Until Dawn Is One of Sony's Worst Performing PC Ports to Date

I honestly don’t think the juice from the PC-experiment is proving worth the squeeze. Sales of even the bigger Sony games have dropped off and there has to be a point on the cost vs revenue chart where PlayStation exclusivity is the more desirable option from a business standpoint. Don’t think we’re quite there yet but a few more soft releases and we might well get there.

The problem with all of these PC releases of PlayStation games is that there is a good chance that you already own both a PC and a PS4/PS5. Is there any legit reason to buy it again besides some slightly improved graphics?

Just dont see how selling 30,000 copies over time is worth the squeeze on these things. They will port this to PC but wont spend the resources to port remaster the PS3 trilogies to modern hardware

How can Totokoi, Nishino, Hulst and Co still believe that the PC is worth it with these numbers?

Sony please wake up before it's too late!

@KawakiisaFraud while I agree with you.. the issue is that one day not too far from today, Sony PlayStation won’t actually be a physical console but a platform that operates on PC. Hence the recent dalliance… it’s been a way for Sony to dip it’s toe in the water to test the temperature. The trouble is that Steam fanboys are far more fervent in their devotion than Sony (and Microsoft for that matter) ever considered them to be (well that and… the percentage of gamers who choose not to pay shall we say). Therefore the results of the temperature check… stone-frikkin’ cold and that’s the bottom line!

Meanwhile in the site to download cracked games it's in number two just after Silent Hill. This game eventually will get a price cut just in time for the release of the movie and will sell another bunch.

Who would have guessed that the worst part of Sony releasing their games on PC wasn't the possible decrease of PS value but the obsession with Steam player count and Reviews.

Makes me value Astro Bot release even more.

Outside Helldivers 2, i think it's crystal clear that the PC master race doesn't want to play Sony games.

It's because the price is absurd, full price for an old game on pc was never going to fly especially when you can get BG3 and games that aren't even out like DA veilguard for cheaper.

I'm very interested in playing this as i played the original version on PS4 and really enjoyed it but at the current price it's just not worth it. Supermassive never did better than until dawn imo, man of medan was too short and the quarry i couldn't get into it at all.

The sooner Sony's PC bubble bursts, the better.

@naruball

Why? Who is it hurting? They bought nixes to exclusively deal with pc porting old games so it's not taking resources from playstation studios

@somnambulance was about to say pretty much the same thing.

They should have just kept it on PS4 and 5. We appreciated it

@Anthony_Daniels for one thing, the brand, another would be sales of ps games. Plenty of people state they'd rather get the PC version whenever it comes out. And considering how many people pirate games, they may end up losing money instead of making more.

Also, keep in mind that several ports were made in-house, thus taking sources away from new games.

Good thing PC isn't Sony's main focus.

What a shambles. I hope Sony cools it with the pointless remakes after this and Horizon.

$60 for a 9 year old game. Who could have possibly thought this wouldn't sell well?? Hmm...

@naruball doesn’t seem like its generating profits either if its only bring in under 3k concurrent for pc. Whats the burn rate of nixes like

The problem isn’t the PC ports, it’s the games they’re porting.

Anyone here thinking that until dawn’s pc sales aren’t a reflection on the fact that it’s an expensive remaster of an average ps4 title rather than the fact PlayStation titles don’t sell well on pc is deluded. This won’t sell well on PlayStation either, does that mean PlayStation games don’t sell on PlayStation too and Sony should quit that strategy?

If Sony wanted to actually shift pc copies, they’d release first party titles day and date on steam. As it is they’re trying to have their cake and eat it - they want to sell copies on pc, but they delay the majority of their first party output by years and expect to still have the same success on steam that they do on PlayStation.

Anyone on pc that hasn’t got a PlayStation yet because they’re holding out for the pc release was never that interested in getting a PlayStation to begin with. I have a pc and a PlayStation, the only titles I play on my ps5 are those that are added to PlayStation plus extra. I’d rather wait and pay the money for the game on pc to play a significantly better version. If PlayStation abandoned pc, I’d still just wait for titles to hit PlayStation plus extra - I’m not paying a premium to play an inferior version of a game. (I can pick up most new titles on pc digitally for about £40 vs £70 on PlayStation).

