Third party games have been absolutely insane. Capcom has ripped the crown from Sony first party devs this generation, and I'm just not sure they can do anything wrong at this point. And the indie titles have been on point too. Would like to see more AA experimental stuff overall though.
For every generation since the PS1, my four favorite devs has always fluctuated between Konami, Capcom, Nintendo, and Sony. Capcom is winning this round for me by a country mile. And the others (excluding Konami, RIP) aren't anything to laugh at either, so that's really saying something.
I say it's a super solid start. Japan Studio going away sucked, and I'd echo the overall sentiment that while I believe there is more diversity in Sony's first party lineup then they get credit for (3 platformers, a destruction derby game, an arcade rogue-like shooter, a racing game, a souls game) there are too many open world or semi-open world action games with RPG-lite elements.
I would put God of War, Horizon, Miles Morales, Spiderman 2, as well as the Ghost of Tsushima, Death Stranding, Last of Us, and Uncharted PS5 ports all in the same broad category, and it is becoming saturated.
We could use horror, flight sims, western and Japanese-style RPGs, car combat, first person shooters from Sony. We have most of that from third parties but I want to see some different genres from first party devs.
I think if you look at the system just in terms of its "exclusives," a very specific type of person could say the library isn't too hot. I wouldn't agree, but some people might not dig what Sony is offering, especially since they focus on 2-3 specific genres.
But the library includes third party stuff too. Capcom, FromSoft, etc. have been on fire. Indie games have been plentiful and amazing as well. I'd say AA stuff is the biggest casualty of this gen, but there is some of that too in games like Evil West and Psychonauts 2. Just not as much as I'd like, but if you include PS4 back compatibility you have a positively gargantuan library representing every genre and taste. We are absolutely spoiled this gen.
My feeling is there aren't many games that have that "wow" factor in terms of purely graphics, although I'd nominate Ratchet and Clank and the Demon's Souls remake as being among the prettiest games I've ever seen on any system.
I want to see the cross gen period ended so we can get something that really pushes the needle forward like Uncharted did for the PS3 generation.
All these conversations about a PS5 Pro are pretty presumptuous to me, considering it seems they haven't even unlocked the potential of the base model system yet.
First console was the PS1 and owned all the Sony systems since. I've never enjoyed a console as much as I have the PS5. Demon's Souls out of the gate was nuts.
If anything, with the advent of services like PS Plus, I feel pretty paralyzed by choice more than anything. Demon's Souls, Ratchet and Clank, Returnal, Horizon, Gran Turismo 7, God of War Ragnarok... It's been a ride.
Could go on about the amazing third party stuff. Final Fantasy XVI, Elden Ring, Dead Space, Resident Evil 4, Cyberpunk 2077 2.0, and so much more. Then all the awesome indie titles like Inscryption, Cult of the Lamb, Sea of Stars, Stray, etc... it's just sort of mind boggling.
Cross gen lasted way too long for my liking though and slowed progress down.
Agreed MGSV was the weakest story-wise of the main entries and didn't care for it in that respect, and having Hayter in the role wouldn't have changed a whole lot considering Big Boss doesn't really have too many speaking lines. I thought this change in particular (how quiet he is compared to previous games) is a valid and pretty clever reference to the plot twist other commenters have mentioned.
I have a weird cognitive dissonance where Hideo Kojima made my favorite game of all time, but I'm not a fan of his newer stuff. He kind of became aimless later on, which became apparent in MGSV. The themes in V (vocal cord parasites, connection between language, identity, and culture) are rich topics, which were so undercooked compared to the previous razor-focused themes of past entries. It was a very rambling, almost college-freshman-research-paper level attempt at the subjects. He didn't seem super motivated to actually explore the themes beyond a superficial level. I think you are right, he didn't want to work on the series anymore but Konami wouldn't let him pursue other stuff, and it showed. In his defense he was trying to move on from the series since MGS2. I can understand wanting to move on.
What I can't understand is his apparent disdain for Hayter. Legitimately nice, down to earth guy. I've heard it said Kojima never liked Hayter's gravelly voice direction he lent to Solid Snake / Big Boss character. All I'm saying is it must have REALLY steamed Kojima that Hayter became more synonymous and iconic to the series than Kojima himself. A guy with an ego like that, it's got to hurt a bit.
I would hazard a guess if Kojima had a more focused vision for MGSV, ran it with a tighter budget, kept Hayter in, re-worked the boss fights, had a better and more distinctive antagonist, and nailed down the themes more, he would still have a place at Konami regardless of what their exact disagreements were.
And regarding Death Stranding, I don't subscribe to the whole this is actually a walking simulator complaint. And like MGSV, I don't think it's a bad game overall - it just isn't great. Main complaint against Death Stranding is the same I had with MGSV, that being it doesn't really explore the themes it tries to very well, or tries to do to many at once. Bites off more than it can chew with its story. Kojima's story telling edge has dulled for me personally, and that was his X Factor back in the day. Compare Death Stranding's story themes with how focused MGS1's messaging on nuclear deterrence and proliferation was. His thematic story telling lost a lot of its coherency and focus over time. His stuff seems pretty shallow now in comparison.
P.T. was amazing and I really regret we couldn't get a chance to see what Kojima could do if given free reign in the horror genre.
Anyways, I guess I just rambled a lot to say I agree with all your points haha. As a lifelong fan of MGS and for all parties involved - I am glad Kojima has moved on. He was making so many missteps with the MGS series by the time he left, I think it was clear it was past due.
No, the reasoning for casting Sutherland as 'Venom Snake' had nothing to do with the plot twist you are referring to.
We know this is true because they kept the Japanese voice actor the same for MGSV as all the previous games. Pretty much debunks that theory.
