CynicalGamer

Great review! Agreed that Horizon FW story was always going to struggle to match the OMG revelations from the original but it seems to have improved in many other ways. Looking forward to this.

@Hamst88 No worries. In retrospect, the way I typed that post meant it could be interpreted both ways haha. Yep good topic to discuss.

@Hamst88 I don't recall saying people can't enjoy the game at lower difficulties. I think you are inferring something unintended from my last post. In fact I applauded this move earlier in this comment thread. Cheers.

@Gunnerzaurus The devs are not doing this to pander to other gamers out of moral obligation. They might be doing it because they want more customers and this is what a lot of potential customers may want. Devs like Fromsoft can do what they want as their fantasy themes and RPG mechanics will draw in the big RPG crowd who will overlook the difficulty in favour of these two elements. Sifu maybe can't so that.

At the end of the day if easy mode makes the game mechanically meaningless to gamers that request it, that is those players' problem really. I doubt that will be the case though as Sifu is probably going to try and tweak certain punishments rather than an outrageously easy mode.

Yeah sounds good although I'll probably opt for the highest difficulty myself. Honestly there are plenty of competitive games out there to test one's skill and for games like this that get difficulty options it is still easy to showcase your high difficulty skills or banter with friends.

I think Sony will get better with time when it comes to adapting games. They seem to have long term goals here.

What could ultimately matter more is the aggregate of all new console players arising from PC ports of various first party games (who want to play sequels day 1)
I suspect new fans of Sony first party titles (pc-only crowd) waiting for pc ports of new games might not be that dominant a demographic. But even if few make the transition to console, the pc ports might bring bigger numbers on pc for new first party games if Sony's reputation as a publisher on pc shines enough.
I doubt pc ports will reduce console customer base as most gamers don't buy enough games for pc to work out cheaper and affordability is king for most.

The pc versions of certain PS first party games has convinced quite a few of my formerly pc-only friends to purchase or attempt to purchase ps5s as they want to play these kinda games day 1.

Dragon's Dogma 2 please.

@Martsmall yeah sorry for tagging you earlier. I don't know why I chose you in particular. I'll keep it there as my shame of unnecessary aggression.

@RevGaming Yep that's why I said they are not my friend. But MS has set a new standard Sony will try to follow

That been said, I dont see Sony as my friend. They just have less money than MS and would so the same if they could given their timed exclusives nonsense

@Martsmall I don't think anything Sony did compares to buying the whole of Zenimax. Spiderman on playstation is basically separate from Spiderman games that happened before and has reached insane heights under Sony's guidance much like GOW, Ghost of Tsushima, etc. That been said, the timed exclusives approach by Sony for FFVIIR was rude. MS has taken exclusivity to a whole new level by buying Zenimax. Imsoniac, like many Sony First Party devs, are what they are thanks to Sony's tremendous skill as a publisher of games. There is a reason they have so many strong first party games. MS is buying up game devs and publishers that established themselves thanks to multiplatform support.

Heh there are a bigger OS demands from me but I'll just wait I guess. I usually get this ps plus off my home screen thanks to my games and this is driving my OCD crazy. Hopefully I can unpin.

Why do some small devs attempt these massive undertakings. Plenty of tight and memorable games out there by these kinda devs. A tight and smaller world, with a focused narrative and then some strong combat is what they should go for. Leave the massive worlds for bigger devs as even they seem to often get it wrong.

Great for those who want to play it. But for games this old, I only consider remakes. I would rather see a new game or at least a remake but I'm guessing this remaster takes much less resources and time and clearly has its dedicated audience/fans happy to play this.

Personally no games that are expected for both consoles should get exclusive rights on a specific platform after people have already bought their consoles. Whether Sony or MS snap up games once believed to multiplatform like COD or TES, gamers are the losers. I can say now that if a certain Japanese developer with a history of playstation games gets snapped by MS, it will screw over playstation buyers who were not expecting that. Hopefully Sony and MS refrain from snapping up popular multiplatform publishers and IPs for exclusivity but doubtful.

@jrt87 Fair point on communication. They have had some questionable communication in recent years and I can see how annoying that would be to those who bought it and were expecting it. Not a fan of 8k either and not really interested in VR.

Dammit stop hyping me up. I need to focus on work.

@jrt87 I have a g-sync monitor with my pc and most people who visit me and play the same games with me on both my pc and my consoles (paired with non-vrr TV) don't see much of a difference. Most people simply don't see the differences as important enough to fork out and get the necessary screen. Sony would be catering to a small demographic that actually cares. It's not defending Sony so much as dismissing this as a widespread concern. Most people do not consider this when deciding on Xbox or PS5. Heck most people don't even see the difference between 30 FPS and 60 FPS. That been said my my pc gaming standards are higher but that is a different demographic entirely. Also not sure your PS2 comment is fair. The difference is much more noticeable between a ps5 and a ps2 and most gamers will invest in that difference.

@awp69 I think it's a more of case of how many people can even leverage VRR as opposed to what VRR does. I'm the only one amongst my group of friends (30+ ppl) that has a VRR-enabled screen. I have no issues with more technologies been implemented but I think Sony has much bigger priorities than VRR atm. I don't know how much time/resources they need to bring in VRR but there may be constraints therein. Generally for state of the art visual experiences I rely on my PC anyway.

@themightyant Yeah thanks I misread that post. Not sure I like that strategy if true.

Yeah checked now on my end and same situation. Very weird if I'm honest.

@Matej not sure if this helps you but I usually just click on the heart icon for a game and my console has a pop up notification for a sale.

I imagine the percentage of console gamers with viable TVs is low. Many console gamers are not going to spend on these TVs for the same reason they don't buy gaming pcs. They get budget TVs and budget gaming platforms (consoles) and only a few games (meaning they don't buy enough games for the "pc games are cheaper" argument to work either. Let's not forget why so many people are console-only gamers.

