I think the game will still be fun and I don't like voice chat anyway, personally, but I definitely get annoyed when Nintendo just flat out refuses to accept modern trends like this.
Nintendo Has to Stop Fighting the Future
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 On 04/15/2015 at 08:44 PM by dustin See More From This User » |
When Nintendo does well, they are progressing the game industry forward-- 3D graphics, open world game design, analog control, motion control, and four player multiplayer. But when they fight against the future, they always fail-- online gaming, friend codes, voice chat, first party microphones, HD resolutions, dynamic lighting, smart phones, and more.
In a recent interview, the co-director of Splatoon, Yusuke Amano said, "This is coming from personal experience. When I played online games, I didn’t like the negativity I got and people telling me ‘You’re crap. Go away’. So we wanted to focus on the positive aspects of online gaming."
Nintendo's refusal to utilize voice chat, or parental controls to keep kids from using voice chat, not only damages Splatoon's chances (as it is a team based multiplayer online title) but it furthers the narrative that Nintendo of Japan is run by 70-something year old men with no connection to younger generations or the West at large. It is a bad sign for Nintendo's next platform. Instead of launching a new IP with much hype, Nintendo is going into E3 2016 defending their failure to get with the times. The lack of voice chat is symbolic of a larger problem with Nintendo that is likely to continue with the NX.
Nintendo has to stop lecturing the game industry on morality and social interaction. If they don't stop this anti-progression agenda with the NX then it's over for their brand as a hardware manufacturer. It won't matter if they can endure ten years of zero profits-- no one will carry their products if the whole industry gives up on them (and right now they are at about a 90% frustration level in the games industry).
Gamers speak with their wallets and they are speaking loudly by not buying Wii U. They want online gaming, they want voice, they want ear pieces and Ethernet ports, and they want better graphics in addition to evolving the controller. This is a technology driven entertainment industry-- it is always moving forward and evolving. It's just part of gaming that graphics improve, tools improve, controllers change, and new innovations are introduced.
Nintendo needs to stop trying to reinvent the wheel when they invented the vehicle. It's time to introduce power steering or liquid cooling, not try to replace how the vehicle moves people.
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