The real reason Hideo Kojima cast Sutherland isn't well understood by really anyone besides I guess Kojima. It was the worst creative decision he ever made. Some say he really just wanted to work with Sutherland, as he has long had a sort of fanboyish relationship with western cinema and TV and wanted to work with a "big name", so to speak.
Whatever his reason, it's well documented Kojima basically stone walled David Hayter prior to MGSV's release. Hayter was never contacted by the studio or Kojima. Never given so much as a thank you, according to Hayter himself. Never notified he wouldn't be voice acting Snake in MGSV. Arguably THE most iconic voice actor in the history of the medium, stonewalled.
Konami is guilty of plenty of bad calls, but firing Kojima was never one of them. Kojima is a narcissistic, arrogant jerk and it's really apparent from his many interviews. Most recent of a dozen examples being him blaming Death Stranding's less than stellar critical reception on the audience just not getting it.
Doesn't change the fact he made some pretty good games though (didn't care for Death Stranding in the slightest, but nobody can deny MGS1 and 3 are gold). He just went a bit off his rocker later on. Think he bought too much into his own "I'm a genius / auteur" narrative the industry was constantly spinning around him.
I mean, I was - literally - laughing at the fact Kojima's name scrolls across the screen like 15 times before each and every main story mission while playing MGSV. It's ridiculous.
So have they backtracked on the digital only release thing yet? I'll buy it if it releases in a physical edition, otherwise they don't get a single cent. Could have had my $60-70 from me, day one.
I get it, I'm just one guy... Too attached to physical, move on with the times, yadda yadda. But hey, that's 70 bucks they could have gotten but now won't. Money is money, just release a digital version and a physical edition at 10 bucks more. Easy. But they hesitate because the reasoning they provided for going all digital is an outright, verifiable, and completely transparent lie. It is in fact a DRM measure hiding in plain sight under the thinnest of pretexts.
Wish we had good enough data to figure out how much money they lose on physical reselling and compare that to the 15-25%(?) of people who just won't touch this until a massively steep discount hits.
The beep is life. The beep is the only thing that prevents me from falling into the abyss. The all-consuming power of the beep helps me keep my chakra centered and is also known to have a positive influence on energy levels and overall health, based on peer-reviewed studies.
Shame because I feel like these medium budget AA games are the number one casualty of the current era of video game development. Too bad this one couldn't nail it.
Ever since this game was announced, people have been asking 'Why Gollum'. And as a massive lifelong LOTR fan and reader, I can't help but agree the whole premise was questionable from the beginning. Literally hundreds of characters from the lore I'd put in front of Gollum to feature in a game.
You are preaching to the choir here. Apparently they used to eat white rice and cold meat for breakfast until the 1920s, which I deem to be a crime against humanity.
It talks about how in the early 1900s, it would have been really odd and bizarre to eat eggs and bacon for breakfast. Nowadays, it's normal. That's because Bernays, in the employ of companies that wanted to sell more eggs and bacon, used his new marketing tactics to normalize it. And obviously succeeded.
Poof, now nobody remembers or knows you would have been thought of as a crazy person to eat eggs for breakfast back then. We are all sheep apparently able to be guided this way or that fairly easily it seems!
Did you ever read 'Bernays and Breakfast'? Summarizes how susceptible people are to marketing, even (or especially) the savvy customers who think they are immune to it. Yeah, I definitely see some parallels.
I get so much conflicting information on this acquisition thing, which is frustrating because I need to know which Fortune 500 company I should swear my undying allegiance to.
Capcom is the only mega publisher I still respect or haven't had some huge mis-step in the last 5 years. Seems like all the other big publishers - Ubisoft, Bethesda, Konami, SquareEnix, Blizzard, Activision, EA, TakeTwo - have been in a race to the bottom for years. They call them Capgod for a reason.
Looking forward to their showcase. RE Code Veronica Remake please and thanks.
I know digital is the future, but won't be buying. Also I find the reasoning disingenuous; if they want to save money or "keep costs down", they could just charge 10 more dollars or euros for the physical edition. I've been arguing digital copies should be around 10 bucks cheaper compared to physical for years now anyways. It's always been pure greed that they charge the same price for digital copies while saving money on manufacturing and distribution. I've heard retailers demand price parity but that doesn't stand up to scrutiny really.
All those people saying nobody cares about physical games anymore, remember about 30% of sales for a given release are still physical. That's a heck of a lot of sales to leave on the table.
I imagine digital sales share will plateau around 85% with the remaining 15% of holdouts refusing to ever buy digital. It will always be a substantial piece of the sales pie. This is ridiculous and I don't get it. Unless - as I suspect - this is just a glorified DRM measure under the guise of cutting costs. Which it is Epic, so yeah...
I see some people want that 4k/60fps but I don't think that's out of the question on the current hardware (at least dynamic 4k/60fps). Like you said, I think devs just poorly optimize their games combined with a culture of releasing unfinished stuff, and that's why we see the performance issues on new releases. Do we really need new hardware already when devs haven't fully tapped the current PS5? Seems a bit early when we haven't even seen what the box we already have can really do.
My whole thing about a PS5 Pro is they haven't really justified that yet because there have been very few PS5 only games, and I'd argue none of them really maximized the potential of the current hardware, so we don't need a whole new, more powerful system just yet.
Part of the reason I feel that way is their insistence on cross releasing games on PS4/PS5. If they decided to finally leave PS4 behind, then waited say about 2 years of PS5-only releases, I'd be open to a Pro. It's just too early for me.
PS4 Pro made a little more sense back then because it introduced 4k, which was badly needed at the time. Can't think of a use case argument for a PS5 Pro at this particular juncture.
As a big physical-only person, seeing all this appreciation for physical games in the comments section brings a tear of joy to my eye.
