Pitchford explains that choice changes their thinking, and that the same thing shows in games. For example, when given a choice between two weapons with comparable power early on in the game, the player's initial choice becomes their 'best' despite its effectiveness ranking. The choice a player makes becomes the good choice over time, with the one not chosen labeled as the bad one.
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They don't care for you, stop caring that deeply for them and enjoy what each has to offer.
Most gamers picked their console of choice because their friends had it! And because most people are followers, they did the popular thing.
Its kind of like apple products. I tried the mac, ipod and iphone because of how great people said they were. I can honestly say that i have no interest in any apple products.
Back on topic... people want to belong to something they can be proud of. Usually because the reality is pretty dull. Their proud of their job because they make a lot of money and feel good about looking down at people. In reality they have few friends and those few are probably just as f'ed up as them!
O can go on and on but you should get the point.
Even if people had all the consoles they could still favor one over the others. What he's trying to suggest is that by limiting choice you will gravitate more towards the console you bought.
You ever notice in the past how games that used to kind of compete with one another on different systems had this feud? Way back it was Sonic versus Mario, now it's games like Gran Turismo versus Forza. I own a Xbox 360 and a PS3 so I can appreciate Forza and Gran Turismo. Both franchises to me are very good but if you ever notice someone who favors the Xbox 360 they will tend to favor Forza. Same goes with those who tend to flock towards Sony, they too will gravitate towards Gran Turismo and put down Forza.
You see it in multiplat games as well but never to this level. Battlefield versus Call of Duty for example and a lot of that stems from people just hating the popularity of the Call of Duty franchise and hating Activision. But the console fanboys are the worst because their perception is limited and as Pitchford explains it's limited by choice.
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"Pitchford says that this same psychology can be applied to console fanboyism. Those limited to one console make an initial decision, and eventually becomes the 'best' one for them, making other consoles the 'worst' choice. By this, I was a Sega kid because my dad bought me a Genesis because I asked for it first. Later, I bought my own Super Nintendo. While I loved it, I was always partial to Sega consoles. My mind made my first choice the 'best' one. For the time, at least."
"In a recreation of one of his tests, Pitchford used swag from his D.I.C.E. Summit gift bag..." (From the article)
After seeing that line, I officially now have a headache.
Every time when someone has said the x360 is the best it always comes down to "it was out first so my friends bought it". This is not objectibe by any means.
After seeing what PS3 offered it was an easy choise to make and that was even before we knew how many exclusive games PS3 would eventually have.
It was an easy choise based of facts back then and today it's even more so. It's not even a competition or a question of brand loyalty. It's the only sane and objective choise if you only get to choose one console.
Actually no, it's not based on facts. The Xbox 360 came out earlier so people could have adopted that system earlier because of that. People could have preferred Live. Or they could have wanted to enjoy playing next generation games for cheaper (when the PS3 came out the cheapest option was $500). Maybe they like Halo, Forza, and Gears of War.
There are a whole bunch of reasons and yours is limited because you don't like Microsoft so your views are tainted to begin with.
I still like Nintendo despite sitting out a couple gens with them. With MS I had other issues with regarding their hardware even before the first Xbox, and that kept me mostly away from them, but I'm hopeful that they will make something appealing to me soon.
As to FF, my first FF game was FF6, but it is arguably the best, but I still prefer 8. :)
It's possible that some people may just not want to admit that there are different experiences that may be to their liking, thus shut themselves off what else is out there. There is even the possibility that people just don't know what the competition has to offer, so they just dismiss it as other people being stupid. A lot of people do just want to play with their friends, so that makes them go that route, which could lead to console loyalty if they feel the need to justify their purchase.
Either way, I think the fan boy levels have risen dramatically this gen. It's gotten to ridiculous levels, and now even the "media" is joining in to add fuel to the flames, which is something they've never really done to the degree they have this gen.
To be honest, im more exited for PS4 right now than Wii U or Next Xbox
I'm sure a couple or a lot out there got into this sort of situation.. so how do you explain that?
People buy the console they believe to be best. They're proud of their purchase and want to show the world that they have good taste. So they come to sites like this with chins held high and chest puffed out. Every game is incredible to them because they haven't developed expectations and haven't been shown an alternative. Life is bliss.
Stage 2 (Exposure):
They're suddenly confronted by conflicting data. First a few, then a hundred and then literally thousands of people have made a different choice. This confuses them and makes them re-evaluate their console; looking at pics and footage of up and coming games on other systems. There's a sinking feeling in their gut that their initial reaction may well have been deemed 'arrogant', but they entered with their chins held high and their chests puffed out and they liked that feeling.
Stage 3: (Conflict)
They feel impelled to impart information to other console owners in an innocent belief that eventually everyone will see it their way ... after all, they bought the best console out there ... didn't they? But they meet some people who just won't be persuaded. These people have different tastes entirely and seem to be suggesting that THEY made the right choice. Confusion sets in and festers for days, weeks, months.
Stage 4 (Confrontation)
Weakened and numb from the sudden revelation that they are not the only people with views, they fight that lethargy and adopt a more evangelistic approach, preaching to the unconverted, using emotive words to shake the heathens from their misconceptions. Like a black clad priest clutching at beads and calling upon the almighty to send them a sign.
Stage 5 (labelling)
Still undecided and confused, these evangelists retreat from three dimensional thinking and enter two dimensions: for/against, bad/good or best/worse. Here they feel safe and no amount of proof to the contrary can touch them. They are back to stage 1 and suddenly the world is rosy again, but just there on the edge of their vision, the truth lurks. They sense it but can't shrug it. So in the darkness they call out to exorcise that demon. 'Fanboy!'. But no matter how loud they shout, it just echoes back to them, from every corner of the internet.
Stage 6: (Denial)
With the world of video games pressing heavily upon them, they seek solitude in the only possible place. The place they found when their parents told them off for doing something wrong but rather than apologise and admit the mistake, they stomped up the stairs and slammed the bedroom door as if that sudden 'slam' was confirmation of their innocents. Their they master the art of denial so that they can at least see stage 1 once again.
Condesending or not, your statement is full of truth and you nailed it buddy! Randy is spot on as well with his observation.
Is that what happened to you?
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Imagine there was a forum in-game where Vault Hunters (and other characters) would argue which gun maker is the best. "Tediore for life!" "Dahl and nothing else!", "Hyperion till I die!"
When I think of such forum, I bet they'd be even more psycho midgets there than on N4G ;-)
However I have always been a great Nintendo fan and even started this generation with the Wii, having only the Wii for two years after launch. But I do not feel attached to the brand nor wish to continue to support it now thanks to their lack of appeal and have moved on to it's competitors. I guess Pitchford's analogue doesn't apply to me.
For better or worse.
For pure gaming I actually think the 360 is the best from a graphical, multiplayer and comms experience.
That said Ubisoft is showing that all platforms can be broken equally!!!