The games industry doesn't need to grow up - but its audience does

Rice Digital's ILJG expresses his concern about how we conduct ourselves online - and what that means for our industry.

[DaveyB]

Goddamn, that was a really great read - but I'm not sure what to grab next...

Popcorn or a fire extinguisher?

[Xwow2008]

LOVE the pic....the POWA OF N4G :))

[HelpfulGamer]

Can't these Pundits find more PS4 news? XD

[LordMaim]

Fire extinguisher that shoots popcorn?

[Pintheshadows]

Dragon's Den, right now. I shall march you there if I have to.

[wishingW3L]

great read maybe if you didn't read it from start to finish. Because the first half was good but did you read his last 2 points?

He says that DRM and Crushing time are good! Does he even know what both of these mean?

[Patashnik]

Er... he kinda says the opposite to that...

[kreate]

I actually think n4g is a xbox site but the users are mostly sony fans.

and I say this becuz u got people like logicwins who trolls in favor of the xbox and Microsoft and the mods keep giving him unlimited bubbles for no good reason.

but becuz the users are mostly sony fans, there's this illusion that n4g is actually a sony favored site.

[Patashnik]

Yeah, some good points in there. Always enjoy ILJG's pieces, they're certainly... different.

[user7402931]

i love that picture, i would change the n4g logo to a ps4 logo though.

[Gr1mmyshadows]

and here is one of the reasons for this article

[Dark11]

LMAO @ the pic.

[MasterCornholio]

I agree that N4G is tearing apart the Xbox One.

Nexus 7 2013

[Blaze929]

N4G is turning into NeoGaf with all this bias

[Omegasyde]

Don't worry you can always go to Revision3 and chat with Sessler.

[wishingW3L]

N4G turning into Gaf? N4G for years now has been much more worse than that. N4G turned into Sony propaganda like 2 years after it was founded.

[mixelon]

It's not very good propaganda - even when i agree with them i wouldn't want to be associated with most of them.

Thats not a Sony-specific thing though, theyre just vocal atm.

[tiffac008]

You must have missed the years when the PS3 was floundering out of the gate. This is like '06, only the foot is on the other shoe.

[Pintheshadows]

Yeah, it really didn't. There was a time when you would get verbally flayed for even owning a PS3. The turn around amuses me to be honest. The Xbox fanboys created the PS fanboys we see today by backing them into a corner.

[-Foxtrot]

How is it bias when N4G is a site where people submit news from other websites.

The users are agreeing with the articles because the majority of articles are true since they are mostly prasing the PS4.

What do you expect us to say....defend the Xbox One

If it wasn't for people being honest like people on here and other sites, to actually speak out on here then Microsoft wouldn't of changed anything with the Xbox One.

Remember that

[solidjun5]

@tiffac008 he didn't miss it, he loved it.

@Blaze929: leave and meet your brethren on gamefaqs.

[Blaze929]

well...seeing as I joined in 2008, I did miss it. But continue talking as if you know me child.

[solidjun5]

"well...seeing as I joined in 2008, I did miss it. But continue talking as if you know me child."

Is that a threat? Well Now I know you're a child. :)

[DestinyHeroDoomlord]

I recall a certain oompa loompa song about blaming the 'parents'

[kingdip90]

The audience ranges from toddlers upwards, from the poor to the rich and mlst cultures around the world...

Its not imature to be upset if someone is non inclusive and dismissive of demographics within that audience in fact its ignorant on the part of the gaming industry.

E.g. microsoft requirinf a day one update to use their system... its non inclusive to rhose without internet because of social status or where they happen to be living in the world. Not including the game update on disks is ignorant. Same goes for sony but to a lesser extent since at least ps4 can play games without the day one update.

Rage is justified in some cases

[Yui_Suzumiya]

True that because I don't have internet right now

[Klonoa-dreamtraveler]

no n4g dont poke it! .. oh crap

[XboxFun]

It's a shame when another site recognizes and even calls out how ridiculous a site N4G user's can be.

[Pintheshadows]

The thing is, it isn't just N4G. It is every single gaming site. Hell, Gamespot comments are far worse than N4G. Kotaku, IGN, Gamesradar, etc etc. They are all just as bad and in some cases worse.

It is just more noticeable on N4G as all of the content is uploaded by users so we see the same stories over and over again.

[iceman06]

It's not just an N4G thing. It's an industry thing. Mass media have begun to jump in to the fray. Why?? Hits!!! That simple. When PS4 was the whipping boy of the industry it was the same thing. Every site, everywhere was bashing Sony and the PS3. Now, the tides are turning and MS and Xbox One are the target. It's unfortunate that unbiased coverage is far and few between. But, that's the nature of a fluid culture. If you follow sports, you will see the same thing. One year a team will be on top of the world. Only the next to be the bane of the league. Media simply follows trends to keep getting attention. If the trend is to follow Xbox...they are all in. If it is to follow Sony...once again here they are.

