As much as I hate to step out of the beautiful, nostalgic world of old video games, I feel that there is a current issue that needs to be addressed. There is a plague that has held the industry in some strange new form of relationship with their fans. They seem to think that they are high and mighty enough, and talented enough to come back at the fans who complain about their products. Fans have not been happy with a lot of titles that have been coming out as of late, and they got it in their heads that they can fire back with childish insults. I'm sorry, WHAT?!
If you really think it is a good business practice to shoot childish names at people who do not enjoy your game, you deserve every single piece of bad karma that comes. Publishers and Game Developers in multimillion dollar companies think that they are untouchable and that they will make their money back regardless. This has been proven to not be the case at all. Fans have far more power than they realize and it has become apparent that they can sniff out bad titles when they come knocking. Fans have rejected these horrible games entirely.
Concord is a perfect example of the industry not listening to fans. Sony were convinced that they had a real winner on their hands, but then the backlash began to grow louder. They took the criticism and the harsh memes, which are a staple of the internet at this point, and came back with names such as "talentless hacks" and whatever else they could pull out of their hats at the moment. This tactic has never been proven valid, nor should it have been used in the first place. Every single time they have lashed out at fans, they have had a far harder reaction and their products fail after that. Concord lost the company 400 million dollars. Yes, they had that much faith that it would succeed. It did not succeed. In fact its sales were in the 5 digits, which is absurdly low. The game went live for less than two weeks before it was shut completely down. According to one of the developers, they were so certain that it would be a success, that saying anything to the contrary was met with punishment.
It's hard to see how the fans are "toxic" when developers and publishers have been proven to be just that. Programmers for games have come out of a game, brimming with horror stories about being in a sweat shop and told to keep their mouths shut and keep coloring. Heads of studios are treating these people like garbage and they have the gall to call us toxic fan babies?
It is time to face the facts and realize that these companies are not our friends and they do not care about our opinions. As stupid as that sounds, it has proven time and time again to be true. Fans have a weapon that they are using to combat this and they are abstaining from these titles. Companies like Ubisoft, Sony, CD Projekt, Electronic Arts, Activision and Warner Brothers are starting to notice a severe dip in sales. These people in their companies continuously take to social media and tell people that if they don't like their game, then don't play it. Then, whenever they do not meet the sales that they thought, they will go back to social media again and insult them for not playing their games. Rinse and repeat. Stop it!
It is very important that we, as gamers, stick to our guns and not accept anything other than what we want to play. They can call us names and tell us we're wrong all they want. At the end of the day, it's our money, we earned it with our sweat and we deserve a product that reflects our interests. At this time, it is very important to do our research and know what we are buying. There are so many times a company will tell us one thing, only to have us find out that it was not only false, but it was a deliberate lie in order to get presales.
Presales need to be monitored very closely, dear friends. After horrific ordeals, such as Cyberpunk 2077's release, No Man's Sky's release and any number of looter shooters and/or Live Service Games, we need to make sure that we are getting the product we paid for. There are so many examples of when developers were given no time to work on a game, they showcase gameplay that was doctored to look and play better. Once the game actually comes out, it is an entirely different experience than was promised.
You are not toxic because a game does not look good to you. If you laugh and make fun of a game, that means you have a sense of humor. It does not give companies the right to lump you in with a "toxic fanbase". No, you are a fan of video games and you know what you like. There is no shame in this and they will say anything to get those pennies out of your pocket. Inflation and costs are at an all-time high and we need to be pinching those damn things. When you abstain, you win! We win!
Do not be petty and do not take to social media to threaten or bully these people. We don't need to sink to their level and it's clear they are just blowing off steam. When all is said and done, they are not getting our money and that is killing them just fine. There's no need to threaten others with violence or to wish them dead just because they made a bad game and said some bad things. We need to be civil, while also being tongue in cheek. The memes, the jokes, the playful riffing, all of that is fine, especially when you want to keep each other informed.
Keeping each other in the know is how we are going to succeed. Communication with our fellow gamers and making HONEST game reviews is how we are going to keep our bank accounts full and bad publishers' coffers running dry. If a review is telling you to go out and buy a game without any further information or trying to make you feel guilty for NOT buying their product, stop and think. They are a gigantic corporation and these people are being paid to get you to pay them.
Overall, it is very prudent to make sure that you are not guilted into thinking you are less of a person or you are someone you are not. You are not these things they say just because you do not want their title. That simply means you have taste and you want something better. Do not feel bad about wanting something better. Keep in touch with friends, watch your favorite youtube reviewer and listen to those you trust. I can tell you to try out games until the cows come home, but in the end, the choice is yours! The power of no money spent is worth all of the money you saved. Remember what Stan Lee said about power. Nuff said.
