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View Full Version : Does the "Average Gamer" really know what's going on??



Highlite23
05-23-2002, 08:35 AM
After the recent price war, and mud slinging, I noticed something interesting.

On a few occasions while at my favorite gameing spot, I have overheard some interesting conversations.

Basically customers comming in and really not knowing whats going on in the industry.

My personal favorite:
"Oh, XBOX is $199.00 too?"
This from a store that has PS2's in the window with "New Lower Price" but no XBOX.

Along with:

"You need extra stuff to play on-line?" about PS2.

And of course the one question i would never ask:
"Which one is better"

It got me thinking, WE are always trying to be informed, but are the masses?? One of my wifes friends has a 13 year old son, now i thought for sure he would know a little of whats going on, he's a gamer, but to what degree i'm not sure. He was led to believe that PS2's played ALL platforms, & that Sony was going to sell a HD/BB combo for $19.99, this from his PS2 friends. Now he's been playing my XBOX and can't talk his mom into making the switch. How much of THIS is going on? "You wanted this because it was supposed to be the best thing out, and it cost $300.00" The funny part is that right before launch she asked my opinion, and i gave it, and she went with the information her son gave her anyway.

All in all, I do believe the XBOX will become stronger with time...but thats what it's gonna take, time. To work around misperseption, rumors, and basic missinformation. All of that will come as more units are sold and the games keep comming, quality games.

So i'm guessing maybe 30% of the gamming community is REALLY in the know...leaving alot of lemmings, i mean others.(LOL)

What do YOU think??

MOrgE
05-23-2002, 08:40 AM
I personally think that if everybody knew the truth about consoles ( no hype.. no gossip....), then the PS2 would be no more...

:)

ok... seriously.... i agree with you.... my little cousins (one being 10 and the other being 15) are constantly arguing with me that PS2 is getting this and getting that while the XBOX is no where close... yes, i do argue with them... but its no use... once someone has an idea of something in their head, it's impossible to try to change it...

Ninja Scroll
05-23-2002, 08:47 AM
Originally posted by MOrgE
I personally think that if everybody knew the truth about consoles ( no hype.. no gossip....), then the PS2 would be no more...


I couldnt agree with you any more Morge. That's all it is is hype!
Let give credit where it is due, Sony is a genius at making a suck ass system as the PS2 a monster is console sales.

But I feel all casual gamers will go along with the PS2 cause they fall for whatever gets the most attention. And PS2 is all over the TV and anywhere else you can name.

And dudes right about PS2 signs on the front of stores by itself saying it's $199.99 NOW! And what about Xbox?
No respect if you ask me. True, PS2 dropped first but that means nothing as far as ads in-store goes.

SkoalMint
05-23-2002, 08:52 AM
To be honest, I think 30% may be a high estimate. I have been in similar situations. Last December I did a demo of the XBox at our local computer club meeting. I attempted to make it unbiased, covering the specs of the XBox, PS2, and GC. However, I could only demo the XBox as it is the only one of the three I own. I demoed Halo, PGR, Amped, Munch, Fever, and Fuzion Frenzy. After all of that, one guy who claims to be a gamer came up and said that he felt his PS (not PS2) looked better than the XBox. I just couldn't respond to that one. One of the fathers in attendance came up with his two sons and asked me which console I would recommend. Again, I covered all of the pros and cons for each system. I talked to him a few days later. They went with the PS2. We were talking about the online plans for both consoles recently and he is now planning on trading in the PS2 for an XBox.

I think it is our job as Addicts and ultimately members of the entire XBox community to bring that percenatge up by educating the masses.

Dre
05-23-2002, 09:06 AM
Originally posted by highlite23
After the recent price war, and mud slinging, I noticed something interesting.

On a few occasions while at my favorite gameing spot, I have overheard some interesting conversations.

Basically customers comming in and really not knowing whats going on in the industry.

My personal favorite:
"Oh, XBOX is $199.00 too?"
This from a store that has PS2's in the window with "New Lower Price" but no XBOX.

Along with:

"You need extra stuff to play on-line?" about PS2.

