Comments 1,436

Re: Rumour: Cyberpunk 2077 News Teased for 5th Anniversary

Fiendish-Beaver

Incredible to think that 5 years has already past. I absolutely loved the game when I played it earlier this year. I did play it when it first came out but encountered a bug that prevented my progression after about 100 hours of playing, so I put the game down until this year and played it with the Phantom Liberty expansion, and it was excellent...

Re: Ahead of Renegades Launch, Destiny 2 Dev Explains New Approach to Expansions

Fiendish-Beaver

I cannot think of anything in gaming that has annoyed me more than Bungle* taking away content that I had paid for. Don't have the server capacity for all the games content? Create more servers! Need more people to work on the game to keep it running? Employ more people!

If you are going to take away content that I have paid for, then compensate me.

I cannot imagine that I am alone in my annoyance with Bungle, and I can foresee that their handling of this issue has led to a lot of people either quitting the game, or refusing to return to it, or refusing to buy any further content from which they may subsequently be excluded...

*Deliberate misspelling...

Re: You Can Buy a Fully-Fledged PS5 for the Same Price as a Less Powerful Xbox Series S Right Now

Fiendish-Beaver

Utterly ridiculous, and the price is one thing, but availability is another. Truthfully, I think Microsoft are doing this, and releasing a premium PCBox that will likely sell fewer than 10 million units, to deliberately scupper Xbox as a console.

I honestly think that Microsoft are seeing this as an opportunity to withdraw from the console market. Personally I'd rather they just ripped off the band aid and departed with a little more dignity. Just go third-party and be done with it. We all know they could be massively successful doing that, but instead they just seem to want to humiliate themselves...

Re: Lies of P Publisher Neowiz Going Big with 5 Upcoming Games

Fiendish-Beaver

That was kind of what I was getting at, @LogicStrikesAgain. I don't think people who play on a PlayStation can complain about not wanting a title that they are not getting! 😂

On the other hand, they can complain about missing out, I guess, or that the developer is making a game they don't want meaning they are not making a game they do.

I guess people will always find a way to be unhappy... 😉

Re: PS5 'In the Middle' of Its Lifecycle, Claims Sony

Fiendish-Beaver

Totally understand your stance, @TurboTom. I never buy the Pro, choosing to stick with the base model, which obviously means there does tend to be a more significant upgrade between the base model of the previous generation, and the new model for the next one. The difference from Pro to base tends to be smaller, and so more likely to be worth the wait in buying into the next generation. I think that will be even more true of the next generation; I think chances are the improvements of the PS6 over the PS5 Pro will be pretty small overall because there really isn't much more that can be achieved within a reasonable price bracket...

Re: PS5 'In the Middle' of Its Lifecycle, Claims Sony

Fiendish-Beaver

Whilst I understand your thinking, @TurboTom. I think there was a definite reason to own a PS5 over a PS4. There were clear differences in capabilities that made the PS5 worth upgrading too. However, I think that many people will see the PS6 and be unconvinced that it is a necessity when compared to the PS5.

I could just as easily be wrong, and the majority of people could be just like me and want the best bit of kit regardless of the meagre differences. I'll be there day one with my pre-ordered PS6. I just don't think most people will be so easily tempted...

Re: PS5, PS4 Userbase Keeps on Getting Bigger, Attracts More Players Year-on-Year

Fiendish-Beaver

I agree, @themightyant, though I would suggest that all the flip-flopping is most likely due to the shift in power within Xbox (or rather from it!). I think Phil Spencer and co. were able to make statements that they believed to be true at the time they were uttered, but that since those statements were made, Nadella and Hood have seized control, changed direction, and made Spencer look like a chump as a consequence.

I do not think that Spencer lied when he made these statements. I believe he had full faith in what he was saying. It's just that the rug has been pulled from under him.

Regardless, it has supremely damaged my trust in anything that comes out of Microsoft these days to the extent that I would trust the word of a Politician over anything that Microsoft says... 😂

Re: PS5 'In the Middle' of Its Lifecycle, Claims Sony

Fiendish-Beaver

I agree that Microsoft handled previous generations differently, @T-Bone09. The Xbox One ceased production at the end of 2020, the year that the Series console launched. However, the reason I think Microsoft will continue to manufacture the Series consoles well into the next generation, and potentially all of it, is simply because the Series consoles will be treated as entry level consoles into the Xbox ecosystem, and Microsoft will probably believe this to be a necessity due to the high entry point for the PCBox which is rumoured to cost in excess of £1000/$1200, and thus out of the price range of families just wanting a console for a child, and indeed, more expensive than many gamers will be willing to pay.

