Topic: Playstation 5 Recommendation Thread

@Yousef- @JohnnyShoulder such a good game… another one of those games that will unfortunately never get a sequel but if it did, I’d be there day one.

Stumbled on a series that has been out for a while as it goes but I hadn’t heard of until today - Skautfold. Looks like there are two games out rn (a twin stick top down shooter/slasher and a metroidvania) and a third game releasing in October.

The series looks to be set for in an alternate history Great Britain and has some good reviews. Added all three to the wish list!

@Th3solution I'm thinking a combination of:

TloU (I've seen most of the story, pretty much, and watched others play it, but never played it myself)

A Plague Tale 1 and 2 (both been sitting in my library, I started the first one, also watched some of a playthrough)

Horizon: Forbidden West. Owned it since getting my second PS5 and just never got round to it, and I didn't commit to it when I did try it.

Ghost of Tsushima: Iki Island. I think I've played most of the DLC, but stopped when other games I'd bought took over. And tbh, I was collecting some armour and horse armour and thought to myself, why am I doing that, there's probably only 5 hours of gameplay left 😅 I hope GoY has better side content design and more unique boss duels, feel that was the one let down of a very good game.

Hogwarts Legacy with slightly better Ray Tracing mother F***eeerrrrrrs. I left that half way through thinking the summer update would be more inspiring... it wasn't. But it's a game I like and now have a reason to get back on it in November. Cold dark nights and Harry Potter seems a good cosy bit of winter fun

@Ravix Ah, I didn’t realize you had never played TLoU. I think it’s a good one to prioritize. Then of course the sequel. I think the story is better in the first but the gameplay is better in the second, although I thoroughly enjoyed them both. The second is, of course, controversial in many ways, but there’s no questioning the absolute quality of polish that Naughty Dog puts on their games and it’s still one of the nicest looking games I’ve played on PS5 and I played the PS4 version! 😅

It would be interesting to compare-and-contrast the Plague Tale games with TLoU, even though they are vastly different in some ways. The rat mechanics are the real differentiator from a gameplay perspective. And narratively, the Hundred Years’ War setting versus Post-apocalyptic America and the Sister-brother vs Surrogate father-daughter.

I never did Iki Island, and rarely go backward to a game to do DLC. Never played Frozen Wilds either. And I’m with you on the situation with Forbidden West. I have had it downloaded on my PS5 for ages, and never seem to get to it, despite enjoying Zero Dawn.

And you know how much I liked Hogwarts Legacy, so getting back to it would be a good idea in my book. In retrospect it gets very samey and repetitive toward the last third or so, but the setting really carried me through to maintain enjoyment. Theres one or two story sections that really do stand out as exceptional and be sure to do the Hogsmeade “Minding your own business” side quest which was PS exclusive on release (now I think all versions have access to it). It’s my favorite side quest.

@Th3solution any slight lulls in Hogwarts I will just look at all of the shiny floors and be happy that they don't bug out or vanish if you move slightly. Definitely one to test out on the pro.

You should play Iki island, I reckon. I feel like people have said it is more of an ending to Jin's tale, so that could maybe be seen as an epilogue rather than DLC. Mid game DLC annoys me, or doesn't draw me in enough, especially if I have to go back to it, so I get that.

If you have decided on getting the Pro in America btw I'd suggest logging in ps direct before the queue starts, and just leave your phone or the tab open, then at some point it will refresh and by the time they go on sale you can look and you're pretty much at the front with zero effort.

Took about 4 hours to sell out here, so you'd imagine a similar proportion of consoles to expected sales in the US, so probably a similar amount of time for them to go there, too.

@Ravix Thanks for the advice on Pro. I think I’ll wait for now. My poor PS5 hasn’t seen much action lately anyway, so I don’t know that I’ll jump onboard yet.

@Yousef- who made it? It's a game I was aware of but don't think I ever really played it. It's the kind of property that could easily be rebooted and would sell well, you'd think. As I always say, there's not enough gritty crime games with open worlds.

@Malaise yeah. Yakuza is a series I wish I liked. But it's the gameplay loop that doesn't suit me. It's like an endless runback with some beat 'em up bits. I loved the story of Judgment, and the silly side stuff like chasing a wig around 😂 that is peak gaming. I just wish it was all encased in a slightly more open world with a bit of freedom, without it being "tracksuit encounter showdown extreme! mega mix 7.5 - retracksuited"

I could add FF7 remake to my pile of half finished games to go back to 😅😅

All the rockstar published ones I've played, obv. But they are ones that are still good to go back to, as nobody one does it better. But now I play many more genres I don't go back to them the same way I used to.

As you like pumping some time in to strategy, have you played Crusader Kings 3? It's not really an age of empires like deep sim, it's more of a dynasty building sim, some casual elements, humour, but overall a really fun package. For example, I'm casually turning the tutorial set up in to: what if the Irish controlled Africa, and maybe rivalled the Holy Roman Empire for wealth and power in the 1100's 😂😂

@Malaise if I ever make it out of the tutorial I'll let you know 😂 although I stopped looking at the hints and just started doing stuff. The Ballad of Brian ended as Colman was the only worthy successor, but he was a rampant shagger and he, and his wife/cousin, got the old venereal plague. When I took over as him he actually recovered, but then his wife/cousin, died, and two sons were murdered while he was out on a Holy War to claim more of Africa for those sons 😪😪 so it has taken a more dramatic turn. So now he has two ***** (B.a.s.t.a.r.d.s isn't a swear in this context PushSquare, boo), one son and a couple of daughters left, with only the one son being a rightful heir.

