Games Thrist News Gamers Thirst For

I used to love you for many reasons. You were the new kid on the block and had a no-holes-barred feel to your style. Buying exclusives, stealing some away from the competition. Making great Halo games and Gears of War was king. Your console, the one that I love, was once known as the hardcore system, but now, like a plant that blossomed in its day and died with the passing of time, the Xbox 360′s hardcore crowed, one I’m a part of, has been abandoned. Microsoft’s new love is Kinect and I’m left asking a question only a neglected child would ask: Microsoft, why on God’s earth did you abandoned me?

After all, it was hardcore who made you what you are today in the gaming space.

But you don’t seem to care. And with each passing year your strategy becomes more clear. No hardcore games, only Halo iterations and Gears of War 3 – a game that’s not sure to remain exclusive. Meanwhile, my PS3′s stealing all the attention with countless amounts of exclusives, giving me options.

Ask my friends, it’s been a while since I turned on my 360 – because I see no need to. All Redmond talks about now is Kinect. Kinect this, Kinect that, Kinect has sold 10 million pieces of hardware and the equivalent amount of software. They talk of motion gaming taking over and how soon gamers will forget the traditional controller.

And so my drought continues. It’s like starving your very own mother who gave you birth. It was the hardcore that made Microsoft what it is in the gaming industry today. It was they who went out and purchased consoles, and purchased the games for it – in fact they still do, faithfully.

But with each passing day our interest in the company’s fading. Our faith has been diminished to nought. Isn’t it possible to sustain Kinect and the hardcore at once? Is this so hard a task? Sony’s doing it with PS Move. But Sony recognizes where its money comes from. Its supported the crowd for years and has no plans to stop. This year, Sony’s making the competition look like child’s play as its unveiled the most convincing lineup its ever had.

We’re knee-deep in Killzone 3. Then there’s:

inFamous 2, Uncharted 3, Motorstorm Apocalypse, Resistance 3, we’ve already had LBP2, The Last Guardian’s on its way. SOCOM 4 is coming – and these are just a few of the stellar lineup.

Microsoft on the other side, has Gear of War 3 this year.

Halo in the next year and beyond that we know nothing.

So why, Microsoft, have you done this? You had it altogether, you knew what you were about. But like the beast you are, money’s consumed you once more, hasn’t it? Kinect is selling extremely well and so you’ve focused your attention there. You want to rule the living room but you’re leaving behind those who make up the living room.

I’m sorry, but this is simply not a wise move. Please, Redmond, bring me back to my love. Give me reasons to hope because I’ll be truthfully honest: the way things are turning out, I might have to head to eBay and sell this Xbox 360, never to purchase your consoles again.