An Open Letter to Hardcore Nintendo Fans

Submitted by Shane Whitehouse on April 17, 2009 – 2:49 am54 Comments

For months and months, I have read the news reports, the endless forum postings and I have even gone back and watched the E3 2008 Nintendo press conference to get a sense of the anger and ire of hardcore Nintendo fans that are irritated by their favored brand forgetting them. Who can forget the horror that you all felt when the closing of the E3 press conference last year ended up being WiiMusic. Or the lack of an announcement regarding the cherished Zelda or Mario franchises. It was a tough year to swallow, but around the corner things started to look up.

Platinum Games stepped onto the scene and showed off Madworld, a game that took the style and violence of Sin City, and melded it with the game show atmosphere of The Running Man. It had gallons of red blood shooting everywhere on the screen, and more F-Bombs than Tom Clancy could even think about putting his name in front of. Rockstar Games jumped on that hardcore Nintendo bandwagon and decided that the next platform that needed to get Grand Theft Auto was not the PSP, but the Nintendo DS. I do not think anyone would argue with me when I say that GTA is a franchise that has been at the forefront of being hardcore and mainstream all at the same time. To have that brand, and all it stands for, on the DS, was something to behold. Finally, while a bit cheesy, The House of the Dead Overkill had a Grindhouse vibe and look, while dealing out buckets of blood and more profanities than a porn movie. It also gave a lot of backstory on who Agent G was and how he became the man he was in the first House of the Dead. Three hardcore titles for a console where the hardcore fans have been salivating for something that was not Mii-centric, or just plain boring – it should have been an easy sell.

Fast forward to the present time period and we have just received the NPD numbers for March, and we also have some for February, and the hardcore titles that should have been bought in droves are nowhere to be found in the sales charts. Currently, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is being estimated at 89,000 units sold, while House of the Dead was only about 45,000 units sold. Sega and Platinum Games did not release any numbers for Madworld, but it definitely sold less than 206,000, and the estimates have it at the low 100,000′s. While Capcom has stated that House of the Dead: Overkill sold as expected, and that Rockstar is probably looking for a way to spin the numbers, these numbers show a faithful audience that did not even show up for a pre-game, let alone the actual game.

Where did the faithful, hardcore Nintendo fan go? Why were these games not big sellers? Pokemon Platinum sold 800,000+ copies on the DS, but GTA: Chinatown Wars sells 89K, which is just pathetic. If you ask me, Nintendo fans deserve what they get at this point. You clamor for games that fit the dedicated fans of the Nintendo brand, and yet, no one comes out to buy the games when they are released, or one copy is shared with a ton of family and friends at one person’s house.

I almost wonder if this shows that the bajillion Wii’s that were sold were not sold to hardcore, faithful Nintendo gamers, but to casual gamers that enjoy cheerleading sims and crappy balloon popping games. The brand deserves everything that it gets at this point, because the fans did not turn out for the games that should be made for the console. Same thing goes for the DS. It sells like it is going out of style, but a hardcore title like GTA: Chinatown Wars loses out on that mega million selling platform. It defies all logic.

I have to admit that I can understand why WiiMusic was shown as the final game in the Nintendo E3 2008 press conference now. I think Reggie and company have a far better understanding of who the target audience is on the Nintendo platforms and who is really buying the games. Looking at sales, you start to realize that the hardcore Nintendo fan is a small component of the actual owner base of the Wii and the DS. Third parties also seem to realize this because they too, seem to get burned every time they release a game that should cater to those dyed in the wool Nintendo gamers.

Some may look at this as a hate letter towards Nintendo, and others will probably call it fanboy. It isn’t either of those. It is just a writer who is trying to understand why the Nintendo faithful have just abandoned the hardcore games that have been designed and tailored for their approval, but never get purchased.

At the end of this, I hope you Nintendo fans will get out there like our own Fourhman and Stephen, both of which went and bought these hardcore games. Otherwise, be prepared for a shit ton of balloon pop and carnival game sequels.

Tags: Casual, chinatown wars, grand theft auto, hardcore faithful, house of the dead overkill, madworld, Nintendo, open letter

Jordan_Snyder

While I completely disagree, I respect your opinion because you make me giggle when I listen to the podcast.
Unknownsage13

I've played it and it doesn't feel like a GTA game really. And who cares if I'm judging DSE already. You didn't judge Petz before it came out?
Unknownsage13

Well from what I've seen of Prototype.

And immersion…I guess that could be the term.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Mykie-Gunderson/1677467020 Mykie Gunderson

I’m one of those hardcore Nintendo fans, I have a 6″ tattoo of Yoshi on my calf for crying out loud! I wear a different Nintendo shirt almost every day, and I have Nintendo plushes stuck in the back window of my car. I’m not just enamored with Nintendo as a came company, I love the characters they have created. Even if I go a week without firing up my Wii or DS (or any number of other classic Nintendo systems I have kicking around), Nintendo is still very much a part of my life and identity.

