Watched the Bonus Round on Game Trailers.com, where they had a panel at DiCE that were talking about the good and bad things in the video games industry. The discussion moved onto the fact that each format seems to have a "lead" in certain markets. Again the talk was of who seemed likely outsell their competitors and who would win out in the end. This is something that's been talked about ad infinitum for God knows how long (actually it's probably three or four years).

this is a topic that sticks in my craw. Fanboys will tell you that the PS3 will "win" because of it's superior hardware. 360 fanboys will tell you that it will "win" because it has a "lead" and MS can throw shitloads of money at it. Nintendo fanboys will tell you the Wii will "win" because it's Nintendo and they've been here forever. PC fanboys will tell you the PC is superior because it costs more. So it has to be. Right?

Fuck it. Maybe it's because I'm Scottish and winning is such an alien concept to me, but does winning really matter? To the companies and shareholders, yes it does. Because it's the for the benefit of their company. But for the gamers like you and me? I don't think so. I've been thinking back to the Dreamcast, Sega's last hurrah in the console wars. Sega lost the battle so badly the DC became their last piece of hardware. But to me, playing those games, I felt like a winner. Metropolis Street Racer, Jet Set Radio, Soul Calibre, Virtua Tennis, Dead or Alive 2, Power Stone, Phantasy Star Online, Resident Evil: Code Veronica, Rez, Sonic Adventure, Space Channel 5.... did all the enjoyment I got from these games become irrelevant and worthless simply because Sega "lost".

Course it fucking didn't. I enjoyed those games (and let them influence my future buying decisions) and hold them dear. We seem obsessed with whatever company will "win" the console wars, maybe because of some misguided idea that the success of a multi-national company somehow reflects on ourselves in some way. Complete arse I think. Whatever system you own, whether it's a Wii, PS3 or 360 (or maybe you're one of those crazy people that don't care about brand loyalty and just play games) then enjoy it. Play games and let them enrich your lives (oh, and don't be a fanboy prick).

Thus, the sermon is at an end.