ATaco

@johncalmc
As long as the boobie games actually play well I'm all for it!

So much for this game barely making waves. Seems like it's quite the hot commodity and what people have been clamoring for.

The power of Mario Kart/ having tons of stock on launch day.

Sony please don't give this one to us for free in a few months.

I now find it pretty incredible that they tried to spin this into "they're attacking our game unjustly." It was no doubt an attempt to get a head of any criticism.

Terrible idea to purchase outright, which makes the Gamepass offering all the more enticing. Xbox really wants you in that subscription ecosystem.

I'll give it the benefit of the doubt. I was skeptical on P3Reload but they really knocked it out of the park. That said, I'm not sure exactly how eager I am to go back to 4 again. Was really hoping we'd finally get to play as an adult. Either in a college setting or as a salaryman. There'd be so much more to explore from a more grown up perspective.

Tasty delicious blood and guts

If you aren't a fan of souls likes or Hades likes there was maybe 10 minutes worth of stuff to watch. State of Play was WAY better in way less time.

@Olmaz
I think Naughty Dog have the pedigree to do whatever they want and continue to make money. Sex sells but a solid reputation can also do wonders for you. That being said, many people will judge a new developer by their cover (in this case their art style) and, unless you make a masterpiece of a game, players simply will not try what you have to offer unless they really like how the characters look.

Did you guys see all the blood and violence? Hell yeah, so much blood!

Really happy to see Japanese developers have a chance to shine. They have a distinct style to their games and I'm glad Sony isn't burying them in favor of showcasing more western studios for once.

@DennisReynolds
We'll need to wait and see how SB performs on PC to get a fuller picture. Not that I'm going to discount Clair Obscur's success but again that game is nearly a masterpiece in it's own right. Stellar Blade by my own admission doesn't stir the pot, it doesn't redefine the action game genre...and because of that, it wouldn't have stood out nearly as much if it didn't have an attractive main character to help win people over.

Bad games don't fail because of "wokeness"...but it helps. Good games don't succeed because they are filled with sex bait...but it helps.

@Stale-Bread
Seems the demographic is pretty big if they keep pandering to it and those that don't are struggling more and more.

The simple truth is that an average game with an attractive character will be an easier sell than one without. So those that want to avoid the male gaze really need to make sure their game is damn near a masterpiece to attract the crowd that only plays 9s and 10s.

But I thought she was being forced to walk around in a bikini and needed us to save her? 😢

I suppose that's why the big 3 are so hungry to turn more of their franchises into big TV shows and movies. It really does drive up interest in the old games.

@McBurn
Nope, Rine Factory 5 which I believe was only released on Switch and Steam.

Excellent, I skipped the last RF because it didn't release on PlayStation.

@LikelySatan
I just don't think you realize the blatant hypocrisy in this comment. You came into this article and called it embarrassing...all off of a single image? You know nothing about the game itself and you've already passed your judgement on it? And yet I'm the toxic one?

What you just did is the equivalent of passing by a hobby shop, seeing people playing cards inside and shouting "NERDS!" before walking off. It's just disrespectful and toxic and contributes nothing. We ALL need to do better.

@LikelySatan
Understandable. I might pop into doom articles and start calling the people who enjoy it murderers in training. All in jest I assure you!

@LikelySatan
An interesting bit of trivia. Here I play games like Nikke, ZZZ and all those other "gooner games" and yet I've never gotten a single ad like that. Perhaps they've mixed the two of us up?

@Frmknst
And it will make a crap ton of money, just like Nikke.

@CielloArc
I'd still consider Clair Obscure to have traditionally attractive characters though. Sure they didn't have sex dolls but they also didn't try to be brave and stir the pot with Concord designs.

Other devs could stand to learn a thing or two. Something tells me we'll get Stellar Blade 2 long before a lot of these other studios even push out another announcement that they're delaying their game for another year. These long development times are what's killing the hype. Nobody wants to get a trailer and then wait 2 years to actually get the game in their hands.

I'm the sort that seems to think the terrible months are great and these "average" months are pretty trash.

@NeonTiger
It always amazes me that comments like this are allowed to stay up for articles like this but would instantly be taken down in others. Why the double standards?

@SMJ
You are taking the game at face value and immediately dismissing it. I believe people call that "judging a book by it's cover".

I appreciate giving the game it's proper due. The artwork is indeed fantastic, the music is incredibly catchy and the story is certainly more than expected.

