Art_Vandelay

@TheArt "Layoffs are awful. Employ someone and later tell them you don't need them anymore".

Sometimes it's hard to tell if people are being sarcastic online, but what you stated is exactly why free markets work. A dynamic work environment allows employers and employees to move freely according to demand.

@TrickyDicky99 Yesterday: "What's stopping Sophy integration from being a PS5 exclusive feature?"

Today: "Also, in addition to the standard AI features, the PS5 version of the game will allow you to take on Gran Turismo Sophy, the prototype revolutionary racing AI agent that's causing a worldwide sensation in the driving-game genre."

Bingo!

@TrickyDicky99 What's stopping Sophy integration from being a PS5 exclusive feature?

I'm placing my bets on Sophy. A full integration would be amazing, as it would put GT7 head and shoulders above the new Forza.

The timeline matches: it's been a few months since the beta, and Polyphony has just released a video where they categorically say that Sophy would be integrated into the main game at some point.

@Trousersnake All this plus the "being there, done that" feeling from having played flat-screen games for the last 40 years lol.

@Trousersnake That's funny, I'm also 45. And yes, VR feels exactly like the early days of 2D on the NES/Sega Master System, or the early days of 3D on the original PlayStation/N64. It's a little janky and cumbersome, but it's fresh and mind-blowing.

I actually think VR will take longer than those two analogies to mature, because it's so much more ground-breaking. But it's more than good enough already, and it's always exciting to participate in a nascent revolutionary tech.

The big question is: if I didn't like Control, will I enjoy this game? Never played the original.

I appreciate what Control was getting at, but I just wasn't feeling it. And now I'm getting a similar vibe from Alan Wake 2's footage.

@TrickyDicky99 To be honest, I'm loving my games being smaller. I'm a grown adult with a small tech company to run, so my gaming time is limited to about one hour a day (not every day).

The last flat-screen game I dived into before switching to VR was Forbidden West. And although it was a good game, it took me two or three months to see it through. What a relief then, to be playing Moss now and seeing that 60% completion on the launch screen after about a week. And sure, it doesn't have the production values of Horizon, but it's dripping with creativity and soul. So much more enjoyable.

I'm sorry you fell off VR, because you seem to like it. But I'm glad I still have a few years of delight left before it wears on me.

@RustyStag So, you bought PSVR2 for the Horizon game alone? What kinds of games do you like?

@TrickyDicky99 The game I played the most this generation is GT7 by a mile. It was the number one reason I got PSVR2, and its VR mode has exceeded my expectations. That's more than enough meat for me.

Now, not everyone is a GT7 hardcore like me, but PSVR2 has plenty of other meaty stuff already. RE8 and the upcoming RE4 are the obvious examples here, but there's also games like No Man's Sky in which people have spent hundreds of hours. Not to mention Call of The Mountain, which is a AAA quality, PSVR2-exclusive first-party title.

Sure, the medium could benefit immensely from bigger investments, but one must be realistic. It's a chicken and egg situation and Sony's approach, while frustrating to many, is the smart way to go from a financial standpoint. VR is ground-breaking tech that will take years or even decades to mature, and Sony is making sure they have a foot on it.

I might get back to flat, or I may stay mostly in VR like many people have. The truth is I don't care. I'm just glad PSVR2 exists because I'm having the best time I've had with gaming since the original PlayStation. So, I ask kindly: please, don't waste your time trying to take away from that enjoyment.

@RustyStag You obviously don't own one, and I kinda get a "but would want one" vibe from you comment.

The only downside to PSVR2 is that it totally ruined flat-screen gaming for me. And I wonder if it actually is a downside, to be honest. I've been gaming for 40 years now, and VR is the breath of fresh air this hobby needed.

I even look at, like, Spider-Man 2 and think "meh". The abstraction layer of pushing buttons and sticks on a pad while watching that translate to actions on a square 2D window located a few meters aways from me suddenly falls... flat.

@Fight_Teza_Fight Actually, you can kinda get back to that. PSVR2 is in that exact space: shorter, cheaper and way more creative, experimental games.

Since I got the headset, I totally lost interest in flat-screen games. They all feel like "been there, done that" type of deal.

VR is a completely new paradigm, and there are dozens of incredible games available on the platform already. Especially if you are new to VR, which is my case.

@GoodOlDubs It was struck by a 5% interest rate in the 10-year US bonds. This threshold is sure to make a sizeable damage in any enterprise around the globe, large or small, and Sony is not imune to that. They're simply taking necessary precautions.

Expect some big whale to appear floating around somewhere soon.

@Beerheadgamer82 I guess media pundits in particular like to play out that intelectual superiority, so they usually applaud the "clean" and "unintrusive" nature of the Series X's design.

I'm a designer myself, and I think the original PS5 Digital Edition's design is marvelous, especially in the horizontal position. It's both wild and balanced, and it hovers beautifully over my cabinet's shelf. I also love the b&w contrast and the matte finish of the plates. Genius stuff, really.