But I think of Nintendo as a friend that I keep in contact with…maybe there’s months I hang out with that friend every Saturday night and maybe there’s times we lose touch and go about our own business and hang out with other friends.

Hey, no one is happier than I that Nintendo and the casual crowd are hanging out and doing well. Right now, I’m hanging out with Playstation 3, I’m sure Nintendo isn’t upset by this fact. In the end, I know that Nintendo will come back around like the good friend they are.
Jordan_Snyder

Have any of the Petz games in the franchise been good? No. Was Dead Space good? Yes. Does that mean Dead Space: Extraction will be good? Not necessarily. At least the Dead Space franchise has shown that it has potential.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Andrew-Adam/39102958 Andrew Adam

I am going to disagree with you as well. There was two levels I had to go online and look assistance. TWO. The game was easy. There wasn't much trial and error, and it was tons of fun.

Maybe you're just not good at puzzle games?

And it sold around 300k, that's solid for a new IP. People are obsessed with 1 mil copies, but a game doesn't need to get to that to make money. There are talks of a sequel, so it couldn't have sold too badly.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Andrew-Adam/39102958 Andrew Adam

Graphics do not equal hardcore, or at least they shouldn't.

If graphics and infrastructure are keys to being a hardcore gamer, then something must be wrong with me. I could care less about either. I just want a quality game, and it can be 8 bit and do the job. Hence why my NES and N64 are still hooked up.
JoeFourhman

When I lose over half an hour of exploration and puzzle setup because I clicked on a fershlugginer TREE and have to start over, I'm calling that game garbage.

It was worse than Chulip where you died for going down the slide at Undasura Park.
TheWon

I'm a Nintendo Gamer who fits into the Core Gamer category. Been a fan since 84, and I'm shame of Wii Core Gamers. Who use words like Niche Games for a reason not to buy items.
I'm also a hacker aka pirate, and I still bought all the games mention. Out of respect to those 3rd parties who tried to give Wii gamers something. In return ever so called Wii Core gamer spits in there face. 3rd parties I feel your pain and understand if you never ever make a game for a Nintendo System again. Nintendo Gamers are bipolar and have no idea what they want.
Uiset

The answer is actually very, very simple. Who is complaining about lack of “hardcore” games on the Wii?

a) 360/PS3 gamers who use the Wii as a secondary console, and usually hate it because they make their hobby look less “mature” (as if there was something “mature” in the games they're actually playing).

They spend their time talking about the lack of software, but when something comes out they don't buy it, because they've got something else to play on their favourite console. On the Wii, they buy only the heavily hyped first party games – usually complaining about them after that.

b) Nintentards, Nintendo obsessed fans who grew up on N64 and GC that buy only games with “nintendo” on it. These ones aren't complaining because of the lack of games, just the lack of Mario and Zelda.
They are the ones that prefer buying Mario Tennis GC over new third party Wii titles.

This, sadly, is the so called “hardcore” demographic on Nintendo platforms that populates every single forum.

That being said, I'm a gamer that hates cursing, blood and violence. So I'm actually a bit happy that these three games you mentioned bombed.

Unfortunately, the sad nature of the so called “hardcore Nintendo gamers” made a lot of great, not gory, quirky games bomb on Nintendo platforms.

That's far, far worse IMO than seeing games focused on F-bombs and blood failing (just to name two, Big Bang Mini and Soul Bubbles).
http://www.thumbsticks.co.uk Dan

Perfect article, totally agree, nice work.
morphiend

Man, I bought Prime 3 and let me tell you it: it's cardboard. It was a very bland experience without an engaging story and could not keep my attention. The interaction with the wiimote and nunchuck were fun ways of playing the game, but without some type of story it's hard to keep me motivated. Another game comes to mind about that: Turok. Games without stories work well when they keep you constantly engaged with action. MP3 did not have that either.

So if that's Nintendo's attempt at a hardcore game, IMO they failed.
Unknownsage13

The three you mentioned aren't hardcore. If you want most people's reasons here what they probaly are:

GTA Chinatown Wars-GTA is a hardcore game everyone likes but just because a game has it's name doesn't mean it's the version we like. It's basically a dumbed down version of a game series because they were to lazy to do something impressive. It's like with Rock Band 1, Resident Evil Umbrella Chronicles and Dead Space Extraction. All big name games but just because it's got the name doesn't mean it's what we want.

House of Dead: Overkill-It's a railshooter. I know that doesn't sound bad but I don't see a game where I just shoot, not even guiding myself in the process, as “hardcore”.

MadWorld-Why did people call this game hardcore anyway? Theres nothing immersive about it or that really gets you hooked. All it is is you slaughtering tons of enemies with no challenge or real fun once you get tired of it.

So there you have it. The reason they aren't selling is because they aren't hardcore. These games actually seem like the type of games that hardcore Wii owners despise. A very dumbed down version of the game(though it's on DS so it doesn't count), a railshooter and a game where all you have to do is waggle the controller around.

