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Vertical Slice: Xmas Special

Michael Westgarth
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December 25th means different things for different people – people of different religions, ethnicities and personal traditions. But for many, many people around the world, one thing is true; the inescapable holiday juggernaut that is Christmas will soon be here.

Those annoying “classics” are on the radio 24/7, the iconic, fake plastic trees can be seen every which way, and many of us are begrudgingly buying uninspired presents for un-inspirational relatives – yet still we love Christmas.

And love certainly is at least one word that can be used to describe this bizarre, global phenomenon that sees us putting our worries aside and doing nothing but spending time with close friends and family.

Of the two previous opinion pieces I’ve written for TSSZ, one addresses the Sonic the Hedgehog fanbase and the other addresses Sega’s free-to-play business practices, and both do so negatively. But why? Why did I decide to tackle aspects of Sega I disagreed with instead of celebrating its recent achievements?

For one thing, it always helps to be topical when writing such articles, and Sega hadn’t given consumers or fans any good news at the time the two articles in question were written. Instead, Sonic Dash for Android had materialised from the ether and the Ken Pontac “scandal” had generated heated debates amongst fans – both of which were topics begging for commentary by yours truly.

See, it’s my thinking that human beings have an affinity for the negative. We’re inexplicably drawn to controversy, carnage and the moral failings of others. Just look at the headlines of any form of news reporting, be that video game news or otherwise. Simply put, we crave reasons to hate.

And to hate comes naturally to us. It’s so very easy to hate. The English language is especially attuned to expressions of hate and negativity – describing why we dislike something is far easier than describing why we genuinely love something. Even the word “love” itself is more difficult for most people to use with the same enthusiasm and passion as their daily usage of “hate”.

hate defined tssz

Last month I attended a quarterly show titled “Modern Playing”, run by professor James Newman of the Bristih, National Videogame Archive and Iain Simons of the popular British festival GameCity festival. As is the case with GameCity, Modern Playing focuses on the social aspects of “gaming” rather than on videogames themselves.

With a theme of “Christmas”, this quarter’s show opened with footage of two young children making their way downstairs on Christmas morning and opening presents to Happy Xmas (War Is Over). Needless to say, fond videogame-related Christmas memories of washed over me – Sonic & Knuckles, the Nintendo 64, Metroid Fusion, even Sonic Colours – those good times; those Christmas times.

But then Simons relayed his personal Christmas conundrum to the audience: his parents in law wanted to give his son — their grandson — either a PlayStation 4 or an Xbox One as a Christmas present and looked to Simons for advice on which console would be more suitable.

Simons described how his gut reaction was to keep his son away from both of the recently released consoles altogether because, despite the love he himself holds for videogames and videogame culture, he was all too aware of the raw hatred that many gamers frequently brought into the equation.

And as Simons finished speaking, the same sequence from the start of the show played again, but with a sobering difference. The young children again made their ways down the stairs and Lennon sung away in the background once more, but this time the footage over overlain with the disgusting, hateful social media comments from offensively ignorant Sony and Microsoft “fanboys”. It’s a world of hate far beyond the harmless playground squabbles of the 90’s and it’s a world Simons would rather shield his son from completely.

And so I come back to my TSSZ opinion pieces. The first, regarding Ken Pontac, Sonic canon and its apologists was intentionally inflammatory. As expected, I received comments from a small proportion of disgruntled readers that thought it acceptable to insult me, my opinions and my work.

But I don’t mind.

In fact, I’m extremely grateful for each and every person who read the article, let alone those who took the time to leave a comment. I’m also grateful that the Sonic fanbase is still robust enough to warrant the existence of sites such as TSSZ, therefore providing me a platform from which to communicate my thoughts and opinions.

But like I said, us humans love to hate, and thanking readers for reading an article that simultaneously lambastes them just doesn’t work – but doesn’t that make me part of the problem? Doesn’t that mean that I’m contributing, even in the smallest way, to the videogame culture negativity that Simons wishes to shield his son from?

So as a special Christmas treat, I’m going to buck the trend:

Thank you for taking the time to read my work – regardless of whether or not you agree with it – and I hope you all have an absolutely smashing Christmas.

See you next year!

This post was originally written by the author for TSSZ News.

Tags AndroidChristmasFree to PlayKen PontacSEGASonic DashSonic The Hedgehog (Series)TSSZ NewsVertical Slice
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Michael Westgarth

Michael Westgarth

Michael Westgarth is a freelance writer known for his former Sonic fan column Vertical Slice on TSSZ News. Read Michael’s previous writing via his blog, MegaWestgarth.

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26 Comments

  1. I disagree, not everyone is a cynic and a pessimist. A lot of people are much more optimistic, even if they face troubles. I find it far easier to love than hate.

  2. “See, it’s my thinking that human beings have an affinity for the negative.”

