Comments 323

Re: Rumour: PS5 Exclusive Returnal Likely Heading to PC Soon

truerbluer

@Juanalf For me it's become hard to defend remaining on PlayStation when all its advantages are slowly being eroded away (exclusives, controller, online playerbase etc). I've held off on getting a PS5 because I knew something was iffy about the way they revealed their games. With the Nvidia leaks proving to be entirely accurate, I'll probably get an RTX 4080 at this point and leave PlayStation behind altogether; they need to provide some real reassurance of why I need a PS5 to win me back at this point.

Re: Rumour: PS5 Exclusive Returnal Likely Heading to PC Soon

truerbluer

"It's only old games being used to hype up the sequel which will definitely only be on consoles, it's a smart strategy!" (HZD)

"It's only games that flopped critically and commercially, more sales will absolutely lead to a sequel!" (Days Gone)

"Even though it's the highest rated PS4 exclusive, it's still just a PS4 game, relax your shiny new PS5 is still definitely worth it!" (God of War)

Now we're getting bonafide made-just-for-PS5 games coming to PC in less than 2 years. This is honestly quite insulting to PS5 owners and those who felt mislead into believing these games were designed to fully utilise the bespoke features of the PS5 and DualSense. A PC port immediately invalidates the claim that these games were fully designed for PS5 because there's no way Sony would waste time and money on a port that only a tiny fraction of PC players with comparable PS5 specs and DualSense controllers would be able to play, it simply makes no business sense.

The PS5 continues to become less desirable

Re: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Out on 28th October for PS5, PS4

truerbluer

Maybe they'll put the single player campaign on the disc this time.

I was interested in trying MW2019 but discovered the disc doesn't even have the campaign on it and you're forced to connect online to download over 100GB of mostly Warzone data to even give you access to the single player campaign. This is what actual unchecked anti-consumer behaviour looks like.

Re: Sony: Acquisition of Bungie Represents a Major Step Forward in Becoming More Multiplatform

truerbluer

@Rafie This is why I can't get excited by any studios Sony decides to acquire anymore. PlayStation owners get nothing from the Bungie deal, there's literally zero incentive to play their games on PlayStation over any other platform. No exclusive content, no price discounts, nothing! With cross-play being more prominent now there's even less reason to remain on PlayStation when other platforms get the entire playerbase too and PC players don't even have to pay for online access.

Re: Sony: Acquisition of Bungie Represents a Major Step Forward in Becoming More Multiplatform

truerbluer

@Bismarck Where's the source that they're creating their own launcher because I've not heard about this anywhere. Even if it were to happen it's another extra cost to maintain.

You're missing the point, the exclusives are the unique things about consoles. It's the main thing that draws people to decide which platform they want.

PCs will always be more powerful, that's why the only way to lure people to consoles is the exclusives that can't be played on PC. Without exclusives it's just a redundant system that has no appeal to hardcore gamers.

Re: Sony: Acquisition of Bungie Represents a Major Step Forward in Becoming More Multiplatform

truerbluer

Can anyone explain why Nintendo doesn't take this approach? Wouldn't they stand to make a killing selling Mario and Zelda on other platforms? Same with Microsoft, why did they specifically remove Starfield from PlayStation when we know there was a PS version in development. Why does Sony always have to be the benevolent one to offer their exclusives on other platforms?

And what benefit does this bring to current PlayStation owners who are left wondering why they invested in a console that no longer has anything unique to offer except premium prices for early access to worse versions of 1st party games.

Re: Alan Wake 2 Concept Art Shared, But No News This Summer

truerbluer

@shgamer For me Alan Wake was just an okay game with a lot of annoying mechanics.

  • I hate how he gets exhausted after just a few seconds of running
  • The flashlight constantly runs out of power from even single enemy encounters
  • There's no depth to the combat, you can't strategically shoot different body parts or take a stealth approach, it's the same rinse and repeat encounters throughout the game with no enemy variety
  • The "possessed" objects that hurl towards you are incredibly annoying
  • Shamelessly rips off Twin Peaks with super lame stand-ins, especially the George Costanza-like agent of his
  • The overall story just felt very nonsensical to me and not very engaging

Re: Sony Dumps Funds into Live Service Software Firm

truerbluer

It's pure naivety to believe this GaaS initiative won't impact Sony's single player releases. We're either going to see a drop in quality or quantity of their single player games, so pick your poison.

