Electronic Gaming Monthly is known for their April Fools Jokes in every April issue. Sure, not every joke is believable, but they always have a way of cheering someone up. They don’t piss people off. And after a day or two of believing it, people realize that it was a joke, and move along.
But sometimes, the jokes go way too far.
This year’s supposed EGM prank is a blurb about ”Mushroom Kingdom Hearts”. Doesn’t need much explanation to figure out what the game would have been about. The prank was a simple, yet good, prank that doesn’t piss me off. It wasn’t a game that I was expecting, therefore, I didn’t have expectations.
But what about other publications? Here’s a nice picture at the end of the Official Nintendo Magazine this month (ONM is a UK magazine):
Pretty constalation, huh?You might think it’s just a picture of stars, but some Photoshoppers beg to differ:
Yes. It’s NiGHTS, one of the greatest games ever, and possibly the best on the Sega Saturn. These pictures have been spread around the internet like wildfire, and creating massive hype for the next issue of Official Nintendo Magazine.
Hold on a second. Before you get your hopes up, think about it. Could this be a joke? “No, of course not! ONM isn’t that stupid.” But what if they are? What if this NiGHTS cover is all a joke? Will you be pissed? I sure as hell would be, as well as all the subscribers of ONM.
That one picture would be giving the readers a false impression for weeks. Which, in turn, would increase the hope and anticipation of reading about NiGHTS on the Wii. Having that much hope and excitement just drop will fill people with rage and frustration. So much rage that peope might even stop reading ONM. And ONM just can’t afford to do it again.
Take a look at this preview of the next issue of NGamer:
My instincts tell me either NiGHTS or Earthbound Wii. My thoughts are the same with this as they are on NiGHTS in ONM.
What I’m trying to get across is that there are limits when it comes to print April Fools Jokes. The level of anticipation and hype that comes with 30 days of being told a lie is devestating, and there’s a thin line between “funny” and “pissing off”.
Damn man, I’d dig NiGHTS on the Wii!
Ummmm…why would that be an April Fool’s Joke? I suppose I’m not saying it isn’t, but it seems that you’re completely certain it is. What makes you believe that?
I’m not saying it is an April Fools joke. But it’s a possibility. And what makes me pretty sure, is that NiGHTS has a H-U-G-E following, and it would be a good prank. But if it is a prank, it builds excitement and hope due to the fact it’s a magazing, and leaves in its wake a shitload of letdowns.
[...] I was wrong… April 3, 2007 Posted by arbiter in News. trackback Someone may have wrote about the possibility of NiGHTS on WIi being an April Fools [...]