@somnambulance off topic, just realised that your user name is the medical term for sleep walking!

Damn, why didn’t I make that connection sooner 🤔

£60 for a mediocre horror film where you sometimes make choices is way too much, especially when it's almost a decade old. Particularly in the PC ecosystem where games tend to be cheaper, and these "cinematic experiences" tend to be looked down on way more than on consoles.

If you're a PC gamer, like me, who also enjoy Playstation games, then we've already played the games, as we also own a PS console.

A game like Until Dawn, isn't exactly in the same league, as God of War and Ghost of Tsushima.
Finished the game once, on PS4, and don't feel the need of another playthrough.

Damn so they already make a "remake" of a game nobody was really clamoring for and it runs like crap to boot? Bold move Cotton, lets see how it pays off for them.

A remake no one wanted, a terrible remake at that and a premium price so yeah what do you expect?

The hard truth is nobody cares about Sackboy or Until Dawn outside of this console ecosystem.

I assume this is also another game that requires you to connect a Playstation account, which is also going to alienate a portion of their potential audience.

The thing is, the type of game like Until Dawn isn't going to appeal to a lot of players, that mixed with the game originally releasing 9 years ago and being full priced, it's going to release with low concurrent player numbers.

The poor performance of the port doesn't help things either.
Helldivers 2 released simultaneously on PC and PS5 and the game was really popular, despite it not having a true single-player campaign.
Two different games to compare but releasing games on both platforms day one helps with sales and player count.

@colonelkilgore Yeah, if Sony's intent longer-term is to set up a launcher and storefront on PC, it's not going to end well. If they want to keep tapping the PC audience, it really is just better if they drop games on Steam without third-party account requirements or, god forbid, try and mandate a third-party launcher like some companies.

PC is a huge market, but it's largely Valve's territory now, outside of services like itch.io and GOG that rarely directly compete with them. A huge chunk of the PC gaming audience just ignores games that aren't on Steam.

The issue is that Sony's games cost so much to develop now that they're not satisfied with merely the 1 - 10 million units they're selling on PS5, and PC ports are one of the less expensive ways of leveraging their IP to find new revenue streams. Probably the same reason they're licensing out all their properties now for TV/movie adaptations (and I'm sure the success of The Last of Us, Mario movie, etc. has accelerated that tremendously; the video game movie will be the superhero movie of the 2020s IMO).

@Neither_scene Agree with all of this. Imagine if Helldivers 2 waited to release on PC until right now, long after all the hype...obviously would've sold nearly as many copies.

Timing matters, and Until Dawn is 9 years too late to PC. Personally, I stopped playing the PS4 version because it runs so horribly and was waiting for a remaster/PC-version, but ended up playing it last fall when Supermassive didn't release a new game. If this game had come out 12 months ago, I'd have bought it.

Maybe they would sell if you charged a reasonable amount.

I would have probably bought the original PS4 version if that was on PC instead. And since the original devs didn't work on the remake, I doubt I'd be supporting them by buying this remake.

it’s an overpriced old game, that’s all .

It's a lot of money for what is a relatively short game. No surprises that people are reluctant to pay full price.

It maybe because some how playstation are trying to sell their games at top whack on steam like they do on psn.

When the fact is PC players myself included are getting triple games for 10 or 20 below these brick and motor prices for new releases.

The pricing model for PC is far cheaper than console normally.

Not gonna lie, the title threw me off. But it ended up encompassing both things wrong. It runs poorly and has sold poorly. Title had me thinking the PC port was just ass. But the ps5 version is equally ass. Must be running UE5 lol. They touted that as the second coming for these consoles and in all reality the next ones might be efficient. Best looking (and running after patches) using UE5 for console is still robo cop. Game looked borderline photorealistic standing still lol

I love Until Dawn but $60 is crazy.

