Why We Need the Mega-Game

by Mecha Master Bill

Almost two weeks ago, I received an urgent call from a friend. His message was one that very few would care about, but it pleased me very much. "Nintendo may be working with Square. Square said that they wanted to port FFXI," he said. I quickly realized that next year, I may be taking a Zelda "CD" out of my shiny new Gamecube and putting in Final Fantasy XI. Unfortunately, after opening up my recently arrived Electronic Gaming Monthly, I realized that this might not be the case. In the immortal words of Necron, this is not the end...

I quickly learned something that thoroughly disturbed me. At Nintendo's press conference before the E3 show, Hiroshi Yamauchi got up and talked about the future of the gaming industry. He stated that Nintendo's philosophy was directly opposed to the hypothetical "mega-game." He elaborated by saying that the "mega-game" is a smash hit game that spawns so many sequels, ports, and merchandise, that everyone eventually thinks that all incarnations of it are exactly the same. Now, some readers may be thinking that a certain game series beginning with "Final" and ending with "Fantasy" exemplifies the "mega-game" perfectly. It was when I realized this that I began to worry...

You see, when Square asked Nintendo for permission to develop Game Boy Advance games, Nintendo said that Square must develop for both GBA and Gamecube, or none at all. That means ports. And remakes. And most of all, the mega-game. I'm sure that as he was saying it, Yamauchi-san realized the utter folly of his beloved "Nintendo Difference," a Big N catchphrase placing innovation above sequels. But, the fact is, sequels sell better, and money makes the world go around. I know it's been said before, but it still applies, even to Nintendo. The fact is that, money problems aside, in the game industry, you either want to be Square, or you are Square, and without that, the industry would simply cease to exist.

So, Final Fantasy is a mega-game, but it isn't the only one. Nintendo is just as guilty as Square. Can someone tell me why so many GBA launch games are ports? Why are so many of the GC launch games sequels? Because people know and recognize the names behind these mega-games. Mario. Zelda. Metroid. You yourself, the reader, are probably more likely to buy any of these when you go to the store that some no-name game. And that's the reason these names still exist.

I don't mean this editorial to be all cynical gloom-and-doom, however. Nintendo still makes great games. Square still makes great games. But, for Nintendo to pretend to be somehow "better" than Square because it provides more innovation is an outright lie.

-Bill, the Mecha Master