Digital may take over as the main vehicle for consuming games eventually... but I don't ever see streaming being the only way to play. More of a side hustle than the main attraction so to speak.
The attach rate of 9.6 for the PS4 is some kind of record I think, it was normally much lower even than that! Crazy thought for those of us that buy hundreds of physical games every year.
Fair point. Well Kojima finally got his "real star". I remember hearing rumors he secretly just wanted to work with Sutherland, quality of the game be damned, but I didnt want to repeat that since I couldn't confirm it (the other stuff I wrote comes from Hayter himself). Although it checks out given Kojima using his games as a vehicle to make not so subtle homages to western movies.
What always got me is they never changed the Japanese voice actor for MGSV.
Anyways, I hope Hayter gets another shot at Solid Snake or Big Boss and completely knocks it out of the park. He's absolutely down to do it and everyone is clamoring for it. Now that Kojima is canned I don't see why it can't happen.
C'mon Sony and Konami, make it happen. Give this guy some work, he's the nicest guy in the industry and down to earth.
This guy straight up back stabbed David Hayter (voice of Snake / Big Boss). Hayter didn't know he didn't have the part for MGSV until the game was announced. Not a thank you, not a how do you do, just got ghosted essentially. For the most iconic voice and voice actor in video game history.
And Keifer Sutherland did a terrible job.
Yeah I don't care for this dude's opinion and I'm really curious what went on behind the scenes at Konami. Thinking they may have had some legitimate reasons to get rid of him.
Ground Zeroes was a $40 demo. Not sure pricing was Kojima's fault but seem to recall he 'blamed' the existence of Ground Zeroes on Konami in a previous interview.
Do my eyes betray me? A positive post about a Sony product or service? Are you feeling well sir?
I kid, I am very excited about PSVR2 and glad you are too. I know you are hard to please, but so am I after all. If it can pass your bar then it's gotta be good. GT7 is a big deal for me and I seriously thought it would be very limited in terms of modes / use, so very pleasantly surprised, same as you.
Yeah there are forums full of this crap still debating best orientations for every Sony system going back to PS1 (turn the PS1 upside down and it will read discs better?!) And there has never been any real agreement except, I think, a few specific models of the slim PS2 which did have a known hardware issue when standing vertical would cause the ribbon in the disc tray to come loose and scratch the outer ring of the disc as it spins. This was fixed with the release of the 9000x PS2 models I believe.
Anyways, what I think is going on is people aren't being cognizant of a roughly 2-3% hardware failure rate straight off the factory floor and right out of the box (higher for PS3). They are just shipped in a state where they are non-operational or will be in a short period of time due to manufacturing errors. Your PS4 sounds like it fits the bill. Then people assign these external factors to it, like what orientation you had it in when it never really mattered.
You guys really trying to crack the code of a multi-pronged social issue in the PushSquare comment section, huh? That's bold. Hold on, let me grab a beer before you continue, I want to watch. This is why we come here folks.
This is a great opportunity for Bloober Team to show what they can really do. I liked Layers of Fear alright for the type of game it was, but putting Bloober Team up against Team Silent is like a junior varsity high school basketball team up against an all-star NBA team.
I'm rooting for them though. Everyone loves an underdog and maybe they just never had the right opportunity until now.
They refuse to elaborate on whether a controversial scene made it in, directly after saying it's a faithful remake. Not sure how to feel about that.
Also, for any dev doing a remake, they almost always say something along the lines of "We are being really faithful while trying to draw in a new audience." You can almost put a stopwatch to it, it is absolutely boilerplate at this point to say it. It's reached a Pavlov's Dog level of conditioned response. Could be true, could not be - gotta wait for the game to come out to see.
Positive is they brought back some of the original Team Silent guys to oversee this, so I'm cautiously optimistic.
Would agree with the overall sentiment from other commenters SquareEnix is a notoriously mismanaged company. I don't have a business admin degree but multiple Square execs have more or less admitted to it in various interviews going all the way back to the Square-Enix merger. They have a few big hitters (praise YoshiP for FFXIV), but they are wildly inconsistent and perhaps the most delay-prone publisher in the history of the video game industry, and I say that with no hyperbole or exaggeration.
Square isn't exactly a trainwreck though. They remain profitable. And every other game they put out is at least "good" or better, even if that is a far, far cry from the glory days of 90s Square where everything they touched was pure gold. Still, based on Sony's previous acquisitions it seems unlikely they buy Square as they seem to stay away from companies not on very solid ground.
Also, Square flirting with NFTs and block chain stuff smells like desperation a bit, and that stuff supposedly isn't a part of Sony business going forward so seems not a great fit overall. Different business ideologies it seems.
Yeah I do believe Ragnarok has more mass appeal than Elden Ring and is better at letting all types enjoy it. That doesn't make it the better game to me, even slightly, but there is value in that absolutely. It's awesome to see people new to the hobby being able to jump into Ragnarok alongside the 30+ year veterans.
God of War was purdy good. But a game hasn't grabbed me like Elden Ring in 5+ years.
Elden Ring had a lot of reused stuff and if you try to 100% it (which looks like a lot of people did), it DOES have quite a bit of repetition in the side dungeons and bosses. But if you look at it as a complete package, the totality of it as an experience, it was amazing. Although any one component of it taken by itself does not amaze besides the music and art direction, if that makes sense.
I'm not sure of the two which is the better game, but Ragnarok will fall out of the conversation in a few years, tops. It will be vaguely recalled as a very good game with bombastic setpieces and razor sharp gameplay. While I believe Elden Ring will keep getting mentions as something special and analyzed 20 years from now. Not that this necessarily makes it the better game though...
God of War was great, but Elden Ring was something really special.
