One thing I find interesting is that here (in Australia) one of the PS5 Pro retailers (JB HiFi) held ballots for the PS5 Pro 30th Anniversary... at about AUD1600 (without the drive?)... it's now had 3-4 re-ballot annoucements due to the fact that a lot of winners were changing their mind. Perhaps this is a by-product of having a ballot (and letting people have time to think). They also limited to one product per ballot (so you couldn't buy a anniversary controller AND the PS5 Pro which makes me think maybe people were weighing up the cost a little more seriously now...).
@themightyant sorry - you're saying he's wrong (SkillUp) in his opinion... of what he thought about the game? I don't know whether he's an outlier or not - but that's not a bad thing - but I didn't find it "ranty"... I think he just found it tiring and poor quality. The thing that I took out from his review was - the game is clearly marketed at a new generation (because everything in this game just yells casual players). That's fine - but how can a role-playing game actually not provide 'your role playing'.?
I don't know where Veilguard stands compared to ME, but I am getting very strong "Horizon Forbidden West" vibes from this in terms of poor writing / dumbification / playing-it-totally-safe. It might still be a cool game, but I think there's a modern trend in gaming that actually just puts some people off.
At the end of the day - one person doesn't make "the truth of all gaming"... and we should all take a deep breath, and let a range of voices.
@nessisonett I think we should all wait until 'fans' get their hands on it in a meaningful sense before saying too much about fans liking it. I think this is a game that will take some time for people to process through.
So tell me this... if physical is dead, then why are we seeing older games being released on physical when they weren't at launch? Something just doesn't quite square
@rjejr I think this idea that Phil Spencer is "all about gaming" and not money, is pretty simplistic. I think Phil can be both... but he's definitely also worried about money. The issue is - can there be a difference of opinion on how the money is made... and that's a definite yes. As to who wins out... that's a different question.
@Nexozi well if there's one thing that perhaps is going south faster than gaming company ethics, it's game 'journalism' ethics / attention to facts. To be fair however, I guess a lot of people were quick to dog-pile (me included)... which is exactly what to expect when you have someone dog-whistling a storm in a 3D audio tea-cup.
I think the real take-home for me is... basically everyone believed it without question; because we've been trained that there's almost no low that publishers will not try to test. Remember a time when people just got excited about great games coming out?
So... I jumped on to check out the amazing sales... and thought it looked like just about every other sale Sony does... but with a lot more content packs for games included on sale (I guess that's how you get over 1000+ sale items). Also ... I really didn't see much sale value either... mostly 30-60% which is in line with a lot of their sales. And yes - that's better than paying full-price, but I guess the point is... it's not much to write home over (or write a PushSquare post about either if the truth be known).
Not wanting to be the dinosaur in the room, but if you want cheaper games - physical is still a much better way to go IMO... Either way, hope you all find something you want, if you're aching to increase your backlog even more.
@nessisonett not pay-to-win... pay-to-listen (very different concepts). And they've got another four senses to come. Next will be an enhance visualization mode (coincidentally added shortly after they introduce a new fog-of-war feature where there is literally fog obscuring your vision). The new gaming... where the big-tech-carny's ply their trade to squeeze every last dime out of it's players.
Sony is just hitting it out of the park when it comes to decision making recently... sigh... having said that, the whole industry is taking the L now. Hopefully this is just an adjustment, not something more systemic.
@DennisReynolds I understand how the updates work - just not sure what else is going on under the hood that needs patching to make it all work smooth (and still retain the standard PS5 compatibility). I'm also curious how much (if any) boost mode will add on to older PS4 games; and whether boost mode is effectively handled the same as it was on the PS4 Pro.
@LowDefAl I totally agree - but that also means that there might be a fair bit of redundant code floating around. Still - hopefully it's not too much code bulk out.
@DennisReynolds So I seem to recall a few game updates that were coming out recently that were of the 10+ GB size... not sure how much is "on top" or how much is "replacing". Where they're throwing in significantly different tech (eg now with RT) I'd expect a fairly substantial change in build. How that relates to size, not sure. It shouldn't be like the PS4 > PS4 Pro days, as it's not suddenly expanding asset sizes. ...
@Medic_alert nah - I'm good. I decided a while ago that I didn't need to rush to buy a PS5 Pro... and the fact that you couldn't get a drive (in my case) at purchase was the final straw. I might grab one up at some point; but I'm not suffering FOMO so I'm happy atm.
@Medic_alert well done at getting a disc drive... can't buy them here in Oz anywhere (that I can find). Which is yet another reason I think Sony's idea of not having a packed-in box short-sighted and cheap-arse. And congrats on (imminently) ordering a Pro. Hope it's worth it (and even though I have/had a decent PC... in the end, I preferred the simplicity and comfort of console gaming).
Silly question - but are all these updates going out for the Pro regardless of whether you're running Pro hardware? I am worried the answer is yes - but if so, I'd be worried about extra (un-needed) bloat eating up my SSD.
It would be nice to consider the Pro as a separate download option (PS4 / PS5 / PS5 Pro)... but I don't think they did that with with the 4 Pro... so not optimistic.