I think the main plan now is to try and form an empire ((not Britania, but some weird Irish, Mercian (middle england) North African, Aquitainian (southern france) mix)) and then pass that on with a few relatives holding kingdoms within. Then close the gaps between the realms so Ireland, or the empire of Briain, rules all of northern and western Europe and Africa. Then leave it at that 😅

I think there's game modes where you can, say, start as Aelfred the Great and try to fend off the viking horde and secure the England of his dreams, presumably with Crohn's disease hampering your every move.

I might check if there's a scenario with the Wenceslas/Sigismund drama in the Holy Roman Empire too.

@Malaise I need to stop reading these threads — your post just made me add 3 more games to my massive backlog! 😂
I was already trying to calculate how I can fit in a replay of Mass Effect 2 and 3 and also find time for the Mafia series and then you’ve made me consider Tales of Arise, LA Noire, and Banner Saga. I’m doomed.

@Yousef- to be fair R* just published it, same as they did with Max Payne, untiI Max Payne 3? (I think)

Excuse to post a Sam Lake .gif. even though the convo is about LA. Noire and not Max Payne. Ah, Why not? 😁

Has anyone played Unknown 9: Awakening? It’s a game that seems to have flown under the radar and looks like the kind of AA hidden gem that I usually like. The Push Square review is complementary and gave a 7/10. It’s on a nice -75% discount in the PSN sale, along with a 50% discount for Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden and Nobody Wants to Die from my watchlist. I probably will just wait for the likely PS+ inclusion for any of these because I’m saving my shekels for some of the big stuff coming later this year. But the big discount for Unknown 9 caught my eye.

@Th3solution my understanding of it is that it was a half decent stealth game set in period India with fantasy elements (which all sounds pretty good to me) but got beaten to death with a stick for being woke. I’ve almost picked it up a couple of times for £20… I probably will at some point.

@graymamba It looks good to me. It’s $12 now. Seems a fair price for what it is. I just don’t have space in the schedule. In a choice between all the other good looking AA games, I have to see which will make the cut. Right now I’m waiting for the Clair Obscur reviews because that’s the one I’m most interested in. To say nothing of Lost Souls Aside, Hell is Us, and Where Winds Meet, among others.

The AAA output is going to pull my attention too. The closer that Death Stranding 2 gets, the more I feel like I might have to play it at launch. I don’t know. I’m going to have to push back and wait on Indiana Jones and any others coming this summer.

When people who say there are no games to play it just blows my mind.

@Th3solution I can afford to buy most games I'm interested in at full price or a load of games on sale, I just choose not too as I don't won't fall into the trap again of feeling overwhelmed by the amount of games I've yet to play.

My general rule thumb is I try to only buy games I know I will play shortly. Most of the time I find they eventually turn up on PS Plus anyway.

I know mate, it’s such a strange time to live in in general, with the gaming-lens just being a microcosm for society as a whole really. People just want to complain about anything and everything these days… and the problem is that it’ll cause a ‘Boy who cried wolf’ reaction, which will cause genuine complaints to be lumped in with the disingenuous ones.

@graymamba and so say Brother Kilgore.

Preach.

I genuinely dislike following gaming news now, even though gaming one of my most beloved hobbies, as every new release goes through the same exact cycle with the waves of idiots deciding it's the worst thing since the last game that came out 2 weeks before.

Eventually the gaming community will just melt and stop caring about any new, original and exciting games because they have been worn out by those parasites.

@JohnnyShoulder I do admire your discipline.
I think having PS+ Extra (and now Premium, actually) has helped with my purchasing restraint. Having access to the catalogue has effectively doubled or tripled my backlog size due to the access of lots more games I want to try, and if I’m on the fence about picking a game up it’s easier to resist the urge when I know there’s a high chance the game will go onto the service before I get to it. (The approach I’ll likely take with Unknown 9). The exception is when the deal feels too good to pass up and then I’ll be willing to take a chance. Also, the PS+ service has been around long enough that I’m getting a feel for the type of games that go onto the service and those that don’t. For example, FromSoft games never go into PS+ (or GamePass, to my knowledge). Commercially successful games also rarely get included (Which is why I was a little surprised to see Hogwarts Legacy announced this week).

But I still sometimes get a little therapeutic buzz when I buy a game. I work hard and I don’t have other expensive hobbies so I’ll rationalize that this is my version of other people blowing a $100 on a night out or a massage or a round of golf or an amusement park, or $1000 on a weekend getaway. And I don’t really collect anything else anymore, like comic books, coins, stamps, antiques, etc. so it’s a form of collecting too. I’m also more apt to do impulse buys for physical copies since I know the game still has inherent resale value to flip it for another game later on.
Are any of your games physical or are you all digital?

@graymamba That’s so true. Not only in gaming but in every walk of life. The reach of each individual’s voice has been amplified by social media and technology, so everyone seems to feel the urge to air their grievances. Beforehand people might write letters to the editor with the hope that their personal crusade or social gripe would get a little publicity, but now, there’s immediate access to self-promote one’s crazy thoughts and hare-brained ideology.

@Th3solution I don't always stick to it, like I bought Hades a few months back but not even started it yet. But I am certianly a lot better than the early part of the PS4 generation.

Most of the games I play are digital as they are on PS Plus. I very rarely purchasing anything these days though. If it is on or close to day one which again is rare it will usually be physical, but that would eventually be traded in for some 2nd hand games.

Like I said, it is not a money thing for me, more about time and not getting overwhelmed cos i've bought half a dozen games every time there is a sale on PSN.