And of course the one question i would never ask:
"Which one is better"

It got me thinking, WE are always trying to be informed, but are the masses?? One of my wifes friends has a 13 year old son, now i thought for sure he would know a little of whats going on, he's a gamer, but to what degree i'm not sure. He was led to believe that PS2's played ALL platforms, & that Sony was going to sell a HD/BB combo for $19.99, this from his PS2 friends. Now he's been playing my XBOX and can't talk his mom into making the switch. How much of THIS is going on? "You wanted this because it was supposed to be the best thing out, and it cost $300.00" The funny part is that right before launch she asked my opinion, and i gave it, and she went with the information her son gave her anyway.

All in all, I do believe the XBOX will become stronger with time...but thats what it's gonna take, time. To work around misperseption, rumors, and basic missinformation. All of that will come as more units are sold and the games keep comming, quality games.

So i'm guessing maybe 30% of the gamming community is REALLY in the know...leaving alot of lemmings, i mean others.(LOL)

What do YOU think??

I agree wholeheartedly. A vast majority of the current gaming population is no longer the NES generation (such as myself) but more the Playstation I generation. Having known little else than that, they more than likely will stick to their brand and are unwilling to listen to much else. If back in the day you were an NES owner and bought an SNES, I'm guessing most of you thought that the Sega systems were crap even though they were good consoles. Its the same mentality.

But it comes down to something a bit more complicated than all I have just stated. When people spend alot of money on something such as the purchase of a console, they want to feel that they bought the best. That is what feeds those wordy debates we see on these forums from time to time. We are almost all guilty of this to some extent, some more than others. Dismissing games simply because they come from the competition is a great example. I for one wish I had the money for all 3 consoles, but I don't so I had to make a decision. I researched the specs; processor speeds, video card and sound chips used. However, I can understand all this information because I come from a technical background. The average console gamer doesn't have this technical know-how and thats where the problem stems from. Without the ability to comprehend the technical differences between the consoles, they listen to "the word on the street". This is where my first argument comes into play. The word on the street is that PS2 is awesome. Why? Because, Sony has such a large user-base from the PS1, and the majority's voice is usually heard first.

So what can the Xbox do? Well, it should do exactly what MS is doing. Having those 3rd generation games that demonstrate the full potential of the Xbox like Project Ego and Ninja Gaiden will help. Having an unparalled online gaming experience will definitely help as well. In one year from now, say next year's E3, the PS2 is going to be old. With the imminent release of the 3rd generation games for Xbox, PS2 owners will not be able to NOT notice these titles. These titles will sell consoles. Plain and simple. And they will sell to those "uneducated" folk discussed herein.

cracchus
05-23-2002, 11:18 AM
Unless you get on the internet and read about this stuff, you can't possibly be an educated consumer. It's only because I'm on the internet daily, reading about the games and the consoles, that I know what I'm talking about. A year ago, I'll admit, I had no idea. I was a casual gamer, a PS1 owner. I had to make the decision regarding which next-gen console to buy, and so I did some homework. Most people don't, though. Most people buy what their friends have, or buy what the one with the most name-brand recognition. They aren't educated about the games, the hardware, the internet plans, etc. I'd say that goes for 90%, not 70%. Caveat emptor, though -- it's their own fault. It's the same with most things in life -- people just take what is passed down to them, without investigating the matter themselves. Oh well, what ya gonna do. Me, I'm going to enjoy my Xbox. Occasionally I'll try to persuade or educate someone, but mostly I just let them be and smile inside.

l Maximus l
05-23-2002, 11:27 AM
To be quite candid, I would say that XBox owners are the most intelligent of console gamers versus gamers that don't own XBoxes. Well, atleast the vast majority. Seriously! A person has to know what the value truly is of the XBox in comparison to the PoS2 and the GameCube.

Personally, I think the GameCube is leaps and bounds better than the PoS2 because is focusses on a younger audience of gamers, primarily. GameCube games, while not the most interesting to me for the most part, are well received by younger gamers...far more than mature titles on the XBox.

