Q
Shared on Sat, 08/12/2006 - 23:06There are times when I just can't stand myself and now is one of them. After all of my protesting and soapbox lecturing about this subject to anyone who would listen, or at least stare at me blankly while I ranted, I find myself consdering the unthinkable. I am actually considering getting Madden 07. 
It may seem like a trivial or even bizarre conundrum to some of you but it is really putting me at odds with myself. To me EA represents the same thing that MS represents to alot of IT geeks, EVIL! They are a monstrous publisher who weilds an enormous amount of power in the gaming industry and they just keep getting bigger. They are renown for buying up everything that stands in their way of total gaming domination and that is, IMO, going to be one of the downfalls of the industry. Competition is the driving force of innovation and when EA eliminates competition through absorbsion (like a giant, evil gaming Katamari) they have no reason to innovate and improve their products. Fortunately Ubisoft has been able to fight them off but what's sad is that a major international pub/dev like Ubi is considered a David to the Goliath of EA. What's worse is that in the end Ubi will probably lose the fight and be taken over.
So then why, if my despise is so strong for EA, would I consider buying what I have always considered an inferior football game? Two reasons:
They just renewed their exclusive PGA license deal for another six years and I'm sure that they will do the same thing with the NFL unless the NFL decides against it (which is highly unlikey). Let's face the facts, the NFL is a business that exists to make money. They are going to do whatever is going to generate them the most profit. When the exclusivity deal was originally announced in late 2004 EA admitted that they had been shooting for this for a few years. So then why all of the sudden would the NFL accept a deal that it was proposed before? Because EA finally realized they were in trouble and threw a ton of money at them. EA had been the genre leader for almost ten years at that time and it didn't make financial sense to spend a whole lot more money for exclusivity rights when they knew thier game was going to be the top seller every year anyway.
Like I said before, I always liked Sega's football games more, personally, but it wasn't until the release of ESPN NFL 2K5 that EA knew it was in for a serious fight. When 2K5 was released for a pittance of $20 and got better reviews from nearly every game source out there EA got scared, and for good reason. 2K5's gameplay was sharper, the graphics were better, the online was more robust, and it cost half the price of Madden (even after EA dropped their price $10). It was a bold and brilliant strategy by Take 2 that also proved to be their biggest downfall. They came in so strong and presented such a threat that EA knew it had to take immediate and decisive action. So EA fired up the engine of their siege bankroll, assaulted the tower of exclusivity, murdered all their competing enemies, and raped every consumer of choice for the next five years. Unfortunately when the exclusivity deal is over EA has enough cash and the brand recognition so the NFL would never have a reason to put the license up for bid again, and even if it did EA could outbid anyone out there. The future is quite grim.
So here I sit. Pondering my own ethical dilemma. I love football. I love football games. I still think that 2K5 is the best football game to date and have it in my collection hoping, in vain, that it will be made backward compatible. But honestly it is losing it's luster. I need a new fix. So, do I give in? Do I trade my principals in exchange for a game that I may hate myself for playing? Will it be good enough to make me change my stance on EA and how it just puts out yearly upgrades at a premium price? I honestly don't know.
Again, I'm sure most of you think that I'm a fucking lunatic for taking a game purchasing decision into the realm of moral debate, but that's just me. I'm not a religious guy and I don't have any specific political affiliation. My personal, self-developed beliefs and principals are what makes me who I am and anything that threatens to compromise those, no matter how seemingly trivial, bugs the shit out of me.
I have been watching the Madden 07 vids posted around the net and reading every preview and hands-on article I can find to try and figure out what I want to do. I won't go into this blind by any means. I guess if I think that the game is really good and improved over the past few iterations as oppsed to just an updated rehash I can justify it. I can tell myself that I'm just giving it a fair chance. The real question is, am I a good enough liar to make myself believe that?
It may seem like a trivial or even bizarre conundrum to some of you but it is really putting me at odds with myself. To me EA represents the same thing that MS represents to alot of IT geeks, EVIL! They are a monstrous publisher who weilds an enormous amount of power in the gaming industry and they just keep getting bigger. They are renown for buying up everything that stands in their way of total gaming domination and that is, IMO, going to be one of the downfalls of the industry. Competition is the driving force of innovation and when EA eliminates competition through absorbsion (like a giant, evil gaming Katamari) they have no reason to innovate and improve their products. Fortunately Ubisoft has been able to fight them off but what's sad is that a major international pub/dev like Ubi is considered a David to the Goliath of EA. What's worse is that in the end Ubi will probably lose the fight and be taken over.
So then why, if my despise is so strong for EA, would I consider buying what I have always considered an inferior football game? Two reasons:
- I love football.
- I have no other options!
They just renewed their exclusive PGA license deal for another six years and I'm sure that they will do the same thing with the NFL unless the NFL decides against it (which is highly unlikey). Let's face the facts, the NFL is a business that exists to make money. They are going to do whatever is going to generate them the most profit. When the exclusivity deal was originally announced in late 2004 EA admitted that they had been shooting for this for a few years. So then why all of the sudden would the NFL accept a deal that it was proposed before? Because EA finally realized they were in trouble and threw a ton of money at them. EA had been the genre leader for almost ten years at that time and it didn't make financial sense to spend a whole lot more money for exclusivity rights when they knew thier game was going to be the top seller every year anyway.
Like I said before, I always liked Sega's football games more, personally, but it wasn't until the release of ESPN NFL 2K5 that EA knew it was in for a serious fight. When 2K5 was released for a pittance of $20 and got better reviews from nearly every game source out there EA got scared, and for good reason. 2K5's gameplay was sharper, the graphics were better, the online was more robust, and it cost half the price of Madden (even after EA dropped their price $10). It was a bold and brilliant strategy by Take 2 that also proved to be their biggest downfall. They came in so strong and presented such a threat that EA knew it had to take immediate and decisive action. So EA fired up the engine of their siege bankroll, assaulted the tower of exclusivity, murdered all their competing enemies, and raped every consumer of choice for the next five years. Unfortunately when the exclusivity deal is over EA has enough cash and the brand recognition so the NFL would never have a reason to put the license up for bid again, and even if it did EA could outbid anyone out there. The future is quite grim.
So here I sit. Pondering my own ethical dilemma. I love football. I love football games. I still think that 2K5 is the best football game to date and have it in my collection hoping, in vain, that it will be made backward compatible. But honestly it is losing it's luster. I need a new fix. So, do I give in? Do I trade my principals in exchange for a game that I may hate myself for playing? Will it be good enough to make me change my stance on EA and how it just puts out yearly upgrades at a premium price? I honestly don't know.
Again, I'm sure most of you think that I'm a fucking lunatic for taking a game purchasing decision into the realm of moral debate, but that's just me. I'm not a religious guy and I don't have any specific political affiliation. My personal, self-developed beliefs and principals are what makes me who I am and anything that threatens to compromise those, no matter how seemingly trivial, bugs the shit out of me.
I have been watching the Madden 07 vids posted around the net and reading every preview and hands-on article I can find to try and figure out what I want to do. I won't go into this blind by any means. I guess if I think that the game is really good and improved over the past few iterations as oppsed to just an updated rehash I can justify it. I can tell myself that I'm just giving it a fair chance. The real question is, am I a good enough liar to make myself believe that?
Comments
Submitted by OldManRiver48 on Sun, 08/13/2006 - 03:34
Submitted by wilderz on Sun, 08/13/2006 - 06:48
Submitted by darth_chibius on Fri, 08/18/2006 - 10:42