@DennisReynolds I think Xbox will be digital only soon.
I do not see this for Nintendo and Sony. It will take a couple more generations.
Regardless though, I will keep being physical as long as possible. Trading and physical collections are something I enjoy and so will support that over convenience.
@ChrisDeku yeah, but that’s why I don’t like this practice of all digital.
Second hand gaming, trading, and physical collections are part of the culture of gaming that I enjoy. They will kill that off with corporate greed unless we stand against it (yeah, I sound like a revolutionist. 😅).
The suits at the top might want my money. They will get it if they make a game worth buying first hand (most of my purchases are first hand but discounted btw).
The developers and creatives for the game though, a lot of their motivation is having people play and enjoy their work.
It’s a bit sad if the industry becomes all about squeezing money out of us.
Some of us only buy physical for financial reasons. I can buy a game cheaper second hand or share my game with my family and sell it on after etc.
Alan Wake 2 screwed over those who like physical. But they screwed themselves over too, the lack of sales proves this. Im unlikely to buy this game even physical, because I don’t like bad business practices. I’m not going to reward them now.
Giving all gamers the option to play and collect games how we like is the best way. And developers/publishers need to learn that.
When I was a kid I was very confused when I had a new American classmate ask if I liked Waldo. When he brought the book to school I was like, “Oh, it’s Wally! Yeah, I love Wally.” And then we argued (in jest) about his name for years.
Edit: Since it was invented in the UK, Wally is his official name, I might add. 😎
I agree. I think games like this definitely give you your money’s worth. If it works out around a $ per hour of gameplay (or even less) it’s surely worth it.
Do you think Sony will notice when in 70 years time it looks like I’m still gaming at 109 years old while my great grandchildren enjoy my then retro gaming collection?
I know we are PlayStation fanboys, but this is a dumb decision from Sony.
People who weren’t in countries where PSN is available, you know most of the countries on earth, they got locked out of a game they paid for or banned by Sony for trying to make accounts in other countries.
Then only countries with the game were allowed meaning only 71 countries out of 191 countries could play the game.
You can’t say you are “For the Players” when you literally disallow most countries to play your games because of a silly corporate decision.
And it’s sad we have the majority on here seemingly call them “PC whiners” and the like, when they are protecting their fellow gamers.
Sony should implement the option of PSN login with the incentive of maybe free in game items. But let people choose whether or not they do it. That way those in countries where PSN isn’t available can still access the game.
The login is only for marketing anyway. They want their email to push future products. It’s a corporate thing.
Why defend corporate greed over allowing others to game? Especially as the countries without PSN are some of the poorer countries.
The Portal has no Bluetooth. This means no Bluetooth headphone compatibility. So it only allows wired headphones or PlayStation headphones which are stupidly expensive.
The other factor is you can’t stream PS Plus games from the internet. Which is not good.
Premium games are streaming only. They can’t be downloaded onto your PS5 so they are inaccessible on the Portal.
I work in marketing and work on various publications. Whenever a magazine deadline is coming up, it’s always crunch time.
We work for weeks beforehand doing the lion’s share of the work, but the last bit of final edits, last minute changes in design, all the different people coming together at the final bit adds to the pressure and we always just make it to print.
It’s not because we didn’t work hard beforehand. But we didn’t have the urgency, and as soon as it goes to print. That is it. No more changes. The public will see and that’s always more stressful.
So I can understand it the same with games. They might have a deadline set for a year, but those last few weeks are the most intense.
He’s invested so much into Genshin that he won’t want to abandon it. At the same time this looks so good that he wants to play it. But how will he find the time to play both?!
@EchoRange @KeanuReaves you are correct that it’s only guessing.
However, it’s actually the opposite of what you might think. The plugins usually underestimate the dislikes.
I work in online marketing and manage a few YouTube channels for some large corporations with lots of subscribers.
Ubisoft will be able to see the real numbers and will know exactly how many dislikes there are on each video.
We did a test about 6 months ago when one of our clients wanted to be reassured that people weren’t seeing all the negatives, and we could happily report that the real dislike numbers were about 20% higher in reality than what users of the plugins would see (that was worse case, sometimes it was more accurate), but we span it to them that what we could see wasn’t visible to users.
It helped them feel that negativity was hidden from the public, but was a bit of a silly way to look at it. Instead of trying to please their audience they just wanted to ignore reality as long as they could preserve their image and carry on doing what they wanted. Which I think is kind of what is going on here.
However, I just sold it today because whilst I enjoy the game and was happy to be a part of its exciting launch, I just don’t have time for it amongst other games that I enjoy more.