With that said, I can see why people would buy a GameCube. But, I have no idea why a person would purchase a PoS2 at this time if they don't have either the PoS2 or an XBox. The XBox has so much more value to it....I know I don't need to go through the specs and other details to prove why. I will if someone asks :D

DZNUTZ
05-23-2002, 11:33 AM
when videogames and consoles are brought up in a convo....i basically carjack the convo...jump in the convo seat...and spit the knowledge.

i've converted, or at least educated many-a-folks on the xbox and its supreme power.

Hugh_Jass
05-23-2002, 11:52 AM
Originally posted by highlite23

So i'm guessing maybe 30% of the gamming community is REALLY in the know...leaving alot of lemmings, i mean others.(LOL)

What do YOU think??

I heard an anecdote today that perfectly illustrates your point. A co-worker was telling me about his cousin who just bought four XBOXes on Ebay. He thought he was getting a super great deal and could sell them for a tidy profit. He didn't know the price had dropped to $199 everywhere and he spent more than retail on something he couldn't return. Doh!

RadRider
05-23-2002, 11:56 AM
If everyone knew even the basic fundamental differences between the consoles, then the Xbox would be in the number 1 spot by now. Heck, even the Japanese don't know the fundamental differences. They simply hear "Playstation", so they buy it.

--edit--
Just thought I'd bring this up. I have a friend who wants to buy a PS2. This is funny, because I've told him the differences between all the consoles several times. He said he wanted a PS2 for GT3 and GTA3. Well, that's all good and fine, but he's got a somewhat decent PC that could run GTA3 no problem, and it's not worth laying out $300 (canadian) on a PS2 for one game. And back when he first mentioned he wanted these, GTA3 was still coming out for Xbox in the near future, so I told him that even though it doesn't have GT3, it's got every other game he wants - only with better graphics and other bonuses, plus two of the best racing games ever made; project gotham and Rallisport. So what does he say? I want a PS2.
So this time he says it's because he doesn't want to sit at a keyboard and mouse all day. So then I tell him "PC's play every single console through emulation, except the Xbox GameCube and PS2. In those cases, most of the games on those systems come to PC anyway. So, if you want to stop sitting in front of the keyboard and mouse, buy a gamepad and TV out. Hook the pc up to your tv , then play the games off your tv. It's an identical experience to playing on the consoles, except it's technically from the PC" So he says "You're not getting it... I want a PS2"

I swear, some people just never learn..

DZNUTZ
05-23-2002, 11:56 AM
LMFAO@ hughass's story

Hickboy
05-23-2002, 12:02 PM
In FutureShops latest flyer they only hype the Xbox price cut and no mention of the PS2 one LOL :cool: They also give some info on it to inform the not knowing ;).

The Next Generation Game System!

.Broadband Ready! Play fast action online games via a high speed connection. Coming Soon!

.Built-in Hard Drive improves game load times, allows for custom soundtracks and saving game information.

.Play DVD Movies! (Requires DVD Playback Kit sold seperately).

.Four Gam Controller Ports For Multiplayer Gaming!.

And not one blurb on the PS2 lol, I love it.

Xtopia
05-23-2002, 12:10 PM
Originally posted by Hugh_Jass


I heard an anecdote today that perfectly illustrates your point. A co-worker was telling me about his cousin who just bought four XBOXes on Ebay. He thought he was getting a super great deal and could sell them for a tidy profit. He didn't know the price had dropped to $199 everywhere and he spent more than retail on something he couldn't return. Doh!



Ohhh....that has to suck!!


But anyway, I agree with you guys all the way! The only class I have were there are "gamers" is my Biology class. And I am the only one that owns an XBox! Everybody else has a PoS2 or GC. I have challenged every one of them to go rent an XBox and Halo over the weekend and come back to me and tell me what console they want. They ALL refuse! I wonder why... :rolleyes:
I have also given them all the facts! I have told the PoS2 owners that they won't be able to play online without buying extra equipment. I have told them that they can't burn their own soundtracks. I have told them that the XBoxe's graphics are superior! I have told them that they have to buy extra equipment if they want to save their work. I have told them that without a hardrive, developers are limited in how "big" and "vast" the enviorments can be. I have explained that when their online network launches, it will be ruined buy 56kers, lagging the experience. I have told them that they have to buy a exspensive multitap if they want to play multiplayer games. I have told them that the XBox is getting many of the "PoS2 exclusives" and that the XBox has its own superior exslusives. I have told them that XBox supports HDTV. I have told them that XBox supports 5.1 DD. THEY JUST DON'T LISTEN!

