It’s not what console you own, it’s about the games

Among older hardcore gaming fans, brand loyalty remains a powerful force. Whether you’re an Xbox 360 gamer, a Sony fan or a PC aficionado, your platform of choice means a lot.

[Godmars290]

Can we please talk about games! PLEASE!

(As soon as some actually come out that is T__T...)

[dedicatedtogamers]

I'm all about the games! I'm more of a handheld and PC gamer myself, although I do own several consoles.

What I don't understand is the author's line "Among older hardcore gaming fans, brand loyalty remains a powerful force." I think the opposite is true. Strong brand loyalty is much, much stronger for people who started gaming during the Xbox/GCN/PS2/DC era. My younger friends from that era of gaming are WAY more brand-loyal. People around my age (and older) who grew up on PCs and the NES have seen so many changes in the game industry, we pretty much just go where the games are. Our days of brand loyalty are long gone. I'm not really old (mid 20s) I'm just saying that I notice the younger the gamer, the more brand-loyal they tend to be.

Just an observation.

[darthv72]

and you are the one earning $$ to buy games then you are limited in what you can get. Which can lead to some form of brand loyalty out of simple lack of funds to buy the other platforms.

when you are older, either you continue that trend OR you now have the funds to be freely distributed amongst the other systems on the market.

I myself, was always more of a sega fan but i would get all the systems available just so i could play whatever was coming out. No excuses to limit myself to one platform or another. It has its perks but it also comes at a price. then again, no one ever said this hobby was cheap.

I can respect others for their desire to play a single system or stick to one brand but its surprising how much disrespect there is for those who like to play the field.

Its not my fault everyone cant afford the same things as me but i dont go around flaunting it either. when i get into discussons about games with my friends I can relate to them if they have a game for their system and i have the same game for the same system OR possibly another system.

We never get into console debates over this or that (not since the snes/genesis days) we talk more about the games and what is coming out or the ones we have the most fond memories of. If owning all the systems is wrong then i dont want to be right. But so long as people can respect me and my wanting to own all, i too can respect them in their wanting to own only one.

[amiga-man]

To me it isn't all about the games but it is of course a major factor, but xbox could have the greatest games and I would never own one as I would never pay for online out of principle and if the rumours circling around the nextbox are true then it will show it's about more than just games.

[rainslacker]

I'm still loyal to Hudson, and the TG-CD is still my all time favorite. But yeah, I think your right. Many of us older gamers have had to transition to other systems through the years simply because the ones we liked the most aren't around anymore(Sega/Hudson), or the games were moving to different platforms(PS1). I think for Nintendo fans, given 3 gens of hardware since the SNES, there had to be a point where people who favored that had to say WTH at least once or twice.

I think there are plenty of younger gamers who still appreciate the games more than the console though. I also feel that the console wars are still mostly just online. In the real world people play for a variety of reasons, whether it be games, or it's where their friends play.

[givemeshelter]

You can't talk about the games...at least on N4G.COM...On this site it's ALL about the console you own LOL
I like you WISH people talked about the games and not the system...however on this site, that's a PIPE DREAM

@dasbeer88
You nailed it exactly. My post was referring to people EXACTLY like x5exotic. Notice how I called them PEOPLE and NOT GAMERS? Because they are not gamers. They are trolls.
They have to justify their purchase and put down anything that is not like theirs. That's the very definition of a fanboy. It's actually quite sad really because when you think about it, THEY don't own the company to put so much time into trolling

[dasbeer88]

Don't forget people tend to get incredibly biased. Mr. x5exotic is a perfect example whatsoever.

[g2gshow]

its about family an the privacy of you'r home @ Microsoft game's dont mean $#IT

i dont know about the rest of you but my home an family comes first i thought people under stood gaming is a hobby

[x5exotic]

Xbox - 1)Aliens with guns
2) Aliens and guns
3) Aliens and guns
4) Alan whoever
PS3: Superhero with electric powers
3rd person platformer/explorer/action game
God of War
Versus
TLG
and countless others

Do teh math

next gen is prolly the same.

[DasTier]

Do you own either of those consoles? You seem to have missed off lots of good exclusive from both.

Just wondering but which is the 3rd Aliens and guns xbox exclusive?

