Llamageddon

It seems to me that these exclusives are an olive branch to XBOX gamers so as to not harm the helix console hype.

Asha is allowed to take some big swings and if it doesn't work out Satya will no doubt force her to reverse it. Personally not being a gears fan, I couldn't care less but I am interested in clockwork revolution so it'll be interesting to see where team green go from here.

@Leinad7 what are you suggesting here? If you can't see that Eve and Evie look wildly different in terms of age then you need your eyes tested my man

I think the GTA marketing budget and the already established fan bases are very good points in regards to these franchises.
Plus Sony has been investing more in up and coming markets with it's hero projects (which I personally prefer as it means new IP's and different perspectives).
All of this to say it's a bit of a nothing burger and I think playstations money is better spent elsewhere.

As I'm not a fan of resi or ff the big hitters didn't really land for me but Stellar Blade 2 is looking pretty good. I arguably enjoyed the state of play more. Happy for everyone who enjoyed this iteration of summer Geoff fest though.

For those of you exclaiming it wasn't the best state of play ever, you might want to read the subheading.
The article itself says it was the second highest rated, though I know that doesn't play into the internet's love of hyperbole as well.
Personally I had some games that I added to my wishlist and it was nice to see a number of release dates. I'd give it an 8/10

@Yozora146_ I looked up the other god with sekhmet and the internet is telling me it's the Mongolian god of war Begtse.
I really hope there are more gods from underepresented pantheons in the game, I enjoyed reading up about this one!

I never thought I'd play gitaroo man again, put a big smile on my face. Now make a sequel you cowards!
Also does anyone know if Kemuri is a f2p or a gacha (I'm hoping not, as I do prefer my single player experiences)

Just completed the demo and it confirmed this as a day 1 for me. Love the art style, interested to know more about those narrating the story as well.

Honestly a bit of a relief for my wallet. Still looking forward to it and hoping to see some gameplay at the Xbox show. 2026 is stacked

I wonder if little devil inside will show up

I like that Sony has been investing in game development in up and coming markets like it's China Hero Project.

They have been relatively successful in filling the gaps in their first party output with 3rd party exclusives as well.

Though they haven't exactly nailed this gen. Let's hope they can have a good second half like the PS3.

@SMJ I dunno I think their animated movies are both pushing the medium forward and are top of class but I take your point that the company seems to be floundering a bit at the moment.

@B_Lindz or maybe, just maybe it's a really good game deserving of it's score. Most critics seem to agree.

@Bluemoon2008 I expect the default game to still be punishing but the fact it can be made a little bit easier and by the sounds of it much harder should please most players.

@AnginaPectoris interesting, I was fascinated by the kintsugi pieces I saw when visiting Japan. I found paper marbling quite fun as well which you can buy relatively inexpensive kits for (just a suggestion you guys might enjoy).
Anyway, happy gaming and have a nice weekend

@AnginaPectoris my wife and I started about 8 months ago with a beginner course and then immediately went into an advanced course. We now have our own small pottery wheel at home and recently did a trip to Spain where we came back with 30kg of clay and 10kg of glazes as where we live (Malta) has very limited choice.
Genuinely love it and I have hopes to turn it into more than a hobby one day.
Thanks for asking, happy to share.

@DennisReynolds, J2theEzzo I appreciate the response and I have a better understanding now. I may not have been great at returnal but I had a blast while failing so still really excited for Saros.
I think people get bent out of shape because it's the only art where if you pay the price of admission you don't necessarily get the whole product as a result of skill (or lack thereof).
You buy music you can listen to the whole song/album even if you don't understand it, you buy an art house movie you can watch the entirety even if you couldn't follow it etc. I understand gaming is different due to it's interactivity though.
Even hobbies, I do pottery and nobody prevents me from doing it if my cups, bowls etc are rubbish.
It's that fear of wasting money especially if it's something you really like the look of (for me that was elden ring).

