“Ever dance with the devil in the pale moon light?”
In recent news, 3rd parties such as Sega, Codemasters, THQ and others have been bitching about the performance of their games on Nintendo’s cubed console, and they blame Nintendo on top of it. But who is really to blame? Not Nintendo, that’s for sure.
The GameCube is a console of the highest caliber, and for the most part it has delivered some of the best and most fun games this generation. Games from Nintendo, and from quality 3rd parties, such as Capcom have left millions of GameCube owners pleased and at ease, but some of the titles on the console are not even worth a penny. So why should gamers spend their money on crap? There are some stupid people in this world…but not enough of them to buy crap from THQ. Of course you have some stupid jerk offs from THQ bitching and moaning about the performance of their titles on the Nintendo GameCube. Well, maybe if THQ stopped releasing loads of horse shit on my precious GameCube, maybe people would start pulling out that cash, but until then they will stick with purchasing quality titles, most of which come from Nintendo itself.
Speaking of Nintendo, they basically destroy most, if not all, of the game developers out there in the world. The quality in such games as Metroid Prime, and Eternal Darkness usually leave most gamers in awe. That’s a serious problem for third party publishers, because gamers have a choice, and when searching the aisles of their local game store the ultimate question will arise, and that is “Should I spend those 50 dollars I busted my ass all day for on Metroid Prime? Or should buy Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius”… It’s a hard decision to make isn’t it?
Other developers like Eidos, though a great 3rd party publisher will soon realize that some of their upcoming games won’t sell to well on the GameCube. As some of you may already know, Hitman 2 is scheduled for a GameCube release next month, but despite the game being an amazing gaming experience, it won’t perform too well on the GameCube. No, it has nothing to do with the game’s Mature rating, but in actuality it has to do with the game’s delayed appearance on the GameCube. Hitman 2 had already been released on both the Playstation 2 and Xbox last Fall, and those who really wanted to play the game have already gotten their hands on those versions. Sure, you have GameCube fans like me who have intentionally held out for the GameCube version, but how many people are stupid enough to do that? Other than myself I wouldn’t think there would be that many. For Eidos, the performance of Hitman 2 on the GameCube will be like a case of Déjà vu, since the same thing happened with Eidos’ Blood Omen 2 for the GCN. I honestly hope that this won’t be the case… Hitman 2 might have lost its appeal over the past few months, but it deserves to sell, regardless of what console it is on.
Since we’re speaking about late ports of games, why not talk about the GameCube version of Splinter Cell? Honestly, this one is up in the air. Splinter Cell is an amazing game, but the Xbox userbase isn’t too large and there’s a lot of room for both the GameCube and PS2 versions to capitalize upon. Recent rumblings, have also said that the GameCube version of Splinter Cell even looks better than it’s Xbox predecessor, though not entirely unbelievable, most will have to see it to believe. But once again, if Splinter Cell was released simultaneously on all three home consoles, Ubi Soft would have benefited much more, and sales for the GameCube version of Splinter Cell would most likely be much more than it will sell when it’s released this Summer.
As many of you know Sega has dropped their sports line-up on the Nintendo GameCube and it may have actually been a wise decision for the respected company, but unfortunately it will allow Electronic Arts to capitalize upon the situation. Sega itself has given the GameCube a mighty fine line-up, it’s just that a few of us fail to see it. But bitching is like second nature for a GameCube owner looking forward to Sega made games, I mean c’mon…What would you rather have a port of the 4 year old Dreamcast game in Sonic Adventure DX, or the beautiful on-rails shooter Panzer Dragoon Orta? I’m thinking the majority would choose Panzer Dragoon Orta, and if by chance you some of you didn’t, all I have to say is… “You must be smokin’ so serious shit! Now, pass that over here!” Awhile ago I might have been singing a different tune about Sega, but it’s amazing how easily a game as amazing as Skies of Arcadia can change your mind.
