Though it doesn't sound like it has a deep narrative to it,the fact it has a spooky element mixed in with the more sedate fishing element has me intrigued! Few bills & indies wanting my attention but will definitely be on the wishlists so I remember it!
Whilst the twitter bots,acolytes & their gaming press buddies will be cheering from the rafters, it doesn't detract that Microsoft buying up the entire Activision Blizzard catalogue & making it exclusive & quietly killing off multiformat releases just like they did with Zenimax will be good for gamers.
They won't stop there. Again,insists Sony can make their own COD alternative whilst spending 70 billion to buy COD,Diablo,Starcraft,Crash, etc., rather than make its own IP.🙄
The irony that (as far as I'm aware,not US person here),it was after the administration change to the current President/government that the new FTC admin actually took an interest in investigating after years of monopolies like Disney,Google Amazon, Microsoft etc.,being able to get bigger & use their monopoly unchecked!
But like most other things there,powerful "lobbying"/donations to the political overlords & ignorance of the games industry sadly means Microsoft has a long reach financially. There's already been the scare campaign of "Activision could be bought by Tencent!",when the reality is Activision shareholders really need to cut the deadweight Bobby Kotick management team rather than give them Microsoft funded golden parachutes to cash out.
Its no different than little indie Microsoft claiming Sony can make their own COD whilst spending 70 billion to buy up COD & undoubtedly repeat what they did with Zenimax & cancel any in development Playstation games & make COD exclusive as soon as they're able to. 😕
@pip_muzz This exactly! Makes you wonder if Atari MkV approached them first & knocked back.
Whereas Nightdive had to essentially had to budget a reboot of their botched System Shock kickstarter,& other recent missteps like trying to fix up the Blade Runner ports,(which got refused classification down under on console & seemingly Nightdive never bothered trying to appeal or adjust & refused to acknowledge on twitter etc.).
They have proven they can do a quality job,but maybe recent projects left them a bit more vulnerable to a buyout?🤔 Given this current Atari MkV,(or whatever it is from OG & Tramiel Atari),have offloaded some of its past IP pick-ups,it curious just what the previously independent Nightdive will be able to work on?
Exhibit A of Microsoft's/Xbox definition of hypocrisy & what adding Activision Blizzard & any further AAA publishers to a monopoly is a bas idea.
Still defies logic how Sony's been singled out for "timed exclusives are anti-gamer" Gamer Phil, but permanently blocking previously 3rd party AAA publishers,devs & IP's are okay if they're the struggling 2 trillion plus Indie monopoly Microsoft Xbox because in their own submissions to authorities they weren't coming up with enough in-house exclusives so they should be allowed to paywall the 3rd party ones instead!!🙄
The irony they're claiming Sony could make their own COD but are spending 70 billion just to buy the AAA publisher that makes it instead of expanding Halo/Gears or making their own COD exposes everything you need to know about their behaviour!
@wiiware Unfortunately Eastward is a bit of a moot point for comparison for PS owners! Chucklefish the publisher recently hyped up a gamepass/XB port,but remain unenthusiastic/ mute on twitter posts regarding PS4/5 versions like they have on most of their current works. 😕
Its a shame as it looks interesting,but like the detective one Loco Motive in the works, suspect I'll just sit on eventually trying it on PC.
Hope this plays as nicely as it looks! Apparently been in development since 2019,& no fixed dates on the console ports,but seemingly been working on modes like new game plus based off previous demo feedback.🤔
Again,if the final product comes out as playing as nicely as the trailer,the waiting will hopefully be worth it.
PS2 era GTA remains the best GTA IMHO. (Enjoyed original top down GTA on ps1,though it obviously aged). Never quite jelled with GTA IV, Nico just didn't appeal enough to stick with it...unlike RDR 1 & John Marston which i couldn't put down!
GTA V changed things around with the triple protagonists...but have never liked,(just like RDR 2),how they baked monetisation in for the cashcow that became the online mode with the stock market mechanism...which puts me firmly in the minority,I know!😅
Would place GTA LCS over GTA 3,if only as getting mowed down for passing through past areas in GTA 3 waa a pain in the butt.
Vice City & VCS will remain my favourites for soundtracks & atmosphere,(albeit Vic Vance not quite as appealing character vs Vercetti or CJ). San Andreas just behind Vice City,just those dreaded RC missions were truly nightmare fuel only matched passing the "schools" for cars, planes & boats!
Nitpicking aside,they parodied the 80's & 90s so well,not to mention other games etc. You just wanted to cruise around to hear the DJ chatter & music.👍 Its a shame Take-two & Rockstar think so little of their single player era the Trilogy was offloaded (& one suspects probably RDR would've been too),to the likes of Grove Street Games who were woefully out of their depth & should've been handled in-house.
