FX102A

The one thing that always gets me when the cost of game development comes up, why do they have to be so expensive? Do you need contracting horse nuts? Do you need individual eyelashes rendered? Do you need hours upon hours of cut sevens a with full motion caption animations? And when you consider many top tier games nowadays have special editions, pre-order bonuses, sponsorship deals, DLC and micropayments, you have to wonder how a profit can not be turned unless the base price is increased on top of that?

I hate turning cynical but sometimes I feel it is possible to make a good game on budget, it’s just publishers choose not to and drive the excess to make it look like a price hike is needed. And with some big budget games posting record returns already, why do we need to raise it further?

I will be interested how this turns out. I remember a similar situation when the 6th Gen started but then prices dropped back down. The market will decide what the base price will be.

Somewhat concerning as it feel Sony’s gaming division has been distancing itself from anime games and its “quirks”. Also having been a Crunchyroll subscriber for years I do feel in recent times less shows have been licensed with greater emphasis on their original shows that feel less like the “homegrown” content. Of course this division could go a completely separate way; plus if Funimation and Crunchyroll unite I only have to pay 1 subscription....I hope.

Sounds like outside of the choose your own characters from the world, which I always felt was an aspect that was gonna sink or swim, the game feels like just another edition of “The Ubisoft Game”. Basically the question is if you want more of what you’ve already enjoyed multiple times prior or something fresh?

It’s interesting. In the past a Playstation Launch would be loaded with new, Japanese developed exclusives to make the most out of the console. This time, Demon’s Souls is the closest thing and even that’s a from the ground up remake. I still remember buying PS2 & PS3 games well into their successors’ lives. Wonder if the same will happen here or if developers will jump faster?

Kinda sounds a bit like what Project Aces would have put together (although I imagine they would have upped the melodrama and music). Still sounds interesting but will wait for a sale as I’d just play the campaign only.

Do you need to play multiplayer to unlock anything in single player?

I need to grab Tales of Berseria. Have it physical but when ordered turned out to be the Playstation Hits variant. I imagine finding a sealed non-hits version will be tough now.

Yeah I made the error and thought he meant beating PS4’s lifetime sales.

Despite the correction, considering we are in a major economic recession and pandemic, I find it hard to believe there are enough people willing to put down £360 to £450 for a console that’s yet to prove itself. It will sell, I don’t doubt that. But record sales I’d be surprised.

Then again, the PS4 sold well at the start and that took a while before some major killer apps appeared. So maybe people just enjoy having shiney new toys. Can only wait and see how Gen 9 plays out.

This actually concerns me, as I felt from the trailer that some of the backgrounds looked a little lacking with action concentrated in just a few square metres around the playable character. I just imagined it had at least another 3 years of development time.

Well there’s still time; I’m predicting a late 2022 release at the absolute earliest.

I remember buying my first X360 PS Vita and PS4 games before owning the console. I think I had a PS4 game for almost 2 years without the console.

I wonder if Monster Boy will look much different. Although I only own it on Switch at the moment.

It’s rather nice that more titles are being offered upgrades than I originally thought; although with regard to Control they may as well just rereleased it as a PS5 title.

Although I prefer new games rather than remakes, I support this one if true as the original game hasn’t aged well and it’s first remake is tied to the GameCube and not widely available.

My only concern is this is Konami we’re talking and they seem to be kings at screwing the pooch somehow.

Been playing since Friday; seems online retailer broke street date! Now having to order another copy though as I only discovered yesterday GAME was offering the artbook 😓

I remember the early model PS3s made my playing of Odin Sphere (back when it was just on PS2) more enjoyable due to faster loading times. I guess smoother frame rates can be beneficial to some games. A friend told me Last Of Us on PS4 fixed up my issues with aiming due to the 60fps.

They probably can make the majority of their income just from the people who religiously buy the game every year and dive into Ultimate Team. They could probably afford to only bother improving the game every 3-5 years.