@DennisReynolds we all get this - as I said in my reply, I personally think subscription services are just teaching people not to buy games (ie devaluing them) - but at the same time, a lot of people make the most of them, and it makes a whole range of games available that they wouldn't get access to otherwise. I've had my fair share of 'throwing my hands up in the air' over the fact that people are potentially sleep-walking into a games apocolypse; but our experiences aren't necessarily other's experience. And then you get people who will tell people proudly that companies deserve to go under, unless they make "their sort of" game. We're not going to change people. Better to just enjoy gaming - while we can .
@DennisReynolds woah - calm down. The point was - a lot of people were saying it was too expensive (I don't know), but I think it was not good form to try and shame gamers who don't want to / or can't pay what you want to/can. The profile pic comment was a joke. Or do I need to put ?
Given that you say it over-stays it's welcome... what sort of game-play time are we talking? And what sort of price. Either way, it's good to see some light-hearted gaming still out there. And nice sub-heading... a bit of a stretch, but worth it.
@Gewertzx why are you on this forum? Edit: I'd suggest it might be a good time to take a break, and it's always good to jump back into comment threads with a fresh set of eyes.
@DennisReynolds ok - I agree with most of your sentiments, but I also think it's not cool to say "see what happens when you wait for a sale".... First off, not everyone can afford to buy full-price games (or may prefer buying more games at cheaper prices). Secondly, there's also a free-market component. Looking at the comments it seems that a LOT of people felt the type of game was over-priced; so this is a market response.
I think it's problematic when studios hold gamers to ransom... buy our product at 'our inflated prices' or we punish the devs (and the gamers by denying them choice)... now buy another AC game. Either way - less "gamer shame" is always a good policy.
Now I can't comment on the inflated price part, because I'm not into metroidvanias, so I don't have a good feel personally. I just heard it was genuinely a good game.
I've always thought the subscription model is perhaps the worst thing for gaming longevity because it devalues games; and teaches gamers NOT to buy. Yet maybe this game would have done best on a subscription service? At least that way it could have got market pentration through a low entry-barrier. However I think the reality is that the arguments for why this happens are quite complicated though, and I don't think it's one thing or another.
Edit - also, having a profile pic doesn't make you more 'worthwhile'. Just saying... for obvious reasons.
@Gewertzx I am a little confused by your first comment... they should basically be punished for building a smaller-quality game; so the company gets gutted in order for it to build more bigger - quality games? Not sure that's what people are really wanting (the quality yes - bigger no). If anything, I think people are time-poor now, and it makes investing in big open worlds very difficult (unless you are one of the people that spends 500+ hours in a open world game).
Their game was by all accounts very high quality - and a very fun/rewarding metroidvania experience. Just didn't crack the mainstream, for whatever reason.
Unfortunately I think PoP - LC was likely Ubisoft's response to an internal drive to make better more focused games from the devs... and now that it's "failed to meet expectations" - they're being told to get back into their grind-cells and pop out another AC game. That's not good for the devs, the players, or the industry at large.
@get2sammyb I have to say, people tend to talk up a sh*t online... oh, UbiSoft suck because they only make huge open-world games - the same formula - the same xp boost packs... and then they ACTUALLY produce a game that by all accounts was very good, and should have been exactly what people wanted... and people stayed away in droves. Edit - and yes, I can accept the pricing was a good reason to hold off... and that would be on Ubisoft management.
I didn't buy it because I've never got into this genre - but it seems to me people will stamp their feet, shake their fists - then secretly buy AC Shadows on discount or dive back into another 200+ hours of Valhalla.
@nessisonett I think the problem is - they know where the money is going (in terms of actual profit vs investment). Once the ROI starts getting too low on single player one-and-done games, investors (and hence Sony) will quickly find other opportunities. It never used to be that way, but Sony has changed a lot in the last 5 years.
I think there's a real reason why XB is moving to 3rd Party publishing... because the money isn't there in the tradtional gaming space (or it's getting too risky... which is why we're getting sequel-itis / remaster-bation). The exception is live service - where if you look at the big wins for MS, it's largely in the multi-platform GaaS category (outside of GP), where they're printing money.
Edit- I thought I could claim authorship of the term remaster-bation; but unfortunately the band Suckerpie beat me to it. The hyphen is all mine however.
@Gewertzx the problem is - once you've found success, the last thing Sony wants to do is kill that goose that layed the golden egg (arguably, TLOUp2 did that for a lot of people - though not me). For some reason, Sony just lost the hunger for new and exciting... or experimental even. They just want to be as inoffensive to as many people as they possibly can.
The irony - the completely vanilla games that are coming out of Sony now are most probably it's biggest vulnerability (and would be really problematic if XB wasn't such a dumpster fire as well)
@Ainu20 I agree that their skill base isn't open world design (their entire art pipeline is based on baked lighting rather than dynamic). I also don't think that open-world = player freedom (necessarily). In the case of UbiSoft it just means a lot of unconnected missions that don't mean a lot to the narrative. The problem is, it's hard to find an example of a game that offers player-freedom (whatever that means) in a form-factor that they have experience in.
