Mirror, mirror

Yes, gamers are the main reason why the game industry is as it is today. In a business world, it is not the industries that decide what is OK to do and what it is not. It is the consumer. See, if I make a car with five wheels and no windshields, it is not me who will determine that all cars will be like that. It is the consumer.

Games lack originality? look at the games you own. How many of them are new IPs? How many are well known ones from well known studios? Nobody will put money in a game to lose it. And if you don't give new, different IPs a chance, why the industry should?

Any of your games has on-line passes? It does not matter if it is a sequel from a game you like or from a studio you support. If you bought it, you are part the reason on-line passes are becoming so common. The same goes for DLC. It does not matter if was just one game. The industry see the sell and consider it acceptable.

Oh, you refuse to buy any game from any company who practice something you consider unfair? Good. So, you aren't the 'problem'. It is everyone else, right? And of course you have made all efforts possible to explain to them why you think the practice is harmful, right? What? You posted an angry comment in a game site? That is... not really helping, you know?

Most game consumers are not the ones who goes to gaming site, even less to read the comment section. They usually base their decisions in local newspaper's articles, TV or recommendation from friends, family and the attendant at the local store. I saw this every time I go to a store to buy a new game.

Most gamers and gaming sites preaches to the choir. They tell a bunch of like-minded people that they agree with the group. It is not useful. It is the people who don't go to IGN, Kotaku, Gamesradar, Joystiq and other sites that need to know why certain practices are abusive. Not the guys who have being playing games since the NES.

But here is the problem. People hardly recognize themselves as part of a problem. When The Simpsons started, it was a critic to american families. Homer Simpson was supposed to be everything wrong with american society. Instead he became a hero. A fat, probably retarded, idiotic person became something that people admire. Why? Because people couldn't see that Homer was supposed to be a mirror reflection of Americans as a whole.

Gamers are like that. They refuse to see that they are part of a problem. They refuse to admit that because they keep buying the same games we have nothing really new. That by opening exceptions because they must have that DLC, that game with on-line pass, they are supporting it. After all, the problem is everyone else.

Except in the success. Them we have being there since the beginning and we are responsible for the success.