Okay, that is was one heck of a power play by Microsoft. Knew they were out for exclusives but this I did not expect.

Next gen will be interesting. Will Sony now seek to develop its own WRPGs or acquire another studio?

There was one highlight of the stream; I recognised the Cross Body Salsa that couple were dancing in the Spiderman MM segment!

If they play alright on PS4 and all the PS5 offers a bit more tarting up and some quicker costume changes then I can hardly imagine why I should even think of dropping an extra £459 squids for the “honour”. The more I find out the more I feel that owning a PS5 in the first year is gonna feel like a status symbol and barely anything else.

I may be in the minority, but this event sucked away the minute bit of interest I had in the PS5 for the foreseeable near future. FFXVI was the only new reveal and looks very early in development. I’m thinking a 2023 release date based on SE’s history. Everything else was already revealed or is a re-release in some form or another. Console launches used to be a showcase event of jaw dropping new ideas, IPs and concepts. What the heck happened?

Also I remember when the PS4 was praised for its £350 launch price (with a disk drive) and now its £450 and getting praised? I guess that’s devaluation against the dollar but I still can’t imagine spending more than £350-£400 on a console (and diskless isn’t an option).

Guess it’ll be a repeat of my PS4 experience. Wait until a price drop, potential enhanced model and a worthwhile library that actually takes advantage of what the console is capable of.

@Rob_230 Both 365games.co.uk and Base.com have them at approx. £40. Other sites I’ve yet to check are Smyths Toys and The Game Collection.

@Enuo It’s a shame the Vita version was canned as I much prefer VN’s on a handheld. Feels more like reading a book.

Was considering preordering as I feared this would have a limited release but everywhere with it before had a £49.99 listing. Finally found a sub-£40 listing and this review made me put money down. Have been trying to avoid preordering non special editions but desperate to play this and any brick and mortar store likely to ask for £50.

Pity us on the Eastern side of the Atlantic aren’t getting the art book.

Well get used to this till at least 2025 when that exclusivity deal is set to end (though they’ll probably extend it again). When Sega’s NFL2K series was still around EA actually had innovate (gasp!) to entice people to buy their game. But no, when Sega decided to offer NFL2K 05 at a budget price, EA solved thing the way it usually does. Throw oodles of money at it (not to the developers of course).

But I’m a not a sports game (or sports for that matter) fan so I’ll just sit on the stands and watch this play out.

I remember back in 2005 when the X360 came out, it’s games were priced at £49.99, at a time when new GCN, PS2 & XB titles were £39.99. One the PS3 and Wii released, the X360 titles crept down again to £39.99.

Yeah, I suspect this is an attempt to take advantage of new console hype and eventually market forces should bring the prices back down; unless all publishers decide to partake in some price fixing, which I’m not sure is even legal. Need to check that one.

Either way, I’ll know when I buy a PS5, which at the moment I am forecasting 2022/23 at the earliest.

Managed to pick up some nice Cross-Buy titles. Finally bought Fast Striker; now to see if it’s worth opening the physical copies I bought 2 years ago.

Being a historical setting, was wondering if they were going to pay licenses or modify vehicle designs to avoid it. Looks like the latter. F-14s look a little off, the wheeled UH-1s look like a weak attempt to avoid using the UH-60 and the less said about that An-22/124/225 hybrid the better.

On a similar note, I need to check if you need familial approval to recreate a real life person in a video game.

I love Gundam, but after my troubles getting used to the PS3 Gundam Vs and my lack of interest of multiplayer and fighting games, I wonder if this will change things. Shame as I loved the PS2 Vs titles like Fed Vs Zeon and Gundam vs Zeta Gundam. Plenty of long campaigns there.

@Hengist It’s mostly just a name, usually for any mobile suit (usually a prototype or testbed) that shares certain design aspects reminiscent of the original RX-78 Gundam design from the original series.