Look, I openly admit it is wrong-headed and elitist, but I can't help how I feel about it. I'm not perfect, and yeah I agree trophies are worthless except what they mean to you the player. And to me, they are a badge of a challenge overcome. I have "easy" games on my list that I played just because I thought they were good games like Tales of the Borderlands. And I'm actually proud of those too.
I'm talking specifically about those 5 minute platinum games. Why do people do that? Like, you want to see your numbers and stats go up, I get that. But if anyone actually takes a few seconds to look at your game list, the jig is up and any small sort of esteem you were trying to get is instantly vanished. And yeah, I always look. The accounts I delete I consider the equivalent of an email spam folder.
I would put it this way: I detest people that stack their accounts up with these games. But I wouldn't go so far as to ban or remove the garbage games from PSN. I don't like that people do this, but I respect people's right to do what they want up to and including infecting their account with these digital STDs.
I'm talking about a very weird and specific breed of trophy hunter. The people that blow hundreds of dollars on junk games to pump their score up to those of us that have been doing this regularly for 14+ years now. They absolutely have the right to do it. They just won't be doing it on my friend's list is all I'm saying. And the 150 or so people that go for trophies on my friends list would agree with me. But that's okay, I'm sure they have their own friends. It takes all kinds after all!
I would love to see the Final Fantasy: Advent Children movie villains get some screen time in one of these Remake games. It would make zero sense chronologically but hey, the remake story already makes zero sense.
You also have Genesis, Weiss, Nero, Azul, Roche, etc... There's a lot of goofy crap in this series and I think they need to go whole hog.
Since Crisis Core is considered canon despite being a bit odd, I think it will enhance the future Remake entries, as I imagine some villains and plot beats from Crisis Core will be referenced or even included directly (due to the altered timeline story Remake is going for).
As another person mentioned, Intermission went off the rails and included Dirge of Cerberus villains, so Genesis seems like a no brainer for inclusion in future games.
Those weird moments from Intermission were a dive into the Dirge of Cerberus corner of the Final Fantasy mythos, perhaps the most obscure and odd entry in the FF7 canon. So yeah, that game was FF7 with Dragon Ball Z villains essentially. Thought it was random in a kinda cool way to see callbacks to Dirge of Cerberus, of all things.
I think they are saving the other main villain of the FF7 series (Genesis from Crisis Core) for future remake entries. Just a theory.
"The storytelling borders on utterly nonsensical at times, and again, it's always been like this."
You just described every JRPG's storyline/dialogue. This coming from a JRPG fan. Japan isn't exactly known for weaving Shakespearian tales into its games, a few exceptions aside. The goofy, juvenile writing in these games is part of the charm sometimes though.
Comments 685
Re: All The Game Awards 2023 Nominees Announced, Baldur's Gate 3 and Alan Wake 2 Lead the Way
Cool to see Dredge get some nods
Re: Talking Point: As PS5 Turns 3, How Are You Feeling About It?
@KundaliniRising333
Third party games have been absolutely insane. Capcom has ripped the crown from Sony first party devs this generation, and I'm just not sure they can do anything wrong at this point. And the indie titles have been on point too. Would like to see more AA experimental stuff overall though.
For every generation since the PS1, my four favorite devs has always fluctuated between Konami, Capcom, Nintendo, and Sony. Capcom is winning this round for me by a country mile. And the others (excluding Konami, RIP) aren't anything to laugh at either, so that's really saying something.
Re: Talking Point: As PS5 Turns 3, How Are You Feeling About It?
I say it's a super solid start. Japan Studio going away sucked, and I'd echo the overall sentiment that while I believe there is more diversity in Sony's first party lineup then they get credit for (3 platformers, a destruction derby game, an arcade rogue-like shooter, a racing game, a souls game) there are too many open world or semi-open world action games with RPG-lite elements.
I would put God of War, Horizon, Miles Morales, Spiderman 2, as well as the Ghost of Tsushima, Death Stranding, Last of Us, and Uncharted PS5 ports all in the same broad category, and it is becoming saturated.
We could use horror, flight sims, western and Japanese-style RPGs, car combat, first person shooters from Sony. We have most of that from third parties but I want to see some different genres from first party devs.
Re: Talking Point: As PS5 Turns 3, How Are You Feeling About It?
@nomither6
I think if you look at the system just in terms of its "exclusives," a very specific type of person could say the library isn't too hot. I wouldn't agree, but some people might not dig what Sony is offering, especially since they focus on 2-3 specific genres.
But the library includes third party stuff too. Capcom, FromSoft, etc. have been on fire. Indie games have been plentiful and amazing as well. I'd say AA stuff is the biggest casualty of this gen, but there is some of that too in games like Evil West and Psychonauts 2. Just not as much as I'd like, but if you include PS4 back compatibility you have a positively gargantuan library representing every genre and taste. We are absolutely spoiled this gen.
Re: Talking Point: As PS5 Turns 3, How Are You Feeling About It?
@Shaunholio
My feeling is there aren't many games that have that "wow" factor in terms of purely graphics, although I'd nominate Ratchet and Clank and the Demon's Souls remake as being among the prettiest games I've ever seen on any system.
I want to see the cross gen period ended so we can get something that really pushes the needle forward like Uncharted did for the PS3 generation.
All these conversations about a PS5 Pro are pretty presumptuous to me, considering it seems they haven't even unlocked the potential of the base model system yet.
Re: Talking Point: As PS5 Turns 3, How Are You Feeling About It?
First console was the PS1 and owned all the Sony systems since. I've never enjoyed a console as much as I have the PS5. Demon's Souls out of the gate was nuts.
If anything, with the advent of services like PS Plus, I feel pretty paralyzed by choice more than anything. Demon's Souls, Ratchet and Clank, Returnal, Horizon, Gran Turismo 7, God of War Ragnarok... It's been a ride.
