Comments 307

Re: Zurkon Jr. Guides Us Through Weapons and Traversal in Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart Video

art_of_the_kill

@truerbluer (shrug) It does seem like an odd coincidence that just a few days after Sony formed their Steam page, R&C has suddenly been downgraded to "console exclusive" after being promoted as an exclusive up to this point. I've mentioned that the blatant dishonesty from Sony is one of the main issues I have with them porting exclusives. I would at least welcome them being honest about the fact that they're just straight-up not going to have exclusives anymore since that's where I believe they're headed.

Whether it's a mistake or not, I'll say again that the more Sony is encouraged to do this, the more likely it becomes that the time between PS and PC releases will shrink. So them teasing that a first-party game is merely a console exclusive before it even releases seems like a pretty huge escalation to me.

Re: Zurkon Jr. Guides Us Through Weapons and Traversal in Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart Video

art_of_the_kill

@Perryg92 Damn, that's awful. I was definitely wary of the fact that we haven't seen Qwark yet. I still want him to be in the game, but Jim Ward is pretty irreplaceable. Damn...

@truerbluer A "mistake..."

Or Sony has decided to drop the pretense and actually be honest with us? I mean, they do have a Steam page now, so they probably figure that it's pretty out in the open that all of their exclusives are just console exclusives now.

Re: PlayStation Studios' Creator Page Is Live on Steam, And Teasing More PC Ports

art_of_the_kill

@Ralizah Yeah, I think you’re probably right. It wouldn’t surprise me, and who’s to say what actually qualifies as a “backlash from their base” to them? I mean, they clearly did a “testing the water” experiment with Horizon Zero Dawn, and while there was clear and obvious dissent, they’re apparently gauging by the fact that PlayStation headquarters wasn’t burned to the ground by ravenous fanboys that it is now a-okay to put damn near every single PS4 exclusive on PC. Or so I can tell, anyway. Suffice to say that it’s probably going to take a hell of a ton of backlash for Sony to turn away from this path they’re on.

Ultimately, though, I think the people who are okay with this under the caveat that “it’s only older games” or “they’re not putting EVERY exclusive on PC” are going to be in for a very rude awakening one of these days. The more Sony is encouraged to keep doing this, the more likely it becomes that they’re eventually releasing every single exclusive on PC day-and-date, or at least close to it. They might indeed give PS owners six months or so of early access before they release the superior PC version.

In any case, if you don’t see any point in owning a PS5 now, how could I even begin to blame you? Sony is clearly throwing their primary advantage away, and sooner or later, us PS owners are likely going to end up feeling like chumps for ever supporting Sony consoles in the first place.

Re: PlayStation Studios' Creator Page Is Live on Steam, And Teasing More PC Ports

art_of_the_kill

@torne The point is to push back on the narrow-minded viewpoint that the ONLY reason anyone would not be okay with this is because they're fanboys who don't want to share their games. Because it needs to be pushed back against, and people who aren't okay with it need to stop being treated as if they're irrational fanboys who don't have valid arguments or concerns.

It's not entitled for PS users to expect some benefit or preferential treatment out of this deal like Xbox users get, or at the very least to not be straight up misled with "PlayStation Exclusive" labeling that Sony likely knows full well is not going to be true in the future. Oh, and yes, and I suppose it is a good thing that it's only going to be games that are 4-5 years old, like the two-year-old Days Gone that's getting released on PC in three days!

Man, I truly do wonder why it is I keep seeing comments that games becoming less exclusive is only a good thing overall and also simultaneously seeing hollow reassurances that Sony is only going to be porting their old games to PC. So, I want to know, which is it? If exclusives aren't good, why isn't the prevailing narrative that Sony needs to just put all its games on PC day-and-date? Why do some people find reassurance or try to reassure others that it's not a big deal in the slightest that Sony ports their older games over, as opposed to just making it so that the PS4/PS5 has no exclusives to begin with?

These ideas are not consistent with each other, and yet, I tend to see them both argued simultaneously anytime this subject comes up. Then again, I guess it's also not consistent that Sony keeps moneyhatting third-party timed exclusives, suggesting that they understand the value of exclusivity, while simultaneously porting their first-party games over, suggesting that exclusivity and brand identity has no value after all.

Re: PlayStation Studios' Creator Page Is Live on Steam, And Teasing More PC Ports

art_of_the_kill

cont.

