Someone has to agree with me, right? (GTA, mainstream)

[Gamereviewgod]

http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/05/20/184542.php

Ok, I wrote this a while ago, but people just keep on coming. I have absolutely no one behind me. Someone here has to see my point, right? I still honestly believe that if I used anything other than GTA, no one would care. Am I right or wrong here?

(Also, feel free to post comments there on the site. I don't care if your with me or against me, but at least the majority of comments that come from here will at least make sense. ;) )

[ubersaurus]

Although complains on the targetting and whatnot are valid, I'd wait til San Andreas comes out to see if they fixed it in that one.

Am I the only one who thinks a GTA set in 1920s Chicago would be totally badass?

[CitizenWhite]

I will completely agree with you that the market is full of dumbasses. On G4Techtv, I think the show Play (If I'm not mistaken) shows game's ranks according to EbGames sales for that week. Want to know what was number 3? It was Driver 3 (I refuse to put the number inside the word). Now, anyone who has played that AIDS infested piece of chicken liver knows that it sucks. The reason it sells that much is because of the commercials and the morons that believe them.

I'm tired of GTA as well. I played the hell out of the original one. And I played and unlocked everything (legitimately, no codes) in Vice City. But there are much better games. Violence for the sake of violence is pointless. I'd rather see a new game come out that is different, not more of the same with prettier screenshots.

[kai123]

Why do you care what other people play? Why don't you concentrate on what makes you a happy gamer and leave the rest of us stupid gamers who enjoy M-rated games alone. GTA and Madden sell because people are tired of playing 2d contra. 2d doesn't mean it is the end all be all of games. Quit calling yourself a hardcore gamer. A hardcore gamer doesn't care what it looks like or how it plays only if they enjoy it.

[le geek]

Am I the only one who thinks a GTA set in 1920s Chicago would be totally badass?

That would be really F-ing Sweet. Like Untouchables / Road to Perdition / Miller's Crossing in look...

[junglehunter]

A lot of those who posted comments are idiots. Why should their opinion even be acknowledged?

[Gamereviewgod]

Kai23: Isn't it obvious? I don't care if it's 3-D. I care because this is ALL that people buy anymore. When guranteed classics like Beyond Good and Evil can't sell, there is a serious problem. Citizen has the perfect example. Driver 3 sold copies, period. It's terrible. Yet, people continue to buy it.

I also don't care if it's rated M. Onimusha is one of my fave series this gen. Let the gore fly, but there are other games out there that let the gore fly that no one will buy because all they want is another GTA. The mainstream crowd has gotten to a point where games that a lot of people would probably buy are shoved aside on store shelves so they can make more room for the 60 PRE-ORDER boxes for Madden and others. It's absurd. The only way to even get some games now is to pre-order because they may not get copies over the pre-sells.

[Cmosfm]

Why do you care what other people play? Why don't you concentrate on what makes you a happy gamer and leave the rest of us stupid gamers who enjoy M-rated games alone. GTA and Madden sell because people are tired of playing 2d contra. 2d doesn't mean it is the end all be all of games. Quit calling yourself a hardcore gamer. A hardcore gamer doesn't care what it looks like or how it plays only if they enjoy it.

I agree with Kai

First of all, people don't go into game stores and simply buy games because they have M ratings...despite what you think...they just do not do this. I remember people saying that State Of Emergency sold simply because it was an M title....actually...it sold simply because Rockstar made it directly after it's mega hit GTA3. Which was a great game with excellent non-linear gameplay.

I don't see how you get that people don't care about how a game plays either, I think VC was one of the best games ever made, it was brilliant...and not because I can "cap grandma" either.

Just play games, enjoy them, stop complaining! LOL And gamers aren't stupid, I will preorder San Andreas...am I stupid?

[RetroYoungen]

I personally think it's a shame that GTA and the like are selling like hotcakes simply because of the title on the box, but that's how it goes a lot of the time. The name is what sells a lot of games. When a new title comes out, no matter how good, it will rarely get a second look because the consumer doesn't recognize the name. Hence why games like Driver 3 sell, no matte how bad they may be, over games like Viewtiful Joe and Beyond Good and Evil.

But really, this could also be a good thing. Don't worry about the mainstream gamer, worry about what you like to play, and look for others that share your enthusiasm for the underrated games you like playing. The games that are really good, but don't sell very well, from my observations usually have a stronger base in gaming and are better people to talk to about gaming in general. Which would you rather talk to: a million people who loved a game like Resident Evil, calling it "the best game ever," who only truly like it because they peed their pants when the dogs bust through the window and that the graphics were their favorite? Or would you like to talk to a handful of people that truly appreciate a game like Viewtiful Joe?

