R.O.B. did not save video games in the States

[firedragon_jing]

I have heard this argument over and over again, and I'm sick of it. Some even say he saved video gaming period, which is just ridiculous seeing that R.O.B. only had some significance in New York, and the Famicon had already sold well in Japan. The fact is the retailers weren't dumb enough to allow a video game console to be sold on store shelves just because it came packaged with a toy robot. If he was as important as you guys say he is, he wouldn't have been dropped from the NES after one year. The real reason Nintendo was able to get past these retailers is because they, "made the bold move of offering a money-back guarantee to retailers for unsold merchandise."

Source

Seriously, I think many of you except this just to justify R.O.B.s appearance to so you don't feel as bad about such a WTF character making it into the roster. Fact is Sakurai is nostalgic, and rather have things that highlight Nintendo's past then add characters of high popularity.


THIS IS NOT A R.O.B. BASH THREAD, STOP THE UNNECESSARY FLAMING.

This is to inform people that the R.O.B. saving video games came from a single article that was used to justify his appearance, which has gotten out of hand. People need to stop spreading this. R.O.B. is a decent character, but he is not an all mighty gaming legend.

 

[hippochinfat!!]

Pfft you're source is lying mah boi!

Besides R.O.B. is a pimp so who cares?

 

[Gilgamesh]

R.O.B. saved my family from a fire.

It's true!

 

[redgreenblue]

I think R.O.B. is a great choice for a SSBB character regardless of how much it helped save the industry. Nostalgia is one of the reasons I love nintendo, plus he seems to be a great character.

 

[Chaosblade77]

This seems like a hidden complaint due to deep-seeded dislike because of R.O.B. being in the game over characters you would have preferred, even if it's a subconscious feeling.

 

[Banjodorf]

Pfft you're source is lying mah boi!

Besides R.O.B. is a pimp so who cares?

**** right! Stick it to the man Hippo!

Stand up fer ROB teh pimp.

Any ROB haters, you didnt see the ROB combo video.

He is totally badass.

 

[OnyxVulpine]

*Remembers hearing that was how R.O.B. was used in a TV show on the history of Nintendo*

Hmm.. Does it matter anymore? He is in the game, if you don't like him, don't use him.

-Onyx

 

[STEREO_226]

no offense but you just sound like all the other anti-R.O.B. people.
even if what you say is true its not like it matters. there's no telling why Nintendo may have dropped R.O.B. after that year but regardless of his past...
he seems to be in Super Smash Bros Brawl. and i dont think he's going away..
i can understand not liking a character, but give it a rest. R.O.B. may have not been that great to you but a lot of fans of Nintendo probably have fallen in love with this character. to be honest, i didnt understand why he was included either, just like G&W in melee, i wasnt mad that he was in, because of regardless of how i felt about it, he's not going away. Just dont play as him... plain and simple..

 

[Super Drybones]

Nintendo: This guy is so right. We were stupid to include ROB. Revoke all the Brawl disks and delete him. In fact as making a character takes only 3 days add Ridley, Megaman, Krystal, And Geno.
Thank you firedragon_jing you are a god to us.


Dude it's not gonna happen

 

[Luke Groundwalker]

The source isn't true. The fact of the manner is, ROB DID save the gaming industry. The gaming industry was hell after the incident with Atari flopping badly and NO retailer wanted to sell any video game product period in fear of this. But with the NES, the American version came with a ROB and it was marketed as a toy rather than a gaming system, which got big retailers like Wal Mart actually want to sell it.

 

[redgreenblue]

Nintendo: This guy is so right. We were stupid to include ROB. Revoke all the Brawl disks and delete him. In fact as making a character takes only 3 days add Ridley, Megaman, Krystal, And Geno.
Thank you firedragon_jing you are a god to us.


Dude it's not gonna happen

This made me lol. Thank you for this, my friend!

 

[Ookami-kun]

There're still people who are quite bitter about their character not appearing in the game.

 

[STEREO_226]

Nintendo: This guy is so right. We were stupid to include ROB. Revoke all the Brawl disks and delete him. In fact as making a character takes only 3 days add Ridley, Megaman, Krystal, And Geno.
Thank you firedragon_jing you are a god to us.


Dude it's not gonna happen

you win the thread my friend. *claps*

 

[1UP]

without rob then sega would have won the console war and we would be playing super smash sonic brawl instead and only nintendo character would be mario an he was just added at the last minute anyway...

 

[-Knux-]

R.O.B. saved my family from a fire.

It's true!