Now, the new slim... I don't know what they were thinking, especially with the horrendous disc version. That drive bulge is so disproportional and the peg... jesus.

@gaston Same here. The only downside of getting a PSVR2 headset is that I realized how stagnated and uninteresting flat games have become.

See, I've been gaming since the late 80's. And even though that feeling of "been there, done that" has been percolating for many years now, I kept gaming because it's my passion (plus a bit of inertia).

But after experiencing GT7, RE8 or Tetris Effect on PSVR2, I kinda can't go back to flat. For one, I was super excited for Spider-Man 2. Well, it's here now, and I just can't justify the $70. I'd rather spend it on that sweet Moss bundle deal + Synapse + Crossfire Sierra Squad. I'm fine playing Spider-Man 2 down the line when it eventually gets to PS+ Extra.

Not gonna happen anytime soon. The level at which interest rates are worldwide makes large acquisitions a very bad move from a financial perspective.

Just observe how this kind of deal hasn't happened over the last several months. Microsoft ABK was negotiated 18 months ago and Tencent is crumbling down.

The consolidation wave has passed until the next one comes, but it'll take a couple years at least.

@RachaelWest Thanks for reaching out. I'll be definitely getting this one, as it scratches a very nostalgic itch. I still remember how big of a deal the original was back in 1993.

@cburg Let's be fair. There's just no comparison here.

Man, GT7 is such a tour de force. It was released like 18 months ago and still manages to figure in the top 20.

And it's well deserved. GT7 on PSVR2 with a good set of wheel and pedals is the single most incredible experience one can have in console gaming today.

I know this is about Spider-Man 2 but man, I gotta shout out Tetris Effect on PSVR2. Not only is it my most played game on PSVR2; it is my most played game in 2023 period.

Tetris Effect on PSVR2 is really one of those gaming experiences that go beyond the traditional idea of what a videogame can entail. Only people that have experienced it can have a full grasp of what I'm trying to convey here. It's a must play.

@Northern_munkey "Vinyl is making a big come back amongst the audiophile community which is a huge one."

Mate, the term "audiophile" is the textbook definition of niche. But hey, there's no need to get so defensive. I, for one, love VR, which is still considered a niche even though there are tens of millions of users. Quest 2 alone is estimated to have sold over 20 million units.

He's right. Physical media won't go away, but Blu-rays will become as niche and rare as LP records and cassette tapes.

Whether one likes it or not, there's no fighting this wave.

So, there's the disc drive model and an "adorably all digital" option. 😑

"Ask anyone that has a PSVR2 and they’ll likely tell you that the tech is great, but the library is lacking."

Oh man, c'mon. I can't believe this narrative sticks even among the Push Square's crew. I mean, if you own the original PSVR, a Quest 2 and you have a PC that can handle VR, maybe (maybe) you're disappointed with a library of launch-year exclusives that "only" has the likes of Horizon, GT7, RE8, RE4, Switchback and Firewall. But even then, you'd be a bit of a moron, because this is by far the best launch lineup of any VR platform.

Recent events seem to point to the fact that the live service games bubble is finally bursting. I'd bet only a few of those 10 such games in development at Sony will see the light of day.

Sounds like a good thing, but careful what you wish for. One would think Sony would go back to its bread and butter, but these trends have a way of being replaced by even worse ones. Think AI and cloud.

@maybemaybemaybe It sure is. I don't think it was an official public statement, but rather a twitter response or something along those lines.

But come to think about it, there's really no other possible way to get out of that. They clearly stated, "if you go into battle with your PS VR2 as your flight helmet, you'll feel the rush of combat across the entire game experience, too".

Right there, on the friggin' PlayStation blog post.

@maybemaybemaybe Sorry if the irony got lost in translation, but that explanation was actually employed by one of the developers. I think I saw it in Without Parole's discord.

I totally agree, this is a ***** show.

@maybemaybemaybe "you’ll feel the rush of combat across the entire game experience".
Oh, they have explained. You know you can play the rest of the game on a virtual screen inside your PSVR2, right? Right?

@CaptD Yeah, that is the dream. AC7 is amazing. I hope they rushed Project Wingman because they heard something about AC8 through the grapevines.

@AdamNovice I had the exact same thought. VR is perfect for games that excel in environment crafting.

Man, that Shaun Layden's candid interview from after he left Sony... can we call it "the Layden's prophecy" yet?

I'll be sitting here, watching the keyboard warriors shout "I support the strike, got get 'em!" today, so that tomorrow they can come back to the comments section and whine that Jim Ryan sucks 'cause PlayStation hasn't released a single AAA game this year.

They're always ready to virtue signal, but never willing to pay the price.

@GamingFan4Lyf Gsus man, you're so far behind that it's pointless to argue.

@GamingFan4Lyf C'mon, mate! What you're saying is the textbook definition of "short sighted". You've got to put the pieces together. Have you already forgot the "spend Sony out of business" quote?