[kai123]

I'm not here to change your minds about anything but quit whining because a game sold more than another. GTA I play on a pretty regular basis. Why? Because I can go about my missions any way I choose. Or I can screw the missions and drive around a virtual city doing stunts or fly a damn plane if I want.

It seems that everyone that hates mainstream games like Final Fantasy and GTA are doing it to be nonconformist.

Your two complaints about the Gta series are:
1. The targeting system.
2. The way vehicles control.

Now I have no problems driving cars in GTA at all. So I don't see how you can complain about that. Since they seem to control just fine and I have never heard someone complain about how the cars drive. The targeting sytem does need some work but you make it seem like you can't shoot anything at all.

If you don't like it why do want to waste your time talking about it? I usually only talk about games I like. :hmm:

[Neil Koch]

I will completely agree with you that the market is full of dumbasses. On G4Techtv, I think the show Play (If I'm not mistaken) shows game's ranks according to EbGames sales for that week. Want to know what was number 3? It was Driver 3 (I refuse to put the number inside the word). Now, anyone who has played that AIDS infested piece of chicken liver knows that it sucks. The reason it sells that much is because of the commercials and the morons that believe them.

I actually like Driver 3 a lot, and all of my friends who have played it like it as well. It does lack polish especially for a game that was in development for 3 years, but I don't think it's a horrible game by any stretch of the imagination.

Games like GTA and Madden sell well because they're fun. And if it wasn't for some certain games that sell tons of copies, the bottom would have fell out of the industry a long time ago IMO. The Final Fantasy series isn't my bag, but I'm not going to rag on the millions of people who like the games.

[zmweasel]

Am I the only one who thinks a GTA set in 1920s Chicago would be totally badass?

It's already been done by Mafia. Plays more like The Getaway than GTA, but still.

-- Z.

[Spartacus]

Hmmm, as a member of Playstation's "game advisor committee" I'm often polled as to what I would like to see in video games. I always check off 'M rating'. Then I franticly search for the AO rating box to check off. Never see it. BASTARDS!!!!!!
I greatly enjoy and appreciate GTA. Ohhh, I've kicked over my fair share of treasure chests to get a heart to refill my lifebar in my time, but I'm sorry, I just thought making a car bounce up and down with a hooker was just plain fun. I bought State of Emergency because it was made by Rockstar (gotta be good, right?) and because it had an 'M rating'. Man, do I feel STUPID!
I haven't bought Driver 3 because I bought Driver on the Playstation and never got out of the damn garage in the beginning of the game. Man, do I feel STUPID!
I bought Manhunt for Xmas because it had an 'M rating'. I also bought
Disgaea/Metal Arms/Good & Evil/Secret Weapons/Armed & Dangerous/ and Freedom Fighters. Paid the usual new prices $45-50.00. Just a few months afterward I saw most going for $19.99, some $14.99 and I believe Disgaea and Secret Weapons were five bucks at the CC sale!
Now maybe I'm supposed to have a smug enlightened feeling for paying big bucks to support good titles that 'never had a chance'. But.....
Man, do I feel STUPID!!!!!

[lendelin]

http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/05/20/184542.php

Ok, I wrote this a while ago, but people just keep on coming. I have absolutely no one behind me. Someone here has to see my point, right? I still honestly believe that if I used anything other than GTA, no one would care. Am I right or wrong here?

(Also, feel free to post comments there on the site. I don't care if your with me or against me, but at least the majority of comments that come from here will at least make sense. ;) )

Your criticism about neglecting gameplay elements in evaluations (using GTA: SA as an example) is provocative and controversial because you mengled two aspects together which should have been separated: previews and reviews.

Your criticism is valid when it comes to previews. The hype machine which consists of better lightning effects, polygon counts, atmosphere, different settings does indeed jump to conclusions sometimes about gameplay or implies better gameplay when no gameplay elements are addressed. Same was the case in previews for 'Enter the Matrix' when exclusive CGI sequences were hailed in previews as 'revolutionizing gaming' when noone told you about the actual gameplay. Heated previews contain sometimes premature judgement calls which are unjustified becasue they should be reserved for reviews.

Your criticism is invalid when you go overboard with 'noone cares about the art of making games.' They certainly care, we all care, but we care when the final product can finally be played.

Your criticism is about biased and heated previews, and it should have been clearer pointed out. You also neglect to show in detail how a better graphics engine is used to jump to conclusions about gameplay, and to what extent these heated previews are merely reproductions of the publishers fed to mags and the Internet to get the hype machine going.