RadRider
05-23-2002, 12:39 PM
There's also the problem that once a PS2 owner owns a PS2, they often realize it is an inferior machine, and so they have to start defending it. It's as much an act of defense as it is the owner trying to convince themselves that their machine is atualy OK. I think it's something that ever PS2 owner struggles with for the duration that they own the console.

SkoalMint
05-23-2002, 12:53 PM
Originally posted by Maximus
To be quite candid, I would say that XBox owners are the most intelligent of console gamers versus gamers that don't own XBoxes. Well, atleast the vast majority. Seriously! A person has to know what the value truly is of the XBox in comparison to the PoS2 and the GameCube.

Personally, I think the GameCube is leaps and bounds better than the PoS2 because is focusses on a younger audience of gamers, primarily. GameCube games, while not the most interesting to me for the most part, are well received by younger gamers...far more than mature titles on the XBox.

With that said, I can see why people would buy a GameCube. But, I have no idea why a person would purchase a PoS2 at this time if they don't have either the PoS2 or an XBox. The XBox has so much more value to it....I know I don't need to go through the specs and other details to prove why. I will if someone asks :D

I couldn't agree more. When I see someone purchasing an XBox over one of the onther consoles, I think to myself that there is a person who hasn't given in to hype and has made a conscious decision in order to get the biggest bang for their hard earned money. I may eventually purchase a GC, but ultimately that will be for the kids. At this point, I can't imagine why anyone would by a PS2. The XBox is a better value at 299 than the PS2 is at 199.

X-Ray
05-23-2002, 01:09 PM
Beleive it or not, I decided I would get an X-Box when I held the controller. I had a PSo but never enjoyed it because I hated the controller--everything about it espescially the D-Pad and joysticks.

Then I did some research and confirmed my choice but my decision was already made once I held the controller!

mercsix
05-23-2002, 01:18 PM
I have to say I have had all the systems starting with pong and have never had trouble going with the best system. I had the NES then switched to the Sega then added the SEGACD and 32X (got screwed on that deal) than the PSO and Dreamcast then went and put my money down on the PS2 months ahead of time (mainly due to the backard compatability issue I had hundreds of PSO games) but when bill announced the BOX I read everything I could about it went down and took my money off of the PS2 and on the XBOX (a year in advance). I never had a doubt that I made the right choice and have since bought 3 more Xboxes as Xmas presents last year and converted several of my friends over to the Box. I think we just need to spread the word. The word of Bill. LOL

Ninja Scroll
05-23-2002, 01:19 PM
Originally posted by Dre


I agree wholeheartedly. A vast majority of the current gaming population is no longer the NES generation (such as myself) but more the Playstation I generation. Having known little else than that, they more than likely will stick to their brand and are unwilling to listen to much else. If back in the day you were an NES owner and bought an SNES, I'm guessing most of you thought that the Sega systems were crap even though they were good consoles. Its the same mentality.

But it comes down to something a bit more complicated than all I have just stated. When people spend alot of money on something such as the purchase of a console, they want to feel that they bought the best. That is what feeds those wordy debates we see on these forums from time to time. We are almost all guilty of this to some extent, some more than others. Dismissing games simply because they come from the competition is a great example. I for one wish I had the money for all 3 consoles, but I don't so I had to make a decision. I researched the specs; processor speeds, video card and sound chips used. However, I can understand all this information because I come from a technical background. The average console gamer doesn't have this technical know-how and thats where the problem stems from. Without the ability to comprehend the technical differences between the consoles, they listen to "the word on the street". This is where my first argument comes into play. The word on the street is that PS2 is awesome. Why? Because, Sony has such a large user-base from the PS1, and the majority's voice is usually heard first.