Microsoft/XB really want to go down the "they got Spiderman!!",exclusive rabbit hole? What the same one that Disney offered them first & apparently rejected?!🙄 And since Gamer Phil keeps espousing through the Twitter bots & games news sites of their "spreading to more gamers" mantra PR Blitz, that means Indiana Jones will get an all platforms release....or will that be another "indie" title like Starfield,Elders Scrolls,Redwall etc ,Phil?🙄
Again,the hypocrisy of MS/XB to say buying up the major AAA Publishers & cherry pick what IP's if any get released elsewhere,(with most releases going exclusive),is "competition" when the reality is its removing future games off their main competitor & is bankrolled by a parent company well known for its monopolistic practices defies belief of its true motives.😕
Much like Blazing Chrome,I don't mind a knock off if they take the time & effort to make it a good one! Unfortunate a few too many wallet munching bills to likely be a day one buy,but certainly will be on the radar now!👍😎
As others have noted,unless there's some sort of compelling TV tech complimenting things,it would seem unlikely. Given that the PC GFX card market remains largely focused on the high end,(with only Intel going a bit more midrange),anything new would be potentially passing the ps3 launch price highwater mark. PS5 redesigns to increase margins make far more sense at this point...maybe even increase base storage capacity slightly?🤔
Not impossible to see an upgrade at some point, but seems a reach atm. Nevermind the on/off rumours that Series S is giving 3rd parties some headaches already.
@belmont Tintin in Tibet!!😲 That's right,my bad! Never played them,so just going off watching some longplays! Recall a 3d driving bit with Captain Haddock in Prisoners of the Sun?🤔
Loved Tintin in Tibet with Captain losing most of precious whiskey supplies until the Yeti pinched the last bottle on him!!😂 As always like spraying himself with bug spray,battling sticky plaster,claiming Cuthbert Calculus to be acting the goat,always waa his own worst enemy!!😅 "But had a loyalty that would move mountains".
Yep,guess they wanted to keep things focused on Tintin with the Cigars scenario...fingers crossed they still manage a decent game.🤞
The best looking,& rare Tintin adventures I'd seen on the internet/YouTube was I think a couple of Infogrames EU territories only efforts on Megadrive & Snes,think it was Seven Crystal Balls & Prisoners of the Sun? Visually looked the goods, but apparently rock hard even by 16bit platform action game standards! Possiblely MD had both games but Snes only got one.🤔
Given the book its based off,likely no Captain Haddock,as he didn't appear til Crab with the Golden Claws,I think?
@Arnna Yep,I'm one of those Resident Evil traditionalists that took ages slowly clearing areas out of zombies in the originals,(only for hunters or lickers to then clear out later!😱). Need to get back to RE 2 remake,but like RE 1 remake quite the adjustment to concepts like crimson zombies & needing to dash past areas! Nevermind Mr X's increased presence!!
@Zuljaras 😂 I'll always remember playing the ps2 version & after defeating various mega bosses like in the castle or beyond & kept thinking, okay this must be getting close to the finish,& nope a whole new section would happen! Nevermind keeping a save around a previous merchant location just in case I upgraded the wrong weapon ahead of the boss encounter!
Hope the ps4 version manages to hold up against the new gen ones!
Typically Microsoft to answer in their usual PR speak...their bots have been busy as have seen reports on other sites wherein they claim to be making PS Plus more "competitive"...what by removing AAA publishers like Zenimax Bethesda & now Activision Blizzard & their future games from PS platforms & tying them to ganepass?!🙄
Or where noted Xbox biased reporter Tom Warren having widely circulated twitter exchange with the Activision exec Lulu that's been running the anti Sony rhetoric stating Jim Ryan's answer to wanting to block the deal vs negotiating with Microsoft in allegedly "secret" exchanges to the regulatory authorities... not the first time the same Activision who were fine doing exclusive console marketing dlc deals until Bobby Kotick's mismanagement came to light & his execs went to Microsoft for a golden parachute bailout.
Gamepass only exists in its current format as Microsoft are bankrolling it...if they get the kind of dominance they have in other markets don't expect that to last.
@Rob_230 As I mentioned the other day,not only does "Gamer" Phil get a free pass from his acolytes & certain gaming media when they parrot his "Sony is anti gamer" & the only ones who engage in 3rd party timed exclusives narrative.
Not only do they ignore history of 360 era MS/Xbox,but even under Phil's watch games like Tomb Raider,& Gamepass timed exclusives where PS versions didn't appear until months later eg: Carrion,Death's Door & we never saw Octopath Traveller!
Likewise his laughable hypocrisy when he claims his "game by game",promises prior to the Zenimax Bethesda buyout never meant Starfield, Elder Scrolls, or other future releases would ever be coming to PS5 when anything not inked in a Sony contract was cancelled.
"Gamer" Phil Spencer who decries timed 3rd party deals yet literally has been forking out billions to paywall 3rd party AAA publishers & IP's exclusively behind Gamepass/Xbox because its easier to remove competition rather than invest same billions into creating their own!🙄
@Gamer_Guy Yep,played tables like Addams Family,Ripley's Believe or Not & other big name ones on my buddy's Pinball Arcade,hit the spot! I found an old obscure pinball I hadn't played in years called Eight-Ball,& bought it the moment I saw it!👍
Yep,wish I could say I'm surprised,but when you're dealing with governmental authorities inexperience in the subject,(in this case the games industry),& politics are a bad mix.
