Topic: The State of the Industry

@graymamba
And this was before the onslaught of AI can you imagine what a tough time lecturers must have these days, might you they are probably using AI to mark the papers.
Who marks the markers?

I can imagine the AI bot saying to the other bot, “did you write this?”, “yes but it isn’t my finest work, I’ve learnt so much more since then”.

@graymamba That's a grim watch. I'm hoping the comment section is mostly bots though as the amount thinking actual journalists are just as bad as AI is depressing.

@CaptD it’s like you (admittedly in humour) suggested in our group chat the other day, it wouldn’t surprise me if the new head of Xbox isn’t AI. I ain’t seen her in person 🤷‍♂️.

@BearsEatBeets I know mate, it’s shocking! And the more imposing thought is, that this kinda thing is just gonna become more and more prevalent.

@graymamba Crazy. If it’s all for clicks, I have to ask, who’s clicking? Why does the market drive low effort content? Isn’t it utterly bizarre to live in an age where a game releases; I can look up an aggregate score to get a sense of how it’s been received, move on to an opinion piece by YouTuber X, look at sales to judge its impact and watch a let’s play coloured by a strangers experience in an attempt to, for all intents and purposes, convince my brain that I’ve played it. I can then proceed to an online platform where I can have an entire discussion about the merits of said game - without even once having actually touched the thing - with a stranger who also has never actually touched the thing we’re discussing the merits of, completely bypassing the part where our brains critically deduce an opinion experientially, instead reinforcing the attention-seeking behaviour at the heart of the click based learned model foundation driving the A.I. that is exploiting the worst parts of our nature by simply imitating us. And round and round we go… (apologies, that was a bit rant-ish😬).

@graymamba If you want a laugh, the night they announced Phil leaving Xbox I thought it said he was being replaced by A.I. and didn't even think anything of it because it seemed like something Microsoft would do. It took about 2 days until I realized they meant their A.I. head/or whatever they are. I didn't read the comments because I'd been out that night and when I looked the numbers had blown up. We recently have an AI-Generated News Satire Show now on State TV. It looks really convincing. I think, though I shouldn't say this, I think we had A.I. news readers at one point too. I know now it's propaganda but A.I. isn't helping, I'm shown all sorts of things that make me wonder. It's not even naivety, it's the sheer volume of what I'm sent or see and then just nod and 'yes of course' my way through it. If it's A.I. it's really convincing.

@Metonymy you make a great point actually. Even though this whole AI thing has blown my mind, the consumption of content around (and in many cases without actually consuming the actual) the core product has become so common place that it hadn’t actually occurred to me how insane that is… or at least not for a while.

@GirlVersusGame 😂 yeah it’s gotten to the point where I’m questioning a lot of things I see lately. It’s a crazy world that we live in when we can’t trust our own eyes.

So the theme of this thread at the moment is gaming journalism, in a way. I just made a comment earlier about gaming news in general on another "random opinion of a random person" article (these seem way more common now???). I know for one i'm pretty tired of what is considered news these days. So thought i'd have a mope in here, too

So there is obviously the state of the industry but then the state of the news that covers said industry. (Maybe just the state of society) I guess there was a reason I said i'd look at less gaming news this year, and I have mostly just browsed headlines and ignored 95% of them, tbh. It seems to be in rapid, active decline.

Sighhhh. I honestly can't wait to get stuck into Crimson Desert and hopefully not care about any gaming news or opinions for a long time. It is draining seeing the type of things being reported on in the last year or so. I feel bad for the writers still hanging on in there and having to conform to this new age on the internet.

As for AI, I think everyone under a certain age is "cooked" anyway. The amount of times i've seen people ask an AI instead of engaging their own brain for a millisecond is scary. Like, people will look up the meaning of a bad joke and the ai won't get it either, but give a detailed and wrong answer where no one learns anything and we all get dumber for having witnessed it happen 🤷‍♂️

So, I don't think I will watch the video Mamba posted as it might be too much right now, judging by everyone's bleak reaction it might tip me over the edge, haha 😁 i'll also refrain from tagging anyone, as i'm just venting a bit.

Man, the stuff being tagged as 'News' these days. It can't just be me noticing this 💀💀💀

Maybe I will ask people in general here. What would interest you more as a consumer of gaming news? An article about someone on the internet having an opinion on Ray Tracing followed by comments by even lesser known people on the internet also having an opinion on Ray Tracing, or an Interview with a dev at a studio that has utilised ray tracing where we can get an insider look at the pros and cons they experience when working with RT, what it means for the games in active development and what it means for the end user etc? You know, something we can all learn from. You're right, I want to know what some random bloke thinks about something that i'd never have seen if Push Square hadn't turned it into news because i'm a glutton for punishment.

