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Denver, 10:10 PM
Thu Dec 10
62 posts in the last 24 hours
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03:05 PM
01:10 PM
12:17 PM
I was under the impression that the majority of Japanese homes are minuscule. Surely there is not the room for these humongous creations?
12:24 PM
01:27 PM
10:38 AM
02:13 PM
Also, if it IS HD they're switching over to; you don't require a HD TV to receive or display any HD content. You just wont take advantage of HD's superior quality with a SD TV set.
02:44 PM
05:25 PM
A lot of people with older tv's / older VHF-only antenna's won't be able to watch TV anymore (digital uses UHF only). And people with TV's with only an analog tuner won't be able to watch TV either unless they get a separate box or a new TV with a digital tuner built into it.
So eventually people without boxes or built in digital tuners will need upgrade soon, so ultimately they'll need to embrace the newer TV's (LCD, plasma... maybe SED tv's?). And since the prices for LCD and plasma's have gone way down, it makes sense for many families that need to upgrade to invest in a flat screen over a similar sized tube tv.
05:32 PM
09:15 AM
11:44 AM
08:26 AM
Sounds like he's living out one of the most common fantasies for adolescent boys.
"If I was a girl for a day..."
08:17 AM
08:08 AM
06:46 AM
You all can meet at my place, I have an inflatable pool and a slip n slide.
Why do I have those? Check back on Red Tube in 2 weeks. Giggity.
07:27 AM
08:26 AM
He looks like a freaky old man, he could teach the three some things...
05:01 PM
05:14 PM
True, I won't deny it.
07:35 PM
05:01 AM
Though am a little wary of the 360 one since do not dig the main character design at all.
06:34 AM
07:54 AM
08:29 AM
09:32 AM
10:39 AM
The problem arises when Japanese devs start trying to appeal to the American frat boy demographic. Was there really a need for Chris Redfield to be more ripped than Marcus Fenix? They alienate their original fans, and it's part of why people like Keita Takahashi have become disillusioned with the video game industry.
There are plenty of games that offer lead characters with biceps 3 times bigger than your average football player and primal instincts that make your average UFC fighter look like a stereotypical soccer mom. Why is there a need to take games that have more feminine, stylized designs and inject them with enough testosterone to make a bull l0ok like a cat?
Oh and for the record, it has nothing to do with being a weaboo. Your insistence on calling Rebo and others that prefer more "traditional" Japanese designs weaboo really doesn't help your case.
11:07 AM
11:40 AM
My favourite characters often end up being the ones that avoid either pitfall. Nathan Drake's a good example. Awesome character that doesn't look in danger of 'roid ragin' at the drop of a hat and also doesn't look as though he wouldn't be uncomfortable in a dress. The Prince (of Persia) is good 'un as well. And, uh, Mario. Different sort of character, I know, but honestly, he's a good design. Not exactly a looker. Ugly dudes can make interesting characters, too!
11:55 AM
12:04 PM
You also seem to be under the assumption that we don't like Western design styles. For me at least, that couldn't be further from the truth. I can't wait for God of War 3, I play games like UT and Quake all the time, and I love how stupidly over the top and testosterone driven Gears of War is. What I don't like is seeing a Japanese game trying to be a Western game. That's not to say that there aren't elements from each that work together, but I don't like to see Japanese games give up part of what makes them uniquely Japanese.
So you don't address a single point I bring up and instead continue on insulting people who prefer a certain style. So, I'll raise them again, and this time, let's see if you actually have a counter argument, or if you'll just continue on insulting people by calling them weaboos and lonely people.
How has the market been dominated by feminized men when there are numerous examples, even coming from Japanese devs, of muscle ridden, testosterone driven characters leading games? And why should feminized characters take a back seat to Gears of War style meat sacks when the two have coexisted in the past just fine? Why should there only be one?
What benefit is there to driving out creative people by forcing Western design philosophies on Japanese devs and trying to homogenize various demographics into one? As we've already seen this gen, there are plenty of people that like uniquely Japanese games, and yet it seems like there are less and less uniquely Japanese games that are getting made in favor of a more Westernized approach.
