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@Vil

Have you tried lowering the difficulty? Kena's normal difficulty is a design flaw. It's inconsistent with the game's tone and aesthetic. By all means, include a punishing difficulty option, but don't make it the default. Once I lowered the difficulty the game just opened right up for me. Combat is fun, yes, but exploring the drop-dead-stunning world and solving environmental puzzles and experiencing the story's many touching beats are the game's most significant offerings. Severe combat difficulty merely gets in the way. I'm glad I lowered it rather than giving up on the game entirely.

I enjoy my subscription service, but not as much as I enjoy the hype around a blockbuster release, making the purchase with my hard earned dollars, and settling in to play it on day one.

I'm eager to try the Sly Cooper games for the first time. I rank light-hearted 3D platformers as some of my most profoundly joyful experiences of all time, and Sly Cooper has felt like a big blind spot or missed opportunity for a while now. I recently tried Jak and Daxter and discovered its datedness to be insurmountable, so I'm going in with tempered expectations, but I'm grateful for the opportunity to engage with this slice of video game history during which I was not playing video games.

@huyi I understand your sentiment, but this kind of judgment is honestly closer in spirit to Idiocracy than the phenomenon you describe. I'll take a noob over a gatekeeper seven days a week. I'm a Street Fighter casual who remembers all the moves, and I'm really looking forward to this pared-down approach.

Risk of Rain 2 took a significant discount and it's been on my wishlist some time. Anybody out here recommend? Never played the original but 2 looks like a blast.

I wonder whether the vast majority of Premium subscribers are Plus and Now subscribers who were automatically shoved into the highest tier. In that case the neglect they're showing here might be explained - not justified, mind you - but explained to some extent. But I can't imagine any scenario in which this sort of bad press is worth whatever scheming (or lack thereof) is going on behind the scenes. I get the general sense that Sony's marketing team are in disarray and quite poorly managed.

I already own UNO and none of the rest look any good to me.

No other game even comes close to TLOU2 for immersion and narrative, as far as I'm concerned. My wife, who rightfully scorns (most) video game writing for the remedial, unevolved, uninspired nature of it, played TLOU2 with me from start to finish. We were both so utterly gripped by how harrowing and sophisticated it is on every level. I recently started a second playthrough even though I swore, when credits rolled the first time around, that I would never put myself through that again. It feels rather like a war I miss, because playing other games (and I play a lot of 'em!) won't give me the feeling that TLOU2 gave me, which has been wired into my nerves and muscle memory.

This game looks gorgeous and exactly the type of alternative gaming experience I cherish. That being said, I would like to remind folks who's running this studio, and why stuff like this will continue to happen without a cultural shift:

https://www.fanbyte.com/news/scavengers-studio-season/

@Irae I have no idea why Sackboy hasn't landed on PS Plus yet. I'm so eager to play it and it's perpetually on sale, but for some reason I keep holding out for its arrival on my sub.

@RBRTMNZ I agree with you about Ratchet, but I will offer my own different perspective on Kena, a game I loved. I found the combat way too difficult on the normal setting to where I stopped enjoying the game or strove to always avoid combat if possible (but it really isn't possible). Once I lowered the difficulty level the game completely unlocked for me and I could take joy in the more interesting sections of environmental puzzle solving and exploration which, yes, involved a fair amount of platforming. I do agree that in the strict sense it is not a platformer, but for this gamer the platforming sections were far more interesting than the combat, perhaps because the world is so dang beautiful.

@Ssimsim I'll use any platform (pardon) to recommend Kaze and the Wild Masks, a deeply challenging side-scroller with absolutely brilliant level design, and The Mummy Demastered, a Metroidvania that is WAY better than it has any right to be as a licensed game.

@Adaminoregon Thank you for responding, but I meant do I get to keep the game after it's removed from the service if I add it to my library.

Very much looking forward to getting stuck in Tony Hawk. Played Like a Dragon a bit on Game Pass and just couldn't get past the turn-based combat, which I've never been able to enjoy. Does anybody know if Plus games remain yours after adding them to your library, or does the system resemble PS Now and Game Pass where titles are yours only while they're available through the service?