I actually believe you.
~~~
R.O.B. is a cool character. He's definitely unique to the roster. I've accepted him.

 

[RedMage8BT]

Dude, R.O.B. saved my hometown from the great fire of '74. Show him some respect.

 

[firedragon_jing]

Nintendo: This guy is so right. We were stupid to include ROB. Revoke all the Brawl disks and delete him. In fact as making a character takes only 3 days add Ridley, Megaman, Krystal, And Geno.
Thank you firedragon_jing you are a god to us.


Dude it's not gonna happen

Ok, some of you guys are mistaking this for a R.O.B. bash thread

IT'S NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Ok, I'm fine with R.O.B., I could do without him, I'll probably never play him, but the more the merrier in the roster.

This thread is a complaint of people arguing over something that isn't true. Stop trying to put R.O.B. on the gaming pedestal and except him for what he is, a WTF character just like G&W.

Also, I didn't want Ridley >.> I actually wanted him as a boss.
and parden me, but you're an idiot, I work on modeling, and it takes at least a week or two, probably a lot longer to make one of these characters. I have no idea were you got that idea

 

[Best101]

Respect the classics maaaaaaan!

(I always wanted to say that)

 

[supersonicdjs]

ROB is cute especially when Kirby copies him and says "Beep".

Do the Robot!

 

[Super Drybones]

Ok, some of you guys are mistaking this for a R.O.B. bash thread

IT'S NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Ok, I'm fine with R.O.B., I could do without him, I'll probably never play him, but the more the merrier in the roster.

This thread is a complaint of people arguing over something that isn't true. Stop trying to put R.O.B. on the gaming pedestal and except him for what he is, a WTF character just like G&W.

Also, I didn't want Ridley >.> I actually wanted him as a boss.
and parden me, but you're an idiot, I work on modeling, and it takes at least a week or two, probably a lot longer to make one of these characters. I have no idea were you got that idea

Calm down and read this:
http://archive.gamespy.com/articles/july03/25smartest/index22.shtml

 

[AznHalfCaucasian]

 

[firedragon_jing]

Calm down and read this:
http://archive.gamespy.com/articles/july03/25smartest/index22.shtml

Yeah, I just changed the first post to say this. I have read that, that's the article that started this. It even contradicts what people say, by saying people weren't fooled, even though Nintendo advertised it with the purpose you guys are saying. R.O.B. only had a partial influence on the decision to give Nintendo a chance, but it was the fact that they gave a guarantee to buy back the consoles if they didn't sell that led to the retailers stocking them.

 

[Luke Groundwalker]

*facepalm*

 

[firedragon_jing]

*facepalm*

I'm not just saying this, I was there around the time of the NES, and it would have sold without R.O.B., heck they even sold a NES package without R.O.B., that sold just as well, R.O.B. was not necessary.

 

[Monshou_no_Nazo]

IIRC, R.O.B was extremely unsuccessful in his task of making the NES pose as a toy rather than a video game console (this was after the Video Game Crash, after all), the only appropriate time to bash R.O.B. is when actually attempting to use him to play an NES game... Even by 1985 standards R.O.B was a very poor gaming accessory that is much better off being used as a collector's item and/or decoration...

But that was yeaaaaaaars ago. R.O.B is a cult icon that represents an era. Is is more appropriate for Brawl than most characters since R.O.B does not have his own franchise (ROB based games have a scientist character instead), so he can make Smash Bros. his new home. ROB is Nintendo. Anybody who bashes ROB and then turns around and calls themselves Nintendo fans are nothing more than hypocrites.

Also, there is Awesome Video Games giving ROB some good props by making him a character in their episodes.

 

[Luke Groundwalker]

I'm not just saying this, I was there around the time of the NES, and it would have sold without R.O.B., heck they even sold a NES package without R.O.B., that sold just as well, R.O.B. was not necessary.

More like you're pulling things out of your *** and know nothing about the video game industry's history.

 

[firedragon_jing]

More like you're pulling things out of your *** and know nothing about the video game industry's history.

Are you kidding me, I study video gaming history, all the way back to Ralph Baer. I led my video game design lecture on vg history at Purdue giving more info than the professor >.>

 

[Luke Groundwalker]

Are you kidding me, I study video gaming history, all the way back to Ralph Baer. I led my video game design lecture at Purdue giving more info than the professor >.>

Then you would know wide and well that ROB indeed saved the **** industry from going into oblivion. Apparently you don't which is pretty pathetic considering its been a well known fact ever since the **** thing was released in the States.

 

[OnyxVulpine]

Ah yes.. Ralph Baer.. Him and that Magnavox Odyssey..

I don't say that he saved it, but he was like... a distraction?

-Onyx

 

[Surgo]

If it's such a "well known fact" as you say, Luke Groundwalker, please provide sources.

 

[Monshou_no_Nazo]

I don't say that he saved it, but he was like... a distraction?

-Onyx

Yes. R.O.B was pretty much the face of the NES for a short time, an advertisement to make the NES look like a toy, but the moment people saw the beauty of Mario and Duck Hunt, he probably wasn't necessary anymore. Think of it as Ocean's Eleven: R.O.B was just one of the many team members involved in completing the mission of robbing our hearts.

