Is Pokémon like Guitar Hero?
Activision CEO Bobby Kotick is a controversial figure among gamers right now. Among the reasons for gamers’ scorn is that Kotick is responsible for saturating the market with Guitar Hero, releasing not just one but several installments in a year. In fact, if a game can’t be exploited repeatedly, Kotick doesn’t want it in the Activision fold.
But you know what? Other companies have been doing the same thing: flood the market with periodical releases of virtually the same game. Sure, it may come with a few minor enhancements to justify the full price, but it’s essentially the same game.
EA used to be the game company that everybody hated, but today, Activision is considered to be the new EA.
Gamers have singled out Activision, but they don’t seem to notice that Nintendo is insidiously doing the same thing with Pokémon. In an article I wrote for Daily Nintendo, I pointed out the pattern that Nintendo and developer Game Freak use in releasing Pokémon games:
- Sell two Pokémon games that are virtually the same (save for a few minor differences in the Pokémon roster that you can catch);
- Wait for a year or so;
- Release an “updated” version of the previous two Pokémon games. The “new” version comes with a few minor tweaks and areas, and is sold at full price;
- Rinse and repeat.
Is it just me, or is Pokémon like Guitar Hero? The difference is that the Pokémon releases aren’t scheduled several times a year—but when Nintendo does release a Pokémon game, they release the same game three times and make tons of money for each.
Granted, Nintendo and Activision aren’t the only companies engaged in the same shenanigans (think sports games), but the two seem like they’re reading from the same playbook. Three separate versions of Starcraft 2? That’s so Pokémon.
For your wallet’s sake—if you already own a recent Pokémon game for the GBA or DS, skip the “enhanced” remakes. Same goes for Guitar Hero—there are better upcoming games that should be worth your hard-earned cash.
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