Wasted Hippies and Nintendo Fanboyism

Okay, so here’s the deal: when you read this, I want you to grab a beer, or whatever (I’m having some Beam on the rocks) and recline for a minute. I want to have what St. Louis radio commentator, Dave Glover, calls an honest, 3 beer discussion… about gaming console fanboyism. I think there needs to be a hippie-like conciliatory discourse with less patchouli. No, it’s not the most pressing issue of our time, but it is one that rears its ugly head all too often on social websites and the comment sections on Kotaku, etcetera. Most often, these arguments center around sales numbers, but I don’t think that the bandwagon argument is the most meaningful in quality debates… especially about video games.

So let’s start off the informal ramblings with this issue that plagues any discourse about your fellow man’s (or woman’s) gaming entertainment purchases. The constant clash of fanboys about the consoles from Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony needs to stop. I get that every person in the world has their own personal tastes and biases, but it just irritates the hell out of me that anytime I post a pro-Microsoft comment on Digg, I get dugg down by Sony fan-childs, and get some sad retorts to my lucid argumentation about the pleasures of gaming on the 360.

Yes, I am a 360 fan. I admit it plainly. But I refuse to ignore the other two consoles’ positive characteristics. I think they have their fortes. The PS3 has the most fluid dash out of the 360 or the Wii. When my folks were looking for a quality HD player, I told them they should get a PS3. The games, though secondary, do add value to their intended purchase. Plus, it’s just an all around fantastic Blu-ray player and quiet as a winter night. Sorry for the simile, that’s the Beam talkin’.

The Wii is what everybody wants. It’s the most fun with friends. I don’t know how many nights I have had that start with whiskey and end with Wii Sports. The truth is, I couldn’t imagine a better way to play with friends at 2AM. Parks are closed, at this point driving is not a good idea, and if the neighbors call the cops on you, then you have a good chance the cops and neighbors will wind up playing a round of Wii bowling. And I’m sure tripping hippies would have fun on a whole new level.

Now, back to that whole bandwagon thing. Whenever the Nintendo Wii is brought up, it’s championship over the other consoles is attributed to its sales success. Yes, Nintendo is making the most money. That doesn’t mean it’s the best console, but it is the cheapest. In fact, most of the Wiis my friends purchased were due to the bargain price compared to the PS3 and 360. The Wii is what gamers settle for when they can’t get the system they really want. It is the most fun for the price.

The real test of what people want would be to put all consoles out for the $200 price mark. Then, and only then, could we really have an idea of which system people desire. And even after sippin’ on all this Jim Beam and ice, I’m pretty sure that console would be the PS3. Whatever, I still snuggle with my 360 at night.