Intriguing whatever it is (assuming it materialises).
@Bez87 Wolverine's release window (even year) hasn't been announced - so if it's 2026, that's not delayed. I think a lot of people are making a lot of assumptions based on rumours. It might well be 2025, but I wouldn't necessarily expect it then.
@HonestHick you know you just said 3 games... followed by it's going to be a stacked year. I have to say, if GTA6 gets delayed, then the year's going to be very quiet (unless Sony has something else up it's sleeve apart from more remasters)
@torquex I know there's going to be lots of hate for this comment - but I agree... the list (for me) looks very mid. Of course there's cracker games (GTA6, GoY), but outside of that (I'm not really into DS2, and for me, I preferred Doom2016 than Eternal) I think the games are like a normal year of middling to fair games (with the possibility of some bangers). I'm sure there's plenty of games that people are itching for... but when I looked down the list, I didn't get that hyped at all.
Sorry - does anyone else find it strange that only ONE of these games is Sony First Party... and only one other (that I'm aware of) is Second Party? Hell, there's more XBox First Party games in the list than Sony First Party.
I for one get very wary when I hear comparisons (even potentially) to the story telling in Elden Ring (or FromSoft games in general). I understand the some people like the lore-delving; but I for one don't play games to sit in front of a guide for hours. Which also explains partly why it took me so long to finish ER.
I think the real worry I have is just the very inconsistent (and it seems to me increasingly poor) writing in the games industry as a whole. ND - love 'em or leave 'em, were still very good narrative creators. I hope they don't abandon one of their true hallmarks (divisive though it may be).
@LogicStrikesAgain I think it's perfectly reasonable to cater for people that prefer digital gaming. I don't think anyone wants to take that away from anyone (I buy some older games digitally, but newer games physical... generally because I can save 20-30% of the cost, and I like having them physically available). I think the point of all of this is that the push is to get people to move exclusively to digital libraries, which can be monetised entirely at the whim of Sony. That, and the fact that once drives are "optional" it means that your legacy libraries are "replaceable"... ie Sony wants to re-sell games that you previously had physically.
The fact the PS5 Pro has an optional drive means that you also get stung by a crazy mark up on the hardware (AUD 160 in Australia for a $30 drive and a bit of plastic). Very Pro-priced.
So 30+% of ALL games being sold in the EU suggests no one wants physical media? That's not what I read... and who are these gamers... I don't have anything against people preferring digital - but there's some weird narrative about how it's not worth having drives... shouldn't you also be asking, how many people already HAVE physical libraries? I know I do, and continue to use them. I don't thinnk that I represent the gaming body, but I do think it's strange that they can't even sell a pack-in box with the drive (even as a separate device) for the PS5 Pro - rather than hoping you can find one. Why should we have our gaming hobbies warped to meet the extra profits of Sony? Something is arse-about-face IMHO.
@Kienda I think the fundamental problem was the marketing seemed more founded on Salim himself, and not the game... the Game Awards spot actually turned me off; because I felt that I was being told that Salim's story somehow was more important than the gameplay... or the enjoyment of the player. Maybe it was just me - but when a game dev starts trying to pull at heart-strings from the get-go, it makes me feel they aren't that confident in the game. Though I suspect he may have been given bad marketing advice - which is a shame.
@GeeEssEff Are the majority of people saying that 'diverse' characters can ONLY exist to support white straight males...". I think the problem with the game is that it wasn't an interesting enough game to entice people to play. I think it's fair to say there are some haters... but it's like you're saying the entire gamer-community is somehow hateful. I would guess that 80+% of players just want to play a fun game.
@Northern_munkey the fact that even as an extra subscriber (for now) I couldn't be bothered to even download it. Too many better games to play - and heavy-handed pathos sales-pitch felt to me that we were being guilted into wanting it to succeed. More attention should have been given to why it was a good game, for gameplay reasons.
@UltimateOtaku91 who are you to label people as Sony or Marvel haters... could it possibly be that a lot of people just thought the story/writing and many of the missions weren't that interesting... labelling people just because they don't agree with you, or that you can't conceive that they shouldn't agree with you is just a very poor take IMO.
It was a good game in isolation; but let down by poor character development/plot, pointless antagonists (then entire Kraven story-line), just a bigger map; but you do little in the new burbs; really inconsistent writing (some of it was AI-standard), some iffy character models that looked like a downgrade. I hated some of the stuff with MJ at the end... just seemed contrived - and the whole Peter and Harry thing wasn't believable. Miles was sort of wasted... and then you have 'that end'. And don't get me started on Venom - there were times of real magic gameplay, but I really didn't like the final boss-fight. The combat overall was good - but I think it's also getting a little stale too (maybe it's the fact that it's all NY). They could have done more with the Miles + Peter dual fighting thing (oh, a coop mode would have been sweet and was a slam-dunk). It is however one of the best 'movement' showcases on any platform - and the environments do look fantastic... if only there was more varied things to do in the environment (not less)
In the end, I just got a bit bored (even when NY has been transformed... people were still going about their business... and that's how I felt). I loved the first game's story, and was satisfied with the MM standalone. SM2 just left me feeling disappointed. In truth, I have forgotten a lot of it already.
