Comments 1,349

Re: Persona Fans on PlayStation Get Sold Short Again as Xbox Deal Reveals Native Ports

Robocod

@Bionic-Spencer 100% this! After pushing a very public narrative both thru their lawyers to Competition regulator's & via the media about "Sony pays money to keep games off Gamepass" & Sony pays money to stop "superior" versions of games & ensure platform parity doing rounds on twitter,here we see "Gaming for All" Phil splashing cash at Sega to prevent a native port on PS5!

Yep,a Sega or similar buyout,(let's face it, after Activision they could easily target the likes of Take-two) ,seems likely...the only real distraction would be a protracted battle in the courts if the likes of the EU didn't approve the Activision buyoutor attached conditions to it.😕

Re: Shocking: Sony Doesn't Want Game Pass on PlayStation, Microsoft Has a Pop at PS Plus

Robocod

"Sony doesn't want competition or choice!"...says the 2 trillion dollar company bankrolling Gamepass & "Gamer" Phil Spencer buying up every major 3rd party publisher they can get their hands on to remove the choice of console they can play said 3rd party IP's & force them onto xbox or presumably Gamepass & X-cloud without a necessarily a native version on PS!

"Sure Jan"!!🙄
Sadly I doubt Sony will be able to stop it...but to keep pushing the ridiculous narrative that a Microsoft backed XB division is the underdog is laughable! It won't happen,but imagine if the XB division was forced to separate from the rest of Microsoft...somehow I think the $1 XB live gold gamepass upgrades would suddenly stop!🤔

Re: PS Plus Premium's Logic Doesn't Even Make Sense to Sony

Robocod

@Rob_230 @get2Sammyb Whilst I don't personally find the Crunchyroll sub that attractive ,(my fave anime stuff is select 70's/80's & 90's), I do agree there needs to be an overhaul.

The entire PS Premium tier is a deceptively marketed gimmick based around a rebadged PS Now. I only speculate on this as I ironically live in a PS Deluxe Territory but I'm not a fan of streaming only as being the solution to a lack of effort on porting or emulation.

Judging from the lack of third party & first party PSP,PS1,PS2 Classics being added for PS Deluxe suggests they only intended the "library of classic games",were mostly pre-existing titles....eg: to date the only PS2 additions was Jak & Daxter from the discontinued PS2 Classics program on PS4!🙄

There's been no effort to improve the emulator used back then which was functional more than pretty for stuff like GTA Vice City/SA, The Warriors,Canis Canem Edit,Metal Slug Anthology etc. (Yes i bought a few of them!)

There's been no announcements about a PS Classics team interacting via the blog or twitter saying "what games would you like to see?" Or touting old genuine classics like Alundra, Adventures of Lomax,Twisted Metal,Rayman, Legacy of Kain,Colony Wars or those classic ps1 rpg's & 2d shmup's.

Instead of resourcing a Sly Cooper trilogy HD port or ps2 classics we got a blog announcement of merch....& Mr Hulst announcing the purchase of a mobile games studio to work on classic IP's & yet insist they were committed to PS Gamers!

Much like the ps1 mini,(& its so-so line-up of games),& the defunct ps2 classics range,it's easy for Jim Ryan to claim its highly requested but little used yet Sony's support of such classic games libraries/emulation has been poor/ "cheap" to say the least. If you put in a lacklustre effort how can you expect people to support/buy the product?🤔

As a Territory where PS Deluxe is $155 almost double PS Essential's $80,they should be putting the $$ into a dedicated Classics library effort instead of wait until you get PS Now/Premium!

Re: PS Plus Extra, Premium PS5, PS4 Games for October 2022 Announced

Robocod

It's a sad irony whilst my local Playstation twitter was retweeting about a ps1 booting up to a big screen TV & what game(s),you wanted to play on it & reading some lovely replies you get pulled out of the nostalgia trip reading once again no new ps1,ps2 or even psp classic games...much less the rumoured top notch ones ala the rest of the classic RE titles,Dino Crisis etc.somehow vanish into the abyss!
Much less the in-house ps1 & ps2 Sony titles that could be ported...& yet rather than greenlight a better ps1/ ps2 emulation,or port some of those PS3 HD versions (& stuff like LBP 1 &2 etc),we're likely getting HZD...thanks Mr Hulst!
Given the likelihood of losing access to more 3rd parties if Microsoft get their way as seems likely, they need to start tapping into the classics...for starters it'd be a nice way to gauge interest in some new titles whether,Twisted Metal, Sly Cooper, Ratchet,Colony Wars,etc.