Microsoft being a multi trillion company have far reach in several areas,whether OS,Cloud etc. Keeping in mind companies like Facebook, Amazon & co.,have grown into megacorps.
For "Gamer" Phil & co.,to suggest the Ninty deal is a sign of their good intentions when Activision ignored Switch as unprofitable shows how shoddy the whole exercise is.
Zenimax Bethesda buyout showed how quickly Xbox moved to make previously 3rd party IP's & studios exclusive. Microsoft have openly argued that their previous exclusives ala Halo,Gears, Fable,Forza weren't enough so as they should be allowed to buy up as many 3rd party AAA publishers & IP's until it can shut out Sony.
Much like the line in Revenge of the Sith, undoubtedly to the thunderous applause of thousands of Xbots....at least til they find they'll only be able to rent games!🙄
Not that they'll happen,but since Microsoft is suddenly so interested in disclosures,it'd be interesting to see a comparative breakdown not only of what they pay to different publishers on gamepass deals but also any exclusivity they might stipulate that's been part of their inclusion- since Phil Spencer keeps pushing the narrative its only Sony. Likewise,a full disclosure on how much Microsoft has bankrolled gamepass to undercut rival services,as pretty sure if the Xbox division were sold off as a separate entity,(or they come to dominate the console scene like they do Operating Systems & cloud & other services), you could kiss those $1 upgrade deals goodbye!
Unfortunately,always felt M$ will ultimately get away with the deal,but its bad for gaming when a 2trillion plus revenue company can keep buying up all the major 3rd party AAA publishers it wants just to keep them off rival platforms whilst crying foul about "competition",when its company history has been a catalogue of monopoly dominance!😕
@Gamer_Guy Still give my ps4 a spin with it. Didn't pick up as many tables as a buddy of mine but everything felt just right & snappy. Had a try of older Pinball Fx but just felt a touch more floaty ball at the time. Moreso just hate the paywalling like has been done here.
@4kgk2 well when you have the same acolytes preach "Gamer" Phil Spencer's latest COD DLC for all nonsensical statements claiming timed exclusives "are not we're about",& yet Xbox have used the corporate credit card literally spending billions on Zenimax Bethesda & Activision to keep future 3rd party IP's permanently off Playstation says all you to know about their logic!🙄😂
@Rob_230 Yep,100% this! We could've just had a great single player game of Jade going after P'eyj & fix the primitive camera of the original game with a God of War style modern day one....but no, we had to get a live service based MMO thing with swearing gorillas & a maybe a sequel,maybe a prequel in name only!!😑🙄
Its a shame that for all the dev studio start-ups & purchases of PC & Mobile dev studios by Sony that a similar effort to set up a studio dedicated to PS Classics/making definitive software ps1/ps2 emulated games run as well or better than those created by the home brew emulators.
Sadly unlike upcoming live service games it just isn't seen as a money maker by the bean counters despite the fact the legacy PS library would be a great selling point.😕
@Rob_230 Been finding it a bit rich for Xbox owners crying foul or accusing Sony of double standards "buying exclusivity" when they've been buying up Zenimax Bethesda,InExile & Obsidian & cornering the vast majority of the western rpg market!🙄
Agree regarding Octopath Traveller though I think it only just recently left Gamepass? It'd be nice to see the first game get a shadowdrop but who knows if the gamepass deal didn't exclude a PS version being developed at the time...look how long it took the original Mass Effect took to come to PS3,back in the day!
Although this article is a tad old,have to disagree that Shuhei Yoshida wasn't an active poster. With maybe the exception of when Shawn Layden was still there,Yosp was probably one of the most active...if anything his presence has increased since heading the 3rd party/Indie relations with Greg Rice.
Microsoft/XB: We haven't been able to manage 90%+ dominance like we do with Windows on PC despite Forza,Halo,Gears,& buying up all the Zenimax Bethesda IP's & cornering most of those western rpg devs dammit! So we should be able to keep buying up as many other AAA publishers & IP's to keep 'em off Playstation as we want!🙄
Funny how all those Gamepass metrics which include PC's & Xcloud etc.,don't get an airing here or Gamer Phil's aspirations to push for billions of gamepass subs like they truly intend to chase cornering the major 3rd party IP's like this.😂 So suddenly Xbox sales matter again despite their insistence actual unit sales didn't matter since the XB 360 era!
@Shepherd_Tallon Hasn't been that many 3rd party psp/ps1 classics thus far,most of the Sony published ones seem to release with an option to purchase regardless of your PS Plus level.
The main exceptions I'd seen were Bandai Namco tying Tekken 2 behind Deluxe/Prwmium & sadly Capcom with Resident Evil...whilst the latter apparently can be purchased via ps3 & be added to your ps4/5 library,never saw Dino Crisis on the EU/AU PS3 store,so I fear if it ever arrives it'll be subscription only!😕
@Ralizah Guess we'll find out in due course but ps1/psp classics like Hots Shots Golf etc.,have generally appeared on the new releases around $15 down under psn region...ironically despite a scornful tweet from one of the original Tekken devs on the initial $999 price tag of Tekken 2, its Namco Bandai & Capcom classic titles that are unavailable to buy on ps4/5 unless you subscribe to Premium/Deluxe or via ps3.