Sony is clearly trying the Nintendo strategy of slightly enhanced remakes of old games at a premium price.

I will get the remake at $20 at maximum. Not going support this game full price if I have an og copy.

As a ps and pc player I can say this isn't a reflection of Sony on pc, it's a reflection that nobody cares about this game. If I didn't read push, I wouldnt have known it existed at all. Its launch in steam was even more muted. PC gamers aren't fomo hounds, learn to wait for sales, actually read reviews before buying and don't auto buy every game from a particular publisher, while this was up against bigger releases and bigger sales. PC games also have longer tail sales, like Nintendo, than the "box office weekend" sales model Sony seems to embrace on their consoles.

The price wasn't right on this one.

@Bez87 TBF Sony just ran a big steam sale a few weeks ago. I picked up list legacy and got.

Sony needs to just give up on the pc market already and just focus on PlayStation.

Wow, so many people on this site were so pissed to see Microsoft swallow up Activision when they thought none of their games would ever again be on PS. Now that Sony is allowing more people to play games on PC you're salty?!! Are you gamers, or are you shareholders? Why do you care if someone else played on PC or PS5?

Does it require a playstation account? That makes people mad I understand.

No one asked for this remake.

Simple as that.

@BacklogBrad becuz Nintendo keeps getting away it it lol I think there was meme about this haha

I almost forgot that Sony still release games on PS5, then i remembered that they put out Astro Bot this year and soon they'll release... Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered (also on PC, of course)

Anyway, i really like playing on my PS5 but what's keeping me on the system is the 3rd party support, BC (which is very good) and just because i prefer consoles over PC since they're easier to plug and play (and PC ports can either be OK or a total garbage that the community has to fix with mods, it's 50/50 chance with every new game release). Having said that, if the PS6 is as expensive as a PS5 Pro here in Brazil (7k reais isn't small amount of money) then I'll go back to PC and never look back. A decent notebook is costing as much as a PS5 Pro here and I'm sure this will not change when the PS6 is out.

Sony is pretty much saying to players "you don't have to buy our consoles anymore, just wait a while and play all of our recently released PS games on PC but cheaper!" so why would i keep buying consoles? No need to.

To be honest it's hard for me to see Sony still releasing consoles in the long run if:

• They keep spending millions of dollars on ***** like Concord or that other online game that will come out soon (can't remember the name)
• They can't make people see valid reasons to get a PlayStation instead of a PC or Xbox or even a Nintendo Switch. Speaking of which...

Nintendo probably spends like 1/3 of Sony's budget in their own games since they don't have a very powerful hardware so they don't have to release PC ports to recoup the costs of whatever they spent developing any game and yet they release some stuff on mobile to earn extra money just because they can, while keeping their games exclusives to their consoles. Also they can actually make people see value in their games, to the point where they can even overprice their stuff and people will still buy them and they can only buy them in one place and in one console because exclusivity.

I love playing on consoles but gaming is getting more and more expensive to the point where i can't make a choice based on my preferences, i need to choose what's more affordable to me and in the long run PC is better

Also Sony better not try to create a launcher on PC because no one will buy anything there. Steam reigns supreme to the point where they can do whatever they want and users won't raise a finger at them. Just accept that 30% of your profit on every sale will go to Gabe Newell and Valve and that you'll lose some sales to piracy especially now with the whole PSN login stuff since you don't want to use DRM

@Ralizah that’s Sony’s big issue though, after having a digital storefront in peoples living rooms, gaming rooms and bedrooms for roughly 15-20 years (and a platform for physical sales for 30) where they earn a cut of all games not just they’re own output… they’re never gonna just settle to be a game publisher on another platform. They probably will have to… but they’re obviously gonna fight against what is all but the inevitable rn, it’s just business.

While it is a forlorn hope that any storefront could succeed on PC other than Steam, Sony would be committing fiduciary malpractice if they didn’t at least try and make it happen. It’s the age old story of a successful business model trying to survive the transition from one operating era to the next. Like all the big Movie studios and TV networks trying to survive ‘Netflix’. They’re never just gonna consign themselves to history and give up the ghost willingly.