Re: Microsoft Says PS5, PS4 Would Still Be Bigger if Every Call of Duty Player Switched to Xbox

Robocod

Isn't it funny how Phil "Gamer" Spencer initially continued his "Gaming for all" spiel he ran with after the Zenimax purchase to now Satya & their lawyers running with "poor little 2 trillion indie Microsoft is 3rd or 4th behind big bad Sony & us making little old COD exclusive is needed for competition!"🙄
Except rather than actually try compete in more recent times they're buying up 3rd party publishers & IP's therein to stop them being on their competition...whilst also pushing the narrative that timed exclusives from Sony's end are more evil & anti gamer than their permanently taking them off the table!
Their aims with Gamepass is less about being pro gamer as much as it is the longer term goals pushing live services & renting games over buying them.
For the XB cheer squad thinking they've pro gamer just remember the increasing fun you have reinstalling windows & not being forced to create an online Microsoft account & switch off their spyware just to use your PC...they are not your friend.

Re: The Last of Us Was 'Ahead of Its Time', Sony Wanted 'Definitive Version'

Robocod

@thetraditional @Shepherd_Tallon According to Wiki,Matrix Software have been quite active both on mobile & console with various Japanese publishers since Alundra.
According to Alundra's wiki,it was published by Sony in Japan,Working Design in the U.S. & Psygnosis (Obv.,owned by Sony by then), in the EU. Would love to see it on PS Deluxe's PS Classics range,though given it got delisted off the PS3's EU PSN Store presumably the old publishing deal must've lapsed!😑

Since Mr Hulst is all for games ahead of their time getting remakes,I look forward to his Colony Wars remake announcement!🙄😂
Agreed,there's a bucket load of old PS1/PS2 Classics that should be at least released on the classics label but unfortunately they seem unwilling to pour resources into it under current management.

Re: Mini Review: Airoheart (PS5) - Flawed Zelda Clone Has Some Nice Ideas, But Stumbles

Robocod

@yeayeanaynay Tried looking up some details about the Japanese devs after it was delisted quietly off the EU PSN as I'd only known of it as a Psygnosis published game. Some suggestions they moved into mobile games,but seemingly they've half vanished...so bit unsure who has what rights over it mores the pity!😑

I didn't even know Psygnosis did a sequel though it was seemingly no where near as good as the original!

Re: CDPR Just Announced Two New Witcher Games

Robocod

@ShogunRok I wonder how PS Users will fare seeing the new Cyberpunk or Witcher games down the line whether PS5 or even a PS6?
Assuming Microsoft's buyout of Activision Blizzard goes ahead,they've shown quite an appetite at monopolising the "Western RPG's" market with their previous buyouts of Bethesda, InExile,Odsidian etc. Making the titles exclusive would be a very Phil Spencer thing to do unfortunately!

Re: PlayStation Bigwigs Won't Shut Up About PC, Smartphones

Robocod

Coincidental timing of this interview coming out after the past weekend!
Unfortunately it's a sign of the times under the current PS Management team...rather than engage with players unlike Shuhei Yoshida, Shawn Layden etc.,online,you'll see them appear to enter P.R. mode with outlets like Axios, Reuters, Gamebiz etc 😕😑
Rather than put resources towards the PS1/PS2 Classics catalogue,(with a good emulation to back it up),or porting PS3 games ala Sly Cooper,Resistance, LBP 1&2,Infamous or even the likes of Rain,ICO etc.,you see them investing in mobile games studios whilst claiming they're still committed to PS Players.🙄
I can live with PC ports if they're successful & help with the PS bottom line...but it's sad to see where looking at the lack of effort & tonal deafness at things like celebrating Sly Cooper's anniversary with no actual port/new game,or the feeble PS Deluxe/Premium PS1/PS2 Classics additions whilst they're talking up smartphone gaming, more live services etc.,& TV shows just seem to illustrate the disconnect PS Gamers who haven't upgraded yet are feeling at present. 🤔

Re: Beyond Good & Evil 2 Has Been in Development Longer Than Literally Any Game, Ever

Robocod

The 2008/PS3 Beyond Good & Evil announcement at least appeared to be the single player sequel I would have liked to see conclude the events of the original game & finding P'eyj. The swearing Gorilla MMO thing just feels like its riding on the original's coattails but will be a soulless mtx live service grindfrest trying to be Ubisoft's GTA Online!🙄
Such a wasted opportunity!