There's at least 10 GaaS games in development from 1st party studios, that's resources already being divided between GaaS and single player games and we already know that GaaS is seen as the priority now. This means the single player releases will either continue to be short experiences (Miles Morales, Rift Apart) or cross-gen compromised (Forbidden West, GT7), neither of which have justified the £70 asking price to me. I've yet to see a truly outstanding release; Demon's Souls comes close but it's just a new coat of paint on an old PS3 game.

Re: PS5 Stock Issues Could Last Into 2024 as Chip Shortages Continue

truerbluer

This is not good news, even for those that have a PS5.

Now we're bound to get even more compromised cross-gen releases some 3(!) whole years since the PS5 launch, which is unprecedented.

If I was a PS5 owner and I see that we're still getting what is essentially PS4 designed games only at higher resolution and frame rate 3 years in, I'd be having huge buyer's remorse with PS5.

Re: Poll: As God of War Turns Four, What Would You Rate It Today?

truerbluer

Initially fell into the hype and thought for sure it was a 10 but after some re-evaluating have to drop it to 9.

It turns out there were quite a few things that bothered me:

  • Did not enjoy the Norse setting; brought very little enemy and environmental variety, especially compared to the far more diverse Greek setting
  • The in-game map is shockingly poor for any practical use
  • The repeated troll bosses
  • Too much deliberate game padding travelling back and forth on boat
  • Shoehorning of RPG elements; I don't want experience points, level gatekeeping enemies/areas and random loot in my action-adventure games

I did really enjoy the game overall, it certainly had the best story in the franchise's history and made the right evolution from a gameplay standpoint. However I must admit my interest in Ragnarok has waned quite a bit seeing as it's continuing with the Norse setting, bringing back the boat for traversal and possibly adding even more RPG elements with NPC filled towns.

Re: PlayStation Studios' Firesprite Hiring for a AAA Horror Game

truerbluer

I'd be down for this as long as it's action based horror where you can actually subdue enemies.

I'm sick of these modern horror games where you're chased by indestructible enemies with no means of fighting back while having to rely entirely on stealth to progress, I wish that trend would end already.

Re: The Absolute Best Castlevania Just Turned 25

truerbluer

The UK game magazines really did a disservice to this game when it released and they can be fully blamed for the game flopping here in the UK. If you want to see a complete joke of a review go look up the Official UK PSM review of this game.

They basically completely trashed it for being a 2D game in a time when 3D was all the rage and suggested it would have been better suited for SNES instead of PlayStation. Meanwhile they happily handed out 10/10 scores to every PS1 Tomb Raider game.

They certainly ended up on the wrong side of history here.

Re: Sony Acquires Haven Studios, the New Developer Led By Jade Raymond

truerbluer

Can't say I'm thrilled with this announcement; this studio has exactly zero games developed under their belt and now has to ensure they live up to being worthy of acquisition with their first release. The fact that they're headed by someone whose last projects were cancelled after 6 wasteful years (EA Motive) or didn't even get off the ground (Google) doesn't inspire much confidence.

That and coupled with the fact this team is only developing GaaS titles that aren't even PlayStation exclusive means I can't get excited about this at all.

Re: Guilty Gear Strive Season 2, Cross-Play Between PS5, PS4, PC Announced

truerbluer

@Nepp67 I understand why these consoles have paywalls within their ecosystems even if it's a flimsy excuse you can still rationalise it by saying it covers server costs and keeps cheaters out. However my issue is only when PC players get in the mix with console players. Why do console players still have to pay for online multiplayer when PC players get complete access to console players at no cost? Console players are basically paying for the PC players at this point and everyone seems perfectly fine with it.

Re: Poll: Will You Buy Hogwarts Legacy?

truerbluer

I'm seeing some really dumb comments online from people who oppose JK Rowling's views but still feel entitled to pirate the game. And they justify it by saying it won't hurt the devs because they've already been paid for their work. If that's the case then what's morally stopping them from pirating literally anything else? They have no moral superiority here.