  • The undermining of the "Only on PlayStation/PlayStation Exclusive" labeling. How are we even to know what's exclusive to PlayStation anymore with Sony now actively misleading us with "only on PlayStation" label on games that will now appear outside of PlayStation? And this doesn't change just because they have now dropped the "Only on PlayStation" moniker with the PS5, because they still market their exclusives as exclusives in their trailer videos and the like. In fact, there was a recent kerfuffle when Sony released a Demon's Souls trailer which seemed to insist it was merely a timed PS exclusive, and then they went out of their way to take the video down and replace it with one claiming it to be an actual PS exclusive. And that just seems more than a bit silly because, who knows, maybe Demon's Souls will indeed make its way to PC someday? We don't know. We explicitly don't know because it's as if Sony actually wants to mislead us at this point. And hell, people will buy Sony consoles just for one exclusive. How the hell should they be expected to feel if they bought a PS4 just for Days Gone or something, and realized all they needed to do was wait a measly two years for it? No matter how you slice it, it's just straight up dishonesty, and it's not a good look.
  • Sony will be encouraged to be less committed to their hardware and userbase. When considering how much these PC ports do not benefit PS users in the slightest, I don't think it's outlandish to suggest that Sony just won't be all that committed to us anymore. Even a lot of people who are okay with the PC ports are coasting on the notion that it's only ever going to be older games that are at least two or three years old. That it's never going to be day-and-date releases. I simply do not trust that will remain the case the more that Sony continues to do this whilst also pretending (as Jim Ryan has done) that there is no adverse reaction to it. There was once a time when Microsoft pushed back against the notion of day-and-date PC releases for all of their exclusives. Look how that turned out.

Re: PlayStation Studios' Creator Page Is Live on Steam, And Teasing More PC Ports

art_of_the_kill

@torne
Once again, here's a list of completely valid reasons why someone would hate it that have nothing to do with not wanting to share games:

  • There is no benefit to existing PS users whatsoever. None. Zip. And that is the main difference between Sony and MS here. MS has a system that literally allows existing Xbox owners to benefit from the day-and-date PC releases. Sony does not have that, so their users get nothing. And it's not unreasonable for PS users to not be okay with that.
  • By default, PlayStation owners receive the inferior versions of Sony's games. Aside from graphical enhancements, mod support alone makes the PC version of any game superior to all others. Again, it's not unreasonable for PS users to not be okay with that.
  • Resources that go into these PC ports are effectively not going into ongoing development of games or whatever else. Once again, this is just Sony and Sony's developers expending resources on something that will have zero benefit for the existing PS userbase.
  • Dilution of the identity of the PlayStation brand. Now I know this might be seen as a minor thing overall and some might disagree with it, but it is still a valid reason as far as I'm concerned, especially with the appearance of Sony doing this just for the cynical motive of pure profit (as they themselves have admitted). And let's face it, if brand identity just meant nothing at all, then what would be the downside to Sony also releasing their games on Xbox and Switch?

Re: Soapbox: 69% of PlayStation's Revenue Is Driven by PS Store, But the Shopping Experience Sucks

art_of_the_kill

@OthmaneAD I said on the PS4's store. You're apparently looking at the PS5's store, because an ad for Returnal wouldn't be on the former, now would it? And that's nice if Sony is promoting it for PS5 users, but last I checked, way more people own PS4s than PS5s and it would certainly be nice for them to have that information as well.

On the PS4's store, I just checked once again, and NOWHERE is it being promoted by Sony that Horizon Zero Dawn Complete is available to download for free, nor is Play at Home even so much as mentioned. You literally wouldn't know about it unless you actively searched for the game. And that's just ludicrous.

Re: Soapbox: 69% of PlayStation's Revenue Is Driven by PS Store, But the Shopping Experience Sucks

art_of_the_kill

I agree with all of this, but there's something else I feel deserves being brought up:

Sony is currently not advertising their Play at Home Initiative ANYWHERE on the PS4's store. Given that Horizon Zero Dawn is still being given out for free right now, the only way that people would know about it is if they actually follow gaming news, because Sony sure as hell isn't letting you know about it on the storefront itself. I noticed this with the last batch of games as well. I downloaded Enter the Gungeon, Abzu, and Subnautica right away, but held off on Rez Infinite and The Witness until later. When I went back to download those two, I was surprised to find that the Play at Home section was nowhere in sight. I literally had to use the search bar to find them. And that's...quite ridiculous, I have to say.

This is just really weird, I feel. Despite the generosity of the program, it almost seems as though Sony doesn't actually want you to know that they're doing it. You would seriously think that Sony would have a Play at Home section on their store throughout the entire duration that they're giving away free games. And yet....they don't.

Re: Sony Backtracks PS3, PS Vita Online Store Closures

art_of_the_kill

An unexpected move from Jim "Why Would Anyone Play This?" Ryan. At the very least, I hope this has taught him that yes, people DO want to play old games regardless of whether they have photorealistic graphics or not!

Sucks that he still isn't extending the date of the PSP closure. Come on, give them a year at least!