Edit - overall, I'd give it an 8/10 for gameplay, but a 6/10 for story/characters.
So - I can't believe I'm the first person to ask - why can't we get a 60FPS patch for the original... before we get the sequel. Was one of the most atmospheric games, which I think was spoiled a lot by a 30FPS.... that and the painfully slow walking/running.
Somewhat ironic... it is free online media such as PushSquare that were the reason these publications died (that and convenience). I just don't understand why they couldn't have tried a digital only version. I don't think people value things meaningfully these days (I will resist a GP swipe)... but also there's something so mentally healthy to be able to read something slowly, without feeling the need to race to the comments section to share your opinion (vent your spleen). Ironic all around.
The reality however is the world has changed - for better or worse. And I'm also part of the problem, as I've not bought a print magazine in years.
@zupertramp don't get me wrong - I'm not saying that UbiSoft make better games, I'm just saying their open world structure suits moving through the world more. Rockstar is the best by far at emergent experience (RDR2 is a masterpiece in open-world design... though I think their narrative and mission structure is pretty poor). UbiSoft know how to litter things along the way - so if you're cleaning up at the end of a game doesn't feel as stale, you'll stumble on things that can distract or add texture/colour. I thought that was mostly missing from GoT... which was more noticeable in the end-game phase.
Edit - and ditto HFW was a strangely boring game for me (and I also platinumed that). I really enjoyed HZD (and DLC), but just didn't enjoy the sequel's story or game-flow. I think many people felt the first was a better game. In contrast to GoT, HFW was just vomit-iconography... but the things to find, were also not that interesting after you found them.
@MrMagic that's what I said - there is a lot of cinematic cross-polination... but I'm playing a game, not watching a movie. Also, GoT had a lot of nice moments, but it also wasn't that cut-scene or directed-scene heavy. I don't mind the references, but I also don't want this to become a film-student-fan-fiction-dream either. SuckerPunch did pretty damn well on the "Japanese" story parts of GoT, so I'm guessing they will do well if left to their artistic sensibilities.
Because I'm a Sony completionist... it's a curse... but also that's spread across both the main game and the DLC (and across both the PS4 and PS5). As I said - the core of it is a good game... it's just the end-game is woefully dull, as I don't think there's anything in their open world that's interesting other than "scenery" - which tends to get very saturated.
I liked the game - edit - but I think a lot of people describe it in near flawless phrases that I wonder if I'm playing the same game as them.
Comments 307
Re: PS5 Slim 30th Anniversary Console Restock Expected Today in the US
One thing I find interesting is that here (in Australia) one of the PS5 Pro retailers (JB HiFi) held ballots for the PS5 Pro 30th Anniversary... at about AUD1600 (without the drive?)... it's now had 3-4 re-ballot annoucements due to the fact that a lot of winners were changing their mind. Perhaps this is a by-product of having a ballot (and letting people have time to think). They also limited to one product per ballot (so you couldn't buy a anniversary controller AND the PS5 Pro which makes me think maybe people were weighing up the cost a little more seriously now...).
Re: Bungie Provides Lengthy Development Update on PS5 Extraction Shooter, Marathon
I know a Sony studio that has a whole shed-load of character models just waiting to be picked up... for a song.
Re: Dragon Age: The Veilguard (PS5) - The Best BioWare Game Since Mass Effect 3
@themightyant sorry - you're saying he's wrong (SkillUp) in his opinion... of what he thought about the game? I don't know whether he's an outlier or not - but that's not a bad thing - but I didn't find it "ranty"... I think he just found it tiring and poor quality. The thing that I took out from his review was - the game is clearly marketed at a new generation (because everything in this game just yells casual players). That's fine - but how can a role-playing game actually not provide 'your role playing'.?
I don't know where Veilguard stands compared to ME, but I am getting very strong "Horizon Forbidden West" vibes from this in terms of poor writing / dumbification / playing-it-totally-safe. It might still be a cool game, but I think there's a modern trend in gaming that actually just puts some people off.
At the end of the day - one person doesn't make "the truth of all gaming"... and we should all take a deep breath, and let a range of voices.
Re: Dragon Age: The Veilguard (PS5) - The Best BioWare Game Since Mass Effect 3
@nessisonett I think we should all wait until 'fans' get their hands on it in a meaningful sense before saying too much about fans liking it. I think this is a game that will take some time for people to process through.
Re: Resident Evil 2, 3, 7 PS5 Physical Versions Coming This December
So tell me this... if physical is dead, then why are we seeing older games being released on physical when they weren't at launch? Something just doesn't quite square
Re: Microsoft CEO Says More Xbox Games Will Come to PS5, Hours After Rumours Said Porting Project Was Paused
@rjejr I think this idea that Phil Spencer is "all about gaming" and not money, is pretty simplistic. I think Phil can be both... but he's definitely also worried about money. The issue is - can there be a difference of opinion on how the money is made... and that's a definite yes. As to who wins out... that's a different question.
