Console Wars

Michel "Ekim" Veilleux
2002-12-06

In this day and age, game players have a plethora of choices when it comes to the way they want to play their favorite type of games. It's funny though that in this wonderful medium that is gaming some players constantly feel threatened by other players, as if the genres were like pieces of land that can be conquered and transformed to their liking. Single-player RPG players feel threatened by MMORPG players, while the latter feel threatened by console players, who in turn feel threatened by the competitive consoles that they can't play.

Segmenting the market
Unlike movies, you just cannot possibly get a good taste of every game that comes out. To do so would not only be a full time job on its own, it would be a 24 hours, 7 days a week kind of job. And I would even venture to say that it wouldn't be fun more than half the time. You have your standard computer games, and then your console games which are then again segmented into 3 different major console boxes (PS2, Gamecube and Xbox). But then it gets worse as all of these different platforms have different games in each genre and sub-genre (i.e. Action, Adventure, Role Playing, Strategy, etc.). Consoles being as expensive as they are these days, it's very hard for someone to own every one of them, and PCs cost even more, not to mention that they need constant upkeep if you want to keep them up to date with the new game requirements.

So, having established that only a select few individuals can actually afford to own all gaming platforms available, it becomes apparent that some jealousy and envy can be involved in gaming. Sometimes it's made even worse if a certain game gets to come out for more than one platform since one of its versions has a chance of being better than others. But perhaps worse than envy or jealousy is pride. Most individuals have chosen their console for very good reasons, and are proud of their choice, and will stand by it no matter what. This can all lead to what is generally referred to as console wars, which PC gaming, like it or not, is very much part of.

Flaming war
Strictly taking our own RPGDot as an example, some people might think console games get too much attention. Another constantly hot topic nowadays is whether MMORPGs are having the bigger piece of the news pie, which, according to some, is not a good thing at all. Those who like strategy games with RPG elements want to hear about them. Others don't think they belong on an RPG focused web site. It's all open for debate, and all sides have some very valid points which must be considered. But why be so defensive about things? Is it really that bad to get to hear about all iterations of RPGs in our gaming lives?

We are all gamers. As such, we can understand each other and our love for games, whichever form our love for them takes. Console gaming can very much live side by side with PC gaming without anyone needing to mince words about it. Console RPGs, although still very different compared to their PC counterparts, have a reason to be mentioned, and still should gather interest on any gaming site. No one ever needs to feel threatened about other gamers. Gamers just want to play games. Of course sometimes their previously mentioned pride takes over, but then again what's the real harm?

Let's embrace the differences instead of being scared of them. Let's not decide that one console or genre takes more importance over the others, but instead look at what makes each stand out on their own. Console RPGs are different because the console market is different. Are they better or worse than PC RPGs? No, not at all, they are just different. But to understand this, we have to be receptive to these differences, not complain about them having too much presence. We have much to learn from everything in this gaming world.

Gaming Psychosis
MMORPGs will not replace single-player RPGs. Console gaming will not replace computer gaming. It's all a big psychosis. What will happen though is that some sub-genres will make the others evolve, whether it's MMORPGs, single-player RPGs or console RPGs. All of them should be looked at for what they are : Role-Playing games! We're all one big, happy family.

By the way, next week I'll be talking a little about Arx Fatalis and its impact on our RPG year as 2002 quickly comes to an end. Not a review, mind you. Our own Garrett has made a fine one already. Just some thoughts on the game as it relates to other high-impact titles to come out this year. I finally was able to find a copy around here and, let me tell you… Go get this game, now! See you all next week!