Re: Days Gone Is Still a Stunner in PC Features Trailer

art_of_the_kill

cont.

  • The undermining of the "Only on PlayStation/PlayStation Exclusive" labeling. How are we even to know what's exclusive to PlayStation anymore with Sony now actively misleading us with "only on PlayStation" label on games that will now appear outside of PlayStation? And this doesn't change just because they have now dropped the "Only on PlayStation" moniker with the PS5, because they still market their exclusives as exclusives in their trailer videos and the like. In fact, there was a recent kerfuffle when Sony released a Demon's Souls trailer which seemed to insist it was merely a timed PS exclusive, and then they went out of their way to take the video down and replace it with one claiming it to be an actual PS exclusive. And that just seems more than a bit silly because, who knows, maybe Demon's Souls will indeed make its way to PC someday? We don't know. We explicitly don't know because it's as if Sony actually wants to mislead us at this point. And hell, people will buy Sony consoles just for one exclusive. How the hell should they be expected to feel if they bought a PS4 just for Days Gone, and realized all they needed to do was wait a measly two years for it? No matter how you slice it, it's just straight up dishonesty, and it's not a good look.
  • Sony will be encouraged to be less committed to their hardware and userbase. When considering how much these PC ports do not benefit PS users, I don't think it's outlandish to suggest that Sony just won't be all that committed to us anymore. This is especially apparent in the moves they've been making lately. For crying out loud, Sony is already releasing a game on Xbox GamePass DAY ONE while we PS users have to pay full price for it. Between that, and of course, their closing of three storefronts, including that of the less-than-decade-old Vita which was STILL getting games made for it, it almost seems as if Sony is just actively showing contempt for us now.

Re: Days Gone Is Still a Stunner in PC Features Trailer

art_of_the_kill

@TheFrenchiestFry
(sigh) Once again, without fail, the "fanboys just don't want to share their games" argument is listed as the ONLY reason why anyone would be against Sony doing this. So I will once again list the reasons to be against this that go beyond that:

  • There is no benefit to existing PS users whatsoever. None. Zip. And that is the main difference between Sony and MS here. MS has a system that literally allows existing Xbox owners to benefit from the day-and-date PC releases. Sony does not have that, so their users get nothing. And it's not unreasonable for PS users to not be okay with that.
  • By default, PlayStation owners receive the inferior versions of Sony's games. Aside from graphical enhancements, mod support alone makes the PC version of any game superior to all others. Again, it's not unreasonable for PS users to not be okay with that.
  • Resources that go into these PC ports are effectively not going into ongoing development of games or whatever else. Once again, this is just Sony and Sony's developers expending resources on something that will have zero benefit for the existing PS userbase.
  • Dilution of the identity of the PlayStation brand. Now I know this might be seen as a minor thing overall and some might disagree with it, but it is still a valid reason as far as I'm concerned, especially with the appearance of Sony doing this just for the cynical motive of pure profit (as they themselves have admitted). And let's face it, if brand identity just meant nothing at all, then what would be the downside to Sony also releasing their games on Xbox and Switch?

Re: Naughty Dog Wishes it Was Working on New Jak & Daxter Game

art_of_the_kill

Well, a remake of Jak and Daxter would certainly make a hell of a lot more sense than a remake of TLoU. Still though, once again, I want a new IP from Naughty Dog more than anything else.

Also, damn, it's somewhat insane to me that Evan Wells is still at ND. I think he's literally the only one left who's been there since the Crash series.

Re: PS Plus Oversight Is a Bummer for PS3, PS Vita Owners

art_of_the_kill

Yet more evidence of Sony being far too short-sighted so that problems like this can surface well after it's far too late for them to give a s***.

In any case, it's more than clear at this point that the storefronts should not be shutting down with the immediacy that they are, ESPECIALLY the Vita's store. It would not have killed Sony to give us a good 12-18 months of advance notice at the very least.

@TrueAssassin86x

That's 100% more on Sony than on Push Square.

Re: Poll: Is PlayStation Losing Ground to Xbox?

art_of_the_kill

@2cents It's bound to happen eventually. Fact is, they have way more studios than Sony does now and it's only a matter of time before that translates to them having way more exclusives.

Keep in mind also that if Deathloop does really well, Sony won't get the sequel. Nor will they get The Outer Worlds 2, which is presumably going to happen since Phil Spencer has expressed interest in expanding upon that series.

But hey, at least Sony has their most successful first-party studio, Naughty Dog! I can't wait to see what new IP they'll being doing ne---

Oh....

Re: Poll: Is PlayStation Losing Ground to Xbox?

art_of_the_kill

I definitely feel we're going to get to a period a few years from now when Xbox's many studios are firing on all cylinders and they'll be releasing exclusive after exclusive.