@DennisReynolds out of interest what do you mean by a game for everyone is a game for no-one, is it just the presence of difficulty settings? That seems to be when that phrase comes up the most.
If that is the case, doesn't it mean that the vast, vast majority of games are for no-one?
Not trying to be snarky, just wondering what people mean by the phrase.

Loved returnal, though I sucked at it. The changes sound like I might suck slightly less with Saros which I'm happy about. Day 1 purchase for me.

@Boxmonkey I agree that it does seem to be a waste of their time and talent, hopefully they outsource the ongoing support a game like that requires.

@Boxmonkey I listed 3 groups they were targeting, 1 of which was horizon fans. There will fans of the single player games who I'm sure will want to try it out just because of the IP.
I also think Lego horizon was a way for Sony to get more kids interested in the IP with this game in mind. The art style is also more appealing to kids.
I just don't think most commenters on here are interested in this kind of game or art style but the wider more casual gaming community may well be.
Just an opinion, nothing more bud.

I don't think the people in this comment section are really the target audience for this game. It'll be multiplayer fans, horizon fans and kids.
There is no denying the IP is big given sales numbers so this stands a chance of getting an audience. I'd be very surprised if it ends up DOA.

@Midnyte-Monkey thanks, much appreciated

@Midnyte-Monkey excuse my ignorance but what is LFG out of curiosity?

@DennisReynolds these 2 guys clearly lack the emotional maturity to accept that the world doesn't share their opinion of this game. I've replied to both and I am expecting some defensive, non sensical mental gymnastics that I have 0 intention of replying to.
No point engaging with them for longer than that as they will simply drag you down to their level and 'beat' you with experience.

@THEBrew I've seen this argument that it is disliked for being Korean a few times but this website loved Stellar Blade. It really is the most pathetic grasping at straws 'argument' I've seen in a very long time.
Loads of games have controversy before/after release, just look at AC shadows and pop lost crown from Ubi, Starfield from Bethesda etc... and guess what these are western Devs. Your narrative holds no water.

@lazarus11 most of the comments you're replying to aren't saying the game is bad. They simply want to wait for a few more patches before purchasing.
If the game didn't require patches, then why would the devs be making them?
They are listening to player feedback and making necessary improvements, which is great. If the Devs can see that the game needs improvements, why can't you?

@old_gamer74 I enjoy Ubisoft games (mostly) as well, so you're not alone.
I do think this dev has a good game on its hands though and there is no really need for Ubi to meddle. They should instead focus on giving us a new Rayman game!

I'm really enjoying this on my deck but then again I'm a sucker for action games that put an emphasis on stylish combat and I enjoy a rogue like from time to time.
I can see this doing well on consoles if ever does come over. Also in my opinion it's one of the better examples of procedural generation.

@Jacko11 I don't think it's fair to compare it to The Day Before as that game really just seemed like a straight up scam.

I'm no game dev but how hard would it be to have an option for just p vs e? I would buy this game in a heartbeat if I wasn't forced to engage in the p Vs p aspect. I don't mind failing a run because I got cocky and the AI enemies took me down, but to fail a run because some very skilled, super sweaty gamer took me down from halfway across the map would be no fun at all.
I genuinely think bungie could turn this game around if they get their head out their a** and give players just a couple more options.

Sounds an awful lot like a Sony problem rather than a me problem.

I enjoyed both it takes two and split fiction for their gameplay but I didn't really care for the protagonists of either.
Split fiction will never hit the sales of it takes two as it takes two was cheaper, released during COVID, won multiple goty awards and is more accessible from a gameplay standpoint.
Split fiction really pushed my wife's gaming skills to the limit.
Interested to see what hazelight have cooking as they fly the flag of local co-op

@weeniebeenie the whole point of posting these rumours is to create content and generate clicks. You have both clicked and commented on this making it more likely they will continue producing these types of articles.

In terms of the reader gaining anything from reading this, well no. As others have alluded to, it doesn't take Nostradamus to predict a state of play in Spring.

I'd like to know what happened to that Kemuri game. I just want to know if it's live service/gacha or not.

Definitely looks like a game with potential. Will keep an eye on it, hopefully it can stick the landing with such a smorgasbord of ideas.

