Why the division?

Its pretty late in California right now. 1:30A.M., I'm doing my late night web runs (Since I've been jobless for the last 2 weeks what else is there to do?) and one question pops into my head.
Why is it that we are divide as a nation? Looking back through the glass of time, I can remember NES vs. Master system, SNES vs Genesis, Saturn Vs Playstation VS N64, Dreamcast vs........ so on and so on.

But going through my 25+ years of gaming I can't remember ever arguing about system A is way better than that system B because....of games?.....Graphics?, nope! today's points are based solely on sales and the money generated by said system and said games on system. WHAAAAAAAAAT! I know at this point its like digging up a dead horse just to add a few more bullets to the poor animals skull but why are we as a nation so divided by something that is so separate from us to begin with.

If this game sells a billion and this game only sells a few hundred thousand, why does it matter so much? I mean we aren't seeing any of this money and its quite the opposite, we actually make these games the successes that they are buy giving up our money and yet we will argue to the point of being racist, ignorant jerks to prove why we bothered to make this game a billion dollar success and call those who did not put in things that will make our forefathers spin in their grave. Why has this happen to us? I remember growing up with Nintendo a good friend of mine was all about Sega, we still interacted like normal, played together and when it came down to our videogames we asked, what are we playing that day? Are we going to my house or your house? That trend pretty much continued up until X360 released. All of a sudden if you weren't online with a 360 we couldn't be friends in real life?!?!? WHAAAAAATTTTT! Then the PS3 released and if you owned one you just threw away $600 because as far as "Gamers" were considered it was D.O.A.. What happen to us? we used to share our experiences as a people, used to talk about games that we could play that our friends couldn't and vice-versa. But now it seems that system ownership is a lot stricter than religion. "Buy what I have so we can talk about it or F*** YOU!!" Why and How?

I'll admit early on I was just as rabid as the next person but I've been able to let that go, but it seems the problem has only gotten worst and not better, despite there being many ways to enjoy our freetime, it seems that you can only have one way to enjoy it or else you're an outcast. Sad really but I guess thats the way the world is going.

P.S. This was just a random thought but feel free to comment if you like.

[LightofDarkness]

It seems like this isn't something we have engineered on our own. The console manufacturers and certain developers/publishers have decided to whip their respective audiences into a frenzy, so that they will buy and play games to "prove a point" as much as to actually play and enjoy the game.

Once the warring camps began throwing sly digs at each other and posturing arrogantly, people started to take sides. And once that happens, human nature kicks in. A tribal dichotomy broke out, which eventually split into even more separate factions who began to feel threatened by the others' fervour (PC gamers, Nintendo fans). The sad part of it all is just how petty and pathetic it all really is, and people just won't stop doing it. You're going to have another 10 or so comments in here saying "I used to be a fanboy too, but I own all three now and I'm cool", and in about a day you'll see them ranting and raving about the latest "scandal" in some article, in the sort deluded, nonsensical "patriotism" only a fanboy can muster.

In fact, to illustrate my point that this little war is a mandate from on high (those being the corporate interests), I once worked as a temp at a local Gamestop. During our pre-Christmas orientation, the manager led us over to the offers wall, where all the major deals on all the consoles were laid out. After we studied it for a moment, he asked a seemingly innocuous question: "So, which console is the best?" Thinking I knew the corporate BS instructional video line that was coming next, I responded "Whichever one the customer wants?"

I was told in a very matter of fact way (almost derisively), "No, actually, it's the Xbox 360, and you all need to know it is."

He continued to add that if someone has their heart set on a PS3 to let them have it, and try to tack on as many peripherals and games as possible, but the message was clear: focus on 360. We were championing the 360 at the store level. Subsequent conversations with man lead me to believe that this is an almost unofficial policy that is adopted company wide, because MS are such swell guys to them and all.

So knowing this BS, I'd like everyone to examine their reasons for acting like a fanboy online, and before you go into rage mode at the next 8.5 exclusive review or sarcastic developer dig at your favourite system, ask yourself this: why am I doing this?

[blaktek]

I can see an explanation (a couple of them) for this phenomenon.

What we all witnessed can be explained (not justified), but doing so will take us far beyond the scope of this site. I won't go in details, because as Americans, you will probably feel insulted.

Because one has to admit, the fanboy (or brand integrist) society is primarily an American society. The world caught on fast, but the genesis took place in the Land of the Free.

A few aspects of the American culture actively influenced this industry, and its customers.

- The "ME" generation. Started in the eighties (for the masses), glamorized the pursuit of profit with no regard for its effects on the business environment.

- The binary view. You could trace this to the McCarthyism and the basic motto "if you're not with us, you're against us".

- The political playground. Where public debate no longer focuses on each candidate's ideas, but on whether or not he is a good American, a true patriot. A bit like a lawyer would try to negate a witness by attacking his values and worth as a human being.

- The century old PR stunt that made predatory (near nihilistic) business a good business behavior in the eye of the public.

- The world events that reinforced the American Exceptionalism sentiment amongst citizens.

- Commercial think tanks, PR firms, viral advertisement, sociologically enforced commercial policies. We know what they do.

And finally, a company that understands and has the will and means to use all these elements to shape the industry (and customers) their way. Again, referred to as great business actor.

If you combine all this, you understand our situation better. This is not a blame game. If you look at the essence of the fanboy nation, you will lean to this point of view. What you can do to immature minds with the right means and will is surprising, to say the least.

As for that company, I don't judge it. It's the product of its environment. I decided to not feed it more than I have to. I'm an IT guy, so I'm kinda shafted with that.

Edit : irregular verbs will be the death of me.