@TrickyDicky99 I think you’re completely right about Xbox. They have given people little reason to go Xbox exclusively because you can play every Xbox first party title on PC or through streaming (although that’s far less popular).
Personally, I sold my Xbox late last year because I knew I could play all Xbox games on PC if needed.
Now I agree that if Sony starts to release all games on PC it will be a mistake. We agree on this.
But, I think there is more to Sony’s problems than simply releasing old games on PC.
Sony so far have released a handful of first party games on PC. All of them are older games where their sales weren’t making money for them on PlayStation. This is not what is causing Sony’s decline.
The biggest factors are:
Cost of living for most families is higher and wages are not increasing. This obviously is out of Sony’s control.
Changes in how people game mean that people use personal devices much more now. This is something Sony tried to address with the portal.
Most kids are playing Roblox and Minecraft now and these can be played on anything (most of my kids friends play these on tablets) and Roblox especially isn’t just a game, it’s its own platform. Minecraft and Fortnite are moving in that direction also. Sony has all three of these games on its system now, Roblox only arrived late last year.
First Party Exclusives: Sony just isn’t releasing enough games like it used to. Look at 2017/2018 and compare it to 2023/2024.
Third Party Console Exclusives: Another factor for PC isn’t just Sony’s offerings, but that many third party titles are no longer console exclusive but also on PC day one.
Japanese support - there are a lot of Japanese developers focusing on Switch because it’s the bigger system seller. In Japan, handheld reigns supreme. This in turn affects Western sales/appeal.
PS+ becoming like Game Pass I think was a mistake. It’s not as profitable as selling individual games.
This coupled with Sony upping the price of individual games put people off. (Another factor in players moving towards PC is also because PC games are cheaper. And gaming PCs/laptops are more affordable).
So I would say all of these factors are bigger factors than simply Sony releasing some old exclusives on PC.
Yes, Sony is a marketplace like Steam and like steam they make most of their money from CoD/FIFA etc. I didn’t say otherwise.
But the biggest difference between them is one is a free piece of software, the other is an expensive piece of hardware. Sony has to pay to make the hardware. Steam doesn’t have to spend anything. People just download it for free.
I’m not sure why you’re changing the goal posts each time.
You compared Sony to Nintendo. And I showed you why Nintendo’s first party model is stronger than Sony’s.
You compared Sony to Steam and I explained why Steam is doing better than Sony.
And yet I’m apparently the one with my head in the sand saying Sony is amazing and doing everything right. I’m literally telling you that Sony needs to improve (which is what you’re trying to tell me - we are actually agreeing on most points when I look back at your previous comments). I’m just not as pessimistic because when a company makes over a billion dollars in profits, that is not a failing business model.
The main contention we have is the PC releases. Whether they are good or bad. For me, they aren’t the big problem Sony needs to fix.
PlayStation is a mix of the business models of Nintendo and Steam. Sony can do Sony and survive. But I think they could learn, especially from Nintendo, and make more first party exclusives.
Nintendo still entices third party exclusives and a lot of third parties that are not exclusive or indies. But you are correct that it is not the same as Sony. And to be honest, third party exclusives like FF16 and FF7 Remake/Rebirth have been system sellers for Sony. I’m not sure Nintendo has a 3rd party exclusive franchise that is on that level by any stretch of the imagination.
But the point I was making was someone was saying Sony’s only problem was they release games on PC when experts suggest a bigger problem is their lack of first party exclusives.
Sony has relied on its third party deals for far too long. They’ve only produced AAA first party titles and are only bringing 1-2 per year (not even that last year).
Sony doesn’t have to be Nintendo. They made over a billion in profits and aren’t going anywhere. But they could learn a thing or two from them.
Valve is a marketplace. A piece of software. They get return on every game, cosmetic and DLC sold in Steam.
Sony is a hardware maker and needs to shift physical units of hardware. Which requires a reason to buy the hardware (such ans exclusive content).
They are two completely different business models.
Funnily enough though, Sony’s revenue is up and their console sales are holding steady. It’s their profits that are struggling because the most profitable games they make are first party games because they reap 100% of the profits. They just aren’t releasing enough of them.
But it’s not dire. They are still making over a billion dollars in profit each year.
@TrickyDicky99 good Lord! I’m literally doing the opposite of burying my head in the sand by looking at multiple aspect.
You’re the one looking at one single issue and hitting that single point with a sledge hammer. Take the blinkers off your eyes and look at other aspects.