@Dimey I suppose at least they still do a lot of reviews, Fraser has basically admitted the lack of reviews on pure Xbox is down to lack of engagement from the readership which is quite sad in my opinion.
He literally mentions this in the comment thread for the newest Starfield dlc.

@Fiendish-Beaver 7 of the outlets that scored the game 9 or above have Xbox in their name. I'm sure you would find the same thing for ff16 (for playstation) which was divisive but actually outscored Starfield on opencritic.
This is nothing new for exclusives.

@danzoEX crimson was predominantly marked down for performance issues, this has had 3 years worth of patches/fixes and updates. Apples and oranges my man.

@super84trooper completely agree and thanks for the well written clarification. Being a Bethesda game is both a boon and a drawback. It will get a lot of sales purely from being a Bethesda game but it's short comings will be scrutinized more than most.
Anyway, happy gaming and if you do give it a whirl I hope it's what you were hoping for.

@super84trooper I just fact checked because I found your claims hard to believe.
It doesn't crack the top 50 games on opencritic for 2023 and it actually has a lower average review score than ff16 which was an incredibly divisive game.
I suppose if you include all vaporware and spam games it might in theory be in the 95th percentile but stacked against other high profile games it did quite poorly that year.
Don't get me wrong if you love the game then that's great but objectively it's not a great game.

@LikelySatan I thought the biggest complaints about forspoken were the excruciatingly cringe dialogue and empty world neither of which would have been impacted by having a white, male protagonist (see Days gone).

@Dogbreath that might hold more water if it wasn't the same complaints coming from all sections of gaming, pc and Xbox reviewers and players. Endless loading screens, reused assets etc.
The problem with Starfield is that it was hyped to the moon and back (mostly by Todd Howard) and for most it didn't meet those unrealistic expectations. The other issue is that there is a lot more competition in the RPG space now and other studios have caught up to/surpassed Bethesda. They need to wake up before they get left behind, the Elder Scrolls 6 might end up being the most important game in their history
To suggest all negativity comes from salty ps console warriors comes across as a bit blinkered and paranoid, though they definitely exist and have played a part in it.
It's a divisive game, nothing more and nothing less at the end of the day. I would be really surprised if it ever gets a sequel.

@DNortonX the problem is you're jumping to conclusions based on 0 evidence that these opinions are simply in bad faith. It's an emotional response much like the ones you're criticizing.
For what it's worth I haven't played the game, I'm not particularly interested and I have no desire to dump on it.

As for the rating system, the problem seems to stem from the fact gaming outlets rarely if ever give games a score of 5 or under (unlike movie reviewers). So gamers have almost been trained to see 5/6 as waiting for a deep sale as a game has serious flaws, 7 as okay and 8 or above as worth your time/money. It's not something easily reversed or changed.

Ultimately though reviews are just a guide to help inform consumers and other people's opinions regardless of hateful they might are just the opinion of that person. So who really cares, I'm sure Todd Howard isn't losing any sleep (on his giant pile of money) over it.

@Leetware1 fair enough, I honestly don't know enough about the controversy to have a strong opinion either way but I do appreciate you being cordial in your responses.

@Leetware1 again the controversy has nothing to do with race. His views on LGBTQ is where the controversy comes from.

@Leetware1 it has nothing to do with him being black, read the actual article

@themightyant I replied to his comment in a similar vein but you did it in a much more coherent manner. I am getting increasingly frustrated by the wilful ignorance in fan narratives, thanks for being one of the good ones!

@Blaze215 the big disparity between the review scores is quite simply down to performance at launch.
The big disparity between sales is simply down to genre.
The tin foil hattery from some on here is quite unhinged.

Crimson desert - big open world RPG that has taken notes from some of the biggest releases in the last decade (Zelda, elden ring etc...)
Marathon - sweaty extraction shooter
It also comes down to the fan bases as well, online shooter fans are harder to prise away from their communities whilst single player RPG enthusiasts are generally always on the lookout for the next big world to explore.
Just my take though.