I have zero evidence that Microsoft will do this, it just seems a common sense approach for Microsoft to do it, which likely means they will not do so...

Re: PS5 'In the Middle' of Its Lifecycle, Claims Sony

Fiendish-Beaver

Both the PS5 and the Series consoles will be sold for pretty much the entirety of the next generation, though for differing reasons. I don't think that the next PS6 will be vastly better than the PS5, and so uptake on the PS6 will be slower than it was for the PS5. With the PCBox, it will likely be significantly better than the Series X, but it will also be significantly more expensive, possibly twice as expensive as the Series X, meaning that far fewer people will buy it with the target at Microsoft likely being something like 10 million lifetime sales*. Upshot for both Sony and Microsoft will be a much slower start for the next generation.

*Unless the PCBox is the last Xbox console, and therefore the console is sold for far longer than a typical generation. Thus, assuming that it is still shifting units, then Microsoft may continue to make it available...

Re: PS5, PS4 Userbase Keeps on Getting Bigger, Attracts More Players Year-on-Year

Fiendish-Beaver

I guess am speaking from the perspective of being a console gamer, @themightyant. I trust Sony to keep doing what they are doing (albeit I'd prefer them to bring out more of the single-player games they are known for), whereas I don't trust Microsoft to keep investing in consoles.

I believe that the start of the next generation will see a very sizable shift of Xbox gamers over to the PS6, which in turn will harm those that remain with Xbox because Microsoft will likely react by raising prices on both their consoles and their subscription services.

Basically, I have far more trust in Sony than I do in Microsoft, and that is despite Xbox being my main. I think if Sony says something, they are far less likely to be trying to mislead or misdirect us, whereas I have little faith that Microsoft will either tell us as it really is, or stick to what they say.

I do believe that Microsoft will have a very bright future in terms of being a publisher, but have very little faith in terms of their treatment of their more loyal userbase...

Re: PS5, PS4 Userbase Keeps on Getting Bigger, Attracts More Players Year-on-Year

Fiendish-Beaver

Thank you, @UltimateOtaku91. As I said @21, it seems that both Sony and Microsoft count the numbers in a slightly different way, or at the very least, a large number of people are playing very small games on mobiles and PCs, which Microsoft are able to use to artificially inflate their MAUs. Personally, I trust the numbers that Sony put out far more than I do Microsoft's, and I would suggest that they don't really tell the whole story...

Re: PS5, PS4 Userbase Keeps on Getting Bigger, Attracts More Players Year-on-Year

Fiendish-Beaver

Thank you, @themightyant. I see so many people trying to say that Xbox is doing better than PlayStation due to MAUs, and yet we all know that is not really a metric that shows that to be the case.

PlayStation is in a far more stable, and better position than Xbox, yet some real fanatics will die on the hill that says MAUs is the only metric that counts. Truthfully, MAUs is about the only statistic that, on first glance, would suggest that Microsoft have the upper hand, but I think that the more rational, and sensible, among us, know that is not the case...

Re: Ghost of Yotei PS5 Sales Surpass 3.3 Million Units, Crush Boycott Nonsense

Fiendish-Beaver

Ghost of Yotei is a fantastic game, and as much as I loved Ghost of Tushima, I thought the second game to be even better.

That vocal minority, who always seem to make their voices heard the most, did not speak with the majority who bought, played and really enjoyed Yotei. All of them so upset because of a female protagonist or because the game did not feature Jin. Just ridiculous...

Re: Don't Expect Any PS5 Exclusives from Square Enix in the Future

Fiendish-Beaver

I don't believe that there will be a decline in actual sales, on the PlayStation, for the next Final Fantasy game. People already invested in the series, who have already bought them on the PlayStation, are unlikely to suddenly buy them elsewhere instead (at least not in substantial numbers).

What will happen though is that the third game will sell better than it would had it released solely on the PlayStation. If previously 100% of the sales were on the PlayStation, due to it only releasing there, then it stands to reason that if it is suddenly available elsewhere, then those other platforms will eat into that 100% of sales being only on the PlayStation. However, if the game was going to sell a million copies on the PlayStation, had the game been exclusive, it is likely that it will still sell those million copies, because people will be invested in the series on the PlayStation anyway, and it is probably their preferred platform...

