When someone mentions licenses in games, what do we, the public, automatically think of? EA. Almost certainly, the first thing that your mind will flick to is EA. Whether it's the FIFA series, Bond or Lord of the Rings, year after year they 'pawn off' the same tired old games to an unsuspecting public, knowing that the fools will still splash out their money in the hope that something, anything has changed from the last outing. All that hope in vain. We laugh as the public purchases a poor game just because of the name. How ironic then that, we ourselves are people who fall for these licensing tricks, and on a regular basis.

Nintendo. How the hell could Nintendo, arguably the most daring and innovative company in the gaming industry, be linked in with fooling people out of their money due to a license? After all, these are the people who have broken and re-made the moulds for gaming ever since they entered the industry, with the Game & Watch, and games like Super Mario World, Ocarina of Time and the legendary Mario Kart have sent shockwaves through the gaming world, even to this day. In fact, all 3 of those games are culprits on my list. A list which has had me buy many games, almost on impulse. Example: Pikmin. A game where you throw around little plant like animals to complete tasks. Yes, it sounds innovative and original, but does it sound any good? Heck no. It sounds like a game that you'd rather burn than buy. It may have not sold well, and is considered to have bombed by many people's standards, but all it took for me is that little logo on the front of the box. 8 red letters and an outline cost me 40 of my precious pounds. Blinded by the logo, I went out, uninformed, and spent money on it. Just like the casual fools that I mock.

You've probably done it too. Want a racing game featuring licensed characters with multi-player fun and weapons? Then why not get Crash Nitro Kart? What's that I hear you say? Poor reviews? It'll be poor? Or is it just the fact that it isn't Mario? Truth be told, Crash nitro Kart does seem like a pretty average racing game, used to cash in on the Crash name, but that's against the point � who's to say that Mario Kart wasn't going to be a game of a similar calibre. It's a fact that thousands pre-ordered the game. Why? Because of the good feedback? Because the levels looked good? Hah. Because it's Mario Kart, made by Nintendo, and you HAVE to buy it.

I'm not trying to say in any way that Mario Kart is a poor game � on the contrary, I have loved and spent hours perfecting my powerslides, short cuts and power ups on the game, and loved every blue spark filled second of the game. Would I have even thought about it if Bomberman Kart or Crash Nitro Kart was getting the same good feedback and the same reports? Neverever, because in my heart, I'm an uneducated fool. I know what I like, and I stick to it. I don't want to try out new games. I know what I like, and I know that I'll buy it. So why must we persecute the casual gamers for doing exactly the same? Hypocrites? You bet.

[email protected]