So what can the Xbox do? Well, it should do exactly what MS is doing. Having those 3rd generation games that demonstrate the full potential of the Xbox like Project Ego and Ninja Gaiden will help. Having an unparalled online gaming experience will definitely help as well. In one year from now, say next year's E3, the PS2 is going to be old. With the imminent release of the 3rd generation games for Xbox, PS2 owners will not be able to NOT notice these titles. These titles will sell consoles. Plain and simple. And they will sell to those "uneducated" folk discussed herein.

Dre, that was very well said and educated post. I must admit, page one of this thread is very informative with members views on the whole gaming undustry.
Much props to the poster on this thread.
A good read indeed.:)


Oh btw, Sega Genesis owned SNES's candy asses!! DIE SNES DIE!!! :D

Xtopia
05-23-2002, 01:22 PM
Oh btw, Sega Genesis owned SNES's candy asses!! DIE SNES DIE!!!


I agree! I never had a SNES, but I had a Genesis, and I would say it is one of the best systems ever!

LynxFX
05-23-2002, 01:48 PM
Originally posted by RadRider
There's also the problem that once a PS2 owner owns a PS2, they often realize it is an inferior machine, and so they have to start defending it. It's as much an act of defense as it is the owner trying to convince themselves that their machine is atualy OK. I think it's something that ever PS2 owner struggles with for the duration that they own the console.

I think this is true of all consoles or anything else you buy. People hate being told they made the wrong decision so they will defend it to the end. They have to justify their purchase. I do the same with the Xbox, but at least I know that the Xbox itself justifies the purchase. :)

Hickboy
05-23-2002, 01:52 PM
Originally posted by Xtopia



I agree! I never had a SNES, but I had a Genesis, and I would say it is one of the best systems ever!

No way! Atari 2400 all the way! :)

Ninja Scroll
05-23-2002, 01:55 PM
Originally posted by mercsix
I have to say I have had all the systems starting with pong and have never had trouble going with the best system. I had the NES then switched to the Sega then added the SEGACD and 32X (got screwed on that deal) than the PSO and Dreamcast then went and put my money down on the PS2 months ahead of time (mainly due to the backard compatability issue I had hundreds of PSO games) but when bill announced the BOX I read everything I could about it went down and took my money off of the PS2 and on the XBOX (a year in advance). I never had a doubt that I made the right choice and have since bought 3 more Xboxes as Xmas presents last year and converted several of my friends over to the Box. I think we just need to spread the word. The word of Bill. LOL

YO mercsix, your siggy kicks ass!
Anyways, dont feel down sunshine, your Icon-Ninja Scroll never really owned the best console (power wise) out until Xbox came out.
Let's see here, I owned da Genesis and the SNES was a better system though Sega owned their asses!:D
I had the Saturn, but the Psone was really no better.
And my 32X was crap from da word go.
My DC would still kick da PoS2's ass right now if they had support.
But what im trying to say is you dont need the best console on da meat rack in order to have the best software.;)

OEM Alien
05-23-2002, 07:24 PM
i believe that the average gamer DOES NOT know what's going on, in that more than 9/10ths of gamers ARE NOT online and don't have quick access to videogaming news like people here on these forums do. if all the people that owned videogame consoles were online there would be over 40 million people on this or another mb, but it's just not like that even though there are even more than 40 million consoles out there being played by the "average gamer." :)

OEM Alien
05-23-2002, 07:28 PM
Originally posted by X-Ray
Beleive it or not, I decided I would get an X-Box when I held the controller. I had a PSo but never enjoyed it because I hated the controller--everything about it espescially the D-Pad and joysticks.