Re: Ubisoft Confirms Rayman Project in 'Exploration Phase' Following Report of Remake
Breaking news: Rayman dev team disbanded...
Re: Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Offers $20 Premium 'Pay-to-Hear' Audio Tech
@Nexozi well if there's one thing that perhaps is going south faster than gaming company ethics, it's game 'journalism' ethics / attention to facts. To be fair however, I guess a lot of people were quick to dog-pile (me included)... which is exactly what to expect when you have someone dog-whistling a storm in a 3D audio tea-cup.
I think the real take-home for me is... basically everyone believed it without question; because we've been trained that there's almost no low that publishers will not try to test. Remember a time when people just got excited about great games coming out?
Re: 1,000+ PS5, PS4 Games on Sale in New PS Store Promo
So... I jumped on to check out the amazing sales... and thought it looked like just about every other sale Sony does... but with a lot more content packs for games included on sale (I guess that's how you get over 1000+ sale items). Also ... I really didn't see much sale value either... mostly 30-60% which is in line with a lot of their sales. And yes - that's better than paying full-price, but I guess the point is... it's not much to write home over (or write a PushSquare post about either if the truth be known).
Not wanting to be the dinosaur in the room, but if you want cheaper games - physical is still a much better way to go IMO... Either way, hope you all find something you want, if you're aching to increase your backlog even more.
Re: Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Offers $20 Premium 'Pay-to-Hear' Audio Tech
@B_Lindz free dunce-hat... nah mate... that's a premium skin that will cost ya a tenner at least.
Re: Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Offers $20 Premium 'Pay-to-Hear' Audio Tech
@nessisonett not pay-to-win... pay-to-listen (very different concepts). And they've got another four senses to come. Next will be an enhance visualization mode (coincidentally added shortly after they introduce a new fog-of-war feature where there is literally fog obscuring your vision). The new gaming... where the big-tech-carny's ply their trade to squeeze every last dime out of it's players.
Re: Layoffs Reported at Horizon MMO Developer NCSOFT
Sony is just hitting it out of the park when it comes to decision making recently... sigh... having said that, the whole industry is taking the L now. Hopefully this is just an adjustment, not something more systemic.
Re: Stellar Blade's Latest Update Preps for PS5 Pro Enhancement
@DennisReynolds I understand how the updates work - just not sure what else is going on under the hood that needs patching to make it all work smooth (and still retain the standard PS5 compatibility). I'm also curious how much (if any) boost mode will add on to older PS4 games; and whether boost mode is effectively handled the same as it was on the PS4 Pro.
Re: Stellar Blade's Latest Update Preps for PS5 Pro Enhancement
@LowDefAl I totally agree - but that also means that there might be a fair bit of redundant code floating around. Still - hopefully it's not too much code bulk out.
Re: Stellar Blade's Latest Update Preps for PS5 Pro Enhancement
@DennisReynolds So I seem to recall a few game updates that were coming out recently that were of the 10+ GB size... not sure how much is "on top" or how much is "replacing". Where they're throwing in significantly different tech (eg now with RT) I'd expect a fairly substantial change in build. How that relates to size, not sure. It shouldn't be like the PS4 > PS4 Pro days, as it's not suddenly expanding asset sizes. ...
Re: Stellar Blade's Latest Update Preps for PS5 Pro Enhancement
@Medic_alert nah - I'm good. I decided a while ago that I didn't need to rush to buy a PS5 Pro... and the fact that you couldn't get a drive (in my case) at purchase was the final straw. I might grab one up at some point; but I'm not suffering FOMO so I'm happy atm.
Re: Stellar Blade's Latest Update Preps for PS5 Pro Enhancement
@Medic_alert well done at getting a disc drive... can't buy them here in Oz anywhere (that I can find). Which is yet another reason I think Sony's idea of not having a packed-in box short-sighted and cheap-arse. And congrats on (imminently) ordering a Pro. Hope it's worth it (and even though I have/had a decent PC... in the end, I preferred the simplicity and comfort of console gaming).
Re: Stellar Blade's Latest Update Preps for PS5 Pro Enhancement
Silly question - but are all these updates going out for the Pro regardless of whether you're running Pro hardware? I am worried the answer is yes - but if so, I'd be worried about extra (un-needed) bloat eating up my SSD.
It would be nice to consider the Pro as a separate download option (PS4 / PS5 / PS5 Pro)... but I don't think they did that with with the 4 Pro... so not optimistic.
Re: Ubisoft Disbands Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown Team After Poor Sales, Claims Report
@DennisReynolds we all get this - as I said in my reply, I personally think subscription services are just teaching people not to buy games (ie devaluing them) - but at the same time, a lot of people make the most of them, and it makes a whole range of games available that they wouldn't get access to otherwise. I've had my fair share of 'throwing my hands up in the air' over the fact that people are potentially sleep-walking into a games apocolypse; but our experiences aren't necessarily other's experience. And then you get people who will tell people proudly that companies deserve to go under, unless they make "their sort of" game. We're not going to change people. Better to just enjoy gaming - while we can .
