Do Gaming Leaks Mean Anything In This Day And Age?

Gaming leaks are as common these days as photos of the Kardashians doing something pointless and just like the aforementioned Kardashians, do they really mean anything?

Over the weekend the internet went into a meltdown over the possibility that Rayman, the limbless star from Ubisoft was joining the fighting roster for Super Smash Bros on Wii U. Now since then the creator of the images has come clean and stated he did it to test his artistic skills out, but it was real enough for a day, which gave the internet something to hold onto. Countless people reported on it being real, discussions were taking place attempting to debate the validity of the rumour and then there were those that just outright said it was fake.

But in this day and age, where people are always going to hunt around for the proof on their own, do leaks really matter? After the massive leak that Super Smash Bros was dealt last year, I myself found it hard to believe that another one would happen again, surely anyone working at Nintendo or the ESRB would now be weary of trying to release something again. But of course we got some footage from the character select screen and that was it, people lost it.

Back, even at the start of the last console generation, leaks were a rare thing and when one did happen it was a meaty leak, which gives fans enough to chew on for months, rumours of course have lived around since the first console, but leaks are something else. A leak usually finds something that people want and either confirms it or debunks it, learning that a much desired character is coming to a game or that a game itself is coming can make people freak out.

With the amazing members of boards such as 4chan or Neogaf, leaks can be proven to be real or fake pretty quickly these days, so do they really matter? The reaction of people over the weekend, both in the believing and disbelief columns prove that people still love to learn of things early, the simple release of a few images and seconds of video is enough to spark the debate, which is what some people want. Others want more details than proof, the leaks last year of Fallout 4, where it is taking place, what actors are in it and some character outlines had wet the appetite of many gamers, even without the game being officially announced.

So there we have two styles of leaks, one with images and video and one without, but both leaks sparked many debates, both civil and not so civil and while the Fallout 4 leak was never disproved, it still has people talking about it until this day, but the difference in what they offered was that the rayman leak offered up a few glimpses at some menus, while Fallout 4 listed details. It seems that people desire to know as much as they can.

So while leaks will come and go over time, it appears people still clamour to learn as much as they can about their favourite games, even if things turn out to be fake.