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[Sanctuary]

I don't understand where the thread title, the article and OP's post are linked.

Because it's some article on IGN, so I guess that's supposed to somehow make it representative of the gaming industry.

 

[Bold One]

Not everyone has to like the stuff Nintendo churns out, shocking, I know

seriously, gaming's roots go farther back than Nintendo's foray into the medium

Gaming will continue to change, for better or for worse

 

[2+2=5]

When the industry was still young(8-16 bit eras), when most of the games were cartoony(even for technical reasons), it was mostly for kids and videogames were considered just games...

The time passed and players and developers who were young in the 8-16 bit eras are now adults wanting something different, some want more "adult"(whatever it means) games, others want "experiences"(whatever it means), other want cinematic games and so on.

So yes certain kinds of cartoony games are more or less rightly considered for children.

 

[Harmen]

It is the same in my eyes when people complain that titles are not colourful enough and every game is "edgy", "dudebro" or "dark". Like it is wrong to prefer that. People with a different tastes and the preferences of the masses often shift, but that is not being out of touch (one might also argue it is the other way around).

That said, in general my preferences just do not lie with Nintendo anymore. And that is not losing touch, it is just the development of my taste.

 

[Rafterman]

Not everyone gets to eat a meal every day or sleep under a roof either, and I feel sorry for them as well.

Typical Nintendo fan ladies and gentlemen, comparing not having nostalgia for Nintendo to not having food or shelter.

If you're old enough to be a part of the generation that grew up playing video games before they were "cool" (97) or ultra mainstream (2007), you probably don't care what anyone thinks about what games you play.

This.

What other people think has zero impact on why I don't care for Nintendo anymore. If people don't want me to say I've "outgrown" them, I just say they are no longer something that I'm interested in if that makes them feel better. Nintendo games are a small portion of my gaming roots, which extends well before the NES was released. Even then most of my favorite NES games were actually not even made by Nintendo. The Mega Man, Ghosts and Goblins, Contra, Castlevania, Ninja Gaiden, Metal Gears of the world did and still appeal to me. Even further as soon as gaming on a PC was a thing, Nintendo become irrelevant to me because the themes and games that you could get on the PC were much more in my wheelhouse.

Bottom line, Nintendo != gaming roots and just because Nintendo has lost touch with everyone not a hardcore fan and the rest of us have moved on without them doesn't mean we or gaming have lost touch with our roots.

 

[Unknown One]

Nicely put Rafterman.

There are some gamers here that really put Nintendo on the pedestal. They make good games, but not the best. That is subjective. Stop rubbing your opinions onto others. Why is Nintendo the "root"? If anything that's the original pong. Gaming is expanding and evolving from a root to a tree with tons of differing branches. Some players just like a certain branch more than others.

 

[Pandy]

Did I accidentally skip over the C.S Lewis quote? Should have been first post.

Critics who treat 'adult' as a term of approval, instead of as a merely descriptive term, cannot be adult themselves. To be concerned about being grown up, to admire the grown up because it is grown up, to blush at the suspicion of being childish; these things are the marks of childhood and adolescence. And in childhood and adolescence they are, in moderation, healthy symptoms. Young things ought to want to grow. But to carry on into middle life or even into early manhood this concern about being adult is a mark of really arrested development. When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty I read them openly. When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.
C.S. Lewis

 

[Renekton]

The time passed and players and developers who were young in the 8-16 bit eras are now adults wanting something different, some want more "adult"(whatever it means) games, others want "experiences"(whatever it means), other want cinematic games and so on.

So yes certain kinds of cartoony games are more or less rightly considered for children.

Not sure.

It feels the manchilds like us with disposable income may have no preferences on the "maturity" level of the content. E.g. I don't think shovel knight was mainly played by kids.

For Nintendo, it may be down to their own weird decisions on hardware.

 

[pastrami]

Did you guys know that some people stop gaming entirely as they grow up? Shocking, I know.

Get over yourselves people. While it's a shame that the only thing stopping some people from playing Nintendo games is themselves, it's so asinine to believe that Nintendo is the alpha and omega of gaming.

 

[Sumio Mondo]

Gaming roots were severed after the GCN/PS2/Xbox Era that's when the big shift happened...but new roots grew from the ones that withered away...

Gaming is just different now, and that couldn't be helped...is it for the better I personally don't think so, but it's not all bad either.

When b-tier gaming dies I was sad, there was def a space for that style of gaming and not everything needs to be AAAAAAAAAA+ that line of thought killed off so many developers and studios because of that shitty big Hollywood mentality, some talent survived and now indies flourish so it's not a total lost cause.