It also seems like some articles intentionally ask the wrong questions or intentionally make the wrong point just to drive engagement. Like of course art direction is more important than RT, but they are not exclusive of each other. One is a method and a tool to achieve a goal and make development much easier, the other is just human creativity. It feels disingenuous. It's like saying do you prefer to eat toast or toasters.

🙃

Always love hearing this guy speak. Whether it was with the Dreamcast or the 360, this guy just got it… and he never even gamed:

@Ravix You know, something we can all learn from.

• This will be a short answer. I don't understand half of those technical articles because the assumption (and rightly so) is that if someone is enthusiastically playing and supporting next-gen then they surely know what's going on under the hood. A car is a great example, let's say in theory I had some fleet of cars, I should know what's under the hood and how it all works? I don't but that doesn't mean I don't get behind the wheel. I see articles about ray tracing and think 'have I even got that enabled?'. I don't care all that much for graphics, just the game-play and frame-rate. That's why I can tolerate janky simulators, it's less about 'being there in the realism' and more about just having the opportunity to try something new and to roam a little. 4K is another example, you love your 4Ks and I purchased another two VCRs today. I'd like to understand what half of those technical articles meant but I'm not sure that it's PushSquares responsibility to clue me in? If I was genuinely curious I'd ask Soviet SkyNet (not really) I'd buy a book about ray tracing and read that. Actually.

There I just did. That's how I learn, it's not always ideal but it works. Your question just cost £7 (the price of a coffee probably) but it's the only way I can really elaborate how little I do know about ray tracing/etc. I never made it a priority, certainly not A.I. either. I tried Soviet SkyNet for fun, I don't know or have access to any others. If people really are using A.I. for every little thing then they are opting for convenience over a real (flesh) opinion. I haven't noticed it, you might because other than PushSquare you use other sites, perhaps Apps? All I can say is that sometimes being this disconnected is bliss, I'm not seeing A.I. like you might be. Mainly it's through propaganda, but I can see through some of it and I'm an expert at nodding and 'yes of course'. I don't know what else people are using it for and for all I know they have robots in Marks and Spencer now.

It also seems like some articles intentionally ask the wrong questions or intentionally make the wrong point just to drive engagement.

• Again if they do it goes over my head. If someone brings up a legal battle/litigation then I understand that content clearly while others might not. They might keep the company of other gamers and talk about the industry/tech/games/etc, I listen to business men and lawyers etc, it comes down to personal exposure. The only thing that's been making me roll my eyes lately are the drive by one time accounts that have been landing to put games like Marathon down when they haven't even played it.

Crimson Desert will probably hit the spot and turn that frown upside down. I don't let gaming news/A.I. get me down, it doesn't affect me, not really. I'm more interested in reading the engagement, sometimes it's enlightening, other times not so much.

Someone else will give a better more technical answer.

Huge fan, I want more of moore, really great to listen to. 😁

Personally, I believe there’s a ton of excellent points made here. 😉

It does somewhat scare me how most people trust the very first source they see (in this instance, AI) without double-checking other sources for discrepancies and other potential inconsistencies. You can’t be too sure of anything these days, right?

As for the video, LOOOL, you don’t have to worry too much. It’s somewhat regurgitating what we already have seen and known about content milling, I do think it lead to an intriguing discourse of plagiarism though, like what occurred with Boomstickgaming.

Man, the stuff being tagged as 'News' these days. It can't just be me noticing this 💀💀💀

Between you and I, I’m not particularly ecstatic about “rumors” being considered “news” for the past 15 years or so, but that’s mainly what the birdy told moi. 😉

Agreed with the other points made throughout this comment though.
And yes this thread is themed around the industry.

I was going to tag you earlier when you mentioned the top 10 articles etc and say this: @Yousef- SEO ruined a generation of writers. AI will ruin far more. But at least the internet is a safe place where people are nice to each oth...

Ohhh 💀

Usually there are some positive tradeoffs, but maybe not always 😅

I don't want to just be down on all things, and it is still overdramatic and for effect, but if I had access to a big plug that powered like... 99% of the internet? I'd probably be pretty tempted to pull it.

@Tjuz The more you've grown up with technological advancements being so easily accessible, the less you're going to see a problem with it. That's not a diss on those people either. We've been very carefully conditioned exactly to feel that way by the people in charge, so it's not even them I can point to as being at fault.

• This struck a cord because the 'people in charge' don't use that system on their own people, that's why I'm sitting here thinking 'people really use A.I. for these things?' and I think (and could be wrong) that they are making that system readily available to the majority while they do restrict those systems to their own/children etc. Perhaps to dumb society down and make them more reliant on the system? It's also easier to control the flow of information when you have the resources/technical army needed to create and spread the narrative. I'm technically not even allowed to use A.I. I was told it's damaging and in no way representative of the truth.

