintendo stuck stubbornly with the cartridge format. A decision they would regret later.

Another innovation of the fourth generation was the introduction of the first color screened handheld game consoles. This was not the first generation to have a handheld system, it was just the first to have a really successful one. This generation introduced the world to the Nintendo Game Boy, Sega's Game Gear, and the Atari Lynx. While both the Game Gear and the Lynx had color screens, it was the little system with the monochrome screen that stole the show. The Nintendo Game Boy (with the Game Boy Color) ended up selling over 118 million units worldwide. It's competition had to compete with Nintendo's sales muscle and marketing clout. Unfortunately, an expensive Lynx and battery hungry Game Gear just couldn't compete.

The fifth generation (1993-2002) saw the mass adoption of the CD format for most of the gaming systems. With this generation, the power of the machines gave way to another innovation. 3-d graphics began its dominance over the 2-d side scrollers and top-down shooters of the previous generation. 2-d games have still retained popularity today, especially within the fighting and top-down shooter genres, but was never to be the dominate style again. Two notable exceptions to adoption of the CD format were the Atari Jaguar and the Nintendo 64.

It is well documented history as to why the Nintendo did not include a CD on this generation of console. Originally the plan was to have Sony build a CD component for Nintendo's new system, but when Nintendo struck a deal with another manufacturer, Sony decided to go ahead and used it's new knowledge to create a gaming console of it's own. The Sony PlayStation did not have the best graphics, nor did it have a name known in gaming circles to promote it. What the PlayStation did do is appeal to a generation of gamer that started with the NES and wanted something a little more mature. While the Nintendo was looked at as a kiddy system and the Genesis suffered by having a lack of third party support, the PlayStation was the choice system for innovative developers and the maturing gamer demographic.

Handhelds also evolved during this period, albeit, mostly just the Nintendo console. The Game Boy underwent a significant change, one that would make it even more competitive in the market place. This generation saw the introduction of a color version of the Game Boy, named appropriately enough, Game Boy Color. In of itself, this was not a drastic innovation for Nintendo. What was unique was the first ever inclusion of backwards compatibility on a handheld system. Backwards compatibility was important to the Game Boy Color for one important reason. Instant game library for a new system. Every game from the original Game Boy would work on the color version. A very good more for launching a new version of a familiar console.