I can't claim to be completely knowledgeable, or accurate since I have no handy sources, but I imagine this is how it worked out.

 

[Luke Groundwalker]

If it's such a "well known fact" as you say, Luke Groundwalker, please provide sources.

I dunno, how about you check all the **** records of retailers, the **** report on GameSpy that was NOTHING of opinion but told the history of ROB, and use a quick search in Google to find a reliable source?

The source the topic creator listed is mildly true in a sense that there was many factors that contributed to interest big retailers to sell the NES, but it wasn't the main factor. The main factor was ROB and without him NO ONE would've sold the NES in stores like Wal Mart and whatnot. ROB wasn't a very good toy, nor did the sales of the NES were caused by him (the actual sales, of course, come from big hits like Super Mario Bros.). But he did save the **** industry in America by selling the NES in American shores.

 

[WaffleGuyPerson]

Yes. R.O.B was pretty much the face of the NES for a short time, an advertisement to make the NES look like a toy, but the moment people saw the beauty of Mario and Duck Hunt, he probably wasn't necessary anymore. Think of it as Ocean's Eleven: R.O.B was just one of the many team members involved in completing the mission of robbing our hearts.

I can't claim to be completely knowledgeable, or accurate since I have no handy sources, but I imagine this is how it worked out.

Yeah, ROB was pretty much what got people the NES, but Mario/Duck Hunt was what got people to really want to play video games again. I'm not bashing ROB in any way. He was very important. Also, this is just my opinion.

 

[Surgo]

I dunno, how about you check all the **** records of retailers, the **** report on GameSpy that was NOTHING of opinion but told the history of ROB, and use a quick search in Google to find a reliable source?

Because the sales records of retailers would differentiate between them putting the game on because of ROB and them putting the game on because they got a money-back guarantee from Nintendo if the system didn't sell? Yeah right.

So the best you can do is tell us to "google it" and point to a gamespy article that also doesn't cite any sources and tells us it was a "trojan horse" with absolutely no reasoning or source and expects us to just believe them. Yeah, okay.

 

[brawlmaniac]

R.O.B. is my best friend. How dare you say those awful things about him!

 

[A New Challenger]

R.O.B. eats **** and gargles with semen afterwards.

No, I don't have anything useful to add to that comment. Maybe he was the best NES peripheral ever? But I'm not sure the US model had that feature.

 

[Luke Groundwalker]

Because the sales records of retailers would differentiate between them putting the game on because of ROB and them putting the game on because they got a money-back guarantee from Nintendo if the system didn't sell? Yeah right.

You'd be surprised. If anything, past sales records of retailers during the NES' release would be listed as a toy rather than a video game system as it was considered as so when first released in America.

So the best you can do is tell us to "google it" and point to a gamespy article that also doesn't cite any sources and tells us it was a "trojan horse" with absolutely no reasoning or source and expects us to just believe them. Yeah, okay.

Yes, because quite frankly, a five-year-old mentally disabled kid would be able to know that Google is used to SEARCH for things. Got questions? Search for it on Google. Hell, use any search engine.

It honestly isn't that hard.

And Gamespy IS a source. They aren't IGN where IGN is always wrong, Gamespy is very reliable in everything they say plus all they said was an expanded version of a fact that has been known for years now.

 

[Surgo]

Because I'm apparently not as intelligent as a mentally disabled five year old, how about you provide some sources for this supposedly well-known fact?

Gamespy would be a source...if they in turn gave us their source for their claim that ROB saved the industry. They don't.

 

[Luke Groundwalker]

Because I'm apparently not as intelligent as a mentally disabled five year old,

I'm thankful you realized this. Maybe I and your dishonored family will redeem and forgive you.

how about you provide some sources for this supposedly well-known fact?

Okay, these links come up in a five second search in Google:
http://www.gamersgraveyard.com/repository/nes/peripherals/rob.html
http://www.vidgame.net/NINTENDO/rob.htm
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.01/robots_pr.html

Gamespy would be a source...if they in turn gave us their source for their claim that ROB saved the industry. They don't.

Right. So let's question EVERY legit source (even though they've made no actual mistakes in the past nor are they known for being wrong like someone like IGN) just because there's NO SOURCE to back it up! Great idea!

 

[LuisMa316]

Because I'm apparently not as intelligent as a mentally disabled five year old, how about you provide some sources for this supposedly well-known fact?

Gamespy would be a source...if they in turn gave us their source for their claim that ROB saved the industry. They don't.

Kinda for something that happened in the 80's.

Did you live in the 80's junior?

I still own my ROB. Even gave it a puerto rican Bandana.