@Kienda "I’ll need to see it before I judge."

That's not how the internet works, my friend!

Crash 4 has been on the wishlist for some time now, can't wait to get my hands on it!

Yoooooooo I remember this from back in the day! Maybe I played a demo? Will definitely boot this up after work tonight.

Had mine for a little over a year now and it still handles like a dream. Neither my Switch Pro nor Xbox controllers can claim the same. The DualSense is a pricey piece of hardware but worth every penny so far.

Loved loved loved Q.U.B.E. 2 and cannot wait to play its predecessor! Brilliant stuff.

can't wait fur this one! i only hope it doesn't go the elden ring route and not allow me to paws the action.

I've never been a massive fan of the series, but I really wanted to enjoy Origins and Odyssey because of how gorgeously rendered the worlds are. I re-downloaded Origins because of the new patch, but I bounced off it HARD almost immediately. It's curious, after pumping so many hours into Elden Ring, I've realized how much I cherish (and how much I missed) that feeling in video games of genuine, unsignposted exploration and peril. I wonder if there's a way to tweak the settings on the modern AC games to replicate, at least a little bit, this feeling, because the bloated overpopulated map and cluttered HUD of the AC franchise and its ilk just don't do it for me any more.

I've enjoyed a good many PS4 games on my PS5, but I skipped entirely the PS1 through PS4 generations as they happened, and I really can't wait to dive into these classics at my leisure when they're added to my PS Plus sub.

i skipped ps1 thru ps3, so i'm really looking forward to trying out the retro library at my leisure.

but on the ps4, ps5 side alone, this is an absolute windfall for me. cannot wait to play:

concrete genie
demon’s souls
death stranding
ghost of tsushima director’s cut
returnal
the last of us: left behind
uncharted: the nathan drake collection
uncharted: the lost legacy
ashen

@AndyKazama Xuan Yuan Sword 7 has been on my wishlist some time. Sounds like you enjoyed it and recommend it? These days I'm in the mood for new and unfamiliar IPs. It looks pretty decent, the reviews are rather positive, I just need to know if gameplay isn't so bad it gets in the way of enjoyment.

If they can take the burden off the developers and embed the demo mechanic in the operating system then I don't see this as anything but a win for us consumers. Sure it ain't available to all, but I would gladly pay a few extra bucks a month (I was already going to spring for the highest tier FWIW) in order to prevent myself wasting money on a broken game or a game that disappoints. I always know well under two hours into a game whether I'm going to enjoy it. Publishers won't be crazy about it, of course, because it'll allow us to make more informed buying decisions, but I predict that its overall popularity with gamers will make it quite a bad look for publishers to opt out.

@Husker @Boucho11 Thank you both! The purchase has been made! Now if I can only tear myself away from Elden Ring....

@Boucho11 Oh balls. Do they ever double dip with games? It's on sale for $5 USD on the PS Store right now, but it looks like it'll go on sale every couple months or so, so I figured I'd wait. Seems a bit silly not to bite when it's that low but my backlog is absolutely ridiculous.

::glances at wishlist::

Mad Max, Resident Evil 2 and Astalon

I mean, the game is an absolute triumph. I'm having so much fun with it!

Got my eye on Blasphemous!

@lacerz Nice rig!

With PS Plus Premium and Game Pass Ultimate on the two current gen consoles, at $25/month USD combined, I'm in pretty damn good shape.

Can't wait to play Death Stranding and Returnal, and glad I held out!

Sony's service needn't be competitive with Game Pass to be better than it is, and it needn't offer the same value to be successful. I believe Sony are not aiming to convert Game Pass die-hards so much as to win over those among their base who are either confused or not interested in their current convoluted offerings. My Now and Plus subs just automatically renewed last month, and I'm looking forward to them converting to whatever this improved offering is. As an exclusively offline gamer, it will all come down to the games for me. I anticipate an expanded library of first- and third-party titles, back-compat classics, and free trials. Just don't make the conversion of my current subs a headache! (Little hope there, given recent track.)

