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Toys are "Better than Video Games"?

Posted by Cole Stryker

"Who put this thing together? Me, that's who! Who do I trust? Me!" - Tony Montana

That's what I thought of when I read the following:

Since Wii Music has no discernible scoring system, no goals and little in the way of those squishy innards that makes a game a "game," isn't it just a "musical toy"? That was the question posed by one European journo.

"Yes, that's right," Miyamoto curtly replied "And that's why it's better than a video game."

OK, Miyamoto, you've used up your last "Get out of Jail Free" card with this one. I stuck with you through the turbulent N64/Gamecube years, and I was happy to see you take it to the top with the Wii. But the above quote is so screechingly wrong, so not what I wanted to hear from E3. This quote sounds like the kind of giddy king-of-the-world arrogance that precedes a spectacular fall from grace. I'm not predicting that Wii Music will flop, I just think Miyamoto's burning up a lot of the goodwill he's managed to re-earn. Meanwhile, most of the quirky titles that don't depend on hardware (Flock, N+, Braid) that would be perfect for the Wii are still getting snapped up by XBLA and PSN Network. This is where you're supposed to shine, and yet we're stuck with Epic Fail!

Not a good long-term strategy. Serious gamers are faithful. Casual gamers are fickle. Don't forget where you came from, Miyamoto.

via Kotaku

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Posted Jul 18 2008, 12:00 AM

Filed under: kotaku, cole stryker, casual games, shigeru miyamoto, wii music

Comments

Amber Ahlborn said:

Agreed. As much as I love Miyamoto's work and what's come from his design philosophy, I've also had a problem with a lot of his attitudes towards game design: especially when he makes blanket statements like this. I'm also diametrically opposed to his view on story in video games.

July 18, 2008 10:20 AM

Demaar said:

For an example of casual gamer's fickleness see: Atari, Nintendo of the 90s.

July 18, 2008 12:12 PM

JP said:

"Don't forget where you came from, Miyamoto."

Wow, can you say GAMER ENTITLEMENT?

July 18, 2008 7:44 PM

about the blogger

John Constantine, our superhero, was raised by birds and then attended Penn State University. He is currently working on a novel about a fictional city that exists only in his mind. John has an astonishingly extensive knowledge of Scientology. Ultimately he would like to learn how to effectively use his brain. He continues to keep Wu-Tang's secret to himself.

Derrick Sanskrit is a self-professed geek in a variety of fields including typography, graphic design, comic books, music and cartoons. As a professional hipster graphic designer, his recent clients have included Nerve, Pitchfork and MoCCA, among others.

Amber Ahlborn - artist, writer, gamer and DigiPen survivor, she maintains a day job as a graphic artist. By night Amber moonlights as a professional Metroid Fanatic and keeps a metal suit in the closet just in case. Has lived in the state of Washington and insists that it really doesn't rain as much as everyone says it does.

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Cole Stryker is an American freelance writer living in York, England, where he resides with his archeologist wife. He writes for a travel company by day and argues about pop culture on the internet by night. Find him writing regularly here and here.

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