Those of you who’ve been unlucky enough to browse the PS Store lately will know it’s infested with AI art, knock-offs, and shovelware. However, the lack of curation is emboldening devs, as evidenced by the upcoming Forest Ranger Life Simulator.
As you can see from the key art, it features a character who resembles Joel from The Last of Us, complete with rugged beard and rustic checked shirt.
The game, allegedly developed by Grizzly Games Limited, claims you’ll “step into the boots of a dedicated forest ranger and breathe life into nature’s hidden treasures”. It promises “immersive gameplay” where you’ll need to repair bridges, feed wildlife, and tackle pollution.
But there’s no release date attached to the title, and it’s merely available to wishlist. The PS Store is overrun with these kinds of vapourware projects these days, many of which either never release or are simple flips using off-the-shelf assets.
While we’re not sure we want Sony to determine what we can or can’t play, there needs to be a way to filter out a lot of this crap, because it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find content of genuine value on the PS5 and PS4 these days.
[source store.playstation.com]
Comments 19
Well one thing is that tis shovelware ain't winning no GOTY awards.
Postive of the use of AI in game development: it makes it easier for anyone to release the game they want
Negative of the use of AI in game development: it makes it easier for ANYONE to release the game they want
Sony couldn't care less.
This is one area where Sony have really dropped the ball.
Need to sort this kind of crap out.
Tbh it’s pretty embarrassing that Sony allow it to continue
I can imagine if I ever released another game on psn it will have very poor visibility due to all the supermarket simulators
Someone once called my own game Trails and Traces shovelware, like as if anyone would make a point and click adventure game as shovelware when it requires meticulous planning.
At least he’s alive in this one
Excuse you, that's clearly Julian Mallard from The First of Them.
Sony needs this crap for deals so they can proclaim "There are 5000000+ games in sale!"
Sorry, but Joel is an American white family man in his late forties, living in a single family house in a small town. This is pretty much the most generic American with the most generic appearance you can imagine, so many gamers can identify with him in some regard. What makes him (and the other characters) so interesting is his story and the decision he makes based on his experiences, the „Druckmann part“.
And therefore everyone can cool down, because replicating the quality of his character is hard.
@PsBoxSwitchOwner It is all of them. Steam is flooded with 1400 games a day. The large number of them are shovelware. The Nintendo E-shop is unusable now for browsing too. They all need to start curating content better.
@Max_the_German Yeah but you still recognise him straight away so he isnt that generic. 😆
@breakneck totally agree.
But it’s a PS so I’ll just criticise Sony for now!
@Flaming_Kaiser Yeah, because this guy here is a bland copy of Pedro Pascal. So for many people he basically looks more like Joel than the Joel in the video games (which is quite clever imo).
@Max_the_German Occam's razor.
@breakneck You’re so right! We’re in an unfortunate place where there’s no seal of quality on any platform anymore and it makes the e-shops a cesspool to dive into. It’s impossible to randomly find a hidden treasure now, basically, which is why it’s great that all these gaming sites exist now to help ensure taste can persist.
Didn't mario galaxy knock off Astro Bot just win game of the year. So I guess it's OK.
@MrPeanutbutterz Of course this is a bland copy of Joel, with the beard and gun and cloths and setting, and I and everyone else immediately recognizes it. Just wanted to mention that Sony created its most memorable figure based on a very average archetype, and the reason he is so memorable is his character, not his appearance. That’s a huge achievement. Compare it with the characters of Concord, unique designs, and nobody cared.
@RudeHero There wasnt even a mario galaxy type level, what does Nintendo own the rights to a space hub world?
I’m confused by this narrative that’s appeared lately on Pushsquare. Not sure if by multiple reporters or just Sammy. Why dos simply having characters or art direction that looks like LoU or Horizon mean a game plagiarising? In this just na idea drummed up t fuel engagement?
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