@Rob_230 Not forgetting the other often repeated hypocritical lie heavily pushed on gaming news sites & socials of "Sony pays to keep games off gamepass!",whilst conveniently overlooking several indie games appearing on gamepass as timed exclusives with PS versions months later (if at all),or ones like Octpath Traveller never appearing,(yet here PS is getting the sequel!).
Or how Bethesda RPG's suddenly went from AAA to being more akin to niche market indie titles when they successfully making their case to Brazilian authorities,justifying the lack of future Elder Scrolls,or planned PS Starfield versions etc!🙄
This is a slur,an outrage!😱 Gamer Phil would NEVER lie!!🤯😋 I mean,Bobby Kotick & his Activision cohorts have been quite vocal recently advocating for the Xbox buyout & gamepass growing the Activision player base but for that dastardly Sony paying for marketing & timed exclusive dlc rights (& Bobby Kotick's 3rd mansion in the Bahamas)! 🤣 Yet in private,no surprise like Take-two with GTA, they rather like premium price points & premium live services to go with it!!😂
@get2sammyb Lost count of the times I've seen indie game launch announcements on twitter & Xbox players insisting they'll play it..."so long as it comes to gamepass"...the narrative/delusion is very real as is the disbelief that Microsoft's bankrolling of Gamepass & the AAA publisher buyouts aren't about muscling Sony out its current gaming space.
Competition is good for gamers as is choice. Not a great fan of Playstation's disdain for services like its lack of classics range & cheap emulation efforts of ps1/2 etc.,gaming accessibility.
But when you're old enough to remember the Computer & OS wars & Microsoft's bully boy tactics then,& compare how much more invasive their services like Windows 11 are,it serves as a warning that big corporates are not your friend, & be even more wary when they desperately want deals like Activision Blizzard to go through!
@Cutmastavictory Who could forget that original tongue in cheek E3 trailer with the jogger?!😁 Quite the opposite in tone to the original Dead Island trailer!
"Sony's trying to sabotage this deal!!" Says the genius who took Blizzard from a "it'll be released when its done",to releasing bugfests like Warcraft 3 remastered? From reducing Activision from a multi faceted publisher to being a largely one trick (albeit massive cashcow),in Call of Duty & was quite happy to receive the timed exclusive dlc pay checks from Xbox/MS then undoubtedly even bigger ones from Sony since the start of the ps4 generation? The same genius who happily cull hundreds of employees if it meant protecting his precious bonus & 2023 home Sauna & spa extension? The genius who drove the multi billion Activision Blizzard reputation & share price into such a vulnerable position due to years of mismanagement,& cover-ups that the current board gladly took the gold watch retirement package funded by Phil Spencer's corporate credit card?
It'd almost be funny to compare "Gamer" Phil's carefully curated "gaming for all,game by game" rhetoric prior to the Zenimax Bethesda buyout where both parties were at great pains to emphasise Xbox/MS had no direct control or influence in operations until the deal passed regulators & was finalised....but in contrast Activision Blizzard has acted like its already a wholly owned division of M$!🙄
So will they have extra content...namely where they go around Capcom & find the Ace Attorney Investigations 1 & 2 & finally get them out too alongside the remaining AA games yet to get modern ports?😋 Jokes aside,was always a tad curious but never took the bite & regretted it. Nice to see its return!
@Bionic-Spencer Yep,after "Gamer" Phil Spencer's pre-purchase promises of Zenimax "game by game",& quickly axing titles like Starfield,Elder Scrolls & anything else not inked in pre existing contracts,it's niave in the extreme to believe Xbox/Microsoft wouldn't exercise the same behaviour with all the backlog of IP's in Activision Blizzard's closet!
Saw an article on Kotaku AU where Bobby Kotick again trying to tie TV show spin-offs & the number of successful single player games that Sony & Nintendo have created equals a monopoly that must be stopped by little old Indie start-up Microsoft,USA,USA,USA!🙄
How Xbox's "failure" to spread beyond Forza, Halo, Fable,Gears of War, somehow justifies their buying up all the 3rd party publishers & their back catalogue of IP's just to prevent their appearance on rival platforms is considered competitive?
The current Activision board are just looking for a nice gold watch retirement package to make up for their blundering mismanagement.
I'm sorry,did I miss the part where Sony has deep pockets in having dominated the PC Operating system scene for decades now, has transitioned its dominance in its Office suite to mostly being subscription based (vs buying it outright anymore),nevermind its presence in Azure/Cloud services?🤔🙄
There's been a couple or more Halo spin-offs, so by her standards shouldn't that rule them out too?!😅 The "Xbox/Microsoft is just a small indie startup" is getting a bit ridiculous...this is all about getting Bobby Kotick's management tanking Activision's value bailed out on a nice Microsoft funded golden parachute.🙄
Not that I totally disliked the Anna Torv version but the OG game version was the best version wherein Annie's version depicted her as a rightly feared & respected badass to then flipping that entirely on its head when insisting Joel complete the task & take Ellie to Bill & Frank's,with that emotive speech teasing but never revealing the true nature of their past together.