Could go on about the amazing third party stuff. Final Fantasy XVI, Elden Ring, Dead Space, Resident Evil 4, Cyberpunk 2077 2.0, and so much more. Then all the awesome indie titles like Inscryption, Cult of the Lamb, Sea of Stars, Stray, etc... it's just sort of mind boggling.
Cross gen lasted way too long for my liking though and slowed progress down.
Re: Embracer COO Announces Departure Following 'Rough' Year for Company
@Exerion76
Sir, this is a Burger King.
Re: Solid Snake Voice Actor David Hayter Fronts New Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Promo
@InsaneWade
Agreed MGSV was the weakest story-wise of the main entries and didn't care for it in that respect, and having Hayter in the role wouldn't have changed a whole lot considering Big Boss doesn't really have too many speaking lines. I thought this change in particular (how quiet he is compared to previous games) is a valid and pretty clever reference to the plot twist other commenters have mentioned.
I have a weird cognitive dissonance where Hideo Kojima made my favorite game of all time, but I'm not a fan of his newer stuff. He kind of became aimless later on, which became apparent in MGSV. The themes in V (vocal cord parasites, connection between language, identity, and culture) are rich topics, which were so undercooked compared to the previous razor-focused themes of past entries. It was a very rambling, almost college-freshman-research-paper level attempt at the subjects. He didn't seem super motivated to actually explore the themes beyond a superficial level. I think you are right, he didn't want to work on the series anymore but Konami wouldn't let him pursue other stuff, and it showed. In his defense he was trying to move on from the series since MGS2. I can understand wanting to move on.
What I can't understand is his apparent disdain for Hayter. Legitimately nice, down to earth guy. I've heard it said Kojima never liked Hayter's gravelly voice direction he lent to Solid Snake / Big Boss character. All I'm saying is it must have REALLY steamed Kojima that Hayter became more synonymous and iconic to the series than Kojima himself. A guy with an ego like that, it's got to hurt a bit.
I would hazard a guess if Kojima had a more focused vision for MGSV, ran it with a tighter budget, kept Hayter in, re-worked the boss fights, had a better and more distinctive antagonist, and nailed down the themes more, he would still have a place at Konami regardless of what their exact disagreements were.
And regarding Death Stranding, I don't subscribe to the whole this is actually a walking simulator complaint. And like MGSV, I don't think it's a bad game overall - it just isn't great. Main complaint against Death Stranding is the same I had with MGSV, that being it doesn't really explore the themes it tries to very well, or tries to do to many at once. Bites off more than it can chew with its story. Kojima's story telling edge has dulled for me personally, and that was his X Factor back in the day. Compare Death Stranding's story themes with how focused MGS1's messaging on nuclear deterrence and proliferation was. His thematic story telling lost a lot of its coherency and focus over time. His stuff seems pretty shallow now in comparison.
P.T. was amazing and I really regret we couldn't get a chance to see what Kojima could do if given free reign in the horror genre.
Anyways, I guess I just rambled a lot to say I agree with all your points haha. As a lifelong fan of MGS and for all parties involved - I am glad Kojima has moved on. He was making so many missteps with the MGS series by the time he left, I think it was clear it was past due.
Re: Solid Snake Voice Actor David Hayter Fronts New Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Promo
@Ocelot
No, the reasoning for casting Sutherland as 'Venom Snake' had nothing to do with the plot twist you are referring to.
We know this is true because they kept the Japanese voice actor the same for MGSV as all the previous games. Pretty much debunks that theory.
The real reason Hideo Kojima cast Sutherland isn't well understood by really anyone besides I guess Kojima. It was the worst creative decision he ever made. Some say he really just wanted to work with Sutherland, as he has long had a sort of fanboyish relationship with western cinema and TV and wanted to work with a "big name", so to speak.
Whatever his reason, it's well documented Kojima basically stone walled David Hayter prior to MGSV's release. Hayter was never contacted by the studio or Kojima. Never given so much as a thank you, according to Hayter himself. Never notified he wouldn't be voice acting Snake in MGSV. Arguably THE most iconic voice actor in the history of the medium, stonewalled.
Konami is guilty of plenty of bad calls, but firing Kojima was never one of them. Kojima is a narcissistic, arrogant jerk and it's really apparent from his many interviews. Most recent of a dozen examples being him blaming Death Stranding's less than stellar critical reception on the audience just not getting it.
Doesn't change the fact he made some pretty good games though (didn't care for Death Stranding in the slightest, but nobody can deny MGS1 and 3 are gold). He just went a bit off his rocker later on. Think he bought too much into his own "I'm a genius / auteur" narrative the industry was constantly spinning around him.
I mean, I was - literally - laughing at the fact Kojima's name scrolls across the screen like 15 times before each and every main story mission while playing MGSV. It's ridiculous.
Re: Alan Wake 2 Devs Took Inspiration from Resident Evil, Wants Players to Feel 'More Vulnerable'
So have they backtracked on the digital only release thing yet? I'll buy it if it releases in a physical edition, otherwise they don't get a single cent. Could have had my $60-70 from me, day one.
I get it, I'm just one guy... Too attached to physical, move on with the times, yadda yadda. But hey, that's 70 bucks they could have gotten but now won't. Money is money, just release a digital version and a physical edition at 10 bucks more. Easy. But they hesitate because the reasoning they provided for going all digital is an outright, verifiable, and completely transparent lie. It is in fact a DRM measure hiding in plain sight under the thinnest of pretexts.
Wish we had good enough data to figure out how much money they lose on physical reselling and compare that to the 15-25%(?) of people who just won't touch this until a massively steep discount hits.
Re: Poll: Will You Be Muting Your PS5's Beep?