And honestly. Compare those games to hardcore titles on other consoles like Fallout 3, Assassin's Creed, Prototype, Resistance, Street Fighters IV, Devil May Cry 4, and Fable? Theres a big difference between them in quality.

So I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't point the finger at me just because I don't like the games people call hardcore in hopes of raising sales.
Jordan_Snyder

“You're forgetting that Zack & Wiki sucked.”
You've said this before, and I virtually slap you for it. Isn't trial and error a part of almost every game? You try something, and if it works you proceed, and if you don't, you die/start over. That said, it sounds like you want Zack and Wiki to be an adventure game when you say there wasn't enough exploration. You have to remember that Zack and Wiki is a straight up puzzler game, and a damn good one at that. Sometimes, Fourhman, games aren't as simple as Animal Crossing; you have to think a little . That last sentence was a joke, do not take it seriously.
Jordan_Snyder

“It's basically a dumbed down version of a game series because they were to lazy to do something impressive.”
Hold the phone. Did you just call Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars “dumbed down?” This game was made by Rockstar from the ground up. The game is impressive in so many ways, especially since it's capturing the greatness of the Grand Theft Auto series onto a portable system. There is no justification for calling Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars “dumbed down.”
Unknownsage13

Built from the ground-up? Thats the same thing Eurocom said about Dead Space: Extraction.

Idc if the game was built from the ground-up. If it's not the same as, or better then, the usual games in that series don't blame us for sales.
http://www.fourhman.com Joe Fourhman

Sure, make a straight up puzzler. I like puzzles. I've bested Professor Layton, for example. But don't have the level that I spent 30 minutes exploring reset just because I touched something that killed me when I had no idea I was in danger. Zack & Wiki punishes you for exploring… therefore it sucks.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Andrew-Adam/39102958 Andrew Adam

Alright, if you can’t tell by the face I post in the Wii section 90% of the time, I’m a Nintendo hardcore fan. I do play PC (Haygood there are like 6 or 7 of us left!) but Nintendo where I spend most of my time.

Concerning these three titles, here’s why I don’t think they sold well:

HOD: Overkill looks like tons of fun. I enjoy On rails shooters. But I am not paying $50 for a game that can be beaten in, what, 5 hours? No thank you, that’s not getting my money’s worth.

Mad World has the same problem. I’ve read over and over you can beat it in 10 hours. I’m not paying $50 for that. Money is tight, so I’ll wait til the price drops. I’ll buy both these games eventually, along with Deadly Creatures which has gotten solid reviews but is a short game, when they are cheaper.

As for China Town Wars. It’s not a console. Period. It may have GTA name, but it’s not the same game. I’m not even a huge GTA fan, I think the series has grown very stale and don’t know why people go ape**** for it every release. I bought Pokemon Platinum, but this is my first Pokemon game since Gold so it’s not like I buy every series any means. It just finally looked like a nice upgrade.

I rambled too long, but that’s my take. Oh, and the other reason they don’t sell? They aren’t published by Nintendo. Nintendo hardcore fans, not myself I own about 50/50 first and third party, tend to only buy first party.

And one last thing. I want a new Star Fox title, not another Mario or Zelda. I love those series to death, but I needs me some good high flying Star Fox for my Wii!
Jordan_Snyder

So you're also judging a game that hasn't even been released yet? Bravo.

Have you played GTA:CW? If you have, and I think Fourhman would agree with me, you'd realize how much it actually feels like a GTA game. When I finally put the game in, it completely surpassed my expectations. I don't know why you say that the game isn't better than other games in the series because this one is in my top two.
Jordan_Snyder

While I completely disagree, I respect your opinion because you make me giggle when I listen to the podcast.
Unknownsage13

I've played it and it doesn't feel like a GTA game really. And who cares if I'm judging DSE already. You didn't judge Petz before it came out?
Jordan_Snyder

Have any of the Petz games in the franchise been good? No. Was Dead Space good? Yes. Does that mean Dead Space: Extraction will be good? Not necessarily. At least the Dead Space franchise has shown that it has potential.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Andrew-Adam/39102958 Andrew Adam

I am going to disagree with you as well. There was two levels I had to go online and look assistance. TWO. The game was easy. There wasn't much trial and error, and it was tons of fun.

Maybe you're just not good at puzzle games?

And it sold around 300k, that's solid for a new IP. People are obsessed with 1 mil copies, but a game doesn't need to get to that to make money. There are talks of a sequel, so it couldn't have sold too badly.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Andrew-Adam/39102958 Andrew Adam

Graphics do not equal hardcore, or at least they shouldn't.

If graphics and infrastructure are keys to being a hardcore gamer, then something must be wrong with me. I could care less about either. I just want a quality game, and it can be 8 bit and do the job. Hence why my NES and N64 are still hooked up.
http://www.fourhman.com Joe Fourhman

When I lose over half an hour of exploration and puzzle setup because I clicked on a fershlugginer TREE and have to start over, I'm calling that game garbage.

It was worse than Chulip where you died for going down the slide at Undasura Park.