[givemeshelter]

Keep trying to justify your purchase...
Just like the other two posters below: fsfxii and tentonsoftube... Bash a system they do not own to justify their purchase...that is the tactic of a grade school child.

[x5exotic]

Well I could name KZ, LBP, MGS4 too which are also ones I care enough to know about (haven't played though)

Point is: Xbox lacks variety, and the one exclusive they called the best is now multiplatform (ME)

[NukaCola]

Halo
GEARS
Prey?
Mass Effect?

Dont know what the third one is either?

[DasTier]

"Point is: Xbox lacks variety"

In recent years, yes I agree the Xbox has offered less variety than its competitors.

However, earlier this gen they had a much more diverse selection of games to offer us than Sony, the issue was that the games didn't sell well.

Following that logic it seems pretty obvious as to why they would cut the amount of money the spend on 'failed' exclusive games, allowing many developers to go multi-platform and just focusing on their major sellers.

Not great for gamers, but good for business. Just look how much money Sony and Microsoft have lost on exclusives which failed to garner a large impact on the market.

[AngelicIceDiamond]

For me, it'll be about the games and the service.

[rainslacker]

Well...it is Summer.:)

ummm...Pandora's Tower, 3DS SMT, and Soul Sacrifice are all coming out in the next few weeks. I'm getting all 3.

Pandora's Tower looks interesting, and since I have a way to play Wii games easily now I can't pass it up.:)

SMT is SMT so no brainer there.

Soul Sacrifice seems to be THE Vita game to get, and the only thing I'm looking more forward to is Ys: Memories in Celceta.

What's on your radar?

[Venoxn4g]

why some people cant understand this...more consoles u own, more limitless gaming

[Good_Guy_Jamal]

I've played over 120 PS3/360 games this generation. Not alot to some, but the most I've ever played before.
For me, this has been the greatest generation in gaming. With games like Mass Effect 2, Red Dead Redemption, Forza 3/4, Rayman Origins, Portal 2 and Bad Company 2 (online) I can say it's been a generation well spent!

[dasbeer88]

It's all opinion though. To me, the Xbox/PS2/Gamecube generation was terrific.

[RememberThe357]

I got to agree. I become a gamer with the PS2. I started with Star Craft and Diablo 2 but I really started playing tons of games on PS2. But for every cool ass game I played on PS2 there were two cool ass games I played on PS3/360. This generation has had it's problems but I've played some dope ass games.

[dungeonboss]

Okay, ever since the NES, there's never been a "bad" generation. Man, every single generation and every main home console has had some fantastic games - too many to every list.

NES v Master System
SNES v Genesis v TG v NeoGeo
N64 v PS1 v Saturn
GCN v PS2 v Dreamcast v Xbox
Wii v PS3 v Xbox 360
and now Wii U v PS4 v 720

Sure, they may not have all been the most popular in every single year, but you're a fool if you think any one of those consoles didn't have some fucking fantastic games.

EDIT: Basically saying I agree, but I can't say I've ever had a year that I haven't had fun playing video games, and that's why I'm still doing it over 20 years later.

[Jek_Porkins]

Well 90+% of games are available on both consoles and will be next generation too. Never before has third party support been as powerful or as needed as it is now days. Something Nintendo seems to be learning the hard way, you need to keep developers happy and that means shelling out some cash once in a while.

Overall this generation had no games that were exclusive from me, I owned all the consoles and played what I wanted, they all had positives and negatives, but I'll mainly remember the great games spread over three platforms and that is the way it should be in my opinion.

[Hicken]

Question: you and others bring up "90%" of games all the time. I'm curious: do you realize how much CRAP that 90% is comprised of? When it comes to QUALITY stuff, the exclusives are about as numerous as the multiplats.

For every Bioshock, there are seven Cabela's titles. For every Arkham Asylum, ten Hasbro Family Game Nights.

Yes, there are more multiplats, and considerably more of them are garbage. And, as if you weren't aware, multiplats don't give you a reason to buy one console over another. Exclusives do.

If it's about the games, then it's really about the exclusives, as the multiplats generally cancel each other out.

[Jek_Porkins]

Exclusives used to really matter back in the day, but honestly people want to play what their friends are playing now days and usually the most popular titles are third party.

I said 90+%, which is a ton, and yes some bad games too, but there is a ton of great content as well. Exclusives tend to matter in the beginning, which is pretty much proven in the games industry, early on people want a reason to choose one over the other, but as time roles on and prices come down it isn't nearly as important.