I think it ties into how acclimated we've become to instant gratification. Why spend ten minutes or more Googling around, consulting multiple sources and coming to a conclusion on your own when you can get an AI to do that for you in seconds?

• This I can't relate to at all, there is no Google, I have to rely on memory, books and small snippets of information which is already most likely internally influenced in some way before I read it.

The rest I don't understand and didn't want to jump into your one on one with Ravix but it was really written and promoted some specific thoughts. I don't understand why a person would give up their freedom, individuality and control to some kind of automated system, not when they have the choice to exercise that individuality and freedom of expression in a strictly human capacity. It almost sounds like people are willing to trade their original spark (of self expression) for instant convenience.

@Ravix I don't want to just be down on all things, and it is still overdramatic and for effect, but if I had access to a big plug that powered like... 99% of the internet? I'd probably be pretty tempted to pull it.

• Trade places with me for a week and you might change your mind, or not. I probably do have access to about one percent of the internet, if even that. I don't know what you're seeing on there but it sounds, I don't know, stressful. A sense that too much of that information weighs a person down due to constant exposure.

@GirlVersusGame Oh, I'm well aware that the same class having younger people rely on these systems are not as ubiquitous in their usage themselves . Ultimately, it all comes down to control. Get them in your ecosystem, keep them there and milk them for all they're worth. For whatever currency might be appropriate in any specific scenario. I'm sure Mark Zuckenberg isn't actively watching Instagram Reels all day, checking stories all the time or resposting slop on Facebook, but he sure is committed to keeping people on all of his platforms. It's exactly like you said and were told. At least in my ''Negative Nancy'' view of the world! A.I. in its current state is doing a lot more damage than its doing any good and it shouldn't be used as a reliable source of information. It's a virtual version of a parrot. It will repeat and repeat and repeat and plenty of the time repeat the right things, until it decides to repeat something completely wrong because it has no sense of the truth or morals itself.

You said it a lot less abrasively than I did in my energized rant, but yeah. That's what it is. People are slowly giving up their original spark for convenience. And that's exactly what that class of people wants. They don't want people with an original spark who question, have unique views or go against the grain. They want easily predictable, mindlessly controllable people to serve their investors. I'm not a fan of the slippery slope argument, but I think that once you start giving even an ounce of power to an A.I. over how you behave or communicate in life, it can only go downhill from there. And to do that with your words of all things... it's the most powerful thing you have. I just can't register the concept of letting anyone else speak for you. Least of all an A.I. with absolutely zero personality of its own.

@CaptD See that Argos banner ad at the top of the screen with the PS5 Pro going for £639.99 reduced from £699.99. What with the news yesterday that the Pro could well be going up by £100 soon, this might be the time…

@psmr
Cheers dude. I was actually going to PM you on PSN to ask what a decent price was as the recent article on prices did make me think that I should jump.
I did see a Curry’s eBay deal at 571 with box damage, which I guess is fine but that deal has expired now.

I’m really in two minds at the moment as I did think about getting a Pro when all those PS6 is gonna be late articles sprang up but now I think I might just try and hold out for that, yes it is going to be a lot (my guess is a optimistic £749/$799 without disc drive).
I only bought a PS4 Pro because of VR enhancements but these are few and far between on PS5 but that isn’t to say that PSSR ain’t great and games like Crimson desert (from what I’ve heard) are a no go on base ps5 so there’s that although I’m sure that will improve, to a degree.

I used to be indecisive but now I’m not so sure.

@CaptD fair enough dude, I get it what with the PS6 being around the corner.

😂 Not sure why this made me laugh as much as it did but thanks for that.

On subject, the last price increase is what pressured me to pull the trigger on my Pro. They announced the price increase (I think it was a $50 increase here in the States) and I had a gift card I had been holding onto and that was all the motivation i needed. I honestly probably would still be rolling with my base PS5 if the fear of the Pro’s cost rising hadn’t pushed me to buy it. Perhaps that’s the marketing tactic they are going for and if so, it worked on me. Nonetheless, I’m very satisfied with the purchase. And I still haven’t sold my base console and it looks like its value is going up! I might just make money on this venture. 😅

Anyway, no pressure bud. The difference is noticeable but not life changing. Definitely a luxury. The question is whether you feel like pampering yourself. Sometimes I like to do that. I justify that I don’t have other expensive hobbies and some of my friends will drop $800 on a weekend of booze and gambling, so a PS5 Pro is a much better use of extra money