Re: Ubisoft Disbands Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown Team After Poor Sales, Claims Report
@DennisReynolds woah - calm down. The point was - a lot of people were saying it was too expensive (I don't know), but I think it was not good form to try and shame gamers who don't want to / or can't pay what you want to/can. The profile pic comment was a joke. Or do I need to put ?
Re: Atomfall Shares First Gameplay Look, Out for PS5, PS4 in March
Weird - why is this video now private?
Re: Mini Review: Squirrel with a Gun (PS5) - Forage for Chaos in This Silly Sandbox Adventure
Given that you say it over-stays it's welcome... what sort of game-play time are we talking? And what sort of price. Either way, it's good to see some light-hearted gaming still out there. And nice sub-heading... a bit of a stretch, but worth it.
Re: Ubisoft Disbands Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown Team After Poor Sales, Claims Report
@Gewertzx why are you on this forum? Edit: I'd suggest it might be a good time to take a break, and it's always good to jump back into comment threads with a fresh set of eyes.
Re: Ubisoft Disbands Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown Team After Poor Sales, Claims Report
@DennisReynolds ok - I agree with most of your sentiments, but I also think it's not cool to say "see what happens when you wait for a sale".... First off, not everyone can afford to buy full-price games (or may prefer buying more games at cheaper prices). Secondly, there's also a free-market component. Looking at the comments it seems that a LOT of people felt the type of game was over-priced; so this is a market response.
I think it's problematic when studios hold gamers to ransom... buy our product at 'our inflated prices' or we punish the devs (and the gamers by denying them choice)... now buy another AC game. Either way - less "gamer shame" is always a good policy.
Now I can't comment on the inflated price part, because I'm not into metroidvanias, so I don't have a good feel personally. I just heard it was genuinely a good game.
I've always thought the subscription model is perhaps the worst thing for gaming longevity because it devalues games; and teaches gamers NOT to buy. Yet maybe this game would have done best on a subscription service? At least that way it could have got market pentration through a low entry-barrier. However I think the reality is that the arguments for why this happens are quite complicated though, and I don't think it's one thing or another.
Edit - also, having a profile pic doesn't make you more 'worthwhile'. Just saying... for obvious reasons.
Re: Ubisoft Disbands Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown Team After Poor Sales, Claims Report
@Gewertzx I am a little confused by your first comment... they should basically be punished for building a smaller-quality game; so the company gets gutted in order for it to build more bigger - quality games? Not sure that's what people are really wanting (the quality yes - bigger no). If anything, I think people are time-poor now, and it makes investing in big open worlds very difficult (unless you are one of the people that spends 500+ hours in a open world game).
Their game was by all accounts very high quality - and a very fun/rewarding metroidvania experience. Just didn't crack the mainstream, for whatever reason.
Unfortunately I think PoP - LC was likely Ubisoft's response to an internal drive to make better more focused games from the devs... and now that it's "failed to meet expectations" - they're being told to get back into their grind-cells and pop out another AC game. That's not good for the devs, the players, or the industry at large.
Re: Ubisoft Disbands Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown Team After Poor Sales, Claims Report
@get2sammyb I have to say, people tend to talk up a sh*t online... oh, UbiSoft suck because they only make huge open-world games - the same formula - the same xp boost packs... and then they ACTUALLY produce a game that by all accounts was very good, and should have been exactly what people wanted... and people stayed away in droves. Edit - and yes, I can accept the pricing was a good reason to hold off... and that would be on Ubisoft management.
I didn't buy it because I've never got into this genre - but it seems to me people will stamp their feet, shake their fists - then secretly buy AC Shadows on discount or dive back into another 200+ hours of Valhalla.
Re: PlayStation, Bungie Still Going Ahead with Internal Live Service Team
@nessisonett I think the problem is - they know where the money is going (in terms of actual profit vs investment). Once the ROI starts getting too low on single player one-and-done games, investors (and hence Sony) will quickly find other opportunities. It never used to be that way, but Sony has changed a lot in the last 5 years.
I think there's a real reason why XB is moving to 3rd Party publishing... because the money isn't there in the tradtional gaming space (or it's getting too risky... which is why we're getting sequel-itis / remaster-bation). The exception is live service - where if you look at the big wins for MS, it's largely in the multi-platform GaaS category (outside of GP), where they're printing money.
Edit- I thought I could claim authorship of the term remaster-bation; but unfortunately the band Suckerpie beat me to it. The hyphen is all mine however.
Re: PlayStation, Bungie Still Going Ahead with Internal Live Service Team
@Waa-Laa Concord Folie a Deux?
Re: Sony's Guerrilla Sounds Completely Done with the Killzone Series
@Gewertzx the problem is - once you've found success, the last thing Sony wants to do is kill that goose that layed the golden egg (arguably, TLOUp2 did that for a lot of people - though not me). For some reason, Sony just lost the hunger for new and exciting... or experimental even. They just want to be as inoffensive to as many people as they possibly can.