That being said, it still is a Gacha grind fest with all the free to play trappings. For some reason it also doesn't want you to see all it's content because it gets surprisingly difficult to clear even the normal mode at later stages...which is what I'm always confused by. Do they not want players to experience the excellent story? Normal mode should be relatively easy and THEN you make Hard mode require all the effort. I've fallen far behind and eventually gave up simply because I found getting through the story too grindy and difficult. Oh well, still hoping for a built from the ground up console game sometime.

It'll be on PS plus eventually. Even sooner now, looks like.

How do I apply to be paid for badmouthing a game? I'm such an idiot I've apparently been doing it for free!

I remember playing through this on the GameCube with my brother, good times.

Aw damn I got excited for a sec, thinking we'd get KC2. Should have known that offering would be too good to be true.

"That’s down 55% from the Season 1 finale, which scored 8.2 million cross-platform viewers, then an impressive feat given that it aired opposite the Oscars." The Oscars had 18.8 million viewers that year, for reference.

Tit for tat, it really does seem like retention is down, even if it was a holiday weekend.

Pretty soon every game will be a free to play gacha if Sony actually manages to get a foot hold in China. Though I wouldn't complain too much since Chinese developers seems to be releasing banger after banger.

I got at least $50 back in all the time I had it so it wasn't an insignificant amount but it needed better integration.

If you don't like Abby you're an incel hater. If you don't like Scarlet you're totally justified and a normal human being. Do I have that right?

The reality in this situation was that this was actually BETTER than what you had to do on the PS2. Atlus released vanilla P3 and then FES, meaning that if you wanted all the content as someone who bought a copy at launch, you would essentially have to purchase the game again.

Because Microsoft has done an excellent job firing thousands of employees so far. Now they can really let loose and start jacking up the price of gamepass.

What if this was secretly a proof of concept for them? Not only does this look like Nikke, it looks like a BETTER Nikke. Stellar Blade already made them a ton of cash, imagine how much they could make if they made a high effort Nikke game? I've since stopped playing the mobile version because I can't stand playing anything on phones but I'd 100% support a console release.

Those digital trophies will be completely annihilated. Hopefully nobody redeemed points for any of those because they are absolutely worthless!!

I've always hated Pitchford, the clown. Oh and a real fan surely knows about Pitchford's previous controversies. Allow me to enlighten people who might not know.

Randy Pitchford, CEO of Gearbox Software, has been linked to several controversies, with the most prominent involving allegations of financial misconduct and inappropriate behavior. In 2019, former Gearbox lawyer Wade Callender filed a lawsuit claiming Pitchford siphoned a $12 million bonus from publisher 2K Games for personal gain, breaching fiduciary duty. The lawsuit also alleged Pitchford left a USB drive containing sensitive company data and "underage" pornography at a restaurant, with some claims suggesting these were tied to so-called "Peacock Parties." Additionally, David Eddings, the voice actor for Claptrap, accused Pitchford of physically assaulting him in 2017.

These are all accusations and allegations of course...but why make stuff up about a nice and upstanding man?

I'd just buy Monster Hunter Rise. Test it out and if you like it you'll easily spend hundreds of hours in game.

I failed to get Vivian but that just guaranteed YiXuan so I guess that's good. I'm gonna assume they're going through make her Miyabi levels of broken so it'll probably be worth pulling for her.

@Judal27
Luckily steam has the refund system right?

That happens to be my favorite Nikke. The drunken Ronin...great choice for a crossover.

People here fail to realize that this isn't Bungie's first offense doing this. Or are you guys suddenly fine with art thievery?

Bungie has been accused of using art assets without permission at least four times, based on documented cases:

2021: Unauthorized use of art in the Destiny 2: Witch Queen trailer.

2023: Fan art was used in a Destiny 2 cutscene without permission.

2024: Fan art was incorporated into a Destiny 2 Ace of Spades NERF replica without credit or compensation.

2025: Artist Antireal accused Bungie of using her designs in Marathon without permission, with Bungie admitting to the unauthorized use of decals and designs.

How many times will they apologize and then do it again before the lesson sinks in? Having your feelings hurt sucks...but stop doing the thing then!!

Or you can buy a game like stardew valley or monster hunter and get hundreds of hours without having to pay the "premium entertainment" tax that's suddenly started popping up. I'd say vote with your wallets but people have absolutely zero self control nowadays. Immediate gratification is one hell of a drug.

I guess Honkai Star Rail will continue to reign supreme in the Gacha RPG sphere. I guess Atlus hates money or something.

China seems to be doing Japanese games better than Japan has been the past few years.

I'm looking forward to Ubisoft taking the opportunity to have a little break and discover more ways to nickle and dime us. I really wish every game they release flopped for the health of the games Industry.