The beep is life. The beep is the only thing that prevents me from falling into the abyss. The all-consuming power of the beep helps me keep my chakra centered and is also known to have a positive influence on energy levels and overall health, based on peer-reviewed studies.
Re: Gollum Dev Daedalic Entertainment to Focus on Publishing After Disastrous Launch
Shame because I feel like these medium budget AA games are the number one casualty of the current era of video game development. Too bad this one couldn't nail it.
Ever since this game was announced, people have been asking 'Why Gollum'. And as a massive lifelong LOTR fan and reader, I can't help but agree the whole premise was questionable from the beginning. Literally hundreds of characters from the lore I'd put in front of Gollum to feature in a game.
Re: Alan Wake 2's Digital-Only Release Allows for a More Polished Game, Says Remedy
Yeah, this stands up to scrutiny
Re: Microsoft's Potential Game Plan in 2020: 'Spend Sony Out of Business'
@themightyant
You are preaching to the choir here. Apparently they used to eat white rice and cold meat for breakfast until the 1920s, which I deem to be a crime against humanity.
Re: Microsoft's Potential Game Plan in 2020: 'Spend Sony Out of Business'
@Shepherd_Tallon
I hadn't heard that. Tying women smoking to equality and the women's suffrage movement... That's pure, diabolical genius. Guy was dangerous.
Re: Microsoft's Potential Game Plan in 2020: 'Spend Sony Out of Business'
@Shepherd_Tallon
It talks about how in the early 1900s, it would have been really odd and bizarre to eat eggs and bacon for breakfast. Nowadays, it's normal. That's because Bernays, in the employ of companies that wanted to sell more eggs and bacon, used his new marketing tactics to normalize it. And obviously succeeded.
Poof, now nobody remembers or knows you would have been thought of as a crazy person to eat eggs for breakfast back then. We are all sheep apparently able to be guided this way or that fairly easily it seems!
Re: Microsoft's Potential Game Plan in 2020: 'Spend Sony Out of Business'
@Shepherd_Tallon
Did you ever read 'Bernays and Breakfast'? Summarizes how susceptible people are to marketing, even (or especially) the savvy customers who think they are immune to it. Yeah, I definitely see some parallels.
Re: Microsoft's Potential Game Plan in 2020: 'Spend Sony Out of Business'
I get so much conflicting information on this acquisition thing, which is frustrating because I need to know which Fortune 500 company I should swear my undying allegiance to.
Re: Microsoft's Potential Game Plan in 2020: 'Spend Sony Out of Business'
This whole thing has descended into a trailer trash race to the bottom for all involved parties... And I'm here for it.
Re: First Final Fantasy 16 Review Awards a Near-Perfect Score
Back in the good old days, a Famitsu 40/40 score was a big freakin' deal. Really something to write home to your mom about.
Nowadays... let's just say their editorial standards have slipped.
Re: 27 PS Plus Extra, Premium Games Confirmed for Big June Update
I would just echo the others on here to highly recommend Inscryption.
Re: Mortal Kombat 1 Will Bury Krypt System for Unlocks, Replacement Teased for PS5 Release
Can't wait for the new 'Kredit Kard' unlock system. It's gonna be big.
Re: In a Shock Twist, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Will Have Music on PS5
These sly devils are building up to their FF7 Rebirth NFT announcement, I know it. This is some 5D chess they are playing on us, and we are not ready.
Re: The Next Capcom Showcase Airs Next Week
Capcom is the only mega publisher I still respect or haven't had some huge mis-step in the last 5 years. Seems like all the other big publishers - Ubisoft, Bethesda, Konami, SquareEnix, Blizzard, Activision, EA, TakeTwo - have been in a race to the bottom for years. They call them Capgod for a reason.
Looking forward to their showcase. RE Code Veronica Remake please and thanks.
Re: Alan Wake 2 Is a Digital-Only Release, $60 on PS5
I know digital is the future, but won't be buying. Also I find the reasoning disingenuous; if they want to save money or "keep costs down", they could just charge 10 more dollars or euros for the physical edition. I've been arguing digital copies should be around 10 bucks cheaper compared to physical for years now anyways. It's always been pure greed that they charge the same price for digital copies while saving money on manufacturing and distribution. I've heard retailers demand price parity but that doesn't stand up to scrutiny really.
All those people saying nobody cares about physical games anymore, remember about 30% of sales for a given release are still physical. That's a heck of a lot of sales to leave on the table.
I imagine digital sales share will plateau around 85% with the remaining 15% of holdouts refusing to ever buy digital. It will always be a substantial piece of the sales pie. This is ridiculous and I don't get it. Unless - as I suspect - this is just a glorified DRM measure under the guise of cutting costs. Which it is Epic, so yeah...
Re: PS5 Pro Is '100%' Happening, Says Reliable Report
@SgtTruth
I see some people want that 4k/60fps but I don't think that's out of the question on the current hardware (at least dynamic 4k/60fps). Like you said, I think devs just poorly optimize their games combined with a culture of releasing unfinished stuff, and that's why we see the performance issues on new releases. Do we really need new hardware already when devs haven't fully tapped the current PS5? Seems a bit early when we haven't even seen what the box we already have can really do.
Re: PS5 Pro Is '100%' Happening, Says Reliable Report
My whole thing about a PS5 Pro is they haven't really justified that yet because there have been very few PS5 only games, and I'd argue none of them really maximized the potential of the current hardware, so we don't need a whole new, more powerful system just yet.
Part of the reason I feel that way is their insistence on cross releasing games on PS4/PS5. If they decided to finally leave PS4 behind, then waited say about 2 years of PS5-only releases, I'd be open to a Pro. It's just too early for me.
PS4 Pro made a little more sense back then because it introduced 4k, which was badly needed at the time. Can't think of a use case argument for a PS5 Pro at this particular juncture.