Game Pass is a cancer that is rotting the very foundation of the games industry, and these latest leaks clearly indicate that this is by design.

Sorry if this comes out a little harsh, but your comment sounds straight out the "frog in the pan" analogy.

@WizzNL Well, Microsoft has touted 6 million players, so you do the math...

Most of the mainstream media and gamers have a weird distaste for VR, but many of the PS5 innovations were clearly driven by PSVR2. Namely, haptic feedback and 3D audio, as they complement VR nicely by adding extra layers of immersion.

@number1024 Exactly right, but not only that.

Remember when every other day we would see a developer praising the glory of Game Pass? And Xbox shills would go "see? It's great for everyone!". Sure, everyone is happy when all bellies are full.

Then, growth flattened way earlier than Microsoft expected, and praises became whispers of checks getting smaller. And prices were raised while deals were removed.

Microsoft adopted a model that makes games cheaper to consumers at the same time when development costs were skyrocketing. There's no free lunch.

And now, they see the whole thing not working, and what do they do? They double down and make the biggest acquisition in games history.

And suddenly, Unity wants their piece of the pie. Sure, they handled it catastrophically bad, but people need to look at it from a wider perspective: it's the canary in the coal mine.

At the end of the day, the buck has to stop somewhere. Development costs have been rising steadily over the last few decades, while companies with deep pockets in different spheres of the gaming industry have been subsidizing prices in all manner of ways to gain market share.

I can't speak on the matter at hand specifically, but the writing has been on the wall. It's not realistic to expect tools, games, and so on to remain free or subsidized forever. Yes, I'm looking right at you now, Microsoft. You too, Epic.

What becomes increasingly clear though, is that the gaming industry is not in a healthy state right now.

"Larian's latest is a game that can utterly consume your life for days, weeks, months, even years".

And that is why I'm in love with VR at the moment.

To each, their own, I guess.

Here is the part of the calculus that people don't realize: the very same users that churn from the service are the users that will buy more games through the traditional means.

The money Sony potentially loses when a user drops from PS+ is the money they'll get anyway when that user buys a new game at launch.

Subscription services are great for companies from the recurring revenue perspective, but it's not a win-win scenario. Especially in videogames.

@Cashews "I'd bet your eternal soul Meta and Sony have lost many many millions[...]".

In business, this is called an investment. VR has been growing steadily over the last 10 years and will eventually get to the mainstream. Admittedly, we're still a couple of steps short techwise, but we're getting there. And the companies with a head start will naturally benefit.

Meanwhile, PSVR2 has reinvigorated my passion for games. The downside is that it has opened my eyes to how creatively stagnated flat-screen gaming has been over the last several years.

There was always something about the aesthetic of the latest Saints Row that was an immediate turn-off for me.

I hope other studios take notice and avoid this sort of look that don't appeal to a larger audience.

"33 per cent of you said that you’ll be ditching PS Plus entirely" - 2023.

"If Sony decides to charge for multiplayer, I'll be switching to PC when next gen arrives" - 2013.

And we know how disastrous the PS4 generation went for Sony.

@Hoodie718 This is great news. Not only because PSVR2 gets a bonus killer app, but because it demonstrates how powerful foveated rendering really is.

@XboxTheBestBox I feel I really shouldn't have to state the obvious, but here we go: it's nefarious to leverage financial advantage and employ anticompetitive tactics in order to create a monopoly.

@cburg Then why don't I have a problem with Nintendo?

Because they simply do their thing, which is essentially making high quality games.

A healthy games industry should have a few platform holders competing, and that's exactly why I have a problem with Microsoft's strategy. Because it's "spend them out of business" predatory. And you know that.

Sony is not winning because their strategy is to destroy competitors. They're winning because Microsoft is a productivity software company first and foremost, who don't seem to be able to put out good games with consistency. So they use their financial might to buy creativity and enforce an unsustainable business model in a search for monopoly.

This game was an event in itself back in the day. O love the fact that VR now provides a medium where developers and creatives can really push boundaries, as traditional gaming has stagnated over time.

@XboxTheBestBox 2%, you say. What do you estimate the percentage will be in 10 or 20 years?

Don't be so short sighted. Microsoft is playing the long game here.

Physical to digital to streaming. That's the obvious path. It doesn't matter if it takes 100 years. Corporations think in decades. And that's why this Ubisoft deal is as naive as the 10-year COD Sony deal.

Microsoft is totally doing the winner takes all move, mobile gaming included. And it won't be the first time they employ this nefarious strategy.

I see dark times ahead in gaming. We're happily following the train wreck that's been Hollywood and rock music.

I'm not a fan of puzzlers, but Humanity is fantastic. And like Tetris Effect, it's elevated to a whole new level in VR.

@4kgk2 Yeah, truly well deserved. GT7 in VR with proper wheel and pedals is a dream come true.

I've driven a Ferrari 458 on a closed track in Vegas and the aforementioned combo comes eerily close to the real thing.