Fanboyism: why? (a rant)

[beniki]

Well, God forbid anyone be passionate about something. Of course, ranting about how stupid fanboys are shows the world how intelligent and reasonable you are in comparison.

Look, it really isn't that big a deal. People get frustrated when they can't convince others of what to them is an obvious truth. You yourself, believe that all consoles have pros and cons, and you can't understand the people that love their own particular game box to the point of fighting for them. You're frustrated because you can't make them share your point of view.

As for your point about this affecting games being seen as an art form... people are more up in arms about books, paintings and movies than they ever are about video games. There was probably a vicious feud over whose cave scratches were better. I think that fanboyism actually legitimises games as an art form, as an indicator of how much emotion people feel for them.

In short, it's not ignorance, dismount your high horse, and realise how close to the ground it was in the first place.

 

[The Wykydtron]

Didn't console fanboyism basically die out a while back? I haven't seen a thread on the issue for a while, with the y'know "most balenced console generation ever" and all that...

Now if you'll excuse me it's time for my to go back into my Apollo Justice Ace Attorney coma...

 

[x0ny]

I haven't seen fanboys/girls because I don't get to hang out with those kinda people anymore. I'm either at work, or at home, and at work, we all play my PS3, we're Tetris HD fans.

 

[Something Amyss]

OK now I'm sure I'm not alone here but I am sick to death of fanboys bleating about why their favourite gaming system is the best. What drives them to do this? Is it because they are so deluded in thinking that their system is the best at everything? Because that's just total BS. Are they trying to prove to themselves that they got the best by belittling all the others? Now that's just petty. Every system has its pros and cons. Why can't they just accept that others prefer something different to them?

The knock on effect of these fanboys is that other gamers are accused of being fanboys just because they favour one system over the others. I've been attacked on this very site because I calmly and logically stated why I play more on the PS3 then others. In the same post I said that I respected all the other systems because they cater to a different audience. They all have different exclusives, they all have different hardware and control schemes. Hence different people will want different systems. Yet these fanboys are being ignorant and trying to prove that they are the best, sometimes going to ludicrous lengths.

Is this what gamers everywhere really need? We are trying to get non-gamers to take us seriously as a medium and art form, but are they really going to do that if they see a bunch of juvenile squabbles as prominent as they are? I doubt it.

Human nature?

Humans pick sides. When we see an end to people rioting because their sports team won/lost, I'll be more concerned with a bunch of people who at worst whine.

 

[ayylamao]

I think you should watch this:
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/the-big-picture/2679-Fair-Game

I guess, what im trying to say is
[HEADING=3]IGNORE THEM![/HEADING]

And quit whining!

 

[DeathsHands]

Yeah, they're not around much unless you look for it. It Sucks Because It's Popular is still around, though. Overall, just gotta hope they can realize they can't make people hate or like something if they truly like or hate it.

 

[MercurySteam]

I guess once they get it out of their system they get bored and go off and spout their bullshit on another website.

Thank God.

 

[RedEyesBlackGamer]

I like fanboys (the non militant ones). I have a problem with haters. I just like seeing people overly positive about something rather than overly negative.
As to your original question, I haven't seen actual console fanboyism since around the time the PS3 got down to the 300$ range.

 

[5t3v0]

With us PC gamers its just we are trying very hard to survive in this consumerist world. We have slumps every few years, such as one in the mid 90's, one around 2002 and the one going on now, but so we have developers that remember us, we take it upon ourselves to be horridly vocal.

Now, Im not defending our actions, Im just saying if we are being dicks to you the last thing you should do is be a dick back. If we cross the line then we are probably banned for it anyway, you don't have to take it upon yourselves to self-moderate us. Also, you cannot, I repeat, Cannot argue with PC gamers. We know too much for our own good. Hence why I am probably not getting laid for a few years... or at least untill Im married...

 

[Madman123456]

Well, i'll have to make an argument *for* Fanboys. Yay, internet first!

"Fanboy-ism" may come with Ignorance. You bought a console and it turns out that this and that stuff on the other console is better. Yahtzee made that argument before me, so i wont go into that.
A better "Reason" is best explained with the 3do. Anyone still remembers this thing? Some guy named "Trip Hawkings" was trying to make a videogame console "format" with the video format "VHS" in mind. Everyone would be able to enjoy games on a machine that may have been built by different Companies. "3DO" would just be the "Format". Like DVD.
A Company may make a machine that plays DVD, CD, Blu-ray and 3do.

If we had a single Format like that, it wouldn't matter much. I could play Gears of War on the PS3, because there would be just one Format for videogames.

One may argue that this would be rather bad for variety in Videogames and that a format like this would be rather slow to change and improve, but then again we are living with this rather old console generation.

Now if i bought a videogame console i may feel ripped off because i can't play this and that game because the Company who build my console are pretty much fighting using me as a customer as a weapon.
I can't play God of War on xbox because sony doesn't want me to. So i might as well "fight" for my console, in hopes that it will be the "winner", which will get me more good games in the future.

Pretty weak argument, but what can you do with things that result from a fractured Sanity.


Fanboys are less devoted to a console, which is an inanimate object, as to their Decision to buy this thing over that thing. If "my" Console isn't doing so well then "Fanboyism" is an easy way to "do something".
If you see something you don't like, if someone does something wrong, you should do something about it.
"Fanboyism" is a way to do something in the minds of the fanboys.
Instead of sitting on your Ass and watching "your" console doing less good then it could do, you could tell someone the advantages of your console over the other.
You protect your Investment. If your console is the better one, you made a good investment. If your console fails, your money has gone to waste, at least partly, because there wont be as much games as there could be.
Again, "Fanboyism" seems like a way to do something about that, if you can present an argument that this game on your console really is good, maybe more people will buy it. If more People buy it, the console may get more sales. And maybe that third party developer making games exclusively for the other console will make games for yours.

"Fanboyism" is basically mouth to mouth propaganda, which still is one of the most effective forms of advertisement. So Fanboys feel that they may be effective in promoting this thing over the other in order to make the own machine "better" if it isn't already.