Comments 1,370

Re: Key Sony Exec Gives Eye-Opening Quotes on the Future of PlayStation and Gaming

Jimmer-jammer

@NEStalgia It might be the wrong word but I was thinking ‘democratized’ in the sense of rather than experiencing a linear, carefully crafted singular vision, one’s experience would be generated on the fly, completely reactive to their unique parameters and input, resulting in a far more personal adventure.

‘Democratized’ in the sense of the internet celebrity of the day casting dignity to the wind to have their followers subject them to whatever experience can be conjured up amongst the crowd in some dystopian version of a let’s play.

The human is still the catalyst of the story as nothing is generated without input, and anything that is generated is meaningless eithout an audience to receive it.

Re: Key Sony Exec Gives Eye-Opening Quotes on the Future of PlayStation and Gaming

Jimmer-jammer

@NEStalgia I think the big difference between 2013 and now is the advent of A.I. I’m looking well in to the future here but when the public can live out their own entirely personalized dynamic experience crafted through prompts by A.I., I’d argue that storytelling will have been democratized. It pains me to think of mediums such as film becoming niche remnants of a bygone era.

Re: The Next Naughty Dog Game Its 'Most Thrilling Yet', Says Neil Druckmann

Jimmer-jammer

I think I understand what he’s getting at and taken for exactly what it is, “Could redefine mainstream perceptions of gaming” is a pretty broad statement and not all that hyperbolic. Most people in my world still view gaming as either a children’s pastime or a way to pass time on your phone and largely as a meritless waste of that time. Organized Esports are only just being introduced into the school system. There is absolutely massive growth potential for gaming and especially the type of games Naughty Dog makes, which have already been bridging this gap for some time.

Re: Rise of the Ronin Update Coming This Week, Adds Missions and Features

Jimmer-jammer

@SuperJag86 Not many games can compare favourably to Ghost of Tsushima’s presentation! From my perspective, the two games are driven by completely different design philosophies. How I see it:

GoT aims for immersion, blending cinematic spectacle and straightforward, easily digestible systems in a gorgeously rendered world. Everything works in service of the player connecting directly with Jin and introspectively ruminating on the themes resulting from his inner conflict while stylistically paying homage to a specific genre of film. Its dynamite for what it is.

RotR is first and foremost a video game and has far more going on in it than GoT. It’s a direct open world translation of Team Ninja’s dopamine drip of systems driven, highly customizable, incredibly responsive action heavy gameplay. Everything works in service of player expression, with its “bond” system being the engine underneath it all. Without going on too long here, not everything it attempts fully comes together, thus I’d be hard pressed to call it the better game, but it comes together where I think it matters most as an action rpg.

Edit: also, since I don’t believe they get near enough credit, RotR’s audio design and score are phenomenal.

Re: Indika (PS5) - A Bleak, Beautiful, Bewildering Rumination on Faith and Free Will

Jimmer-jammer

Sounds fascinating! I think ambiguity is a very smart approach here in effectively challenging and engaging the player to think on their beliefs. As a believer in Christ with a very real distaste and distrust of religious institutions, I’m already drawing my own interpretations and arguments on the material just based off of the examples provided in this review. I genuinely hope it can spur on some healthy introspection and discussion amongst the community.

Re: Helldivers 2 Blasted with Over 200,000 Positive User Reviews Following Sony's PSN Backtrack

Jimmer-jammer

A corporation is an entity conceived and designed for the sole purpose of generating as much profit as possible - and here’s the caveat- within a given market. To do this effectively, a human touch is required and folks are paid big bucks to make what works on paper actually work in practice. This is not a market that Sony can waltz into and dictate their status quo, that much is clear. You can’t take your golden calf into the lions den and expect to make it out alive without respecting the lions’ nature. This whole thing’s been mildly fascinating to watch unfold.

Re: Talking Point: Have Sony's Third-Party PS5 Deals Made Up for Its Lack of First-Party Games?

Jimmer-jammer

First party: Demon’s Souls, Astrobot, Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, Returnal and Spider-Man 2.

Third party exclusive: Final Fanrasy XVI, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Helldivers 2, Rise of the Ronin and Stellar Blade.

That’s 10 PS5 games. Combine that with not insignificant cross-gen releases such as God of War Ragnarok, Horizon Forbidden West and Sackboy, I see a varied menu of high quality releases only found within the PlayStation ecosystem. I haven’t even touched third party or indie.

PS5 also launched (successfully) in the midst of a world altering pandemic, of which the effects are still being felt in the supply chain, labour force and economic climate. In order to develop games at the fidelity players expect, and without crunch, in a situation where they are more expensive and take longer to make than ever before, I think Sony’s strategy is working out just fine all things considered. It’s fair to say that some mistakes with resource management have been made behind the scenes but it’s precisely this strategy of diversity that has kept these mistakes from becoming critical.

A lot of PS4’s biggest titles, such as Ghost of Tsushima, released far into its lifespan and beloved titles such as Days Gone and The Order 1886 reviewed far lower across the board than the current “ugly duckling”, Rise of the Ronin.

I think Sony has bought the time they need to get their ducks in a row and are going to smash the latter half of this console’s lifespan out of the water.

Re: Random: We're In Awe of Metaphor: ReFantazio's Box Art

Jimmer-jammer

I like how the title looks like it was slashed into place by a sword. The angular font adds so much depth and dimension to the piece, while the overtly symmetrical composition communicates a sense of power and control: you have the means to keep chaos at bay. It’s fantastic box art.

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 525

Jimmer-jammer

I’ve put Rise of the Ronin on the back burner in order to rip through the two FF XVI DLC’s. Happy Gaming!

@HeavymetalGordon Not only will I also be watching NHL playoffs but I’m also playing through Unravel 2 with my son and also missed the same trophy as you on my Elden Ring play through. I feel very understood right now 😂 Cheers!

Re: Final Fantasy XVI: The Rising Tide (PS5) - A Fantastic Sendoff for Square's Action RPG

Jimmer-jammer

@Ravix Loading up your ‘complete’ save file puts you back to the point of no return, which is where you need to be to start the DLC. 😄

Edit: Just to add to this, even if you didn’t save after completing the game for some reason, you’d still have your save before the point of no return. There’s basically no way to miss this unless you’ve deleted your saves.

Re: Final Fantasy XVI: The Rising Tide (PS5) - A Fantastic Sendoff for Square's Action RPG

Jimmer-jammer

Kairos gate sounds really neat, I had no idea it was a thing. I’m glad to see they’re all in on the wonderful combat system. I loaded up my ‘Origin Complete’ save last night, only to see that I had to complete a few quests in order to access the DLC (I had skipped most side quests on my FF run). It worked out though, as I needed to familiarize myself with everything again anyway. Hope to start both DLC’s proper tonight!