We all know companies don't "care" about their fans, but most do a good job of at least pretending to. What benefit is there to alienating the core fanbase and dropping the facade? Companies like Valve are proof that you can be very successful by listening to and appealing to your core fanbase.
Like Rebochan said, this game is being altered from it's original design. The issue isn't so much that this is a new IP with a roided out character, but that it's a new IP that had a certain design originally and was then changed. While not exactly the same, it's similar to taking a character like Chris Redfield and giving him more muscles than make any kind of logical sense dictates. People liked the original, and it was changed. How would you like it if the next over the top, Gears/Doom/God of War style American game was given the Final Fantasy treatment in an attempt to appeal to Japanese gamers?
As we've already seen with Call of Duty in Japan and Final Fantasy here in the US, people *gasp* like there being differences between Western and Japanese approaches to game design. Even if it's just something as simple as offering the native language, people like the differences. Japanese gamers didn't want to see Call of Duty altered to "cater" to a Japanese market any more than I want to see Final Fantasy or Devil May Cry altered to appeal to Americans. The homogenization of ideas at the expense of what makes each philosophy unique is not something that needs to become even more of a standard in this industry.
And please, this time try to actually construct an argument instead of just insulting people.
12:31 PM
How has the market been dominated by feminized men when there are numerous examples, even coming from Japanese devs, of muscle ridden, testosterone driven characters leading games?
- There are numerous examples of both, and to say that it was dominated by feminine men was hyperbole. The fact is that both giant dudes and little dudes and dudes in between all get to be in video games. The only difference is that when a western developer tries something new, people get behind that. When a Japanese developer tries something new, their fans get out pitchforks and call things "frat boy" simply because it doesn't appeal to THEIR tastes, but that could be because the game isn't marketed to them. Cooking Mama is a great fucking game, but you don't see me bitching about the way Mama looks, and the game wasn't even marketed to me so WHY should I even care what she looks like? If a new model of BMW comes out that looks completely different, am I gonna bitch about it? No. I don't drive a BMW. Yeah, I DRIVE A CAR, but I am not the target demographic of BMW.
And why should feminized characters take a back seat to Gears of War style meat sacks when the two have coexisted in the past just fine?
-They shouldn't, that being said, Neir Gestalt and Neir Replicant have two heroes. One girly and one grizzled. Why can't fans simply be happy wiht both instead of crying about it?
Why should there only be one? There shouldn't.
What benefit is there to driving out creative people by forcing Western design philosophies on Japanese devs and trying to homogenize various demographics into one?
-I would need to see evidence where people are being FORCED to work on games that homogenize the market and alter game dev philosophies. Niche markets exist for both sides of gaming and will always exist. Companies like Bioware for the U.S. and Atlus for Japan continue to pop out tons of demographic specific titles without sacrificing anything. The benefit of expanding your market is A. Profit margin, B. Expansion, and C. Bringing more fans into your fold. That's all BUSINESS sense and will occur in every occupation.
As we've already seen this gen, there are plenty of people that like uniquely Japanese games, and yet it seems like there are less and less uniquely Japanese games that are getting made in favor of a more Westernized approach.
-I disagree. The DS and PSP host a plethora of unique japanese games that will probably never sell well in the states. Not to mention the ridiculous number of games the wii has both here and abroad. I think the only market where the next gen is seeing more muscle than fancy lad is on the XBOX 360. Now granted the 360 community is probably the most despised by "American Otaku" or whatever you'd call them, so naturally they'd be a focal point for calling out a lack of Japanese games. But even that would actually be misguided as the 360 has launched several JRPG's in America and has left Sony and Nintindo in their wake(i.e. Last Remnant, Infinite Undiscovery, Tales of Vesperia, Eternal Sonata). Too say eastern games are getting the shaft is a misnomer I believe. They're both getting equal time, simply on different platforms.
We all know companies don't "care" about their fans, but most do a good job of at least pretending to. What benefit is there to alienating the core fanbase and dropping the facade?
-Like I said, Money, expansion, larger fan base.
Companies like Valve are proof that you can be very successful by listening to and appealing to your core fanbase.