The irony - the completely vanilla games that are coming out of Sony now are most probably it's biggest vulnerability (and would be really problematic if XB wasn't such a dumpster fire as well)
Re: Naughty Dog's Next Game Will Reportedly Put More of a Focus on 'Player Freedom'
@Ainu20 I agree that their skill base isn't open world design (their entire art pipeline is based on baked lighting rather than dynamic). I also don't think that open-world = player freedom (necessarily). In the case of UbiSoft it just means a lot of unconnected missions that don't mean a lot to the narrative. The problem is, it's hard to find an example of a game that offers player-freedom (whatever that means) in a form-factor that they have experience in.
Intriguing whatever it is (assuming it materialises).
Re: Video: 2025 Is Shaping Up to Be PS5's Best Year Yet
@Bez87 Wolverine's release window (even year) hasn't been announced - so if it's 2026, that's not delayed. I think a lot of people are making a lot of assumptions based on rumours. It might well be 2025, but I wouldn't necessarily expect it then.
Re: Video: 2025 Is Shaping Up to Be PS5's Best Year Yet
@HonestHick you know you just said 3 games... followed by it's going to be a stacked year. I have to say, if GTA6 gets delayed, then the year's going to be very quiet (unless Sony has something else up it's sleeve apart from more remasters)
Re: Video: 2025 Is Shaping Up to Be PS5's Best Year Yet
@torquex I know there's going to be lots of hate for this comment - but I agree... the list (for me) looks very mid. Of course there's cracker games (GTA6, GoY), but outside of that (I'm not really into DS2, and for me, I preferred Doom2016 than Eternal) I think the games are like a normal year of middling to fair games (with the possibility of some bangers). I'm sure there's plenty of games that people are itching for... but when I looked down the list, I didn't get that hyped at all.
Re: Video: 2025 Is Shaping Up to Be PS5's Best Year Yet
@PuppetMaster sorry to let you know - Wolverine does NOT have a release window... 2026 is looking just as likely as 2025 IMO
Re: Video: 2025 Is Shaping Up to Be PS5's Best Year Yet
Sorry - does anyone else find it strange that only ONE of these games is Sony First Party... and only one other (that I'm aware of) is Second Party? Hell, there's more XBox First Party games in the list than Sony First Party.
Re: Naughty Dog's Next Game Will Reportedly Put More of a Focus on 'Player Freedom'
I for one get very wary when I hear comparisons (even potentially) to the story telling in Elden Ring (or FromSoft games in general). I understand the some people like the lore-delving; but I for one don't play games to sit in front of a guide for hours. Which also explains partly why it took me so long to finish ER.
I think the real worry I have is just the very inconsistent (and it seems to me increasingly poor) writing in the games industry as a whole. ND - love 'em or leave 'em, were still very good narrative creators. I hope they don't abandon one of their true hallmarks (divisive though it may be).
Re: Like It or Not, This Is Why PS5 Pro Doesn't Have a Disc Drive
@LogicStrikesAgain I think it's perfectly reasonable to cater for people that prefer digital gaming. I don't think anyone wants to take that away from anyone (I buy some older games digitally, but newer games physical... generally because I can save 20-30% of the cost, and I like having them physically available). I think the point of all of this is that the push is to get people to move exclusively to digital libraries, which can be monetised entirely at the whim of Sony. That, and the fact that once drives are "optional" it means that your legacy libraries are "replaceable"... ie Sony wants to re-sell games that you previously had physically.
The fact the PS5 Pro has an optional drive means that you also get stung by a crazy mark up on the hardware (AUD 160 in Australia for a $30 drive and a bit of plastic). Very Pro-priced.
Re: Like It or Not, This Is Why PS5 Pro Doesn't Have a Disc Drive
@BusyOlf Sony is a significant shareholder in Epic Games. Coincidence?... maybe Tim Sweeney knows where his bread is buttered...
Re: Like It or Not, This Is Why PS5 Pro Doesn't Have a Disc Drive
So 30+% of ALL games being sold in the EU suggests no one wants physical media? That's not what I read... and who are these gamers... I don't have anything against people preferring digital - but there's some weird narrative about how it's not worth having drives... shouldn't you also be asking, how many people already HAVE physical libraries? I know I do, and continue to use them. I don't thinnk that I represent the gaming body, but I do think it's strange that they can't even sell a pack-in box with the drive (even as a separate device) for the PS5 Pro - rather than hoping you can find one. Why should we have our gaming hobbies warped to meet the extra profits of Sony? Something is arse-about-face IMHO.
Re: Tales of Kenzera: ZAU Dev Surgent Studios Puts Game Team on Hiatus
@Kienda I think the fundamental problem was the marketing seemed more founded on Salim himself, and not the game... the Game Awards spot actually turned me off; because I felt that I was being told that Salim's story somehow was more important than the gameplay... or the enjoyment of the player. Maybe it was just me - but when a game dev starts trying to pull at heart-strings from the get-go, it makes me feel they aren't that confident in the game. Though I suspect he may have been given bad marketing advice - which is a shame.
Re: Tales of Kenzera: ZAU Dev Surgent Studios Puts Game Team on Hiatus
@GeeEssEff Are the majority of people saying that 'diverse' characters can ONLY exist to support white straight males...". I think the problem with the game is that it wasn't an interesting enough game to entice people to play. I think it's fair to say there are some haters... but it's like you're saying the entire gamer-community is somehow hateful. I would guess that 80+% of players just want to play a fun game.