@Grimwood To be fair, 99.9% of all content, across all media, from the dawn of time, has been mainstream crap. We just have more access to it now. I would argue that there's more great art than ever, with greater access to it than ever before, but that like always you have to know where to look, and you have to bring some energy and interest to the table. And to be more fair, mainstream crap is just fine for most people, who just want to engage with content the way we engage with almost everything else we buy: to distract us from the capitalist boot on our necks and the yawning abyss at our feet

@JJ2 @Apfelschteiner Sarah Bond is Corporate Vice President, Gaming Partnerships and Business Development at Microsoft. Her entire role is to make gaming a bigger part of the tech industry, specifically the hardware, software, and cloud technology that are the meat, potatoes and, er, cloud of the Microsoft Corporation.

If this was not broadcast live, perhaps at the time of its recording she knew of an announcement date that for some reason has not been met by Sony.

Shame about the workplace conditions under which this was produced. It seems like the first lego game I would actually play for longer than 30 minutes. If the reviews are strong I may get in on a sale just so the publisher doesn't break even on my purchase

Cyberpunk 2077 fans left wondering if they'll get expansions? Maybe they can both commiserate over it... I jest!

Horizon Forbidden West, Elden Ring and OlliOlli World. I feel inexorably drawn back to Elden Ring despite dying rather quickly if I go too far in any direction, into any cave or castle. I'm going to look up how to level up early on so I can bring a bit more beef to my battles and not be so damn terrified of exploring. Having a great time of it, though! Happy weekend all and happy gaming!

First game was interesting but rough. I feel I would enjoy this gentle sojourn for the reasons stated above. Nothing wrong with stepping away from the same old Shooty Shooty Bang Bang now and then.

Picked up OlliOlli World and dipped in this morning. It's loaded with charm and that classic arcade-y gameplay. I can already tell this will be taking all of my hours. Well, the ones left over from Horizon Forbidden West, that is.

This looks like pure fun. Star Fox meets Horizon Chase Turbo meets Goldeneye.

@Kidfunkadelic83 You know it's bad when you turn to Sifu to ease frustration with another game.

Still loving every minute of Horizon Forbidden West. Aloy suffers fewer fools this time around and I just love her attitude. Many funny moments to break up the loneliness and tension of the game. Dipping into No Man's Sky for tranquil respite. Work today, though, where I'll get to meet Bob Odenkirk. Shaping up to be a fine weekend. Happy gaming to one and all!

@BartoxTharglod I'm sure you're already aware of it, but if not, I thought Horizon Chase Turbo perfectly captures that nostalgic arcade racer vibe, in many ways surpassing the experience without compromising the nostalgia.

@playstation1995 I wonder if you have some love for one of my favorite west coast outfits Jurassic 5

@playstation1995 You got the entire hall of fame right there. As a New Yorker I feel the presence of these giants on a daily basis.

@playstation1995 Don't often see a ref to Nas on these forums so I congratulate you on the comparison. Can't wait to play Illden Ring!

@Sir_funkington Zero Dawn was incredible when it came out, but Forbidden West has rendered it virtually redundant. My advice is, watch a Zero Dawn story recap video (Forbidden West gives the excellent story of the first game a very brief overview, not enough info IMO), then purchase Forbidden West immediately and lose yourself in this absolutely incredible science fiction world full of memorable characters, exploration, danger and mystery (and save points!).

The biggest source of frustration for me, which is why I bounced EARLY off of Dark Souls Remastered and Bloodborne (the only two From games I've attempted), is losing progress, the inability to save before tough encounters. I understand that some very ill and unhealthy people enjoy this challenge, but as somebody who often plays a game in easy mode to make sure I don't get shoved out of a story I'd like to enjoy, I absolutely cannot abide such punishing mechanics in a game. As for Elden Ring, I would LOVE to explore this world and uncover its mystery, go up against these incredible looking foes, but if it's going to treat my time and sanity with the same gleeful hostility I will take a pass. Looking forward to reviews!