Re: Gran Turismo 7 PS5, PS4 Offline and Unplayable for Over 24 Hours

truerbluer

https://twitter.com/PlayStation/status/344283496514199553

The current PlayStation leadership is so out of touch with their consumers that they're now doing the exact opposite of what they were commended for last generation. It's quite hilarious to see how they have no self-awareness to the concerns that online-only DRM would bring despite having witnessed their rival desperately try to mitigate the damage that cost them the entire gen and lost favour among the gaming community as a whole. Now you can add this to the long pile of how Ryan/Hulst are undoing all the goodwill the PS4 built up.

Re: Gran Turismo 7 PS5, PS4 Has Been Offline All Day

truerbluer

This game was such an easy home-run yet Sony completely screwed it up, and the worst thing about it is that it's been self-inflicted and could have been completely avoided! I feel bad for Kazunori Yamauchi whose hands were probably tied when these decisions came down from his bosses.

There's been zero justification provided why the single player component requires a constant online connection but after this people have rightly sussed out it's because Sony wants to peddle microtransactions. I think it's totally unacceptable that they charge a full £70 for this cross-gen, online only experience and still decide they want to inconvenience the player further by lowering the rewards to increase the grind.

Honestly this really doesn't bode well for Sony's future line up. They've already outlined their intentions of making at least 10 new GaaS games and they'll most likely follow this exact model if they can get away with it.

Re: Poll: What Did You Think of Sony's Latest State of Play?

truerbluer

When the best thing you had to show was a free update to an already released game you know it's a bad showing.

I'm truly astonished at how awful these Japanese games looked, they honestly look like PS3 games with how poor the visuals and frame rate were. It's like these studios never improved after the PS2 era and still think they can sail by releasing mediocre looking trash like this at full price.

Re: Gran Turismo 7 (PS5) - The Real Driving Simulator Makes Its Grand Return

truerbluer

One theory I've seen floating around about the required constant online connection is that Sony wants to prevent players from manipulating their save files to earn credits and instead push microtransactions, which this game is apparently full of.

People who pay £70 for a single player game should be free to manipulate the game however they want if they feel progression is too slow. As long as it's kept offline and doesn't affect online multiplayer it should be fair game.

Re: Gran Turismo 7 (PS5) - The Real Driving Simulator Makes Its Grand Return

truerbluer

I'm really disappointed this game requires a constant online connection to play and has no offline modes with progression.

I saw an impressions video that showed the game can't even be played during server maintenance, which I find completely unacceptable for a full priced game that's primarily single player content.

I can't support single player games that come with hidden expiration dates rendering the game unplayable at some point in the future.

It's a shame because I was really looking forward to seeing this classic franchise make its long overdue triumphant comeback.

Re: Capcom Countdown Teases Reveal for Next Week

truerbluer

Has to be Street Fighter 6; it's the only franchise they have that warrants a countdown announcement. The leaked roadmap shows it was set to release Q3 2022 so this lines up perfectly for a reveal. No way do I expect them to have a countdown tease for an RE release, especially not DLC for Village or RE4 remake.

Re: Soapbox: Sony Is Making More Live Service Games for PS5, PS4, And I'm Excited

truerbluer

@naruball The difference here is unlike a regular game that fails, the studio can't swiftly move onto the next game. The investment for a live service game is too high to abandon and they'll be forced to keep updating until it gathers a sizeable playerbase. Just look at Sea of Thieves for example.

It also means less resources will be put towards any single player games that could have been made in the meantime. More studios dedicated to live service will result in fewer single player games and longer gaps between releases.

Re: Soapbox: Sony Is Making More Live Service Games for PS5, PS4, And I'm Excited

truerbluer

They're planning 10 live service games from 1st party studios, this will absolutely have an impact on their single player output whether it's the quality or quantity of releases this gen.

If the studios are concurrently working on both live service and single player games, they can't devote their full attention to one project without sacrificing things for the other.

This makes me think most single player releases will be Lost Legacy/Miles Morales/Rift Apart in length but still at £70, which is hard to justify given past games were cheaper and had more content.