There is far more to Sony’s problems than PC releases. And I never said Sony wasn’t needing to change things.
One of the main problems for Sony is they are not releasing any first party games. It doesn’t matter if they are on PC or not - that’s the number one (but not only) problem. They have to make and release more games. Their strategy is fewer but bigger budget AAA games. It’s not sustainable.
Nintendo have an amazing profit margin because they produce tons of first party titles that sell well and are cheap to make and they are on a very closed system with a loyal fanbase.
So yes, Nintendo is doing far better than Sony. I never said otherwise. But Sony doesn’t have to be Nintendo to be successful.
All I am saying is that having first party games on PC that enter the market long after they are on PlayStation are not the big problem here.
Although, the Helldivers fiasco may have tanked their stock more than any other thing. And that wouldn’t have happened if they never released games on PC. But again, Helldivers is a third party exclusive, not first party.
@TrickyDicky99 there are multiple factors for that decline though. It’s not because Sony put games on PC.
The gaming world is vastly different.
Most kids only play Fortnite/Roblox/Minecraft and they have all become platforms for games which eats into the console market. The mobile market has also had a big effect on the industry. And PC gaming is now more popular than ever due to cheaper laptops and the fact that the older library of PC games is always available to everyone (unlike how PS3 games are locked away to PS5 users for example).
So it isn’t just things Sony is doing that are affecting Sony.
And it’s not burying our heads in the sand to think a few PC releases isn’t a bad thing.
Sorry to hear that it devalues the brand for you. I think it depends on money. For me, console gaming is the more affordable option and therefore the console reigns supreme and so it hasn’t changed the value the brand in my mind.
@Ralizah I don’t really see how it devalues the console.
Sony make 99% of their revenue on the PlayStation Store. And a majority of that comes from third party games, DLC, loot boxes etc.
I don’t think Sony is going to do anything to dramatically damage their console market. They haven’t released all games (like Xbox has) and they also have created a system that retains console exclusives from third party developers.
All it’s really doing is expanding some of its key franchises to a bigger audience. This turns people to game more on Sony games.
One of my brothers has no interest in consoles. But he now plays PlayStation games on PC.
Me personally, I went back to PlayStation after being PC / Xbox only for a while because I missed a lot of the games on PlayStation and their PC releases reminded me of that.
Sony’s brand has not been damaged by either of our very different viewpoints, in fact it’s been helped.
@get2sammyb to be fair Sammy, I don’t think any of us were expecting it to be THIS bad.
Most of us just thought it was bad for gaming that Microsoft owned too much, that games would be locked to Xbox and Xbox would mismanage it.
I don’t think any of us thought they’d buy everything only to then destroy the studios and kill off game franchises so none of us could play the games.
@ChrisDeku does Steam removing it suggest Sony broke a term of service or something?
They clearly sold the game to players in those countries but then took features away from them (or made it more difficult).
Steam could have even said to Sony that mandatory refunds for all those countries would have to happen.
We don’t know what happened behind closed doors. But I doubt Sony had the backing of Steam to make this decision. And it was likely this that ultimately forced Sony’s hand. But obviously the players will take credit (as they should).
The Devs showing they have a sense of humour and honouring the community.
They were likely helpless in all this. Their game got tanked by a vicious combination of corporate suits making bad business decisions and the outrage mob converging into a perfect storm.
I didn’t care about the requirement until Sony went authoritarian mode and blocked the sale of this game to 170 countries. Then I was pissed.
Yes, those crying about PSN alone are idiots. But when our fellow gamers were affected because of a bad corporate decision, I absolutely was on the side of the players and not the mega corp.
I love PlayStation, but we players have to look out for each other.
I think the culture is trying to out morality into everything when they don’t need to. The perception of the player in Helldivers is we are the good guys and we are blowing everything up, including ourselves, and it’s all for the greater good.
This also plays into why bad guys are also cool. Darth Vader, Bowser, Sephiroth, even Wreck it Ralf.
Each one is uniquely different example, but there is something about them that appeals to us. Even though they are “bad” (although not all the examples I gave are).
I’m probably not getting my point across properly in the comment sections. But there is more nuance to what I’m thinking than maybe I’m able to put down in words.
@naruball that’s not what I said. It’s not “simple”. And it’s not just about guns and sexy women.
It’s about making good games, adding elements to them that are appealing to core traits of men, but doing it without talking down and belittling us for liking those things.
It’s one of the few games that plays into dumbassery without preaching to you.
Guys like dumb fun. Guns, explosions, and, of course, democracy.