Pretty much agree with all of this. B tier games are where it's at. I'm just glad we manage to get Nier 2 in this day and age. The OP seems to dislike the notion that mature games gained popularity over Nintendo's sense of design, which has largely stayed the same over the years. Back in the 8 bit and 16 bit eras we got loads and loads of similar games that skewed towards a larger age group than we do now. Games now are definitely aimed mainly at the teen to middle aged men demographic. I do think we need better variety of games that aren't all just violence, there's a definite lack of comedy in games now compared to the late 90s/early 2000s era that had tons of adventure games on PC that filled that hole. It's really only thanks to the likes of Indies, the very last few of the mid-tier/B-tier developers and Kickstarter that we have any variety left, really.

 

[Aaron D.]

Did I accidentally skip over the C.S Lewis quote? Should have been first post.

I wondered why it took so long as well.

Mostly because it's the most eye-rolling, mischaracterized quote to appear in every single one of these threads discussing this subject.

It's context is complete bollox as it hinges on the fallacy that one only enjoys Mature content because they're desparately trying to look mature rather than simply enjoying mature themes as a matter of personal taste.

In actuality, Mr. Lewis is only talking about a tiny subset of people, but it's become completely bastardized Rally Cry by certain community segments. The modern interpretation falsely translating to sentiments suggesting that if one doesn't enjoy childhood pleasures then they are childish adults.

So in other words if I still don't enjoy, say the Power Rangers, that somehow makes me an emotionally insecure man-child desparately trying to front as teh maturez.

And let's not even talk about the further insinuation that mature content of ANY kind is childish in that the only possible reason for its existence is for children to use it as a vehicle to look cool.

What a horribly misrepresented quote used as a bludgeon suggesting we all live a Peter Pan Syndrome existence. Ol' C.S. must be rolling in his grave.

 

[petran79]

Are you talking about countries outside of the US? Because not only did most gas stations or grocery stores have arcade machines around here, there was no age restriction to the arcades. Unless I don't know what an "Arcade Mall" is. Usually we had arcades in the mall, so it was a mall arcade.

Arcade malls, usually dark places smelling of smoke, that had exclusively arcade games and some beverages.
It was there where you'd usually find most arcade games.
There were also summer resorts where arcade malls where open to all and for all hours. But those were tourist attractions, so it was different than large cities.

Law usually would forbid entry to minors in such places (under 16-18 years of age). Of course some owners would not follow the law and allow minors, since that would mean more profit. But few would risk allowing entry to kids at evening. Ironically this law is also currently active for Internet Cafes, yet owners allow entry to kids too.

That law was certainly active in Germany, Sweden and Netherlands. In Germany only fun fare parks had arcades where minors could enter. Arcades in cities forbade it. Even if you were an adult you were not allowed to have your kids with you.

In Greece that law was hardly applied. Usually only after parents threatened the owners not to let their kids in. I remember in the largest arcade mall of my city, a large two storey building, a kid with a school bag entered in the early hours to play Mortal Kombat 4 and the owner kicked him out.

 

[Neff]

Unfortunately this had more to do with the fact that arcades were stigmatized as pre-entries to gambling. Justified, since arcades were coin munchers, though you did not earn anything except high score satisfaction. An arcade mall looks similar to a casino after all. In most countries arcade malls, the core of arcade games, were mostly barred to kids after evening hours or forbade entrance to minors completely. This is why arcades were adult only, no matter the game theme.
Just like you see in casinos or pachinko parlors cutsey and colourful themes, the same thing you saw also in arcade games.

Unlike console versions, the arcade versions were adult only, mainly for that reason

I think it goes further than that. Back then, there wasn't such a thing as games specifically for children. Sure, kids and adults alike played the same games, but these days you have games which are very specifically geared for children, and remotely considerate of adult sensibilities (ie challenge and depth), if at all. I think that's something that's contributed to the change in perception. Some people see bright colourful graphics and instantly assume it's for kids and kids only.

 

[quackamole]

What I don't understand about the Nintendo bashing and kiddie complaints is that something similar doesn't happen with companies like Pixar. People let them do what they do and embrace their best movies. I've never seen any movie enthusiasts hoping Pixar would start making edgy animated movies like people want to almost force Nintendo to do something else than these totally awesome "kiddie" games like Super Mario Galaxy 2 and such. Of course there are people who don't like Pixar movies, but they don't act like people who don't like Nintendo's games.

Because the first ten minutes of Up can make full grown men tear up like a motherfucker. Pixar create relatable characters that you care about. Nintendo does none of that.

 

[quackamole]

I can't understand the people who don't like a Mario Galaxy or a Zelda. To me they have misconceptions about those games, because there are no superior franchises in the industry than those two.

And I can't understand people who don't like oranges, chicken breast, or garlic bread. Because apparently people aren't allowed to have opinions that are different than mine, right?

 

[gelf]

Its silly to write off Nintendo as "just for kids". But its equally silly to assume everyone who doesn't play much Nintendo thinks that, hates fun and only plays big AAA releases.

 

[jroc74]

This.

