Discussing how a strong IP can influence video game popularity and if EA means something horrible for Star Wars fans.
OH MAN...this brings back some memories!
The first Star Wars game I ever played was The Empire Strikes Back for the NES. It was also probably one more of the most frustrating gaming experiences of my youth. I hated the walker level. No matter how many times I tried, I rarely was able to get past it. It was so traumatic that when I first played the Hoth level in Shadows of the Empire for the N64, I immediately tensed up. Negative emotions will forever be associated with the planet Hoth. Regardless, the point is that while it might not have always been enjoyable, I continually kept coming back. That has been the case for the majority of my Star Wars gaming experiences. The fact that it’s Star Wars really seems to trump everything else about the game. In fact, if not for it being Star Wars, I don’t think I would have given Star Wars Galaxies as much time as I did. That game was so close to work-like that it was almost scary. But yet I kept logging in.
So the easy answer is that I am a fanboy. I suppose it’s been like that for years now across all forms of entertainment and franchises. Many poorly reviewed movies seem to find some sort of joy inside me if they include swords and sorcery (I am looking at you Season of the Witch). So I suppose it’s no surprise that I have the same reaction to video games. A good comparable is the Silent Hill franchise, whose most recent iteration didn’t receive the most pleasant response. Still, I loved it. I loved back being in Silent Hill. It didn’t matter that the gameplay was frustrating (which it was). I just loved being in the game world. Give me a solid story or pleasing setting and I can overlook your shortcomings.
So to go back to the question before, is this even a bad thing? If I am paying for a product and enjoying my time with it, does it matter that it’s not a gaming classic that redefines the industry? Or that it is even considered a high quality game?