Part of me would've liked to have seen a prequel or dlc explore that backstory further though much like Anakin in the Star Wars prequels it would've had an inevitable dark finale so possibly for the best we didn't find out.
In any case,the definitive Tess & way too young. Cancer can bugger off. RIP & thank you Annie.
@ShogunRok Unless they do a Square Enix down the line & announce a "remaster" ala Dragon Quest but as a totally separate edition whether on ps4 or ps5 but essentially it'll be the Ninty/PC one! 🙄
Haven't finished Blazing Chrome yet,but same team did this i believe. Absolutely love those who keep the 16bit style alive & make them play as well they look with lots of TLC! 👍
Ubisoft: We've delayed Skull & Bones slightly to polish the look of the water...noone will have better looking water than Skull & Bones!!😋😂
Also Ubisoft Exec 1: Why aren't people buying our samey live service games...are we out of touch? Executive 2: Just Dance & Mario+Rabbids had single player modes,didn't they? Why waste $$ on that? We'll tell 'em they can make their own stories up online,especially when there's not much else to do in those open world fetch quests!🙄😂
Heaven forbid for the days when they made games like the Splinter Cell series,or Beyond Good & Evil,or Rayman etc.,that actually focused on a good story or were fun to play,rather than online grindfests!🙄
There's absolutely scope for having multiple editions of ps1,ps2 etc era anthologies & having historical anecdotes would be icing on the cake.
Likewise you could say the same for other companies...eg: a Capcom one with the Resident Evil series,or their RPG's,or Ghosts'n'Goblins series into the Maximo ones....
Unfortunately,one only has to look at the PS Classic,or more recently PS Deluxe wherein there's been no effort to overhaul the basic, buggy ps2 classics on ps4 emulation & add further games,& just a handful of mostly lacklustre psp/ ps1 games....current management are mostly interested in expanding to live service games or remasters tied into TV/movie spin-offs.
When they throw crumbs of poor effort emulation that don't sell well,it perfectly serves their argument "it isn't popular"....would be nice if instead of splashing out for mobile game devs they spent the money on a legacy game/emulation studio that concentrated on bringing ps1/ps2 (even ps3),era games back with the sort of emulation/love to details they deserve!
@Quintumply What's probably more ironic is remember when the creator of Tekken was quite vocal in blaming Sony when ps1 Tekken 2 was listed at a ridiculous price point...when the reality its Bandai Namco,joined Campcom in making their games unpurchaseable on ps4/5 platforms!🙄😑
Fully agree that the expressions of the FTC's concerns,& moreso Microsoft/Xbox's track record speaks for itself that this is a poor deal for gamers....that is,any gamers that play on systems in direct competition to XB.
Phil Spencer made such a big deal about 3rd party timed exclusives being anti-gamer & then spun the "gaming for all" rhetoric during the lead up to the Zenimax purchase only to show their true intent once the ink dried & anything not already under contract with Sony instantly went exclusive. It's been laughable to hear them arguing in Europe that titles like Elder Scrolls were small selling franchises like they were an indie developer! As it stands,for all the rhetoric of "But what about FF7 remake!",XB/MS has been quietly cornering the western rpg IP's under their exclusive umbrella already.
Likewise,for all the PR War/carrot dangling of COD,the silence on the rest of the IP's like Crash,Spyro,future Diablo/Starcraft,etc. have been deafening. Rather than bother investing billions into creating new IP's,Phil Spencer has been weilding the corporate credit card & taking the easier route of buying existing entire AAA publishers & use the established 3rd parties & Gamepass as a means to block competition including timed exclusives or PS Plus etc. Timed exclusives are annoying...but they are timed...even Square recently stated its unlikely to continue doing one format releases in the future like it had been this past ps4/ps5 gen.
As to if this'll survive the courts & a desperate Bobby Kotick looking for a golden parachute out of his mismanagement? Maybe not due to years of mega corps like Google,FB,Disney etc. But it'll be a thorn in their side from doing much meantime.
Still curious how much of a story campaign there'll be in this in comparison to the inevitable online mode(s) with mtx? 🤔
Like it or hate it though,given the way Xbox/MS is gobbling up the 3rd party western themed RPG's/ARPG devs/publishers there'll be fewer opportunities for PS players so enjoy the opportunities whilst there still available! (Slightly off topic,but can't help but think CDPR could be a future XB target for similar reasons at this rate).
Oh yes,that lovely PR machine chestnut again of "Let there be competition!!"...saysthe 2 trillion dollar Microsoft whom rather than spending 70billion on creating their own IP's,instead buys out one of the biggest AAA 3rd party publishers so it can restrict the potential future releases to maybe just one IP (at its discretion),as well as which subscription service.🙄
The same 2 trillion dollar "indie" who also killed off PS5 versions of Starfield & Elder Scrolls 6 the moment the ink dried on the Zenimax deal whilst initially spouting the same "gaming for all" mantra & Gamer Phil's infamous timed exclusives are anti gamer rantings?