[Hicken]

Why blame N4G when the articles posted- the source of the site's users' actions, if you wanna make excuses- are from all over the internet?

What does IGN or destructiod have to do with N4G, except that their articles are posted here? Yet their articles are as integral to this nonsense as any blog or comment posted here.

I guess it's convenient for you to explain it away as being an N4G problem, since you're now part of the minority that is the Xbox fanboy population here on this site.

[NeartheSun]

True Statement!

The games industry itself isn't that bad as many people make it sound, but there are too many ignorant people playing videogames or interested in it and it't products. I mean, why don't you play the games instead of blaming each other? Just play the damn games and shut up about things you are not really interested in, is that asked too much?

[Hicken]

Is this to say that, for some reason, the gaming community should be held to a higher standard than any other community who also happens to be online?

The thing I can't stand the most is this stance that the gaming community must be more "mature" than the communities of other hobbies. Anywhere else, it's just an accepted part of the community. There's no love between the Yankees and Red Sox, Chelsea and Arsenal, and so on. But nobody within the sports world complains about their actions(except when people get hurt).

I'm really sick of hearing about the industry, on any level, needing to "grow up." If anything, this assumption that any sort of maturity is lacking on a general level is immature, in and of itself.

[Pintheshadows]

Absolutely, sports fans are the worst of all. Especially Liverpool fans. And I would of used Arsenal and Spurs for your example. That is a bloody nightmare.

[NeartheSun]

You can't really compare football/soccer teams with the gaming industry, they are not the same at all. I think that there is too much freedom of speech on the internet, so that everyone can write whatever he wants without paying the consequences. Sadly, many people don't think twice before saying something, they just hate out of boredom, they just hate someone or something with any sufficent reason, maybe people need someone or something to hate to feel better, I don't know ...and I doubt that things will get better, because they won't.

[tiffac008]

The medium maybe different (sports & gaming) but the actions/reactions of the fans over the internet are very similar. Its like that on any other medium tbh.

Its human nature, I guess.

[iceman06]

Anywhere there is competition, there will be sides picked. Once those sides are forged in stone there will be people on both sides that become very vocal. See apple vs. all in cell phones, car wars, sports, movies, even celebrities have fanyboys that will defend them to the hilt (leave Brittany alone...LOL).
Now, if you are saying that football is on a whole other fanatical level...I would agree. I highly doubt that we would ever see an Xbox Vs. Playstation hooligan riot. Then again, they have never launched on the same day!!! LOL

[LEOPARD1030]

I'm a N4G wolf......much better than be a sheep.

[NeartheSun]

You're a "N4G wolf", so you're telling me that you are like an animal, that your behaviour is that of a wolf, a bloody animal? Damn, I'm at a loss for words.

[LEOPARD1030]

I wrote this because I wanted to test the article. The article is right, some people overreact to a simple opinion. :D

[FullmetalRoyale]

Just be true to yourself.

Labeling people as "sheep" for liking something is a very "sheep" thing to do.

You can call me The Woodsman. I'll stick an axe in anybody that actually calls themselves a wolf.

[LEOPARD1030]

I wrote this because I wanted to test the article. The article is right, some people overreact to a simple opinion. The people need to respect the opinion from others, nothing in this world is black or white

[DestinyHeroDoomlord]

This coming from a guy named leopard

[Thehyph]

Gaming is more mainstream than ever. How many gamers now are going to continue to be gamers in 20 years? That answer is irrelevant because SOME will, and, at that point, they will be 20 years older.

I'm 28, and I read comments that look like they could have been written by me when I was a teenager. That doesn't mean they were written by a teenager. Being the optimist that I am, I'll hope that said comments were written by teenagers, and that if those teenagers do continue to game years later, then they will be wiser.

I use n4g a lot in the time since I've joined it. It has both the ability to report and ignore.
I don't grief or troll, and I can name numerous others on here who are the same.

As far as I'm concerned about the social issues being tied to games: I don't care. If I interpret a game to be demeaning, sexist, racist, etc. then I wont play it. I don't necessarily care what others think of it, nor will I push my opinion on others. My apathy to these issues does not mean I endorse any of them. Does my apathy not contribute to the "cause" against these things? Certainly, but everyone has their own stances and can pick which wars they want to fight.

My point here is to endorse self governance.

As for the "fanboys," and their war between PS4/Xbox One, let then have their day. The amount of hype attached to them launching so close together is actually good for the industry. Pre-orders are doing fantastic. Non-hardcore gamers have hundreds or thousands of articles out there to help them decide which console suits their needs. If every purchase that I make were this hyped and fought over, then I bet that I wouldn't regret any of them.

[Pintheshadows]

Your comment count is at 666. \m/