Virtual Disappointment

Took me a little searching, but I found today’s Virtual Console updates.

I have to laugh a little at the comments there, because it’s true. I mean, Xevious and R-Type are alright, I guess, but not really my thing.

I’m not necessarily one of those who thinks Nintendo ought to lay everything out at once, though I really don’t see a lot of harm in it. Let’s face it, if they did that, everyone would have a lot of options, but to take advantage of all those options at once would take a LOT of money just the same, on top of whatever someone might spend on Wii releases. And if someone had that much money already, there’s a good chance they already own most of what VC would be offering, and likely a chunk of what it wouldn’t be.

Meanwhile, I’d rather like to have the option of lots of games I’m interested in to try between Wii releases, rather than chomping at the bit for the next update, hoping for something good, only to move along and carry on with my usual business once I’ve seen it.

So, moving on, we’ve got Capcom on board, as evidenced by Street Fighter II. If Capcom were to release one platformer per month, that could carry us on through the rest of the year. And that’s just looking at Mega Man games for the NES, SNES, and Genesis (Wily Wars).

I have this feeling that a strong reason we haven’t seen any of these yet is the existance of the likes of Mega Man Anniversary Collection and Mega Man X Collection.

I don’t know, the whole thing just feels unorganized somehow. Or perhaps just poorly so. I think each month ought to see a bit of variety, nicely spaced apart. A platformer, an RPG, a shooter, a racing game, a really oldschool classic (your Pac-Mans, your Donkey Kongs). I mean, between R-Type on TG-16, Gradius last week, and R-Type and Xevious this week, it’s been a good few weeks if you’re a shooter addict (I am well aware of just how wrong that sounds, thanks), but what about the rest of us? There needs to be a more regular rotation, I think. Preferably wherein fans of certain genres can actually anticipate a week of the month for the next release, as opposed to simply going in blind and facing disappointment.

I myself would gladly sacrifice a couple of updates a month to at least know that at another time, there’s something I’m more likely to enjoy coming out.

–LBD “Nytetrayn”

David Oxford

David Oxford, or “LBD ‘Nytetrayn’,” as he is sometimes also known, is a freelance writer of many varied interests who resides in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. If you’re interested in hiring him, please drop him a line at david.oxford (at) nyteworks.net.

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