Re: Soapbox: I No Longer Think Subscriptions Like PS Plus, Xbox Game Pass Are the Future of Gaming
As a big physical-only person, seeing all this appreciation for physical games in the comments section brings a tear of joy to my eye.
Digital may take over as the main vehicle for consuming games eventually... but I don't ever see streaming being the only way to play. More of a side hustle than the main attraction so to speak.
The attach rate of 9.6 for the PS4 is some kind of record I think, it was normally much lower even than that! Crazy thought for those of us that buy hundreds of physical games every year.
Re: Konami's Metal Gear Solid 3 Remake Reportedly Out Next Year
I just watched David Hayter read the script of The Little Mermaid in Solid Snake's voice at a comicon and my body is ready for this.
"Hey... you're pretty good."
Re: Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes Was an Experiment Fans 'Didn't Understand'
@NorthwestEagle
Fair point. Well Kojima finally got his "real star". I remember hearing rumors he secretly just wanted to work with Sutherland, quality of the game be damned, but I didnt want to repeat that since I couldn't confirm it (the other stuff I wrote comes from Hayter himself). Although it checks out given Kojima using his games as a vehicle to make not so subtle homages to western movies.
What always got me is they never changed the Japanese voice actor for MGSV.
Anyways, I hope Hayter gets another shot at Solid Snake or Big Boss and completely knocks it out of the park. He's absolutely down to do it and everyone is clamoring for it. Now that Kojima is canned I don't see why it can't happen.
C'mon Sony and Konami, make it happen. Give this guy some work, he's the nicest guy in the industry and down to earth.
Re: Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes Was an Experiment Fans 'Didn't Understand'
This guy straight up back stabbed David Hayter (voice of Snake / Big Boss). Hayter didn't know he didn't have the part for MGSV until the game was announced. Not a thank you, not a how do you do, just got ghosted essentially. For the most iconic voice and voice actor in video game history.
And Keifer Sutherland did a terrible job.
Yeah I don't care for this dude's opinion and I'm really curious what went on behind the scenes at Konami. Thinking they may have had some legitimate reasons to get rid of him.
Ground Zeroes was a $40 demo. Not sure pricing was Kojima's fault but seem to recall he 'blamed' the existence of Ground Zeroes on Konami in a previous interview.
Re: Marvel's Avengers Support Officially Ends in September, Three Years After Release
Another one for the live service graveyard. Who's next?
Re: Gran Turismo 7 on PSVR2 Is the Full Game, Except for Split-Screen Play
@NEStalgia
Do my eyes betray me? A positive post about a Sony product or service? Are you feeling well sir?
I kid, I am very excited about PSVR2 and glad you are too. I know you are hard to please, but so am I after all. If it can pass your bar then it's gotta be good. GT7 is a big deal for me and I seriously thought it would be very limited in terms of modes / use, so very pleasantly surprised, same as you.
The lineup is impressive and cannot wait!
Re: Placing Your PS5 Vertically Could Kill It, Unverified Claims Suggest
@tinCAT-zero
Yeah I've heard of it actually working. Never tried it myself 🤔
Re: Placing Your PS5 Vertically Could Kill It, Unverified Claims Suggest
@LP09
Yeah there are forums full of this crap still debating best orientations for every Sony system going back to PS1 (turn the PS1 upside down and it will read discs better?!) And there has never been any real agreement except, I think, a few specific models of the slim PS2 which did have a known hardware issue when standing vertical would cause the ribbon in the disc tray to come loose and scratch the outer ring of the disc as it spins. This was fixed with the release of the 9000x PS2 models I believe.
Anyways, what I think is going on is people aren't being cognizant of a roughly 2-3% hardware failure rate straight off the factory floor and right out of the box (higher for PS3). They are just shipped in a state where they are non-operational or will be in a short period of time due to manufacturing errors. Your PS4 sounds like it fits the bill. Then people assign these external factors to it, like what orientation you had it in when it never really mattered.
Re: Placing Your PS5 Vertically Could Kill It, Unverified Claims Suggest
To this day people still argue about all the urban legends of what orientation was best for the PS2, horizontal or vertical.
Glad to see this tradition continues.
Re: 20 Most Anticipated PS5, PS4 Games of 2023 as Voted By You
I'll take me some of that there Resident Evil 4 with a side of Final Fantasy XVI. Japan is coming back, baby!
Re: Silent Hill 2 Remake Dev Taking 'Very Safe Approach' to Any Changes
You guys really trying to crack the code of a multi-pronged social issue in the PushSquare comment section, huh? That's bold. Hold on, let me grab a beer before you continue, I want to watch. This is why we come here folks.
Happy New Year.
Re: Silent Hill 2 Remake Dev Taking 'Very Safe Approach' to Any Changes
This is a great opportunity for Bloober Team to show what they can really do. I liked Layers of Fear alright for the type of game it was, but putting Bloober Team up against Team Silent is like a junior varsity high school basketball team up against an all-star NBA team.
I'm rooting for them though. Everyone loves an underdog and maybe they just never had the right opportunity until now.
Re: Silent Hill 2 Remake Dev Taking 'Very Safe Approach' to Any Changes
They refuse to elaborate on whether a controversial scene made it in, directly after saying it's a faithful remake. Not sure how to feel about that.
Also, for any dev doing a remake, they almost always say something along the lines of "We are being really faithful while trying to draw in a new audience." You can almost put a stopwatch to it, it is absolutely boilerplate at this point to say it. It's reached a Pavlov's Dog level of conditioned response. Could be true, could not be - gotta wait for the game to come out to see.
Positive is they brought back some of the original Team Silent guys to oversee this, so I'm cautiously optimistic.