Look at Nintendo and their lack of third party support, don't you think they wish they had the same support Microsoft has? I bet they do.

I own almost 300 Xbox 360 games as of right now, and I don't think a single one is a garbage title and most are multiplatform. If exclusives mattered so much, you'd see higher sales from exclusive games when 75+ million consoles are out in the wild, but it's COD that leads the way on 360 and PS3.

[StrongMan]

85% of those 90% of the same multi plat games are garbage and most of the one that are not garbage don't sell and don't make money. Look at Tomb Raider.

[Jek_Porkins]

85% of multiplatform games are garbage? Really? That is the dumbest thing I've ever heard, I shouldn't even bother responding to an obvious troll comment, but I guess I have nothing better to do.

Tomb Raider didn't meet expectations for a launch, but it could end up selling quite well and make a lot of money, it had the unfortunate release that was at the end of a console cycle, that is usually a dead zone.

Games like LA Noire, Homefront, Tomb Raider and Bulletstorm didn't meet expectations, but were all solid games. Of the 450 or so current gen games I own (360, PS3, Wii) I'd say 325-350 are multiplatform.

I think in the last two years I've bought very few exclusives with Halo 4, Forza Horizon, God Of War Ascension and some new Wii U games, mostly it's COD, Tomb Raider, Bioshock, Batman, Madden, Dead Island and a ton of other multiplatform games that I've really enjoyed.

I believe exclusives used to be tops in quality, but one thing I've learned from playing Bioshock Infinite and Tomb Raider, it's that third party games can really look amazing, and I'd say the Tomb Raider story and game itself outmatched almost any exclusive on any console this generation, I absolutely loved it, and Bioshock isn't far behind.

[Unicron]

Need more multiplatform Bayonetta 2. It's a crime its only going to be on one console.

[wishingW3L]

indeed.

[R00bot]

Nintendo is publishing it. Would you rather it only exist on one console, or that it doesn't exist at all?

[MNGamer-N]

Nice article. Would this put a permanent end to fanboyism? Maybe not, but it would certainly help cool the console wars

[Fullmetalevolust]

I go where the games are and thankfully I can afford multiple consoles. It'd be silly to be loyal to a brand and miss out on incredible gaming experiences. If it weren't for games' exclusivity, it wouldn't matter what console you buy.

[truechainz]

People can sit and argue why one company is better all they want, but they literally can't do anything to make me enjoy what I am playing from from all the consoles any less. Then again I enjoy games more than brand loyalty.

[Xer0_SiN]

reading that title reminded me of that cheesy line ja rule said in the original fast and the furious.

"Everyone happens to know a few things, and one of the things we knows is, it’s not how you stand by your car, it’s how you race your car. You better learn that."

and what happened? he still got smoked lol

[RFornillos4]

exactly what the title suggests! it's all about games. all these my-console-is-better-than-your s is just utter nonsense and pure fanboyism. although i'm usually commenting on Wii U articles here on N4G, doesn't mean i have less respect for other consoles. i for one admire what each console brings to the table.

i've been gaming for a long time (started with Nintendo's Game And Watch, NES, Genesis, etc. up to the present), and although lately it's a mix between PC, 3DS, Wii, PS3 and Wii U for me I believe it's better to enjoy what each hardware can bring.

and i can understand people who can't afford to have more consoles, giving them a sense of "loyalty" to a particular brand, but as long as they respect what other console brings then it's no problem.

[Max-Zorin]

Good luck trying to have a conversation about games on N4G. We could be talking about Grand Theft Auto and a few other games as well, and some troll would come out of nowhere and ruin everything by bragging about how great their console is.

[bluetoto]

"Among older hardcore gaming fans, brand loyalty remains a powerful force."

This is horseshit as it's the new gen of people who just started gaming on their xbox/ps2 who make up fanboys. and most are fanboys because they couldn't afford the other console and need to hate anything that they couldn't get mommy and daddy to get for them. those same people now have a 360/ps3 and just continue to hate what they don't own.

the whole notion of wanting to do want your friends do is the mentality of a 15 year old who wants to be accepted by his peers, not the mindset of mature gamer who buys and plays what he wants because he's interested in gaming, not being "cool".