Activision CEO Bobby Kotick stated that they are disappointed in the Wii U launch, yet they have confidence in the Skylanders franchise.
The question is, why all this negativity towards the Wii U, when the advertisements, and the sales of the particular Wii U version of Skylanders is completely ignored? Perhaps this may be a Canadian thing, but I have never seen a Wii U Skylander package within our EbGames, nor have I been aware Skylanders even EXISTS on the Wii U. Could this be my ignorance? Perhaps. As a consumer though, some advertisement would be preferable, whether it’s a giant billboard in a corner of the store packed with Skylander figures for the Wii U, or even a banner that has Wii U and Skylanders in the same area.
I may be a cynical person in general, or perhaps a critic by nature, but I am personally ridiculously tired of the higher ups blaming the consoles for their failures, and using them as scapegoats. Much like SquareEnix has been doing recently, by blaming the consoles and the market for their lack of sales…Allow me to be blunt…How dare you? When you put out garbage products, and expect people to gobble them up and purchase them, and suddenly it doesn’t go your way, how dare you blame the consoles and the economy?
This is coming from a very interesting article that Destructoid posted, about SquareEnix blaming the console market for their lackluster sales, and thus deciding to move into the mobile market where they can make games like All the Bravest, where you swipe the screen and dump money into a game that is…not a game. It is a money sink that offers you nothing in return. If you dont believe me, check out this wonderful review that made my day. Hats off and Kudos to Justin Davis for telling it like it is.
I remember a time when anything with Square on it, would be purchased immediately, even if it meant I had to auction off a kidney, or do dishes for my parents to save up the money until my fingers were sore. Now? I wouldn’t touch their products with a ten-foot pole even if they begged me. Type – 0, Bravely Default, Versus 13… THIS IS WHAT WE WANT…Not, FF13-3?!
The use of SquareEnix as an example is not because I do not like the company. I LOVED the company, when it cared about the products it put out, and not just the money that came in. I use them as an example because they are probably the BEST company to use when you try to explain and prove just how much scapegoating and excuses penetrate and saturate the gaming market at this time.
The above is just an example. Dear companies…When you fail to market a product, and when you fail to deliver, please do not blame the consoles. Yes, the launch was not spectacular for the Wii U, but that does not suddenly take all the blame away from you, when you have failed to properly market and distribute the product, as well as make it available to the consumer. Let’s all take a moment to think before we spew out excuses, because every console has a rough start at launch, and that is when they need games to be advertised and produced, in order to boost sales. It’s a win-win situation, and instead of pointing fingers, perhaps the better way to go would be to work together. Just a thought from a student without an MBA, but with enough logic to realize what you are saying makes about as much sense as a monkey reading the newspaper.
