Why Do I Keep Throwing Money at Nintendo’s Face?

Nintendo is gearing up to reveal their new NX system, which is rumored to be the first step in creating a hybrid console that you can play anywhere from the living room to the train. All of this certainly sounds exciting, but how can we know it’s worth buying?

I always get asked why I'm suckered into buying new game consoles at launch. Specifically, Nintendo consoles (specifically, the WiiU). The logistics for the question are sound; they always release with fuck-all for new games at premium prices. Imagine if you bought a new $399 console just so you could bring it home to play Mario: Life Simulator or Metroid Prime: Space Colony Tycoon. The answer to this question, I think, is more complicated than people seem to realize.

The fact is that buying one of these consoles at launch puts you at risk of a terrible drought. When one of these rears its ugly head, it usually follows a vicious cycle; nobody makes games for the console, nobody buys the console due to the lack of games.

I actually find reasons to enjoy these droughts for a number of reasons- first of all, I get a chance to play games I never would have thought of touched in my life. Secondly, droughts give me time to whittle down my backlog. For those of you who have never had a backlog of games to play, imagine your boss plunks down a pile of paperwork and then you pull the clip off the top of a hand grenade and never let go.

Yeah, that's a pretty accurate representation.

But all things considered, why do we still take the plunge? Maybe it’s because we know this little box will provide us at least 4 years of the quality we’ve come to expect from Nintendo’s offerings. Anyone can see how similar some of the mario games are. Everyone and their moms dog can tell you which Pokemon game is only a slight upgrade from the last.

Maybe Nintendo fans like me are already fully aware that Nintendo won't be churning out sprawling open-world shooters or making Mario a cigar sucking, poetry writing protagonist. Maybe I take comfort in the lack of narrative or the focus on fair game play rather than neat gimmicks or eye candy. Quick, think of the first thing besides shows offer Assassin's Creed 76. It's always about how many new unimaginative side quests or tools or how many polygons they use to render Assassin 41B5’s asscrack (as if it matters when your gameplay boils down to running forward and holding the “win” button).

Another thing; we know Amiibo are $12 mini DLC unlocks for games. We buy them knowing exactly what they're used for, at least most of the time. What you get is a solid, well-built product that is designed to give you maximum play time. Come to think of it, the exact same could be said of the humble Wii U itself.

Haha, didn’t think I’d be able to tie it back but I totally nailed it.