Of course there has to be exceptions. In Gundam Wing it mainly referred to special one-off MS made out of Gundanium.

In Gundam Seed, it was an acronymn for “General Unilateral Neuro - Link Dispersive Autonomic Manoeuvre” and “Generation Unsubdued Nuclear Drive Assault Module”.

In Gundam Seed Destiny it stood for “Generation Unrestricted Network Drive Assault Module” and “Gunnery United Nuclear-Deuterion Advanced Maneuver”.

There may be more but can’t remember.

Although it is Marvel we’re dealing with it, I always er on the side of caution when they say the game will last as a service for years. If the game is unlucky to make its mark early, I’m sure SE will be quick to cut their losses and wheel out the guillotine.

There will always be variations in review scores as even reviewers have differing desires as to what they would like the game to be. Some feel that high scores should be those that push the boundaries and experiment (successfully) with new concepts and ideas whilst others just want what is tried and tested but polished to the point that you can brush your rear molars.

The poor lip-syncing for the Japanese Dub is a big annoyance for me though and one likely to break immersion as I notice these things and can never stop noticing. And no way I'm going to play a game set in Japan, during the Samurai Era, with a lot of Japanese cultural and historical references in anything but the Japanese dub. Unfortunately I doubt that is something that can be patched in.

I’m sure there’ll be some people who’ll want to play this to watch digital representations of these people being splattered against the rocks...whoever they are?

Brings back memories of the PS2 era and all the celebrity games that existed back then (yes, alongside all the great stuff too).

So they’re raising the Starter Price? The additional costs will be for those who don’t want to waste time dealing with the deliberately implemented grinding to advance. At the end of the day the game will cost in excess of GBP100+ for some people.

I’m still wondering if 2K will release another Gambling Trailer this year (or as I prefer to call it the “Ha Ha FU! Trailer”.

Gonna try and finish Blaster Master Zero; then if that’s successful I’m gonna look for the most positive feeling, hopeful and encouraging game I can find in my collection. Basically the antithesis of what is likely emanating from a lot of living rooms, bedrooms and gaming dens this weekend.

Kinda preferred my version of the ending, although probably made that up as a defence mechanism after turning to the bottle post playing it.

If they have taken Ace Combat 7’s guidance by prioritising the campaign and then crafting the multiplayer as an expansion then I may be interested. But this is EA. Campaign likely to be short and token whilst multiplayer will be ripe with grinding and attempts to monetise.

If this doesn’t end up being the case then colour me surprised but with their track record, it’s hard not to be cynical.

In terms of everything shown, this was the only game that actually made me feel it truly needs the PS5’s technical capabilities for its evolving game world mechanics in a full 3D game.

Then again “Rogue Lite” is one of those words that just makes me run for the hills so can’t be too excited.

Totally agree, and therein also lies its weakness, albeit to a much smaller crowd so in the end you can still classify it as a success.

If I was to have a complaint it would be too much 1st Party reveals, though that’s cos I’m an outsider who doesn’t really enjoy Sony’s 1st Party offerings much (at most a rental or a cheap digital purchase). In the end the only big surprises I got that left me excited were Kena & Pragmata, and the latter is muted that we got no real gameplay footage so goodness knows that that game is like.

@Jayofmaya Nope, but still good friends with her. Eventually found someone better though; even convinced her to marry me. She isn’t a gamer but she fully respects the hobby

@Jayofmaya Nope you’re not the only one. Although over-rated was an understatement during my experience; spent most of the game lamenting I couldn’t use the many bricks in the game against a certain NPC.

Although considering I only bought the game at launch because Blockbuster was out of rental copies for days and I wanted to give the pre-order iPhone case to a girl I had a crush on at the time, I guess I got what I deserved. £45 blown to the wind and a distaste for loose bricks.

@stuzster Got the Mega Pack so Astrobot is covered. May look into that Fisherman one. Battlefront 2 if I could pick up the game for £1-£2 tops as not keen to have a game tainted by Original Sin on my shelf.