This game doesn’t make out those things are bad, it celebrates them. Usually games make out those guys to be the idiots or evil. In this game it makes them the heroes, while simultaneously being the literal cannon fodder. It’s genuinely clever.
I think this also goes into the reason Stellar Blade is popular with certain male audiences. Because there’s an attractive woman in front of your eyes.
Men are men. We like being men. So let us blow stuff up, laugh at crude humour, and admire attractive pixels. But also, don’t talk down to use while doing it and you will win us over.
What an amazing experience I am having in both. I expected to love FF7 and it has exceeded my expectations.
Helldivers on the other hand. I had no idea I would love this game. I didn’t expect it would unite me and my brothers to all game together again. And the developers not only priced it right, but they’ve outdone themselves for community support and respecting the players (except for killing them on repeat).
What a brilliant year I’m having with these two games.
Comments 1,176
Re: Horror Hit Alan Wake 2 Is Getting a Retail PS5 Release Because You Wouldn't Shut Up About It
@DennisReynolds I think Xbox will be digital only soon.
I do not see this for Nintendo and Sony. It will take a couple more generations.
Regardless though, I will keep being physical as long as possible. Trading and physical collections are something I enjoy and so will support that over convenience.
Re: Horror Hit Alan Wake 2 Is Getting a Retail PS5 Release Because You Wouldn't Shut Up About It
@ChrisDeku yeah, but that’s why I don’t like this practice of all digital.
Second hand gaming, trading, and physical collections are part of the culture of gaming that I enjoy. They will kill that off with corporate greed unless we stand against it (yeah, I sound like a revolutionist. 😅).
The suits at the top might want my money. They will get it if they make a game worth buying first hand (most of my purchases are first hand but discounted btw).
The developers and creatives for the game though, a lot of their motivation is having people play and enjoy their work.
It’s a bit sad if the industry becomes all about squeezing money out of us.
Re: Horror Hit Alan Wake 2 Is Getting a Retail PS5 Release Because You Wouldn't Shut Up About It
Some of us only buy physical for financial reasons. I can buy a game cheaper second hand or share my game with my family and sell it on after etc.
Alan Wake 2 screwed over those who like physical. But they screwed themselves over too, the lack of sales proves this. Im unlikely to buy this game even physical, because I don’t like bad business practices. I’m not going to reward them now.
Giving all gamers the option to play and collect games how we like is the best way. And developers/publishers need to learn that.
But yes, let’s moan at the customers.
Re: Poll: Was Summer Game Fest 2024 Great or a Letdown?
It was exactly as expected.
I don’t know why everyone gets their hopes up every year.
Re: New World, Amazon's Big-Money MMORPG from 2021, Is Seemingly Adventuring to PS5
I got excited because I thought this was Lost Ark for a minute. That’s another MMO that needs to make it to console.
Re: There's a Damn Good Reason to Buy Astro Bot Physically on PS5
@Gremio108
Wally > Waldo
@LaurenIpsum
Waldo was called Wally in the UK.
When I was a kid I was very confused when I had a new American classmate ask if I liked Waldo. When he brought the book to school I was like, “Oh, it’s Wally! Yeah, I love Wally.” And then we argued (in jest) about his name for years.
Edit: Since it was invented in the UK, Wally is his official name, I might add. 😎
Re: There's a Damn Good Reason to Buy Astro Bot Physically on PS5
That’s a nice touch from Sony.
One of the reasons I switched over from Xbox to PS5 last year was because of the lack of physical releases on Xbox.
I enjoy my physical collection and it’s part of my gaming experience. It helps bring back memories every time I pick up the cases and look at them.
Re: Square Enix Drops OG Octopath Traveler, Available Now on PS5, PS4
@ManifoldCuriosity
I agree. I think games like this definitely give you your money’s worth. If it works out around a $ per hour of gameplay (or even less) it’s surely worth it.
Re: Random: What Happens to Your Digital PSN Library When You Die?
Well, that’s a new thing to add to my will.
Do you think Sony will notice when in 70 years time it looks like I’m still gaming at 109 years old while my great grandchildren enjoy my then retro gaming collection?
Re: PS5's Anime Waifu Dress-Up Game Headed by Zelda: Breath of the Wild Designer
Gatcha damn it! Gatcha damn it all to hell.
This was up there with Astro Bot as my favourite of the show. Now this took a massive nose dive.
I just wanted to be able to explore the magical worlds…
Yeah, I’m still gonna play it. But dang.