[kornbeaner]

But aren't you further adding to the problem by saying this is an "American" problem created by Americans and delivered by Americans? I live in America but I take responsibility for my actions, while you seem to pin this problem on american's and allow other's who "Caught on" a free pass.

Going by the history I have with N4G which goes back about 6 years, the main people I saw spewing hate on the Playstation 3 were actually foreigners. 1 guy from The Netherlands, 1 German and a couple of South Americans (Brazil, not Georgia). Would it be fair for me to blame them for the fanboyism fad?

My post was more about why the gaming world is the way that it has become, I wasn't looking for a start point or a place to blame. Like I said growing up we had our favorite everything, but in the end we always shared our experience with each other. Now it seems the whole gaming world would rather you experience nothing if a certain provider is not the creator, almost like religion.

Blame america all you want but that doesn't do anything for us in the gaming world, I know that america is possibly the most wasteful, extravagant place in the whole world but that still does not solve the issue that I am having with my favorite pastime.

You blaming America is like me saying I am going to blame you for turning me into a racist. That reasoning is ass-backwards. We have to take responsibility for what we say and do, while also being secure within ourselves to not let any outside source interfere with who we are.

And before this turns into a "Patriotic" debate on a "Gaming" Website let me tell you where I stand:

I am a citizen of this nation yet I am denied free healthcare, but those who come here from other nations are allowed to obtain it, this is BS!

My kid's school just became over enrolled while also becoming understaffed and underfunded, yep this is another winner here.

My nation rather let people die for lack of insurance or money then to save a life, Great is it not?

9/11 was a tragic event in my nations history, but invading Iraq was a F'n Joke.

I can go on and on about how I feel about this nation, but I won't. I was born here and I am an American by birth and not by choice, but for me to want to blame whatever issues I have in my life because of America is ridiculous, I am grateful to be in a place where I am allowed to express a certain amount of free-will, where I am allowed to choose whatever path I may want in my life from getting a well paying job to being a drug-addict if I so choose to be one. My nation might take more than its fair share from me but it will not stop me from being what I want to become.

Trolls on this site choose to be the way they want to be, nobody is pushing their buttons to think or act a certain way. Just like I can sit here behind my wall of faceless letters and choose to berate you for being from whatever part of the world you are from, but I CHOOSE not to. Because that's not who I am, you can believe anyway you want, choose to be anyway you want and you have the right as a human being to think anyway you want. Your faceless letters have no effect on my life.

And while you're on your side of the wall and I am on my side of the wall we can co-exist peacefully and separately. Is it very American of me to be this way? who knows but the choice is mine.

[blaktek]

I'm not blaming American gamers for our situation. It wasn't their idea to bash the "competition", but it came from America.

If you take the most common fanboy rants, then and now, they gravitate towards the financial health of Microsoft. Parts of your culture will predispose (talk about pre-existing conditions) people to react that way. Most won't go there as they have no legitimate worry about any business ; they want games.

They were pushed. This is no secret, if you say the same thing long and loud enough, it becomes a "truth". So you have one side throwing banter on the two others, and the pack mentality takes over, leading us where we are.

We need to remember the target for video games. Between 12 and 20, you will be flooded with opinion pieces and targeted advertisement, which can be sly and pernicious ; there are more sociologists and psychiatrists involved that we want to know. This age bracket defines the immature mind.

What you and me experience as a hobby is shaped to be an all out war by the powers that be. The weapons are manipulation, patenting, commercial pressures and profit hoarding. The victims are us, the games' quality and the joy we had sharing our passion with each other regardless of platform of choice.

Writing my first post made me sad. As citizens, you have been pressured for so long that some began to ooze something nasty. I was expecting a lot more flak for this, even after avoiding a lot of details.

By the way, I'm French. Over here, the education system can't guaranty that you will be able to read (and understand the meaning of it) at 12.

Anyway, we still like you all, and if the Russians invade, we'll be counting on you guys. Or we'll rot them out with cheese, wine and loose broads. ;)

[kornbeaner]

But money causes corruption anywhere in the world not just not in America, I can see the viewpoint from which you are coming from, I believe it's a mixture of the want of money and also the idolization of stupidity. I will be fourth right, America is stupid when it comes to who they idolize. We (in general) tend to want to be the flashy sportstar instead of the guy who plays the game for the passion, we want money in the easiest possible way and idolize those who can make it fast, like the cast from Jersey Shore and other reality television shows.

Now putting it in perspective, I believe that is the problem here. American parents don't spend enough time with their children teaching them how to behave and how to be a respectable citizens. Instead we have children and expect the government to tell us what they can do, what they can watch but there is never really any direct supervision. Looking back I remember when you could spank a child for being a smartass, I know I got hit a few times. But now america has gotten soft with the children we raise, we do timeouts and other methods which are more hands off, couple this with the handsoff approach American's now take with parenting and it has produce the stupidity in that target range you pointed out, 12 - 20, the new generation raised to be spoiled little sh!ts.

But now that makes me ask another question. Is what we hear online and see posted in forums such as N4G a by-product of the 15 years of poor parenting? or is it a cry for attention by people who never got the attention they needed when they were growing up?

I guess we can spend all day coming up with theories as to why new grown-ups and the new generation of gamers are the way they are, in the end all I want is the people to grow up and respect each other, we don't have to like each other but the least we can do is respect each other.

As far as the war thing goes, I won't be there if it happens, I don't believe in getting involved in other countries messes. I don't like war and I think its stupid that the more we evolve as a species the faster we come up with ways to destroy ourselves.
But don't get me wrong if another nation ever try to invade our land and brought armies here, hand me a gun and get out of my way. But going to foreign soil to fight for a foreign cause, nope won't do it.