Re: Horizon Zero Dawn Remaster for PS5 Reportedly in Development

Robocod

Whilst its a pity PS Games aren't staying exclusive these days,there's clearly a market for them & it makes sense financially to do so.

That said,its soo frustrating & tone deaf for Mr Hulst to post on the PS Blog that Sony remains "committed to PS Gamers & single player experiences".
But instead of funding good emulated versions of the Ratchet PS2 Series, God of War,Twisted Metal series,Adentures of Lomax, Colony Wars,& more onto a proper PS Classics range, Or port Sly Cooper HD Trilogy,Unchartrd Golden Abyss, Infamous,Resistance series,Little Big Planet 1&2, or karting,Bloodborne etc.,they're doing TLOU,& possibly now HZD as full priced "remakes".

Was TLOU badly done? No,it was clearly quality work...but so was TLOU PS4 remaster & it wasn't sold as a full priced remaster at the time on ps4, nor was the likes of Ps4 Ratchet etc.
That they tick off funding these full priced remakes when there's perfectly functional versions already,but ignore getting their legacy library of classics brought across as "too expensive" just comes across as tone deaf.😑😔
As always,actions speak louder than words.

Re: Once Considered a PlayStation Competitor, Google Stadia Is Shutting Down

Robocod

@ShogunRok @LiamCroft Wasn't it rumoured that the Sony/Microsoft "deal" to use the Azure Cloud technology was borne out of their mutual concern of Google entering the gaming market?🤔
The irony is that although Google in theory had as deep pockets as Microsoft,they weren't prepared to bankroll their Stadia/Gaming division like Microsoft is subsidising Xbox....eg: Killing their own Gaming Studios in pre production causing Jayde Redmond & co. to sign up with Sony. On the other hand Xbox is using the corporate credit card to buy Zenimax,Activision Blizzard & any other AAA 3rd party mega publishers & Gamepass's $1 upgrade deals to cut Playstation out of previously 3rd party IP's & money spinners like COD.

The fact is despite the Microsoft CEO recently claiming they were "3rd or 4th behind Sony" & "Let there be competition!" (Whilst making said 3rd party IP's PC/XB/Gamepass/Cloud exclusive) They priced Google Stadia out of the market with a subscription service vs a individual purchase model that Google wanted to use.

Meantime with the growing tensions between MS/XB & Sony,we've yet to see any usage of Azure by Playstation. Jim Ryan teased they were looking to use it "in unique ways",they're keeping things firmly under wraps for now!🤔

Re: Sly Cooper Celebrates 20th Anniversary with Some Sweet Swag

Robocod

Would've been nice if they'd at least ported the ps2 originals to the PS Classics range on PS Deluxe & Premium so that ALL territories could play them rather than select regions via streaming only!

Or better yet,invest in a ps4/5 port of the HD Trilogy...might show a bit of that commitment to PS Owners that Herman Hulst mentioned when announcing the purchase of that mobile gaming studio recently!😑

Re: GTA 6 Hackers Potentially Under Investigation by the FBI

Robocod

You can be sure the likes of poor old GTA Forums are being "persuaded" to assist Take-two & the authorities with whatever info they'd had on the alleged hacker (& collaborate with the cyber sleuthing from Rockstar's end).
The criminal aspect (if/when the hackers are found),will be significant,but not as much as their being sued into oblivion by Take-two's lawyers...they'll be lucky to access a C64 by the time they're finished!