Re: PC Players Are Fuming Until Dawn, God of War Ragnarok Appear to Require PSN Logins
@ChrisDeku well, I’m not lying, I’m just stating what I read.
I might be wrong though. 😅
Re: Monster Hunter Wilds, Astro Bot the Biggest PS5 Winners from State of Play
Monster Hunter Wilds was definitely the heavy hitter of the show.
It looked great, but they really only showed off the bear/dog monster so it will be good to see more about the game in the future.
Astro Bot and Infiti Nikki were highlights for me personally. I’m a sucker for kid-friendly, vibrant, magical games.
Re: PC Players Are Fuming Until Dawn, God of War Ragnarok Appear to Require PSN Logins
I know we are PlayStation fanboys, but this is a dumb decision from Sony.
People who weren’t in countries where PSN is available, you know most of the countries on earth, they got locked out of a game they paid for or banned by Sony for trying to make accounts in other countries.
Then only countries with the game were allowed meaning only 71 countries out of 191 countries could play the game.
You can’t say you are “For the Players” when you literally disallow most countries to play your games because of a silly corporate decision.
And it’s sad we have the majority on here seemingly call them “PC whiners” and the like, when they are protecting their fellow gamers.
Sony should implement the option of PSN login with the incentive of maybe free in game items. But let people choose whether or not they do it. That way those in countries where PSN isn’t available can still access the game.
The login is only for marketing anyway. They want their email to push future products. It’s a corporate thing.
Why defend corporate greed over allowing others to game? Especially as the countries without PSN are some of the poorer countries.
Re: Infinity Nikki PS5 Is the Open World Anime Dress-Up Game of Your Dreams
Looks like I’m buying this for my daughter (need to pretend it’s for her at least).
The worlds in this looked magical. And I’m a sucker for that.
Re: Poll: What Did You Think of Sony's State of Play for May 2024?
I’m one of the few who enjoyed it.
There are like 3 games I’m interested in, which is enough because my backlog is eternal.
Re: Cosy Adventure Caravan SandWitch Embarks on PS5 Roadtrip in 2024
Interest piqued.
Re: PS5's Streaming Handheld PS Portal Is Proving a Huge Hit
@GymratAmarillo I think you misunderstand.
The Portal has no Bluetooth. This means no Bluetooth headphone compatibility. So it only allows wired headphones or PlayStation headphones which are stupidly expensive.
The other factor is you can’t stream PS Plus games from the internet. Which is not good.
Premium games are streaming only. They can’t be downloaded onto your PS5 so they are inaccessible on the Portal.
Re: Stellar Blade Dev Currently Making Photo Mode for Hit PS5 Game
@Uromastryx this angle works in real life also.
I send my wife up the loft ladder first for a reason. 🍑 😍 🙌
Re: Stellar Blade Dev Currently Making Photo Mode for Hit PS5 Game
This feature will result in lots of zooming in on certain assets.
We will all do it at least once, let’s not fool ourselves. 😅
Re: Baldur's Gate 3 Required Less Crunch Than Larian Studios' Previous RPGs
I think crunch is just kinda human nature.
I work in marketing and work on various publications. Whenever a magazine deadline is coming up, it’s always crunch time.
We work for weeks beforehand doing the lion’s share of the work, but the last bit of final edits, last minute changes in design, all the different people coming together at the final bit adds to the pressure and we always just make it to print.
It’s not because we didn’t work hard beforehand. But we didn’t have the urgency, and as soon as it goes to print. That is it. No more changes. The public will see and that’s always more stressful.
So I can understand it the same with games. They might have a deadline set for a year, but those last few weeks are the most intense.
Re: Hands On: Will Wuthering Waves Really Replace Genshin Impact on PS5, PS4?
Sammy is worried.
He’s invested so much into Genshin that he won’t want to abandon it. At the same time this looks so good that he wants to play it. But how will he find the time to play both?!
I feel for you. 😅
Re: Key Sony Exec Gives Eye-Opening Quotes on the Future of PlayStation and Gaming
You can create immersive worlds and tell fantastic stories without amazing graphics.
I still want 60fps though. So lower graphics for that and I’m happy.
Re: Random: Stellar Blade Has Reached Peak Marketing with a Limited Edition Burger
I can’t wait to face plant into those… err, I mean, that burger.
Re: Assassin's Creed Shadows Reveal Trailer Is Already the Most Disliked in Series History
@EchoRange @KeanuReaves you are correct that it’s only guessing.
However, it’s actually the opposite of what you might think. The plugins usually underestimate the dislikes.
