Hello! This is long and I type like I talk, so rambling happens. I apologize.
So here's a thing that's been on my mind for a while now, especially now that the game is out and review are comming in, ect.
I have -zero- intrestin in playing this game, each review I see makes that more clear to me. That's ok, eveyone has tastes. I'm not upset at anyone who likes this game.
What I'm more intrested in is how this game, from annoucement to relaease day, was besieged with a lot of bad blood from certain fans of the series. Some more warented then others.
I admit I was part of the "THEY CHANGED THE HAIR NOW I HATE THIS SHIT!!!" faction. But after a time that arumenent bacame silly and as more trailers were released, my complant changed. I'm more annoyed with the company making this game then I am the product itself. Kind of like how I can't bring myself to read "Enders Game" becasue Orson Scott Card is a homophobe. Keep in mind I'm not equating Ninja Theory to that particular man I'm just making a comparison. It should also be clear that when I say, "Ninja Theory" I'm more refrencing Tameemi Antoniades.
Not since IGN's Greg Miller( a dude I have the upmost adoration for, real talk I love his work on IGN, specifically the podcasts) have I seen a reaction over a change in the way a video game character looks. I will agree that -AT FIRST- most of the criticism of this game was due to art style changes. But them something happened between the first reveal and now.
1) The issues with the game change from irritation with the look, to lack of confidence in the developer
2) Said developers reaction to the initial criticism*
3)Gamming media outlets perpetuating the idea that the rage was all about the hair and nothing else.*
*These two in particular are important. Namely because this what, from my perspective at least, came up the most when talk of this game arose. I'm watching some old preview videos for this game now, most of them make the easy "fans hating change, his hair is black now" joke. Harmless, not threating to anyones saftey, but drew away attemtuon from actual complaints or disscussions on art style choice and how something so drastically different, but changeing the same name can arouse ire in fans of something.
To use games in general as an example, I'm sure at one point or another you've been annoyed when someone confuses a game you enjoy for something else, especially if that soemthing else was something you did not like for whatever reason. You're a big Team Fortress 2 fan, but 8 out of every 10 people you meet keeps calling it Black Ops 2. This would more then likely annoy the shit out of you. Now imagine that the game you hold dear, in this example being TF2 was getting a new installment. YAY!!!!!!!!!!!11111
But instead of looking anything like TF2 or an improvement of that art style or anything remotely resembling the reasons you like TF2 to begin with, it looks -exactly- like BO2. And is being made by Game Loft. How would you react to this? Especially if in most outlets you looked about this new game, Game Loft kept calling TF2 "aged" "inferior" and assured, with out any evidence, that this new TF game would be better. I imagine you might be annoyed, to say the least.
That is kind of, not exactly, but kind of what we are dealing with in the case of DmC.
Next example.Greg Miller. Love the man and the company, they do great work. I listen to most every IGN podcast I can and I respect and take to heart the opinions of games. Greg is a smart dude. He also fucking raged when Cole from infamas got a redesign.
Pic here: http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/replicate/EXID6894/images/gi-infamous2-wrap.jpg
Remember that shit? Were you mad at this? I did not care in the least. I don't own a ps3 so I had no dog in that race. Funny now considering how I feelt about DmC when it was announced. Shoe on the other foot and all.
Mill-money( and I'm gonna assume alot of fans) raged, they got a redesign, fanfair was had( I assume) and that was that.
DMC fans get mad, and apparently they hate change and should suck it up.
You can make the argument that Infamous was newer and didn't need to be jazzed up but the parallel lines hold up like a pushup bra made of Titansteel.
I should wrap this up. Here's the TLDR version of this, I think.
The fan and developer interaction of DmC is a interesting example of how a company, by way of who they choose to be the figure head of their produces and how they respond to all forms, good or bad, of criticism can cool the perception of their games. Even if the game itself it not torrid, attitudes can turn silver to copper. I do not doubt, for a second that if Ninja Theory had chosen to respond to angry fans in a way that said, "We understand why you are upset, we have a vision for this game and we want to make it something you enjoy. We will take this criticism to heart and bring you a Devil May Cry game you can be proud of." We might be having a different conversation. Sucker Punch Productions chose to work with the fans and not be labeled as "caving in". Ninja Theory, for one reason of another, instead of saying, "Lets talk." they said: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Qg6dTgRHB0
(But thats just my opinion, whats yours?)
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