What other people think has zero impact on why I don't care for Nintendo anymore. If people don't want me to say I've "outgrown" them, I just say they are no longer something that I'm interested in if that makes them feel better. Nintendo games are a small portion of my gaming roots, which extends well before the NES was released. Even then most of my favorite NES games were actually not even made by Nintendo. The Mega Man, Ghosts and Goblins, Contra, Castlevania, Ninja Gaiden, Metal Gears of the world did and still appeal to me. Even further as soon as gaming on a PC was a thing, Nintendo become irrelevant to me because the themes and games that you could get on the PC were much more in my wheelhouse.

Bottom line, Nintendo != gaming roots and just because Nintendo has lost touch with everyone not a hardcore fan and the rest of us have moved on without them doesn't mean we or gaming have lost touch with our roots.

100% this. I started playing video games before Nintendo made the NES. Yes it was a breath of fresh air but they didnt define my gaming years growing up. I was a big fan of Sega games and consoles too. I think I played Phantasy Star before FF and Phantasy Star started me liking RPGs, jRPGs. Just like you the non Nintendo games probably were more my fav or just as fav. Any time I follow (yes a broken record yet again) FF 7 and Metal Gear to the PS1 and that made me a PS fan...those and other games not being on Nintendo consoles made me less of a Nintendo fan..

Its not the industry losing touch.

That said....I do find it interesting when a co worker has a small son and is excited about him playing CoD but brushed off him playing Mario on his Wii U...like he was playing jacks or marbles or something.

About the dad saying what he said....it could be seen as an insecurity thing. One of the funniest movies I have ever seen is Finding Nemo. I probably watch cartoons as much as my kids do. Teen Titans ...didnt realize it until really watching it this year...is hilarious. And him dismissing Wii games like Galaxy or Paper Mario...wow. I dont dismiss 3D World as being childish, I just dont have the desire to play it like I would have in the past. Like how I bought Mario 64 at launch. And the GC and Wii were more than just Mario. Killer 7, Manhunt 2, RE, of course Zelda to name a few. Even with the art style of WW it still was a good game IMO. Lost in Shadow has an Ico, SofC vibe to it. Killer 7 is one of the wildest games I have ever played.

I would never not get a Nintendo system or game because I think its childish. It just needs to be something I want to have and play. I now see the appeal of Minecraft and I think Terraria is a good game, I play both more than my kids do. I like Terraria more tho.

Me and this guy both started gaming on an Atari 2600...but have somewhat different views, opinions about Nintendo games. I guess thats how opinions work. I assume he didnt play on the 2600 as long as I did. Dont know of that makes any difference tho.

 

[orthodoxy1095]

I wondered why it took so long as well.

Mostly because it's the most eye-rolling, mischaracterized quote to appear in every single one of these threads discussing this subject.

It's context is complete bollox as it hinges on the fallacy that one only enjoys Mature content because they're desparately trying to look mature rather than simply enjoying mature themes as a matter of personal taste.

In actuality, Mr. Lewis is only talking about a tiny subset of people, but it's become completely bastardized Rally Cry by certain community segments. The modern interpretation falsely translating to sentiments suggesting that if one doesn't enjoy childhood pleasures then they are childish adults.

So in other words if I still don't enjoy, say the Power Rangers, that somehow makes me an emotionally insecure man-child desparately trying to front as teh maturez.

And let's not even talk about the further insinuation that mature content of ANY kind is childish in that the only possible reason for its existence is for children to use it as a vehicle to look cool.

What a horribly misrepresented quote used as a bludgeon suggesting we all live a Peter Pan Syndrome existence. Ol' C.S. must be rolling in his grave.

Sheesh, thanks for writing this. I was going to say something about that quote, but you said it far better than I would have. It has becoming an annoying mainstay of these discussions, misused and abused to beat down people of different tastes.

 

[Strangelove77]

I wondered why it took so long as well.

Mostly because it's the most eye-rolling, mischaracterized quote to appear in every single one of these threads discussing this subject.

It's context is complete bollox as it hinges on the fallacy that one only enjoys Mature content because they're desparately trying to look mature rather than simply enjoying mature themes as a matter of personal taste.

In actuality, Mr. Lewis is only talking about a tiny subset of people, but it's become completely bastardized Rally Cry by certain community segments. The modern interpretation falsely translating to sentiments suggesting that if one doesn't enjoy childhood pleasures then they are childish adults.

So in other words if I still don't enjoy, say the Power Rangers, that somehow makes me an emotionally insecure man-child desparately trying to front as teh maturez.

And let's not even talk about the further insinuation that mature content of ANY kind is childish in that the only possible reason for its existence is for children to use it as a vehicle to look cool.

What a horribly misrepresented quote used as a bludgeon suggesting we all live a Peter Pan Syndrome existence. Ol' C.S. must be rolling in his grave.

Thank you.