-True, Valve listens better than any company I've ever seen in video games. They also have a vast section of the PC market on lock, which is probably the easiest monitored and modified as PC games allow many users to modify them and valve openly supports people messing with their games to expand upon content. That being said, Games like Littlebigplanet has a huge user fanbase and the sony does a lot to satiate them, but its much harder on a console than on the PC. And its even harder with close-ended games like RPGs.
Like Rebochan said, this game is being altered from it's original design. The issue isn't so much that this is a new IP with a roided out character, but that it's a new IP that had a certain design originally and was then changed. While not exactly the same, it's similar to taking a character like Chris Redfield and giving him more muscles than make any kind of logical sense dictates. People liked the original, and it was changed. How would you like it if the next over the top, Gears/Doom/God of War style American game was given the Final Fantasy treatment in an attempt to appeal to Japanese gamers?
-I think it would be fantastic and I would probably buy it. Nier is separated into two games and if the majority of fan support seemed to push towards the more grizzled and masculine look then it would only make sense in my mind to redisgn the other one to ensure a larger fan base and sales comp across the board. The Chris Redfield thing would work if he hadn't already been an established character in a franchise game. Square is obviously more intent on having the initial launches of these games be super-successful by appealing to the largest base, rather than worrying about the minority of people that complain about design changes. Lost of people complained when Borderland's style was completely overhauled but its a huge sleeper hit and I can say with honest belief that most of the people that complained still ended up buying it and had a blast. Which goes to show that a game with great mechanics and fun interaction can succeed regardless of art design.
As we've already seen with Call of Duty in Japan and Final Fantasy here in the US, people *gasp* like there being differences between Western and Japanese approaches to game design. Even if it's just something as simple as offering the native language, people like the differences. Japanese gamers didn't want to see Call of Duty altered to "cater" to a Japanese market any more than I want to see Final Fantasy or Devil May Cry altered to appeal to Americans. The homogenization of ideas at the expense of what makes each philosophy unique is not something that needs to become even more of a standard in this industry.
-I agree with everything you said in this last part except this:
"The homogenization of ideas at the expense of what makes each philosophy unique is not something that needs to become even more of a standard in this industry."
I don't believe they're sacrificing anything. There goal is to make a game that is enjoyable by a demographic. From a business standpoint the only way they would be sacrificing that philosophy would be if they were knowingly making a game that would never sell and thus bankrupt their business.
04:51 AM
Does this assessment come from hands-on experience with the game, or just from looking at the screenshots?
I hope you're not setting a bad example for our impressionable minds, Mr Bash, because commenters who judge games based on a screenshot usually get flamed to hell by other commenters.
05:02 AM
07:23 AM
So yeah, Ashcrafts thoughts on the screens is as accurate as hell.
08:08 AM
I looked at the movie for a minute or so then went off to play something else.
12:08 AM
12:05 AM
Also, Bash, you forgot to make mention of Famitsu's score somewhere in the article. I think you need to reference Famitsu each time FFXIII is brought up for discussion or mentioned in a news post. You don't even have to work it in logically! Just type "Famitsu" at the end of the article just because. The power of that word to incite rioting approaches revolutionary status.
12/09/09
-The Cocky Quiet Badass:
The guy who has incredible fighting skills, is quiet, and seems to think he is better than everyone else.
The Loudmouth:
The guy who is always talking and the supporting characters think he is immature, but then by the end of the game he matures and everyone looks up to him.
The Emo/Self Hater:
The guy who hates himself and has no self-esteem, but then by the end of the game he has more confidence and realizes people actually care about him.
12/09/09
12/09/09
Exactly, Snow seems to be breaking the mold, as he seems to be loud and yet has times when he is quieter,.
12/09/09
12:00 AM
The Man/Teen Angst Guy
This type of character is usually in their mid 20's but acts as if they are 17, they are dramatic and wreckless, but when needed become this epic leader.
12:01 AM
12:02 AM
12:02 AM
I didn't say all male FF characters fit into those categories, I was just saying that all of those personalites seem to pop up in the games.
12:04 AM
Good point.
12:05 AM
Look hard enough and pretty much every Japanese game/anime/manga has characters that fit those molds. American media has its own set of archetypes that characters all fall into. Femme fatale, bald space marine, etc.
12:10 AM
The grizzled war veteran who has a soft spot for the young main character by the end of the film ect.
12/09/09