Re: Tales of Kenzera: ZAU Dev Surgent Studios Puts Game Team on Hiatus
@Northern_munkey the fact that even as an extra subscriber (for now) I couldn't be bothered to even download it. Too many better games to play - and heavy-handed pathos sales-pitch felt to me that we were being guilted into wanting it to succeed. More attention should have been given to why it was a good game, for gameplay reasons.
Re: Poll: One Year Later, How Would You Rate Marvel's Spider-Man 2 on PS5?
@UltimateOtaku91 who are you to label people as Sony or Marvel haters... could it possibly be that a lot of people just thought the story/writing and many of the missions weren't that interesting... labelling people just because they don't agree with you, or that you can't conceive that they shouldn't agree with you is just a very poor take IMO.
Re: Poll: One Year Later, How Would You Rate Marvel's Spider-Man 2 on PS5?
It was a good game in isolation; but let down by poor character development/plot, pointless antagonists (then entire Kraven story-line), just a bigger map; but you do little in the new burbs; really inconsistent writing (some of it was AI-standard), some iffy character models that looked like a downgrade. I hated some of the stuff with MJ at the end... just seemed contrived - and the whole Peter and Harry thing wasn't believable. Miles was sort of wasted... and then you have 'that end'. And don't get me started on Venom - there were times of real magic gameplay, but I really didn't like the final boss-fight. The combat overall was good - but I think it's also getting a little stale too (maybe it's the fact that it's all NY). They could have done more with the Miles + Peter dual fighting thing (oh, a coop mode would have been sweet and was a slam-dunk). It is however one of the best 'movement' showcases on any platform - and the environments do look fantastic... if only there was more varied things to do in the environment (not less)
In the end, I just got a bit bored (even when NY has been transformed... people were still going about their business... and that's how I felt). I loved the first game's story, and was satisfied with the MM standalone. SM2 just left me feeling disappointed. In truth, I have forgotten a lot of it already.
Edit - overall, I'd give it an 8/10 for gameplay, but a 6/10 for story/characters.
Re: Alien: Isolation Sequel Announced, in Early Development
So - I can't believe I'm the first person to ask - why can't we get a 60FPS patch for the original... before we get the sequel. Was one of the most atmospheric games, which I think was spoiled a lot by a 30FPS.... that and the painfully slow walking/running.
Re: PLAY, the Last Bastion of PlayStation Print Media, Has Reached Its Final Issue
Removed
Re: PLAY, the Last Bastion of PlayStation Print Media, Has Reached Its Final Issue
Somewhat ironic... it is free online media such as PushSquare that were the reason these publications died (that and convenience). I just don't understand why they couldn't have tried a digital only version. I don't think people value things meaningfully these days (I will resist a GP swipe)... but also there's something so mentally healthy to be able to read something slowly, without feeling the need to race to the comments section to share your opinion (vent your spleen). Ironic all around.
The reality however is the world has changed - for better or worse. And I'm also part of the problem, as I've not bought a print magazine in years.
Re: Ghost of Yotei's Gorgeous Open World Will Be Less Repetitive Than Tsushima's
@zupertramp don't get me wrong - I'm not saying that UbiSoft make better games, I'm just saying their open world structure suits moving through the world more. Rockstar is the best by far at emergent experience (RDR2 is a masterpiece in open-world design... though I think their narrative and mission structure is pretty poor). UbiSoft know how to litter things along the way - so if you're cleaning up at the end of a game doesn't feel as stale, you'll stumble on things that can distract or add texture/colour. I thought that was mostly missing from GoT... which was more noticeable in the end-game phase.
Edit - and ditto HFW was a strangely boring game for me (and I also platinumed that). I really enjoyed HZD (and DLC), but just didn't enjoy the sequel's story or game-flow. I think many people felt the first was a better game. In contrast to GoT, HFW was just vomit-iconography... but the things to find, were also not that interesting after you found them.
Re: Ghost of Yotei's Gorgeous Open World Will Be Less Repetitive Than Tsushima's
@MrMagic that's what I said - there is a lot of cinematic cross-polination... but I'm playing a game, not watching a movie. Also, GoT had a lot of nice moments, but it also wasn't that cut-scene or directed-scene heavy. I don't mind the references, but I also don't want this to become a film-student-fan-fiction-dream either. SuckerPunch did pretty damn well on the "Japanese" story parts of GoT, so I'm guessing they will do well if left to their artistic sensibilities.
Re: Ghost of Yotei's Gorgeous Open World Will Be Less Repetitive Than Tsushima's
Because I'm a Sony completionist... it's a curse... but also that's spread across both the main game and the DLC (and across both the PS4 and PS5). As I said - the core of it is a good game... it's just the end-game is woefully dull, as I don't think there's anything in their open world that's interesting other than "scenery" - which tends to get very saturated.
I liked the game - edit - but I think a lot of people describe it in near flawless phrases that I wonder if I'm playing the same game as them.