I work in online marketing and manage a few YouTube channels for some large corporations with lots of subscribers.
Ubisoft will be able to see the real numbers and will know exactly how many dislikes there are on each video.
We did a test about 6 months ago when one of our clients wanted to be reassured that people weren’t seeing all the negatives, and we could happily report that the real dislike numbers were about 20% higher in reality than what users of the plugins would see (that was worse case, sometimes it was more accurate), but we span it to them that what we could see wasn’t visible to users.
It helped them feel that negativity was hidden from the public, but was a bit of a silly way to look at it. Instead of trying to please their audience they just wanted to ignore reality as long as they could preserve their image and carry on doing what they wanted. Which I think is kind of what is going on here.
Re: Assassin's Creed Shadows Pre-Orders Already 'Looking Very Strong'
I’m looking forward to playing this in a few years time after bug fixes, DLC, and price drops.
The way I buy all my games. 😎
Re: Square Enix Bestows New Name on Creative Business Unit 3
Stop complaining guys. They put a lot of effort into this rebrand.
I mean, the logo is more vibrant and the words are coloured slightly differently also.
Re: Iconic PS1 Sci-Fi Flight Sim G-Police Coming to PS5, PS4 with PS Plus Premium
G-Police is a great addition.
The game was ahead of its time on PS1, graphically and mechanically.
It’s one of the most overlooked and underrated games of that generation.
Re: Helldivers 2 on PS5, PC Is Sony's Fastest Selling Game of All Time
I did my part for democracy.
However, I just sold it today because whilst I enjoy the game and was happy to be a part of its exciting launch, I just don’t have time for it amongst other games that I enjoy more.
Re: Next Week's Huge PS Plus Purge Now Extended to 35 PS5, PS4 Games
Personally, I’m gutted.
In November I subscribed to PS+ and paid a year in advance largely because of the Final Fantasy games. Now almost all are being removed.
I’ve just bought a physical version of FF15 Royal Edition as I’m heading for the Platinum trophy and don’t want to be rushed by this.
Re: Poll: Years Later, How Do You Feel About PlayStation's PC Strategy?
@TrickyDicky99 I think you’re completely right about Xbox. They have given people little reason to go Xbox exclusively because you can play every Xbox first party title on PC or through streaming (although that’s far less popular).
Personally, I sold my Xbox late last year because I knew I could play all Xbox games on PC if needed.
Now I agree that if Sony starts to release all games on PC it will be a mistake. We agree on this.
But, I think there is more to Sony’s problems than simply releasing old games on PC.
Sony so far have released a handful of first party games on PC. All of them are older games where their sales weren’t making money for them on PlayStation. This is not what is causing Sony’s decline.
The biggest factors are:
So I would say all of these factors are bigger factors than simply Sony releasing some old exclusives on PC.
Re: Poll: Years Later, How Do You Feel About PlayStation's PC Strategy?
@TrickyDicky99
Yes, Sony is a marketplace like Steam and like steam they make most of their money from CoD/FIFA etc. I didn’t say otherwise.
But the biggest difference between them is one is a free piece of software, the other is an expensive piece of hardware. Sony has to pay to make the hardware. Steam doesn’t have to spend anything. People just download it for free.
I’m not sure why you’re changing the goal posts each time.
You compared Sony to Nintendo. And I showed you why Nintendo’s first party model is stronger than Sony’s.
You compared Sony to Steam and I explained why Steam is doing better than Sony.
And yet I’m apparently the one with my head in the sand saying Sony is amazing and doing everything right. I’m literally telling you that Sony needs to improve (which is what you’re trying to tell me - we are actually agreeing on most points when I look back at your previous comments). I’m just not as pessimistic because when a company makes over a billion dollars in profits, that is not a failing business model.
The main contention we have is the PC releases. Whether they are good or bad. For me, they aren’t the big problem Sony needs to fix.
PlayStation is a mix of the business models of Nintendo and Steam. Sony can do Sony and survive. But I think they could learn, especially from Nintendo, and make more first party exclusives.
Re: Poll: Years Later, How Do You Feel About PlayStation's PC Strategy?
@tomic20
Nintendo still entices third party exclusives and a lot of third parties that are not exclusive or indies. But you are correct that it is not the same as Sony. And to be honest, third party exclusives like FF16 and FF7 Remake/Rebirth have been system sellers for Sony. I’m not sure Nintendo has a 3rd party exclusive franchise that is on that level by any stretch of the imagination.
But the point I was making was someone was saying Sony’s only problem was they release games on PC when experts suggest a bigger problem is their lack of first party exclusives.