@Doomsday619 Not really one for horror themed games but will take a look at some. VR may give a whole new perspective.

@thefirst Astrobot & VR World’s covered by the Mega Pack, Will check some of those out. Haven’t heard of Dino Frontier but name intrigued me. Also whilst not a racing fan Wipeout in VR sounds cool.

About the only VR game type I’ve not seen yet that I’d love is a modern day tank sim. Free roaming view from the turret and dual analogue for controlling turret and tank would have worked quite nicely.

Finally ordered my PS VR Mega Pack from Argos. Thankfully had saved a load of PayPal credit. Already have AC7, Ultrawings & ZoE: 2nd Runner; anyone else have some more VR game suggestions?

Also why only GAME and Amazon listed here? GAME is a non starter for me as even for "New" games can't guarantee they'll be actually "new" i.e. sealed.

This isn’t based on any level of “happiness” for me, as if I’ve learnt one thing from my last 5 Sony consoles I usually don’t find a reason to actually buy one until at least a year after release; and I expect it to be no different this time.

Still, they can hype up load times, SSD’s and controller buttons all they want, if they don’t show some actual games I want to play that actually take advantage of its unique capabilities and make purchasing a new console actually worthwhile, this unknown “box” could merely be more capable at analysing the Travelling Salesman Problem more effectively than its predecessor for all I know.

So yeah Sony, you already barely had hooked onto a loose thread; the enduring silence is making me reach for the scissors.

Hoping for a PSVR deal; want one but the only one regularly available is the Mega Pack 2 for £300 and I don’t care for the majority (if any of the games) bundles with it.

You can bet your bottom dollar some publishers will abuse the hell out of this to squeeze more money out of you.

Plus with the PS4’s standby ability, you can just stop playing single player sessions whenever you want.

Oh the pain in my head. They sheer idiocy on display is beyond the fathoms of this solar system. Sony is meant to offer games for this service and they are doing just that. Oh you don’t like the games? Tough! That’s not for you to decide, if you don’t like it then cancel your membership for a month. And what about the people who actually really are excited by this line up? Sure they are probably a small group but are their preferences to be ignored?

I’m sure they’ll still be releasing niche titles and several JRPGs on the system for years to come. I still remember buying Persona 4 for the PS2 on release day in 2009.

I thought I’d be playing more Persona 5 Royal, but instead I ended up hooking up the velnerable Wii U and played Metroid Zero Mission and Castlevania Aria of Sorrows. Going back to these amazing looking and playing 2D sprite games just flung be back to an era when games just seemed to be interested in just entertaining me. Sure they wanted my money, but they rightly earned it. Honestly, I think I’m gonna go into retro mode for a few weeks.

Had no intention of buying, playing or even watching the game so helped myself to the spoilers in full. Not gonna say anything to avoid even tiniest chance of spoilers but yeah. Someone must have been really pissed.

I bought my PS2 2 years after launch, PS3 2.5 years after launch and PS4 5 years after launch.

I think I’ll be waiting quite a while. Price will have dropped by then.

@nessisonett Publishers will order a set quantity based on perceived requirements as they will want to sell through the majority as early as possible at full price and not have to dump unsold stock at reduced prices. Data shows that the % of digital sales is rising and thus companies will order reduced quantities, otherwise they’d loose money.

Besides, cardboard packaging is only preferred in general packaging of items because of its recyclability. The majority of physical game buyers don’t bin the cases after buying.

Keeping cardboard boxes of older games in pristine condition is tough enough; I hope they stick with either plastic or metal. With so many people going digital, let that be the eco-friendly option. By all means reduce the disc size, make the plastic thinner and out of more easily recyclable material but I hope they continue to use durable material.

I’d have to end up handling my games over a pillow as my butterfingers have dropped enough games in the past and I’d prefer not to have half my collection with dented corners.