The game came out 4 days ago.. this is the type of conversation that should be had after the game has been out for at least one year.

Its idiotic that the measurement for success have to be on the first day/days, not every potentiall customer is going to know about the product the day it comes out.

It is unfortunately a pretty bad remake though which I'm sure dosnt help

Poor remake, of a game nobody asked to be remade, sold at an extortionate price. Any people here are wondering why it failed. Sony needs to start bringing worthwhile content to pc and not old, worn out trash everyone has played already. And the heads at Sony know this based on some of their previous comments. They need PC day and date for it to be a sucess

People are beyond tired of all the lazy, low effort cash grabs Sony keeps putting out. They are losing their credibility by the day

Sony still don't understand games on PC sell well around £10 price. Especially if it is sooooo ooooold game.

@Medic_alert Got to think this remake/port was part of spinning up the team to make the sequel

I think that's unlikely. Supermassive didn't do this remaster/remake, and the team that did it for Sony recently announced they were having to downsize because they didn't have another project lined up. My read on it was that Sony contracted them to do this one project, and now that it's over they're parting ways.

I think what's happened here is that the movie and game were supposed to release around the same time frame but the production schedule for the movie slipped. Or maybe Sony wanted the game ready and waiting for whenever the movie does come out and is banking on it having a long tail.

To quote an old meme

"IT'S TIME TO STOP🕑"

@NEStalgia that's true but that's still a sale and not release.

Alot of games if I'm not mistaken are normally coming out at 40.

Of course there are exceptions and they are mostly console centric games.

But it has to be an absolutely exceptional game to warrant a physical disc price on PC and for it to do well.

Or it takes a sale anyway to get people through the door.

Majority of players probably have a secondary gaming machine and with the numbers we have majority are opting for a playstation.

So many probably have already played the game.

Also majority of PC players don't have a top tier rig, like myself I had a top tier rig in 2015/16 cost me 4 grand and I played everything on it what was third party because it was leaps and bounds better than console.

But I still had a ps4 for exclusives.

To play games at top tier today, I'd have to spend another 4 grand to get what I want from a PC but my PC is good enough for my tycoon games and so I bought a ps5 for everything else.

So my guess with this is really the only people truly buying first party playstation games are the ones who have top tier and don't need a console.

People who think that Sony don't need PC platform are just delusional at this point.
You know that majority of sales of fastest selling PS Studio games (Helldivers 2) were on PC, right? Yes, not every game will be hit on PC. And mainly games like Until Dawn are not exactly popular on platform. But it's still worth it.

Also. It's just math. PS5 is already selling slower than PS4. Game budgets are doubling or tripling. Where do you think Sony will find required growth? I can assure you that it won't be on consoles, because consoles are not growing.

But if you think that it's financially viable to expect polished story-driven games with 300 million development budget, which are selling to the shrinking console audience, you should maybe visit math class. If you want to have those games with same quality and without MTXs, PC release is a must.

@colonelkilgore The issue is that there's no reason whatsoever to buy games on other services. Steam is the most convenient, pro-consumer service I've seen in the industry, and, frankly, Sony's games aren't big enough to incentivize buy-in on another platform. They'll just make less money overall if they try to fight Valve. EGS literally gives away games constantly and can't make a dent in that market.

One option is to remain on Steam, make PSN account integration optional, and launch a competing storefront where you can also buy their games that integrates more completely with their console ecosystem. So, trophy support and the like.

@Ralizah honestly, I don’t think there are any obvious solutions for Sony… with the obvious future right now simply publishing their games on PC in future but as I say, as far as the Sony board goes, that would be the last resort. A bit like where Sega have ended up. Sure they’re doing well etc. but they fought by hook and by crook to keep the console machine chugging after the Megadrive.