Sony has relied on its third party deals for far too long. They’ve only produced AAA first party titles and are only bringing 1-2 per year (not even that last year).
Sony doesn’t have to be Nintendo. They made over a billion in profits and aren’t going anywhere. But they could learn a thing or two from them.
Re: Poll: Years Later, How Do You Feel About PlayStation's PC Strategy?
@TrickyDicky99 not at all.
Valve is a marketplace. A piece of software. They get return on every game, cosmetic and DLC sold in Steam.
Sony is a hardware maker and needs to shift physical units of hardware. Which requires a reason to buy the hardware (such ans exclusive content).
They are two completely different business models.
Funnily enough though, Sony’s revenue is up and their console sales are holding steady. It’s their profits that are struggling because the most profitable games they make are first party games because they reap 100% of the profits. They just aren’t releasing enough of them.
But it’s not dire. They are still making over a billion dollars in profit each year.
So I don’t even know why we are debating.
Re: Poll: Years Later, How Do You Feel About PlayStation's PC Strategy?
@TrickyDicky99
By the way, it’s industry experts (not just me) saying Sony’s first party releases are the problem. And you’ll see clearly why with this.
Nintendo
In 2023, Nintendo almost had a first party game every month:
In 2024, Nintendo has a first party for each month.
Sony
In contrast, Sony has released hardly anything.
In 2023, Sony released:
In 2024, Sony has released:
Re: Poll: Years Later, How Do You Feel About PlayStation's PC Strategy?
@TrickyDicky99 good Lord! I’m literally doing the opposite of burying my head in the sand by looking at multiple aspect.
You’re the one looking at one single issue and hitting that single point with a sledge hammer. Take the blinkers off your eyes and look at other aspects.
There is far more to Sony’s problems than PC releases. And I never said Sony wasn’t needing to change things.
One of the main problems for Sony is they are not releasing any first party games. It doesn’t matter if they are on PC or not - that’s the number one (but not only) problem. They have to make and release more games. Their strategy is fewer but bigger budget AAA games. It’s not sustainable.
Nintendo have an amazing profit margin because they produce tons of first party titles that sell well and are cheap to make and they are on a very closed system with a loyal fanbase.
So yes, Nintendo is doing far better than Sony. I never said otherwise. But Sony doesn’t have to be Nintendo to be successful.
All I am saying is that having first party games on PC that enter the market long after they are on PlayStation are not the big problem here.
Although, the Helldivers fiasco may have tanked their stock more than any other thing. And that wouldn’t have happened if they never released games on PC. But again, Helldivers is a third party exclusive, not first party.
Re: Poll: Years Later, How Do You Feel About PlayStation's PC Strategy?
@TrickyDicky99 there are multiple factors for that decline though. It’s not because Sony put games on PC.
The gaming world is vastly different.
Most kids only play Fortnite/Roblox/Minecraft and they have all become platforms for games which eats into the console market. The mobile market has also had a big effect on the industry. And PC gaming is now more popular than ever due to cheaper laptops and the fact that the older library of PC games is always available to everyone (unlike how PS3 games are locked away to PS5 users for example).
So it isn’t just things Sony is doing that are affecting Sony.
And it’s not burying our heads in the sand to think a few PC releases isn’t a bad thing.
Re: Poll: Years Later, How Do You Feel About PlayStation's PC Strategy?
@Ralizah got it.
Sorry to hear that it devalues the brand for you. I think it depends on money. For me, console gaming is the more affordable option and therefore the console reigns supreme and so it hasn’t changed the value the brand in my mind.
I get your point though.
Re: Poll: Years Later, How Do You Feel About PlayStation's PC Strategy?
@Ralizah I don’t really see how it devalues the console.
Sony make 99% of their revenue on the PlayStation Store. And a majority of that comes from third party games, DLC, loot boxes etc.
I don’t think Sony is going to do anything to dramatically damage their console market. They haven’t released all games (like Xbox has) and they also have created a system that retains console exclusives from third party developers.
All it’s really doing is expanding some of its key franchises to a bigger audience. This turns people to game more on Sony games.
One of my brothers has no interest in consoles. But he now plays PlayStation games on PC.
Me personally, I went back to PlayStation after being PC / Xbox only for a while because I missed a lot of the games on PlayStation and their PC releases reminded me of that.
Sony’s brand has not been damaged by either of our very different viewpoints, in fact it’s been helped.
Re: Poll: Years Later, How Do You Feel About PlayStation's PC Strategy?