    Naw, not human beings. Just Sonic fans.

    2. Not true at all unfortunately, just take a look at the rest of the internet. Sometimes I really do fear for the future of the human race, if Youtube comments are anything to go by.

  3. You’re a very interesting man. I have to ask: Do you actually like Christmas, or do you find it a waste of time?

  4. Good article. I’ve always hated the console wars. I mean, the fans didn’t create the Xbone, so why do they flip out when Sony fans bash it? It just doesn’t make any sense to me. Only things I disagreed with were the love to hate thing, but just because I try to stay away from conflict/argument, and try to find the good things.

      1. I will, thanks. This is one of the few articles I’ve read that captured my attention long enough for me to read through the entire thing. Merry Christmas!

  6. This is why the Wii U is the superior console. Correct? I mean, the Wii U is a console designed for the entire gaming audience, not just the older gamers who Microsoft and SONY try so hard to please. So they can’t decide what console to get him? Well Simon, if you wish to avoid the unacceptable sparks between SONY and Microsoft than please feel free to suggest the Wii U for Christmas.

    1. ”This is why the Wii U is the superior console. Correct? I mean, the Wii U is a console designed for the entire gaming audience, not just the older gamers who Microsoft and SONY try so hard to please. ”

      That surely explains why the Wii u is selling sooooo well :p

      1. Don’t talk about sales when you know full well most people here will defend the Dreamcast to the death. A console is only as good as it’s games.

        And no, I’m not moving goalposts, the Wii U is still in deep doo doo (but only as much as the PS3 was) right now.

    2. Wii U is as much a part of the “console wars” this year as the PS4/XBOne. There are plenty of vocal Nintendo fanboys out there, in addition to those of the other 2 consoles.

      1. Yep, there’s Nintendo fanboys aplenty. But in my opinion, I think that the Wii U will pull a fast one and come out on top again like the Wii did. It may not be as successful as the Wii, but with the PS4 and the Xbox One as competition…?

        I like to think that the Wii U is outside of the “console war”. The PS4 and Xbox One offer such similar experiences that fans of each console have to clutch at so many more straws when constructing their flimsy arguments as to why their chosen console is better. Making fun of the Wii U is just a way for said fans to vent their insecurities.

  8. There are a lot of blanket statements that tend to cover humanity that I personallydon’t agree with. The notion that we as humans are attracted to hate, or violence, or greed, always has me scratching my head. When I see articles on yahoo of something similar to “violence spreads in Iraq,” I usually check it out if not only because I want to see if the United Nations are going to do anything- if China’s getting involved, how much -more- the U.S. is getting involved, not specifically to read up on how x family was slaughtered by y soldier. When people use their anonymity online to harass and threaten other people on youtube and xbox live, I don’t join in and harass the victim.

    In terms of Sonic titles, I’ve avoided being negative largely due to a factor few rarely talk about. Negative opinions are rapant in the community, sure, and conflicting opinions are numerous due to the various continuities of the franchise. That is all fine, but when the derogatory insults become something of a norm, when writing an article outlining the already negative community’s expectations in terms of story to be something similar to outrageous- well, I simply bow out.

    With that said, I’m glad I viewed your article about the free to play business practices that Sega has delved into because I agreed mostly with what was stated. I wish I hadn’t read the former article because of it, but hey, at least if I see a verticle slice article with another story opinion, I’ll know not to check it out, just like how I avoided Sonic ’06, Unleashed, and will avoid Lost World on the 3ds until I can buy it at discount(that way I’m far less disappointed, if that is my reaction).

    1. That sounds like a fair conclusion. I respect you for sticking with my articles, even if you disagree with me or chose to avoid certain topics completely.

      You’re right, I used blanket statements, and that’s never really a good idea. But I felt that if I were to specify further then the article would triple in size. But you’re right about watching the news to find out how the UN etc. can FIX things, because that’s precisely what I do. People who try not to hate are usually quite empathetic and therefore feel the need to keep updated on global unrest, especially when the innocent end up suffering.

      Thanks for the comment. Have a great Christmas.

  9. Console wars are pointless because their entire premise is stupid. You gain nothing from taking part in one. You can’t really “win” one because whatever happens at the top of these giant corporations is beyond your control anyway. Even if you could “win”, what’s the point? A brief ego boost before you either delude yourself into thinking that there are more battles to be fought, or you hit the realization regarding all that time you wasted arguing over opinions and that you really have nothing actually satisfying to take away from it all?

  10. I agree 100%
    Too many people you would find arguing on the internet just cause. I see more people focusing more on the negative more than anything else, even if there’s a positive conversation people will find a way to turn it negative.

    Congrats man, I like the way you think!

  12. It’s so true how humans love to hate. Not just in video games, but for other media as well such as Cartoons and Comics.

    Why can’t people just shut up and be grateful for what they get?

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