Re: Study Claims Physical PS5 Games Are 100 Times Worse for the Planet Than Digital Downloads

Fiendish-Beaver

If they really want to address this situation, then surely one way to go is to make digital downloads cheaper. Currently, at best both physical and digital cost the same when a game is first released, but more often, physical can be found more cheaply than digital, which makes zero sense, when you factor in all the other expenses involved with having the physical version of the game. So, either make digital more enticing, or make physical less attractive...

Re: Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 May Be the Most Expensive PS5 Game to Date

Fiendish-Beaver

Genuine question, @get2sammyb, so when someone is looking at a digital game on the US PlayStation Store, do they see a price including tax, or is it added at the point of paying, or does it even attract tax at all due to it being a non-tangible product (i.e. digital)?

The US way of pricing things always confuses me as when I visited America back in the 90s, I don't recall getting to the checkout and finding the price on the shelf, to be different from what I had to then pay when paying. Having said that, have trouble recalling what day it is, so... yeah...

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 605

Fiendish-Beaver

I'm currently level 9 in Outer Worlds 2 on a Very Hard run, and very much enjoying the game.

I have also completed one Master Horde as a trio in Gears 5 yesterday, and failed another on Wave 40 today. Plan is to have another stab at one tomorrow. Absolutely loving the challenge of having just 3 people in a mode that is supposed to have 5. Master is difficult with 5, so with 3 it is uber-hard...

Re: Talking Point: Is PS5 Really in Competition with TikTok?

Fiendish-Beaver

The simple answer is that I disagree with the notion that TikTok is the direct competitor of PlayStation. Sony's true competitor is Xbox, and then PC, and then Nintendo. However, that said, every other life experience then competes with gaming (not just PlayStation).

My view is that it is a weak way for Microsoft to say that TikTok is their direct competitor, because I believe they are only saying this because they are losing in so many ways when compared to PlayStation. Everything can be compared and evaluated when comparisons are made between PlayStation and Xbox; from consoles sales, to MAU's, to where games are bought and played, and to subscription services. They can all be compared, and in that comparison, Xbox generally comes off worse. So rather than publicly admit that they are not doing particularly well, it easier to simply not do the comparison and claim that something else it their competition.

Yes, gaming companies are competing with other pastimes for peoples attention, but a person choosing to buy a PlayStation, where they then play games not made by Xbox, is still not a win for Xbox. So Xbox are PlayStation are in direct competition with one another as they both want that person to join their platform.

My view is that Microsoft are being disingenuous when they made the comment because all they are trying to do is deflect from the problems they are currently having...

Re: 'Significant' Layoffs Are Set to Hit Amazon Game Studios

Fiendish-Beaver

It seems to be an industry that always has an air of uncertainty hanging over it, @Deadlyblack. One false step and a studio can go under. The game you make doesn't even have to be bad, it just has to fail to find an audience, and you're done for. I wouldn't want to be involved in something like that myself, and I'm glad my son didn't take that route...

Re: 'Significant' Layoffs Are Set to Hit Amazon Game Studios

Fiendish-Beaver

That's a real shame. Although I didn't partake in the multiplayer aspects of New World (PvP etc.), I did spend an enormous amount of time playing it. Fully played two seasons, and have the coinage to indulge in another. Hopefully it sticks around for a while yet.

It's always sad to see people losing their jobs, so hopefully it is handled well, and the people affected find new employment quickly. It must be terribly worrying for them.

My youngest son wanted to get involved in game making, and I have to say I'm glad that he didn't...

Re: Halo PS5 Is Great, But Why Doesn't It Have Competitive Multiplayer?

Fiendish-Beaver

They will definitely be releasing a standalone PvP mode that will be added to ad infinitum for years to come. They may even update Infinite's multiplayer with U5 graphics, etc, and then put that out as the Halo version of Call of Duty's Warzone. It's definitely coming, it's just a question of when they put it out. Hopefully they will have learned from the Infinite debacle, and it will release with far more content...

Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 604

Fiendish-Beaver

I bought Outer Worlds Premium Edition, so started that last night. I'm playing on Very Hard, and am about 10 minutes into the first mission and already having a bit of difficulty because I am faced with two enemies and am finding it very hard to take them on! It'll probably be okay once I have levelled up a few times, but right now? Ob, boy... 😂

My mate is away today, but I'm hoping he'll be back tomorrow so that we can attempt another Master Horde run in Gears 5 as a trio with my youngest son. We actually managed to complete one last weekend on what was probably a harder map than we will be attempting next, but Master is meant for a team of 5, so attempting it as a trio is really challenging a good fun (and frustrating!)...