Re: Gigantic GTA 6 Leak Confirmed Real as Devs Show Support for Rockstar

Robocod

Granted hadn't bothered with all the footage but if there's one small positive,it was more akin to a tech demo,rather than the kind of spoilers that afflicted TLOU2.
Not that Take-two/Rockstar will be taking claims of the alleged hacker having possession of parts of the source code lightly....poking a very angry wasps nest with their army of lawyers.

Re: Rumour: Massive GTA 6 Leak Posts 90 Videos Online

Robocod

As others have rightly inferred,this does look legitimate...but if the rumours are to be believed is this the current GTA VI,or the Dan Houser led effort which was reportedly canned?🤔
Haven't seen much beyond the hold up scene & a couple of others,but nothing much representing an actual game yet. I still tend to suspect the next GTA will feature a cut down single player story if at all & lean far more into a mtx ridden GTA Online experience.

Re: Suikoden Remaster Collection Announced, Comes to PS4 in 2023

Robocod

@Amusei Though you won't always have total freedom in your party make up,certain family members you recruit,(or others who are buddies etc ),can do team attacks,very handy for bosses!
Also depending on your success recruiting characters,(sometimes you'll only have limited chances to find them),you'll see changes in your eventual HQ.
Was a latecomer to FF only starting on ps1,but if it hadn't been for Suikoden I wouldn't have played FF7 to death including chocobo breeding, finding Knights of the Round materia & taking on the dreaded Emerald & Ruby Weapons that made Sephiroth look almost easy!!😱😅

Re: Suikoden Remaster Collection Announced, Comes to PS4 in 2023

Robocod

Would've thought Suikoden & Suikoden 2 would've been obvious candidates for the "ps classics" program on Deluxe/Premium instead of the disappointing line-up so far...
Going to take some getting used to with these new visuals! Fingers crossed they stay true to their originals style,but looking the part so far!🤞👍
Hopefully they've kept the "bonus" crossover from pt1 to pt.2 secret quest if you recruited all 108 characters too!

Re: Sony Won't Let Microsoft's $69 Billion Activision Acquisition Go, Stresses It's Bad for Gaming

Robocod

"Gamer" Phil Spencer's "gaming for all" nice guy persona is well & truly exposed for the snake oil it is by his continual actions making previously 3rd party publishers & IP's Gamepass/XB/PC exclusive.
For all his rhetoric last gen when COD & GTA DLC went from being a Xbox 360 timed dlc exclusives to Playstation it was suddenly "anti-gamer"...& yet his "solution" has has been to use the corporate credit card & buy up entire 3rd party publishers to kill off competition permanently. (Eg: Starfield).

I've lost count the number of times I'd seen "but Deathloop!",(now coming to XB with the timed period ending),or "But FF7 remastered!". Again conveniently ignoring how Xbox has just about cornered the mainstream the western rpg AAA developers & saw again 3rd party originated projects like Starfield killed off on ps5. Not forgetting the rpg exclusives they bought up during the 360 era before that which was okay when they did it apparently.

3rd party Ttmed exclusives are annoying if you don't own the relevant format...even something as "small" as Return to Monkey Island being Switch console exclusive,(& avoiding spoilers meantime)! But I find it strange how only one company gets singled out as "evil" employing it whilst Nintendo get cheered for it,& Xbox can do no wrong seemingly killing off competition.

The current "arms race" buying up publishers & tying up previous 3rd party IP's isn't going to end well for gamers.

Re: A Trusty Station Wagon Is Your Lifeline in Pacific Drive, Heading to PS5 Next Year

Robocod

Generally speaking I'm reluctant to play first person perspective games,but must admit this surprise announcement has my attention! For once seemingly not a traditional survival sim & all focused around a driving through Dante's Peak type conditions with a twist.
Don't own a ps5 yet,so either wait for that sometime or look to the pc version. But should be cool if they add extra dualsense touches to add to the sci-fi vibes coming off the trailer!👍

Re: Crystal Dynamics Now Owns Tomb Raider, Legacy of Kain Franchises

Robocod

Whilst Embracer/THQ's remakes haven't been stellar,they did engage in re-releasing the Destroy All Human games on the limited ps2 classics range, (& new gen remasters),Red Faction (& basic remaster),& Darksiders just to name a few old IP's.
Might be hope Blood Omen Legacy of Kain & other games might see life on the PS Classics range until they do some more "definitive" versions.