I wonder what % bought this out of nostalgia. Would be cool to see a survey of newer players vs nostalgic old timers.

Makes me recall the first time I finished Sekiro and looked at my completion time with pride. Then I saw the speedruns.

I'm struggling to focus on any games as I keep thinking about Horizon FW and Elden Ring lol. So just some levelling in FFXIV.

They probably want to maximise revenue from next gen version of GTA V. So late next year at the earliest I think.

I don't think Sony would be stupid enough give up on SP games. It will lose the gen for them as it is part of what made PS4 so strong (aside from third party dominance as well). Gran Turismo and Factions probably already are included that 10 Live Service vice games. Maybe the Old Republic remake as well? Also Sony does not necessarily need a Fortnite here if all 10 of these live service games get a good cumulative dedicated customer base.

Might get this one then. It seems to have something different about it.

This is looking like a genius gaming concept. Quick (and cheap probably) to release sequels and on top of that, while I probably won't play it, I can see that it could easily gather a dedicated following.

I think they should do at least 3 FPS and then heavily support the best one. So let's say Killzone, Socom and Resistance. Give all of them good single player experiences and multiplayer/live service content. The best performing live service stays live service while the other 2 focus on single player driven expansions (compact story driven) for a couple years without investing resources heavily into too many FPS live service games. That way at least two good single player FPS and a good live server FPS.

@munstre yeah was about to say. Aren't they bigger than both Insomniac and Guerilla combined?

Also I suspect a lot of Bungie employees will become live managerial advisors for first party devs regarding live service and that affects financial incentives.

Nope they would not buy this developer out of panic. Better options for that. This is because Sony currently sucks at live service and they want Bungie's workforce (bigger than Insomniac and Guerilla I think) and who happen to be experienced at live service. Insomniac had a strong relationship already and therefore acquisition was less likely to cause panic amongst employees. Bungie is a different case as they had third party relationship and a higher risk of a mass exodus. They are not buying IPs here. They are buying the workforce (and one of the best available ones) to make new live service games.

Looks like a well rounded package. Seems to pose class beyond just the gameplay. The music, menus, etc are well implemented. Will probably get this next month.

Doesn't Bungie have more employees than Insomniac or Guerrilla Games combined. Could be wrong? They may not have many IPs but I don't think Sony wanted them for IPs. They wanted a massive resource with live service experience to pull into various new live service IPs.

Haha Pushsquare seems on a roll with their content today from a community engagement perspective. Arguably the true winners of recent events lol. Honestly any smart gaming news blog would do the same. On topic, I wouldn't mind a truly creative live service game that deviates from dull grinding mechanics. The type of creativity that brought It Takes Two but applicable to this genre ofc.

@thefourfoldroot agree. If this was a panic move to match Bethesda or Activision buyouts they would have spent perhaps a bit more on a publisher to take games from Xbox. This is clearly at least to some extent an investment into the resources they felt they needed to drive their multiplayer/live service ambitions. It's a long term gamble but it is not a panic move.

Destiny is not the kinda Dev they would get out of a panic. You don't think Sony could have gotten a first party exclusive dev for 3.6 billion? This was strategically planned long before MS announced Activision buyout and it goes beyond Destiny 2's current revenues. It's a gamble nevertheless but so are the acquisitions Xbox made. There's no guarantee they will get the return MS wants. What if some new shiny exclusive gaming tech comes that completely renders games on current consoles outdated. What if people flock to a some fortnite level new sensation that it not on either console. Anything can happen really with the way tech evolves.

@riceNpea I do hope traditional single player games remain plentiful tbh. But yeah even single player games with little iterative change really do promote GaaS as opposed to revolutionary sequels. I like to finish a new game, play a multiplayer like FFXIV for a bit and then play a new game when it comes out and the cycle continues. That gameplay loop reduces chances of burnout for me.

Yeah I just love having my shelves lined with these awesome steelbook covers. They feel like amazing ornaments and always take down nostalgia lane when I look at them. Digital is just not my cup of tea for now.

They should have just sold this as more of the same and I would have been quite fine with that. I already knew to not get too hyped for the game when they started boasting about the script length and hundreds of hours of content. These two are basically meaningless parameters as they are not indicative of quality. That been said, I'll prob get it at some point. 7 sounds fair and is by no means bad.

I see Kingdom Come: Deliverance is quite cheap. Perhaps I will try that out. Apparently it has some really good side quests.

2026 means nothing to me gaming-wise. Rather tell me about 2023. 2026 might have some super cool new and futuristic gaming tech provider for all I know.

I mean this looks impressive and it could get bigger with Sony's backing. They will likely have an advisory role impact on other games released by Sony.

Also there have been terrible games this site had to review. Not sure reviewing the occasional expansion for Destiny would be as bad as those lol. Not that I'm a Destiny fan but there clearly are a lot of fans for this game.

I'm quite fine with Sony buying certain game devs with rich history of multiplatform games to keep them on their platform as opposed to making it exclusive. Sony unfortunately needs to ensure x amount of games stay on their platforms, especially given that COD of all games, was snapped up by MS. If Sony loses too many games, most of my friends (one console only) will probably quit gaming and I will probably follow suite and sell my Xbox and PS and keep my pc for non-gaming purposes... I don't think streaming games is a global solution yet either.

I'll try a couple of jrpgs in my backlog like Digimon (hackers memory) and maybe Nino Kuni 2 and perhaps even go back to FF14. Im avoiding action RPGs to avoid burnout when Elden ring and Horizon FW launch.

Heh I am a bit cynical about the minigame as those can be downright annoying for me at times. But aside from that, this is looking awesome.