Backward Compatibility Should Matter

When I first heard the news that Nintendo was going to join the ranks of Sony to not offer a backward compatibility on their latest revision of the Nintendo Wii, I was a bit miffed. Then I started reading a post from some guy about how we won’t miss it and why we shouldn’t care. It was that blog that made me a bit angry and made me believe that he is one of those douchebags that will run out and by a new iPhone simply because it’s the iPhone 5.

When Sony stopped offering backward compatibility with the PlayStation 3, it seemed that many people were ticked off about it but that has seemed to die down now that we have high-definition, 3D gaming. Why would anyone want to go back and play those old PlayStation 2, or even PlayStation 1, games? This isn’t about the games being available for download on your PlayStation Network or Nintendo’s Wii Store, and anyone who thinks that is missing the point.

The main point of contention with me is that we HAVE TO BUY THEM AGAIN. If the game is a big seller, then they will do an HD remake of the game and sell it to everyone that had purchased the original games. No one will balk either, because this is what we expect from those video game publishers. We should have some backward compatibility when we get a new console, especially if you have to pay top dollar when the console is released.

There is a chip that is inside the device that will allow for the backward compatibility, but they don’t want to do that because they won’t be able to sell you the re-release of the game. So, for those of us that like some of the old PS2 games like: Black, Max Payne, SSX Tricky, Kingdom Hearts will have to keep our PS2 around to play those games.

Now, some people say that you can get those games from their respective store, which is not true. Not all games are available on their stores. When was the last time you saw Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire on their store? What about Rogue Squadron and Rebel Strike for that matter? It is because some of the games are made by companies that are no longer around or found no need to release them again.

How many Blu-ray players would have been sold if there wasn’t any backward compatibility? Some will say that it is different? Is it really? I don’t think so. You have movies that are rendered in high definition and offer much more extras but you can’t play any of your old DVDs in it. How many people would have bought these devices?

Think about all the movies they rushed out to catch up on the craze. They were throwing out every movie imaginable and where did that get them? Have you seen the new Blu-ray $7 bin at Best Buy? Now, removing the Gamecube ports of the Wii is the silliest idea known to man. Some games were strictly designed for the top Z shoulder buttons. Some games won’t even work with the newer controllers, but you know Nintendo will offer a wireless version of the controller for everyone to buy.

I think that people that say that “this is the way it is” buy into all the marketing that comes from publishers and console manufactures, this all comes down to money. There is a minor motivation for convenience, but the almighty dollar rules. So why not offer something that people pay for again and make it sound like it is cool to have.

My point is this; backward compatibility should be available for the next generation devices. Not simply for the initial launch, but for the console’s entire duration. The Wii should still be made to allow people to play Gamecube games, but obviously they would offer online content for games that are N64 and older. Sony should allow people to play PS2 games on their PS3, but offer all their PS1 titles on the PlayStation Store. However, that would mean all the gamers would have to stop buying older games on download and it seems like that won’t happen. If that isn’t happening, then why should the video game business change?