Obviously Microsoft bought half the industry so that they could ensure Gamepass would be viable on PC… but Sony obviously can’t afford to do that. So while they ‘could’ bring a version of PS+ to PC, it wouldn’t have the sheer weight of dev teams behind it as Gamepass does and would therefore be weaker alternative.

Another possibility, though Sony would be against it… would be if some tech corp around about the size of Microsoft (Apple, Amazon etc.) would ally with Sony (or even try and stealth take Sony over). They could then have a PlayStation storefront as part of their gaming provision… probably would be centre stage too. But as I say, I don’t think Sony would want that and there’s nothing to indicate any mega corp is interested either.

All I’m saying is… and have been saying tbh though I think your misinterpreting my perspective is that yes Sony will probably have to simply go publisher on PC eventually… but don’t expect it to happen without them going kicking and screaming.

@colonelkilgore They're already simply a publisher on PC, so I doubt any kicking or screaming will be involved. They've been pretty good about fully supporting Steam's features. The only indication they might want something more is the PSN account integration requirement, but that could just be to boost their numbers and nothing more.

@Ralizah when I say simply a publisher on PC I mean that is all that they will be… as we all know consoles won’t be a thing for ever (there’ll be a PS6… and maybe even a PS7 but it’s unlikely they’ll be producing consoles after that). ATM (and the foreseeable) they are not simply just a publisher on PC, they are also a console manufacturer and platform holder, who publish on said platform. Again, you continue to misinterpret. The latter are things that are unlikely in future, hence probably just being a publisher on PC in the future.

@colonelkilgore

"as we all know consoles won’t be a thing for ever."

I don't know that, actually. I know I've heard people repeat this line continuously over the years, but console gaming is, frankly, bigger than ever.

I'm sure Sony probably has contingency plans in place if things start going that way. For now, even long term if they wanted to eventually challenge Valve, their best play is to move slowly and build trust with PC gamers.

@Ralizah not gonna happen, the PC crowd not only have an allegiance to Steam (as Epic and Microsoft found out) but they also have an animosity to Sony. As I keep alluding to… Sony are in a conundrum, which rn has no solution.

@colonelkilgore It's not really animosity. Sony is regarded with the same suspicion they have for most large publishers who mandate third-party accounts. Literally nobody would care if this stuff was optional.

I agree it wouldn't happen any time soon. Valve is deeply trusted and entrenched at this point, and if a competitor comes along puffing out its chest and trying to muscle away market share (lol EGS), it's going to be violently rejected. This is why even Ubisoft is now crawling back to Valve.

But, you know... things change wildly over time, politically, socially, and economically. I can't say for sure what the future holds, but I do know that a company doesn't get anywhere if it's not trusted by its audience.

Sony needs to lead with the carrot rather than the stick. The only way they'll make headway with PC gamers is if they incentivize integrating into a new ecosystem instead of forcing it.

There's a reason Valve is top dog in the PC space. It's not just because they were the first major digital storefront. It's also because of their long-term commitment to building up an ecosystem of services and hardware that are integrative and consumer-serving.

At this moment, Sony is mandating more on PC than they are in their own walled-garden ecosystem, considering you can play PS5 games physically without a PSN account. Not a great place to begin growing trust with a new audience. Especially one that is already wary of publishers demanding they create accounts, download launchers, etc.

They don't deserve good games on PC , they should stick to Half Life 2 and Euro Truck Simulator.

@Ralizah At least with Ubisoft's launcher, their own games are often cheaper from their own store than from any reseller after launch window, so I don't even mind using their launcher if they're going to slash the price of if I just go all in on it. When even Ubisoft has a better cluepon than Sony, something's very wrong.

"Console is bigger than ever"

No, console is stagnant, about where it was in the 80's still. It lost all the casuals to phones, and what it lost in that market it picked up only by opening to new markets replacing what they lost in original markets. If Xbox is merging with PC, Sony is....copying PC until they hit a brick wall eventually? I don't see their platforms not getting replaced by general purpose computing. Nintendo has more life if they have wacky hardware, but I even see them eventually merging into iOS. Furukawa admitted years ago that they basically think of contingencies for a future without hardware. Not that they plan to do that soon, but there aware enough of the tenuous position dedicated hardware could slip into.