Re: PlayStation Bites Back At 'Inadequate' Call of Duty Offer from Microsoft

Robocod

Ever since the deal was announced through to the same vague PR "Gaming for all bs",that Phil Spencer prattled about the Zenimax deal, before culling games like Starlink,Ekder Scrolls etc., this was always on the cards.
Note even with all the "COD will remain multiplatform",PR to get the tick from government authorities,we'd hadn't heard a thing about other IP's ala Crash,Spyro,possibly even Diablo IV etc., other than Phil "generously" saying we're not going to pull existing games off the digital stores!

And again Gamer Phil's hypocrisy about 3rd party timed exclusives being worse than Disney like buyouts & permanently excluding 3rd party IP's from other platforms going forward & pushing a rental service is exposed.
The Minecraft PR is getting old Phil,when the reality is you keep paywalling more & more 3rd party IP's that Xbox didn't originate behind XB/PC Gamepass.
Anyone who thinks its great for gaming should remember that whilst Windows 11 insists you need an online account just to login locally on your PC.

Re: Big PS Store Indie Sale Live Now, Over 1,000 PS5, PS4 Games Included

Robocod

Had gotten PS5 Bugsnax on ps plus,but having not gotten a ps5,I admit the crossbuy version is tempting 1/2 off!
I'd been thinking about Asha in Monster World but with the original part of the Wonderboy Collection (& indeed holding off on that in hope the Anniversary edition gets a release),might hold off.

Never saw Oddworld Soulstorm ps4 in action so might be better as a ps5 experience. Glad Strangers Wrath finally got a port!

Re: Konami Renews Suikoden Trademark Ahead of Anticipated TGS Showing

Robocod

Been wishing Suikoden 1 & 2 would get a compilation on the PS Classics range,(if not the entire series),but given Playstation's cheapskate efforts on Deluxe/Premium content thus far it'd be nice to see the old games playable again on current gens.
But yep,this is Konami so expectations are firmly set in check!🤔

Re: Microsoft, Sony Signed Agreement to Keep Call of Duty on PlayStation for 'Several More Years' Beyond Current Contract

Robocod

Xbox P.R./Blog statement: "Gaming for All!! COD still multiformat""** See regulators,its cool!
Also Xbox/Gamer Phil: ** For now...but screw Diablo,Tony Hawk,Crash,Spyro,GUN,or any other IP's we'll pick up. Mwhahaha,all your Playstation bases belong to us!! 🙄

It's clear this will be Zenimax all over again as various contracts/commitments are seen out future other games will get quietly cancelled ala Starfield & be XB/PC/Gamepass exclusives.
Gaming for all* so long as you have a XB/PC & M$ Account which we try to strongarm on you just to login to Win 10/11!!

Re: UK Government Investigating Xbox's Activision Buyout Further

Robocod

Apart from guaranteeing day 1 gamepass release,note also that Xbox's get out of jail monopoly P.R. dice roll is all about COD?
Nowhere are they promising (in between their previously stated aims of "reviving" other old IP's),that other games would definitely get PS releases.
Do I believe this will stop the deal? Unlikely...not in this day & age of Disney,Apple, Google, megacorps.

Re: Embracer Completes Crystal Dynamics, Eidos Montreal Acquisition

Robocod

Would be nice if some of the legacy titles Embracer now own like Blood Omen Legacy of Kain would come to the PS Classics range to buy/PS Deluxe/Premium albeit Sony sadly seem to be silent on adding any additional titles beyond those in PS Now!😑
As for reboots etc.,yes the likes of Kingdom of Amalur etc.,have been pretty bare bones to date, but is it any worse than being thrown under the bus by Square Enix for mtx ridden live service grindfests or single player games "failing to meet sales expectations"?

Re: PS5, PS4 Slice-of-Life A Space for the Unbound Delayed Due to Partner Dispute

Robocod

@Flaming_Kaiser I'm sorry,but how is speculating if the aforementioned "major platform holder" implying they're "the bad guy" for something allegedly done by the western publisher behind the devs back?
If it were Sony & they'd been decieved as alleged they may well have a lot to say,but it'll be privately & through lawyers!
Maybe don't go hunting through comments & try enjoying your day more.

