Washington Post calls GameCube obsolete.

[NeoZeedeater]

Sega's 3rd on the food chain. Business as usual.

Namco above Sega is business as usual? Did Lucas Barton hijack your account?

I can't think of a single year from 1985-2003 where Namco deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Sega. Sega's a corpse this year so it's debatable.

[Opaque]

And yet still, Nintendo > Sega. Actually Namco > Nintendo > Sega.

LOL.

Jesus, you know less about the state of things than remnant.

[mollipen]

This may be news to TNL but out in the physical world, if you mention the words 'Gamecube' or 'Zelda' to casual gamers you'll have to explain what they are. Playstation and XBox they understand. They'll say: "Gamecube? Which one is that now?"

This is one of the most ridiculous things I've read in this thread. The GameCube probably isn't as recognizable a name as PlayStation or Xbox - that I don't disagree with. But Zelda? Please. My mother, for christ's sake, knows what Zelda is. Casual gamers may know "PlayStation" and "Xbox," but names like "Mario" or "Zelda" or "Pokemon" or "Sonic" are still far more known names.

[jarrod]

I can't think of a single year from 1985-2003 where Namco deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Sega. Sega's a corpse this year so it's debatable.

Sega's been in steady decline for the past 5 years I'd say, while Namco's been getting steadily better. I'd say Namco's easily the mopst consistant Japanese developer these days, ahead of Nintendo & Capcom even.

[Mikey]

This is one of the most ridiculous things I've read in this thread. The GameCube probably isn't as recognizable a name as PlayStation or Xbox - that I don't disagree with. But Zelda? Please. My mother, for christ's sake, knows what Zelda is. Casual gamers may know "PlayStation" and "Xbox," but names like "Mario" or "Zelda" or "Pokemon" or "Sonic" are still far more known names.

I suppose that's true about Zelda but you basically ignored the overall point of the post, which was about the Gamecube, and engaged in childish syntactic nit-picking, which is really annoying and futile.

[MVS]

I want my time devoted to reading these 5 pages back.

[NeoZeedeater]

Sega's been in steady decline for the past 5 years I'd say, while Namco's been getting steadily better. I'd say Namco's easily the mopst consistant Japanese developer these days, ahead of Nintendo & Capcom even.

I see the Sega decline(although I would say it started around 2002) but I definitely do not see this increase in Namco quality. Seriously, what excellent games have they made in the past few years? I can't think of anything that comes close to Pikmin 2 quality.

[MarkRyan]

I see the Sega decline(although I would say it started around 2002) but I definitely do not see this increase in Namco quality. Seriously, what excellent games have they made in the past few years? I can't think of anything that comes close to Pikmin 2 quality.

Ridge Racer V, Katamari Damacy, Ace Combat? Of those, I think only Ridge Racer is on par with Nintendo's comparable stuff.

...And I'd like to argue that Konami Computer Entertainment Japan is the best Japanese developer right now.

[sethsez]

I can't think of anything that comes close to Pikmin 2 quality.

Though I generally find Namco's output boring, I'd much rather play Katamari Damacy than Pikmin 2.

[jarrod]

I see the Sega decline(although I would say it started around 2002) but I definitely do not see this increase in Namco quality. Seriously, what excellent games have they made in the past few years? I can't think of anything that comes close to Pikmin 2 quality.

Outside Tekken (which peaked at T2 imo), I just think everything's been getting better. Ridge Racer V, Ace Combat 4-5, Klonoa 2, Soul Calibur 1-2, Smash Court 1-2, Klonoa GBA 1-2, Mr Driller series, Taiko series, Katamri Damacy, Donkey Konga, Crisis Zone... everything Namco's done internally this gen's been top stuff imo. Well, Breakdown and Racing Evolution are kinda crap, but only two mediocre games isn't bad at all. Better than Sega anyway.... Star Fox Assault and Ridge Racers both look excellent too.

...And I'd like to argue that Konami Computer Entertainment Japan is the best Japanese developer right now.

Naw, they produce way too much licensed anime crap (Shaman King, Getbackers, Yu-Gi-OH!, Hikaru no Go, etc) for that. Kojima's own projects (MGS, ZOE, Boktai) turn out pretty good but KCEJ encomapasses more than just that. I'd actually say KCET or KCES are more consistant even.