I can't get behind live service games simply because they all have an expiration date. Once the servers shut down that's the end of that game's existence. These games also rely entirely on other active players to keep the game alive. There's no way most people will juggle between multiple live service games, they'll pick 1 or 2 max and stick with it, leaving the unpopular ones dead in the water. That's why the notion of having 10 live service games in development seems all the more absurd and out of touch with what the fanbase wants.

Re: New and Existing Bungie Games Will Not Become PS5, PS4 Exclusives

truerbluer

Jim Ryan is on course to ruin the legacy and reputation that PlayStation had built up for the past 25 years. PlayStation is no longer the only (or even best) place to play Sony's stellar 1st party offerings. In fact Jim's positioning the company to fully go 3rd party.

This is what he had to say on gameindustry.biz:

"I've been on record talking about increasing the size of the PlayStation community, and expanding beyond our historic console heartland. This can take many forms. And definitely one of the main ones is the ability for the wonderful games that we've been making over the past 25 years to be enjoyed in different places and played in different ways. We are starting to go multiplatform, you've seen that. We have an aggressive road map with live services. And the opportunity to work with, and particularly learn from, the brilliant and talented people from Bungie... that is going to considerably accelerate the journey we find ourselves on."

https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2022-01-31-playstation-bungie-will-considerably-accelerate-our-journey-with-multiplatform-live-service-games

Not only is Sony committed to serving outside the PlayStation ecosystem, they're diving full in on live service games, which is disheartening to hear.

Re: PlayStation Studios Is Developing 'Several' Live Service Games

truerbluer

Jim Ryan really wants to follow Phil Spencer to the gates of hell here. Soon enough Nintendo will be the only company left making high quality traditional single-player games while Microsoft and now Sony will chase the online, microtransaction audience.

I hope all those whiners complaining about Sony's 3rd person cinematic GOTY calibre games come to regret it when we see an influx of trashy, incomplete, free-to-play, MTX filled looters, battle royales and survival games. The games we've come to expect from 1st party will be so few and far between now. You never realise how good you have it until it's gone.

Re: Sony Buys Ex-Halo, Destiny Developer Bungie for $3.6 Billion

truerbluer

If anything, Sony pledging to allow Bungie to remain multiplatform makes Microsoft look like the clear villains if they continue to refuse to release Bethesda and Activision games for PlayStation. Maybe this can gather momentum and Sony can get the players to turn the tables on Microsoft just like Microsoft did to Sony about cross-play.

Re: December 2021 NPD: Call of Duty: Vanguard Was the Best-Selling PS5, PS4 Game of the Year

truerbluer

One problem Sony has failed to address is developing casual friendly franchises that have mass appeal. Nintendo has certain key franchises that always dominate the charts: Mario, Pokemon, Animal Crossing and Mario Kart. Sony has no equivalents here which is a terrible oversight on their part. These are the kinds of games that are important to sell consoles to kids and get them hooked and develop sentimentality for the platform. This is what Nintendo excels at and has allowed them to thrive over the years even during turbulent times. Sony relies too heavily on 3rd parties, and as we just saw today they can be sold to the highest bidder and in one swoop disappear from your platform entirely. Sony only has Spider-Man that fits this criteria and even that isn't a wholly owned property and can just as easily be taken away from them.

Re: Reaction: Activision Blizzard Buyout Is Devastating for PS5, PS4

truerbluer

People being gleeful that CoD won't be on PlayStation are missing the bigger picture. It doesn't matter that it won't affect you but it consistently remains the highest selling game each year. That's a massive source of revenue for Sony completely gone when Microsoft pulls it from PlayStation.

There will also be other ramifications such as the casual players who only buy consoles for games like CoD, FIFA and GTA switching to Xbox. Sony already relies too heavily on its casual playerbase to sustain them but they simply cannot afford to have them leave. This will be a huge challenge for Sony when Microsoft tries to lure them with CoD on GamePass, Sony has no response and just look even worse with their £70 games. Meanwhile they've also begun to alienate longtime hardcore players by releasing better versions of their games on PC with extra bells and whistles not even available on their own platform. Now even the hardcore gamers will seriously question whether it's even worth remaining on PlayStation anymore, now that they can get Sony's and Microsoft's library all on PC.