I think Sony’s strategy was quite good until about a week ago…
Re: More Xbox Layoffs Reportedly Inbound as Company Attempts to Cut Costs
@get2sammyb to be fair Sammy, I don’t think any of us were expecting it to be THIS bad.
Most of us just thought it was bad for gaming that Microsoft owned too much, that games would be locked to Xbox and Xbox would mismanage it.
I don’t think any of us thought they’d buy everything only to then destroy the studios and kill off game franchises so none of us could play the games.
Re: Gaming Subs Like PS Plus, Xbox Game Pass Aren't Growing At All
Yes, because many of us console owners are paying the subscription so we can access online multiplayer, not for the games.
Re: Helldivers 2 PSN Requirement Backtracked on PC After Brutal Review Bombing Campaign
@ChrisDeku does Steam removing it suggest Sony broke a term of service or something?
They clearly sold the game to players in those countries but then took features away from them (or made it more difficult).
Steam could have even said to Sony that mandatory refunds for all those countries would have to happen.
We don’t know what happened behind closed doors. But I doubt Sony had the backing of Steam to make this decision. And it was likely this that ultimately forced Sony’s hand. But obviously the players will take credit (as they should).
Re: Helldivers 2 May Turn Negative Steam Reviews into a Fashionable In-Game Cape
The Devs showing they have a sense of humour and honouring the community.
They were likely helpless in all this. Their game got tanked by a vicious combination of corporate suits making bad business decisions and the outrage mob converging into a perfect storm.
Let’s hope the game recovers from all this.
Re: Helldivers 2 PSN Requirement Backtracked on PC After Brutal Review Bombing Campaign
It’s a good thing they backtracked.
I didn’t care about the requirement until Sony went authoritarian mode and blocked the sale of this game to 170 countries. Then I was pissed.
Yes, those crying about PSN alone are idiots. But when our fellow gamers were affected because of a bad corporate decision, I absolutely was on the side of the players and not the mega corp.
I love PlayStation, but we players have to look out for each other.
Re: Helldivers 2 Is Already One of Sony's Best-Ever Sellers in the US
@Deityjester that’s also missing my point a bit.
I think the culture is trying to out morality into everything when they don’t need to. The perception of the player in Helldivers is we are the good guys and we are blowing everything up, including ourselves, and it’s all for the greater good.
This also plays into why bad guys are also cool. Darth Vader, Bowser, Sephiroth, even Wreck it Ralf.
Each one is uniquely different example, but there is something about them that appeals to us. Even though they are “bad” (although not all the examples I gave are).
I’m probably not getting my point across properly in the comment sections. But there is more nuance to what I’m thinking than maybe I’m able to put down in words.
Re: Helldivers 2 Is Already One of Sony's Best-Ever Sellers in the US
@naruball that’s not what I said. It’s not “simple”. And it’s not just about guns and sexy women.
It’s about making good games, adding elements to them that are appealing to core traits of men, but doing it without talking down and belittling us for liking those things.
Re: Helldivers 2 Is Already One of Sony's Best-Ever Sellers in the US
It’s one of the few games that plays into dumbassery without preaching to you.
Guys like dumb fun. Guns, explosions, and, of course, democracy.
This game doesn’t make out those things are bad, it celebrates them. Usually games make out those guys to be the idiots or evil. In this game it makes them the heroes, while simultaneously being the literal cannon fodder. It’s genuinely clever.
I think this also goes into the reason Stellar Blade is popular with certain male audiences. Because there’s an attractive woman in front of your eyes.
Men are men. We like being men. So let us blow stuff up, laugh at crude humour, and admire attractive pixels. But also, don’t talk down to use while doing it and you will win us over.
Re: Funko Fusion Is Either Your Dream or Nightmare, Out This September
Not a fan of Funko Pops. Very few characters actually look any good.
HOWEVER, the animation on this actually looks good. The game looks semi descent.
Colour me surprised.
Re: PS5, PS4 RPG Visions of Mana Aims Straight for Your Nostalgia in Touching Japanese Trailer
Top tier advertising.
Thanks for the nostalgia hit.
Re: Talking Point: What's Your Favourite PS5 Game of 2024 So Far?
There are two:
What an amazing experience I am having in both. I expected to love FF7 and it has exceeded my expectations.
Helldivers on the other hand. I had no idea I would love this game. I didn’t expect it would unite me and my brothers to all game together again. And the developers not only priced it right, but they’ve outdone themselves for community support and respecting the players (except for killing them on repeat).
What a brilliant year I’m having with these two games.