Then I did some research and confirmed my choice but my decision was already made once I held the controller! i decided not to go with the pos2 when i saw ssx at eb the first day it came out, i wnet "hmph" and hung my head, because i had waited very eagerly for that damned thing and when i saw how bad it sucked and all the bad things people were saying about it... i just said ohhh no, i guess i'll go with the dc and IT WAS WAY BETTER! then when i looked into the xbox when it was announced and started hearing things about how cool it would be i said screw ps2 and waited for xbox.
this is the story of oem aliens path to the xbox light, i think it's that light shining down on jc in my avater. :)

OZXboxAddict
05-23-2002, 07:40 PM
I agree that most are uneducated when it comes to the Xbox and in fact I took my xbox over to a friends house last week to show him how good its was, there was about 9 people there altogether and the common response was "what's an Xbox?" Granted they were not hardcore gamers but they all knew what a PS2 was.

I think gamers should spread the word as this will obviously help the system but shouldn't M$ be doing more of this as well? In Australia anyway, I don't think they are mass marketing nearly as much as they should to get the sales momentum happening! When the PS1 came out every second ad on telly was "do not underestimate the power of Playstation" Giveaways everywhere you looked . . the entire strategy was advertising saturation and it worked!

OEM Alien
05-23-2002, 07:50 PM
Originally posted by OZXboxAddict
I agree that most are uneducated when it comes to the Xbox and in fact I took my xbox over to a friends house last week to show him how good its was, there was about 9 people there altogether and the common response was "what's an Xbox?" Granted they were not hardcore gamers but they all knew what a PS2 was.

I think gamers should spread the word as this will obviously help the system but shouldn't M$ be doing more of this as well? In Australia anyway, I don't think they are mass marketing nearly as much as they should to get the sales momentum happening! When the PS1 came out every second ad on telly was "do not underestimate the power of Playstation" Giveaways everywhere you looked . . the entire strategy was advertising saturation and it worked! that's the problen=m with XBOX not being popular... MS IS NOT PROMOTING IT WORTH A POOP! there are nearly zero commercials ever on TV, THIS IS VERY WEAK A$$ APPROACH FOR MS. they need to start putting commercials all over tv. it's crazy. it's like ms isn't even trying ??

Magnum Blast
05-23-2002, 09:07 PM
Well I think one reason that PS2 owners are so defensive of their consol is because no one likes to admit they screwed up and made a bad purchase. Case and point lets look at some gamer reviews for Kabuki Warriors at http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/xbox/review/13571.html . A 5,6, and 2 7s.

Knight
05-23-2002, 09:24 PM
I hope they port Kabuki Warriors to the pos2!!

OEM Alien
05-23-2002, 09:26 PM
LOL! i think that could be a good possibility. but the good thing is now it's 199.99 and more people are going to have them and see RIGHT IN THEIR FACE how bad the ps2 sucks compared to the xbox. and they'll probably become xbox fanboys in a month or 2... uuhhh, yeah. i think that's good. :confused: :cool:

Marc
05-23-2002, 09:40 PM
I was in EB around the release date of xbox, a couple of days after. The store was busy and only two guys were working. I'm looking at xbox games and overhear this guy, who was with his son, ask another guy about PS2 or xbox, which one he would recommend.
To make a long story short. The guy trashed xbox and came up with many fanboy based reasons to buy the PS2. He didn't go over system specs or anything. I was not a happy gamer.
WHen that guy left I took the opportunity to put in my two cents worth. I told the guy and his kid something like, "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I couldn't help overhearing that guy giving you a lot of misinformation." They asked me what they were misinfomred about and I told them. I went into all the system specs, pros and cons. The guy neglected to tell them of the extra cost to play PS2 games online eventually. After I talked to this guy he and his kid left with an xbox. I wish I could remember the actual conversation, cause you guys would've been proud. Every point the other guy had made was countered with facts and logic. I ran into that guy yesterday by chance at the gamestop. He remembered me and said they were loving their xbox and were so glad they didn't get a PS2. Pretty cool...

Kortiz
05-24-2002, 01:18 AM
did you know that the average Gamecube owner is 23?

dougi3000
05-24-2002, 11:36 AM
Everyone i know says "Xbox Sucks!"
but I dont bother arguing with them, it is a lost cause. I would rather take the few hours playing my Xbox than arguing with those guys.

All PS2 freaks.

I dont have anyone to play xbox with :(