@Bez87 I think most of the console centric games launch at the same price as console, but then quickly start getting sales much faster than on console. Most of the PC centric games are coming in at $50 or $60. (but then quickly go on sale, or are on sale for preorders, like Metaphor is $70, but on sale for $61 at 2 official sellers for preorder...and that's Atlus, infamous for high pricing and double dipping.)

But, yeah, as you said, nobody actually PAYS that full console price on PC. A handful, but not many, it's crazy pricing and you know it'll drop fast. I think the long tail sales will be ok once the sales roll in. Not for this game though. Nobody cares about it even on console.

The PS4 PC releases do well even on Deck and the handheld PCs, so it's definitely not just the high end. The newer games maybe, though. I had a similar arc to you, high end PC, then decided to drop it for console. But soon realize that between PS and XB and all the mid gens and subs and everything else, I was spending more than just keeping an up to date PC!

@Ralizah when discussing hypotheticals and opinions we’re just gonna have to agree to disagree on this one, as we’ll be going around in circles til Valve loses to Fortnite’s Ready Player One-esque final form.

@naruball Oh God... yet again, I must say I agree 100%.

@Ralizah I'm sure most of us who disagree with Sony's PC push understand the reasons that lead them into this path.

The crux of the matter is whether the gains will outweigh the losses. And I assume you understand where those losses could come from.

The thing is these losses are not as tangible as the gains, because they are potential and long-term. So, it all comes down to a matter of opinion, because we can only speculate about the future at the end of the day.

What you should keep in mind is that stockholders' pressure very frequently leads companies to prioritize short-term gains even when the people in command are fully aware of future damage, except for growth stage startups.

@Art_Vandelay Oh, I totally agree. I don't own a PS5, and it's because I know pretty much all of their games are going to the PC or PS4 I already own.

I'm a big proponent of manufacturers investing heavily in their own ecosystems to reward their playerbases and incentivize further buy-in. It's why I love Nintendo's steadfast refusal to port their games elsewhere. They understand and invest in bringing longer-term value to their brand and hardware. It strengthens them over time, and it's the primary reason Switch is the only must-own console today.

The best long-term play for Sony to continue thriving as a console manufacturer is to aggressively maintain exclusivity and prioritize software development in their ecosystem. Ideally, like Nintendo, they'd have negotiate with third-parties to develop games for unused first-party IPs, do crossovers with prominent third-parties (like Tokyo Mirage Sessions from Atlus or the various Nintendo-themed Warriors spinoffs, among many others), and develop games across a range of budgets to ensure a continual stream of first-party content that only goes to their hardware.

Unfortunately, the Playstation brand is no longer Japanese or operated like a Japanese console business. It's operated like an American one. And American corporate culture is very big on appeasing shareholders with ill-advised moves that increase profitability more immediately, while sacrificing trust and reputation in the long term.

Anyway, if Sony is gonna keep porting stuff to PC, I'm certainly not wasting money investing in them.

People shouldn't be upset that Sony is attempting to tap into a broader market. That's good capital that can be used for developing more games. People should be upset that Sony ISN'T making new games and is just churning out remasters that no one cares about while simultaneously laying off half of their staff. It really seems as though they've lost their way. Overpriced consoles with no new games and forced PSN for pc just leads me to believe that Sony has no clue what they're doing

Now imagine if they Remastered and ported Bloodborne

@colonelkilgore the future of gaming isn't going to be dominated by PC. A lot of people can't be bothered with that. It'll remain a platform for enthusiasts.

The future, unfortunately, will be streaming.
And in the meantime consoles have plenty of years ahead.

It's an awful game. I'm not surprised lol

@Yagami
Yes it is the sad truth, and that is exactly the problem 🫤
They sould be alowed more time ( at least a year) before they can say that a product was not profitable, i can only dream besauce that will never happen…