Video Game Companies can Learn from Comic Companies

Competition is at the very heart of capitalism. We as gamers should be glad that Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo are trying to beat each other because that ensures we'll get the highest quality gaming experience. The problem is, sometimes the competition goes beyond the realm of business. Gamers are certainly more responsible for the console wars problem than the game companies, but representatives of the Big Three make comments that don't exactly help matters.

They're totally different from another well-known set of rivals: Marvel and DC Comics. Probably the two biggest comic book companies around, they are in fierce competition for readership. But there's no bad blood between them; in fact, they often publish cross-overs featuring characters owned by both companies. Now imagine the video game equivalent of that: an official, retail-sold game featuring Mario, Master Chief, and Kratos. Ok, I'll give you a second to stop laughing.

It's preposterous, of course; Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft would NEVER work together like that. But why not? Why are video game companies so different from comic companies? Why is it that Link will never meet Jak or Kameo, but Superman has met Spiderman at least twice?

Maybe crossovers are taking it a little too far; baby steps at first, right? So here's a challenge to the Big Three: try being friendlier with each other. Poke fun at each other playfully. Bungie, a second-party developer for Microsoft, has provided a good example. When Shigeru Miyamoto said he could have made a game like Halo but decided on a different path, many people, including people at Bungie, took the comment as Shiggy dismissing Halo's quality and success. I don't think that's what he meant at all; Reggie is the only guy at Nintendo who's big on the trash talk. But Bungie responded by saying they're working on a side-scrolling game featuring two brothers who are plumbers. That's a friendly jab; it's a good start.

Who knows; if the Big Three start playing nice with each other, we may see a day when the "console wars" don't matter. Who knows; we may even see Ratchet and Joanna Dark in a future Super Smash Bros. game.