Yes,all console makers engage in 3rd party deals, like it or hate it...but to pretend Xbox is just a tiny little indie developer when their parent company is actively spending billions buying up the biggest AAA Publishers & 3rd parties around to do the exact opposite of what defines competition & get away with it truly astounds.
@get2sammyb It still seems bizarre how despite marketing PS Deluxe/Premiun as a tier for PS1,PS2 & PSP games alongside streamable PS3 titles,the reality seems to have been a relatively poor ps1 emulation with promises of dual NTSC/PAL version choice abandoned for further titles,literally a couple of PS2 titles rebadged from the PS4 Classics range & no attempt to redo or improve that ps2 emulator which leaves a sporadic few psp "new" releases! 😕
The whole exercise seemed little more than a rebadge of PS Now which still remains unavailable for most psn regions For a revamp meant to gain more subscribers, Sony's reluctance to expand it seems destined to let it wither on the vine & again claim legacy psn support isn't popular when the reality is they haven't really committed resources to it.😕
After all the promises made during the Zenimax purchase I tend to take any public promises of COD staying multiplatform with a pinch of salt. Note however not a snippet of a suggestion of any other Activision Blizzard IP's seeing Playstation sequels.
Keeping in mind that for all the FF7/XVI timed exclusives XB/MS have cornered the vast majority of the western RPG AA/AAA developers already & just a cheque away from buying CDPR. Not to mention they've already indicated they're keen to make more buyouts including the Japanese market too.
All that means either Sony has to pursue further buyouts or spread themselves thin developing other games eg rpg's etc.,that have traditionally relied on 3rd parties for.
Gamepass might seem wonderful value for day 1 indie games alongside the eventual heavy hitters of Starfield,Elder Scrolls,COD,Diablo, Fallout etc., but if they're the only service to offer them one has to doubt those $1 XB live gold to gamepass deals would stick around....much less the concept of buying games.
Do I think the U.S. authorities would block such a deal? In this day & age of Facebook, Amazon,Apple & juggernauts like Tencent & Netease,its unlikely...but contrary to the nonsense XB have been spouting,you can't have competition when there's less viable players in the market.
Microsoft: We can't make games as critically good as Playstation!!🤯 Also Microsoft: But we can sink billions into buying 3rd party publishers & all the 3rd party IP's that were multiplatform & keep them off the competition going forward instead of creating our own,that's just waaay too much work!!😂🙄
@DualWielding @Rob_230 Not only haven't they added any PS2 games since the defunct PS4 range,I seem to recall noting several of those titles were listed as incompatible or "significant issues" working on PS5 list.
It saddens me that for all the millions being spent on live service games studios,mobile studios etc.,the current PS management seem totally indifferent to putting any resources into a studio or two like a Digital Eclipse that could develop a good emulation base for PS1 & PS2 classics to work properly & with good features for a true classic games library to be converted/made available!
Nevermind a similar group to maybe redo some of the PS3 back catalogue if emulation is considered too hard for the PS5.
The current strategy of relying on effectively PS Now streaming not only feels cheap,but where are they supposed to source more of the server blades to roll out in regions like mine where PS Now never existed? Given PS Deluxe probably exists in more regions than those with Premium,they're reaping $20/year more than Extra (my region. Nearly double the 12month price of Essential overall),for a retro games library that's barely been added to & certainly lacking PS2 Classics like the recent Premium additions of Ratchet & Clank & Sly Cooper!
Instead we get silence & a hope the issue goes away or Jim Ryan to again claim Classic Games aren't popular with low Premium/Deluxe metric usage when the reality is they never really backed it in the first place!
@thedevilsjester Still is an issue on older Plus titles,sadly! They did change it a little while ago obviously,but seems like in those instances they release a "plus" version & there's the store version.
@get2sammyb Despite Playstation management claiming to always be "listening" to feedback whether the blog/Twitter etc.,the utter silence they've given to PS Deluxe regions & indeed the entire subject of people asking where are the ps1/ps2 classics additions has me shaking my head!
Whilst a full on remake will hopefully not turn into another Ubi live service grindfest,it's still saddens me another opportunity for an updated,working ps2 classics emulation for Deluxe/Premium to release the OG series or port the HD Trilogy (rather than be locked into PS Now type streaming),over goes begging!
Though more a Sony issue than just Ubisoft, it does highlight again the lack of effort in updating/ replacing the old ps2 classics emulation with an improved,working one on ps4/5.
There's money to be made in classics Mr Ryan,it just helps if you have a management that doesn't do it on the cheap & then claims it isn't popular to justify the expense!
Comments 1,489
Re: Mini Review: Dredge (PS5) - Eerie Fishing Adventure Will Reel You In
Though it doesn't sound like it has a deep narrative to it,the fact it has a spooky element mixed in with the more sedate fishing element has me intrigued!