Re: PS5 Is the Only Console Getting Price Rise, Microsoft and Nintendo Have 'No Plans'

Robocod

@Rob_230 As per your observation yesterday, on one hand Jim Ryan likes to push the Playstation branding these days as a "premium" product ala Apple ot Nintendo & bank on brand loyalty.

Yet time & again under his management we've seen instances like say PS Plus Deluxe/Premium marketed as accessing a library of psp/ps1/ps2 games & after a handful of launch titles,(some rehashed),there's been silence on further titles being added-indeed it seemed more an exercise to push the PS Now service by another name & still in limited regions.
After early gen promises of free upgrades to match XB,we then had the Horizon Forbidden West upgrade fiasco where they seemingly wanted to test the reactions about upgrades & then Mr Ryan came back after "listening" to push the upgrade program going forward.

His management seems to be entirely reactive & seeing just what they can get away with. Compare the ps4 era when not only they undercut XB on price in a very PS1 pricing type ambush, but even the games like Ratchet & Clank,Medievil or TLOU remaster weren't priced at top range new release prices like say TLOU PS5 will be being $125 rrp my neck of the woods.

Re: PS5 Price Increase Confirmed for UK, Europe, Japan, Canada, and More

Robocod

@get2sammyb @Rob_230 Speaking of their communication,& Mr Ryan's usual claims of listening to Sony users,anyone else tried logging into the PS Blog?
Apart from the usual two-form factor I had to listen & pick a "fake bee buzzing" audio noise 5 times correctly before it would allow me to login & prove I wasn't a bot!😳😂
I mean,5 straight correct guesses,really?! If you weren't already peeved to respond,that really is taking the Basil Fawlty approach to customer relations!😂

Re: PS5 Price Increase Confirmed for UK, Europe, Japan, Canada, and More

Robocod

So much like how Down Under first party games are regionally priced $125+ vs $70 U.S.,(depending on individual US State tax rates), it appears the "other regions" are copping the price rise to subsidise the U.S. & keep that cutthroat market happy & assume the rest of the world cops it on the chin 'cos its the PS Brand.

Jim Ryan is convinced the Apple/Ninty type branding on PS will generally overcome any heat when they pull these moves,but like the Horizon Forbidden West Upgrade fiasco & legacy PS Store closure be prepared to take ownership of your decisions when the blowback is coming Mr Ryan.

Re: PS5, PS4 Slice-of-Life A Space for the Unbound Delayed Due to Partner Dispute

Robocod

Wonder if the diversity funds alluded to were part of the money Sony had announced to assist indies during the original lockdowns?🤔
Likely to get nasty legally particularly if the "major platform holder" became involved.
What we don't know either is if the console ports were being done in-house or by PQube in which case work would have to be done from scratch.

Re: Suikoden Successor Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes Is Pixel Perfection

Robocod

Bit of a shame that Sony didn't target this as a game for what ultimately became the PS Plus Extra tier given the PS1's ties to the Suikoden series...guess the XB gamepass wallet was too big.
Still wish the ps1 Suikoden games were part of the ps1 classics on the misfiring PS Deluxe/ premium to buy or a collection collab with Konami like they did with Castlevania Symphony of the Night.
Anyway fingers crossed it lives up to what's definitely promising footage. 🤞

Re: Round Up: What Was Announced at Gamescom Opening Night Live 2022?

Robocod

Another game missed here is Under the Waves, a narrative adventure apparently,published (not made by them though),by Quantic Dream.
Return to Monkey Island's useless preorder item of horse armour from Stan made me laugh! Just wish it wasn't a Switch timed exclusive. Oh well, let's hope we get a suitably useless alternative!

Re: PS5's Star Wars KOTOR Remake Handed to a Different Studio

Robocod

Never a good thing when a project transitions like this as on one hand things clearly weren't up to scratch enough,& yet potentially they're still using that work to carry on & get it to a finished/better state or have to start all over again?🤔
That said,one look at Aspyr's twitter & it sounds like their Switch port of KOTOR has had a fair few bugs to be addressed,so makes you wonder how the PS version was fairing?