Re: Square Enix Commits to Business Consolidation in 2023 as Sony Buyout Rumours Start Again
Would agree with the overall sentiment from other commenters SquareEnix is a notoriously mismanaged company. I don't have a business admin degree but multiple Square execs have more or less admitted to it in various interviews going all the way back to the Square-Enix merger. They have a few big hitters (praise YoshiP for FFXIV), but they are wildly inconsistent and perhaps the most delay-prone publisher in the history of the video game industry, and I say that with no hyperbole or exaggeration.
Square isn't exactly a trainwreck though. They remain profitable. And every other game they put out is at least "good" or better, even if that is a far, far cry from the glory days of 90s Square where everything they touched was pure gold. Still, based on Sony's previous acquisitions it seems unlikely they buy Square as they seem to stay away from companies not on very solid ground.
Also, Square flirting with NFTs and block chain stuff smells like desperation a bit, and that stuff supposedly isn't a part of Sony business going forward so seems not a great fit overall. Different business ideologies it seems.
Re: Game of the Year: #1 - God of War Ragnarok
@ErrantRob
Yeah I do believe Ragnarok has more mass appeal than Elden Ring and is better at letting all types enjoy it. That doesn't make it the better game to me, even slightly, but there is value in that absolutely. It's awesome to see people new to the hobby being able to jump into Ragnarok alongside the 30+ year veterans.
Re: Game of the Year: #1 - God of War Ragnarok
26% voted it should be higher than number 1 on the list. I think that pretty much sums up the PushSquare crowd.
Great game though, for sure.
Re: Game of the Year: #2 - Elden Ring
God of War was purdy good. But a game hasn't grabbed me like Elden Ring in 5+ years.
Elden Ring had a lot of reused stuff and if you try to 100% it (which looks like a lot of people did), it DOES have quite a bit of repetition in the side dungeons and bosses. But if you look at it as a complete package, the totality of it as an experience, it was amazing. Although any one component of it taken by itself does not amaze besides the music and art direction, if that makes sense.
I'm not sure of the two which is the better game, but Ragnarok will fall out of the conversation in a few years, tops. It will be vaguely recalled as a very good game with bombastic setpieces and razor sharp gameplay. While I believe Elden Ring will keep getting mentions as something special and analyzed 20 years from now. Not that this necessarily makes it the better game though...
God of War was great, but Elden Ring was something really special.
Re: Fill Your PS5, PS4 Trophy Cabinet with Dirt Cheap Platinum Games
@SerJosh97
Look, I openly admit it is wrong-headed and elitist, but I can't help how I feel about it. I'm not perfect, and yeah I agree trophies are worthless except what they mean to you the player. And to me, they are a badge of a challenge overcome. I have "easy" games on my list that I played just because I thought they were good games like Tales of the Borderlands. And I'm actually proud of those too.
I'm talking specifically about those 5 minute platinum games. Why do people do that? Like, you want to see your numbers and stats go up, I get that. But if anyone actually takes a few seconds to look at your game list, the jig is up and any small sort of esteem you were trying to get is instantly vanished. And yeah, I always look. The accounts I delete I consider the equivalent of an email spam folder.
I would put it this way: I detest people that stack their accounts up with these games. But I wouldn't go so far as to ban or remove the garbage games from PSN. I don't like that people do this, but I respect people's right to do what they want up to and including infecting their account with these digital STDs.
I'm talking about a very weird and specific breed of trophy hunter. The people that blow hundreds of dollars on junk games to pump their score up to those of us that have been doing this regularly for 14+ years now. They absolutely have the right to do it. They just won't be doing it on my friend's list is all I'm saying. And the 150 or so people that go for trophies on my friends list would agree with me. But that's okay, I'm sure they have their own friends. It takes all kinds after all!
Re: Preview: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion Is a Great Remaster of an Awkward 2007 Spinoff
I would love to see the Final Fantasy: Advent Children movie villains get some screen time in one of these Remake games. It would make zero sense chronologically but hey, the remake story already makes zero sense.
You also have Genesis, Weiss, Nero, Azul, Roche, etc... There's a lot of goofy crap in this series and I think they need to go whole hog.
Re: Preview: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion Is a Great Remaster of an Awkward 2007 Spinoff
@Th3solution
Since Crisis Core is considered canon despite being a bit odd, I think it will enhance the future Remake entries, as I imagine some villains and plot beats from Crisis Core will be referenced or even included directly (due to the altered timeline story Remake is going for).
As another person mentioned, Intermission went off the rails and included Dirge of Cerberus villains, so Genesis seems like a no brainer for inclusion in future games.
Re: Preview: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion Is a Great Remaster of an Awkward 2007 Spinoff
@Thrillho
Those weird moments from Intermission were a dive into the Dirge of Cerberus corner of the Final Fantasy mythos, perhaps the most obscure and odd entry in the FF7 canon. So yeah, that game was FF7 with Dragon Ball Z villains essentially. Thought it was random in a kinda cool way to see callbacks to Dirge of Cerberus, of all things.
I think they are saving the other main villain of the FF7 series (Genesis from Crisis Core) for future remake entries. Just a theory.
Re: Preview: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion Is a Great Remaster of an Awkward 2007 Spinoff
"The storytelling borders on utterly nonsensical at times, and again, it's always been like this."
You just described every JRPG's storyline/dialogue. This coming from a JRPG fan. Japan isn't exactly known for weaving Shakespearian tales into its games, a few exceptions aside. The goofy, juvenile writing in these games is part of the charm sometimes though.
Re: PSVR2 Game Pricing Revealed as Pre-Orders Go Live
@huyi
If this is anything like the first PSVR, the price should see a pretty steep drop down the road. Larger library, cheaper game prices too.
The smart play is to wait anyways. Early adopters are not smart. I am not smart. 😂