Few bills & indies wanting my attention but will definitely be on the wishlists so I remember it!
Re: UK Regulator No Longer Concerned About Activision Buyout's Impact on Console Competition
Whilst the twitter bots,acolytes & their gaming press buddies will be cheering from the rafters, it doesn't detract that Microsoft buying up the entire Activision Blizzard catalogue & making it exclusive & quietly killing off multiformat releases just like they did with Zenimax will be good for gamers.
They won't stop there. Again,insists Sony can make their own COD alternative whilst spending 70 billion to buy COD,Diablo,Starcraft,Crash, etc., rather than make its own IP.🙄
Re: U.S. Senator Says Sony Has 'Monopoly' on High-End Japanese Game Market
The irony that (as far as I'm aware,not US person here),it was after the administration change to the current President/government that the new FTC admin actually took an interest in investigating after years of monopolies like Disney,Google Amazon, Microsoft etc.,being able to get bigger & use their monopoly unchecked!
But like most other things there,powerful "lobbying"/donations to the political overlords & ignorance of the games industry sadly means Microsoft has a long reach financially. There's already been the scare campaign of "Activision could be bought by Tencent!",when the reality is Activision shareholders really need to cut the deadweight Bobby Kotick management team rather than give them Microsoft funded golden parachutes to cash out.
Its no different than little indie Microsoft claiming Sony can make their own COD whilst spending 70 billion to buy up COD & undoubtedly repeat what they did with Zenimax & cancel any in development Playstation games & make COD exclusive as soon as they're able to. 😕
Re: Atari to Acquire Retro Restoration Specialists Nightdive Studios
@pip_muzz This exactly! Makes you wonder if Atari MkV approached them first & knocked back.
Whereas Nightdive had to essentially had to budget a reboot of their botched System Shock kickstarter,& other recent missteps like trying to fix up the Blade Runner ports,(which got refused classification down under on console & seemingly Nightdive never bothered trying to appeal or adjust & refused to acknowledge on twitter etc.).
They have proven they can do a quality job,but maybe recent projects left them a bit more vulnerable to a buyout?🤔
Given this current Atari MkV,(or whatever it is from OG & Tramiel Atari),have offloaded some of its past IP pick-ups,it curious just what the previously independent Nightdive will be able to work on?
Surely can't just be 2600/7800 remakes?
Re: Vampire FPS Redfall Was in Development for PS5, But Was Canned After Xbox Buyout
Exhibit A of Microsoft's/Xbox definition of hypocrisy & what adding Activision Blizzard & any further AAA publishers to a monopoly is a bas idea.
Still defies logic how Sony's been singled out for "timed exclusives are anti-gamer" Gamer Phil, but permanently blocking previously 3rd party AAA publishers,devs & IP's are okay if they're the struggling 2 trillion plus Indie monopoly Microsoft Xbox because in their own submissions to authorities they weren't coming up with enough in-house exclusives so they should be allowed to paywall the 3rd party ones instead!!🙄
The irony they're claiming Sony could make their own COD but are spending 70 billion just to buy the AAA publisher that makes it instead of expanding Halo/Gears or making their own COD exposes everything you need to know about their behaviour!
Re: Action RPG Hunt the Night Set to Slay Evil on PS5 and PS4
@wiiware Unfortunately Eastward is a bit of a moot point for comparison for PS owners! Chucklefish the publisher recently hyped up a gamepass/XB port,but remain unenthusiastic/ mute on twitter posts regarding PS4/5 versions like they have on most of their current works. 😕
Its a shame as it looks interesting,but like the detective one Loco Motive in the works, suspect I'll just sit on eventually trying it on PC.
Hope this plays as nicely as it looks! Apparently been in development since 2019,& no fixed dates on the console ports,but seemingly been working on modes like new game plus based off previous demo feedback.🤔
Again,if the final product comes out as playing as nicely as the trailer,the waiting will hopefully be worth it.
Re: Best GTA Games
PS2 era GTA remains the best GTA IMHO. (Enjoyed original top down GTA on ps1,though it obviously aged). Never quite jelled with GTA IV, Nico just didn't appeal enough to stick with it...unlike RDR 1 & John Marston which i couldn't put down!
GTA V changed things around with the triple protagonists...but have never liked,(just like RDR 2),how they baked monetisation in for the cashcow that became the online mode with the stock market mechanism...which puts me firmly in the minority,I know!😅
Would place GTA LCS over GTA 3,if only as getting mowed down for passing through past areas in GTA 3 waa a pain in the butt.
Vice City & VCS will remain my favourites for soundtracks & atmosphere,(albeit Vic Vance not quite as appealing character vs Vercetti or CJ). San Andreas just behind Vice City,just those dreaded RC missions were truly nightmare fuel only matched passing the "schools" for cars, planes & boats!
Nitpicking aside,they parodied the 80's & 90s so well,not to mention other games etc. You just wanted to cruise around to hear the DJ chatter & music.👍
Its a shame Take-two & Rockstar think so little of their single player era the Trilogy was offloaded (& one suspects probably RDR would've been too),to the likes of Grove Street Games who were woefully out of their depth & should've been handled in-house.