The moves Sony's been making certainly don't seem to suggest that they're prepared to counter that.

Re: The Last of Us Is Getting a PS5 Remake Eight Years After Release, Claims Report

art_of_the_kill

Well, so much for seeing Naughty Dog's new IP within a reasonable period of time, something that I would have happily bought a PS5 for. I guess since they're wasting their time with this crap in addition to the standalone Factions mode, we won't be seeing anything new from them for at least a half-decade.

Sony is actively pushing me away from purchasing a PS5 at this point. I cannot even currently picture me buying one, and as a long-time PlayStation fan, it's utterly astonishing that I would feel this way.

Re: Sony Suggests MLB Made the Decision to Include MLB The Show 21 on Xbox Game Pass

art_of_the_kill

@TheFrenchiestFry Fair enough, but it nevertheless calls into question what is going on as far as the leadership of PlayStation goes. Exactly how much do they still value their own customers and their legacy over the ability to maximize their profits as much as possible? Because quite frankly, their sudden commitment towards putting their exclusives on PC as well as the simultaneous shut down of three storefronts has left my faith in the brand pretty heavily shaken, and this is just yet another thing which seems to suggest that Sony is no longer fighting for PlayStation users and their own legacy nearly as rigorously as they ought to be.

It seems ridiculous that MLB can just allow MS to embarrass Sony like this, and Sony is only left shrugging their shoulders and saying that it's out of their hands. How do they have zero leverage in a deal in which they are LITERALLY the ones making the product? Which, again, is why I say that Sony deserves the shame. They definitely should have to answer for this to PS users who can clearly see they're getting the worse deal.

Re: Sony Suggests MLB Made the Decision to Include MLB The Show 21 on Xbox Game Pass

art_of_the_kill

@ATaco You do realize that you're basically arguing for Sammy to have no opinion on what he's reporting on, right? Yeah, that's not how it works. It's absolutely Sony's fault if they don't have enough positive news in the pipeline to counter their horrendous optics of late, and Sammy can absolutely offer his opinion on headlines.

And also, Sony is doing a fine job of tarnishing their reputation all on their own with the decisions they've been making lately. They certainly don't need help from PushSquare.

Re: Sony Suggests MLB Made the Decision to Include MLB The Show 21 on Xbox Game Pass

art_of_the_kill

So basically, I assume this means we can expect MLB: The Show to appear on Game Pass EVERY year from here on out, and Sony can't (or won't) do f*** all about it.

Honestly, Sony ABSOLUTLEY deserves to be shamed over this. The next time anyone sits down for an interview with Jim Ryan, this ludicrous deal he made with MLB had damn well better come up. To not only have to be forced to put your first-party game on a competitor's platform, but to make it where your competitor gets to boast about offering their customers a far better deal than what you're offering your own?! Surely, Sony has to be aware--has to actually care--about how bad this looks for them, right?!

Re: Many PS Vita Devs Cancel Projects After Sudden PS Store Closure

art_of_the_kill

Good Lord, it's as if every other morning now I'm waking up to a new headline as to how Jim Ryan continues ruining PlayStation. When, oh when will this downward spiral end?

This is absolutely appalling. At least in the case of the PSP and PS3, no one was still making games for them. But I knew for a fact it was way too soon to close the Vita's store, and the fact that Sony is doing it now is really only a testament to just how badly they want to wash their hands of the system. In any case, I can only imagine how much bad will this entire scenario will engender towards indie developers. I mean, if Sony just starts missing out on games, things like this will definitely be the reason why.

Re: Marvel's Avengers Dev Clarifies That You'll Need to Buy MCU Outfits

art_of_the_kill

"At what point should we start feeling sorry for Square Enix and Crystal Dynamics?"

Given their atrocious monetization model for a game that they utterly butchered to transform into a live service when it could have been so, so, SO much better as a simple single-player game in the same vein as Insomniac's Spider-Man games, I see absolutely no reason why I or anyone else should feel sorry for them.

This is the bed they made for themselves.

Re: Sony Confirms PS3, PS Vita, PSP Store Closures, Downloads Will Be Retained

art_of_the_kill

Ludicrous. Utterly freaking ludicrous that they're doing this without at least a year's worth of advance notice. Ludicrous that they're doing this without so much as a modicum of respect for game preservation or legacy, or how terrible an implication it is for the all-digital future that we're hastily steaming towards.

Also, "enhance the customer experience?" Yep, because nothing enhances customer experience than insta-delisting a freaking crapton of games all at once, right?!

In any case, PlayStation continues its downward spiral under the leadership Jim "Why Would Anyone Play This" Ryan.