Re: Sigh! For the Record, Sony Is Not Making a Superman PS5 Exclusive
Microsoft/XB really want to go down the "they got Spiderman!!",exclusive rabbit hole? What the same one that Disney offered them first & apparently rejected?!🙄
And since Gamer Phil keeps espousing through the Twitter bots & games news sites of their "spreading to more gamers" mantra PR Blitz, that means Indiana Jones will get an all platforms release....or will that be another "indie" title like Starfield,Elders Scrolls,Redwall etc ,Phil?🙄
Again,the hypocrisy of MS/XB to say buying up the major AAA Publishers & cherry pick what IP's if any get released elsewhere,(with most releases going exclusive),is "competition" when the reality is its removing future games off their main competitor & is bankrolled by a parent company well known for its monopolistic practices defies belief of its true motives.😕
Re: Action RPG Hunt the Night Set to Slay Evil on PS5 and PS4
Much like Blazing Chrome,I don't mind a knock off if they take the time & effort to make it a good one!
Unfortunate a few too many wallet munching bills to likely be a day one buy,but certainly will be on the radar now!👍😎
Re: Rumour: PS5 Pro Targeting Potential 2024 Release
As others have noted,unless there's some sort of compelling TV tech complimenting things,it would seem unlikely.
Given that the PC GFX card market remains largely focused on the high end,(with only Intel going a bit more midrange),anything new would be potentially passing the ps3 launch price highwater mark.
PS5 redesigns to increase margins make far more sense at this point...maybe even increase base storage capacity slightly?🤔
Not impossible to see an upgrade at some point, but seems a reach atm. Nevermind the on/off rumours that Series S is giving 3rd parties some headaches already.
Re: Tintin Reporter - Cigars of the Pharoah Uncovers Adventure of Epic Proportions on PS5, PS4
@belmont Tintin in Tibet!!😲 That's right,my bad! Never played them,so just going off watching some longplays! Recall a 3d driving bit with Captain Haddock in Prisoners of the Sun?🤔
Loved Tintin in Tibet with Captain losing most of precious whiskey supplies until the Yeti pinched the last bottle on him!!😂 As always like spraying himself with bug spray,battling sticky plaster,claiming Cuthbert Calculus to be acting the goat,always waa his own worst enemy!!😅
"But had a loyalty that would move mountains".
Yep,guess they wanted to keep things focused on Tintin with the Cigars scenario...fingers crossed they still manage a decent game.🤞
Re: Tintin Reporter - Cigars of the Pharoah Uncovers Adventure of Epic Proportions on PS5, PS4
The best looking,& rare Tintin adventures I'd seen on the internet/YouTube was I think a couple of Infogrames EU territories only efforts on Megadrive & Snes,think it was Seven Crystal Balls & Prisoners of the Sun? Visually looked the goods, but apparently rock hard even by 16bit platform action game standards! Possiblely MD had both games but Snes only got one.🤔
Given the book its based off,likely no Captain Haddock,as he didn't appear til Crab with the Golden Claws,I think?
Re: Resident Evil 4 PS5 Remake Spoilers Are Rife As Retailers Break Street Date
@Arnna Yep,I'm one of those Resident Evil traditionalists that took ages slowly clearing areas out of zombies in the originals,(only for hunters or lickers to then clear out later!😱).
Need to get back to RE 2 remake,but like RE 1 remake quite the adjustment to concepts like crimson zombies & needing to dash past areas!
Nevermind Mr X's increased presence!!
Re: Resident Evil 4 PS5 Remake Spoilers Are Rife As Retailers Break Street Date
@Zuljaras 😂 I'll always remember playing the ps2 version & after defeating various mega bosses like in the castle or beyond & kept thinking, okay this must be getting close to the finish,& nope a whole new section would happen!
Nevermind keeping a save around a previous merchant location just in case I upgraded the wrong weapon ahead of the boss encounter!
Hope the ps4 version manages to hold up against the new gen ones!
Re: Sony Concerned Microsoft Could, Knowingly or Not, Sabotage Call of Duty on PlayStation
Typically Microsoft to answer in their usual PR speak...their bots have been busy as have seen reports on other sites wherein they claim to be making PS Plus more "competitive"...what by removing AAA publishers like Zenimax Bethesda & now Activision Blizzard & their future games from PS platforms & tying them to ganepass?!🙄
Or where noted Xbox biased reporter Tom Warren having widely circulated twitter exchange with the Activision exec Lulu that's been running the anti Sony rhetoric stating Jim Ryan's answer to wanting to block the deal vs negotiating with Microsoft in allegedly "secret" exchanges to the regulatory authorities... not the first time the same Activision who were fine doing exclusive console marketing dlc deals until Bobby Kotick's mismanagement came to light & his execs went to Microsoft for a golden parachute bailout.
Gamepass only exists in its current format as Microsoft are bankrolling it...if they get the kind of dominance they have in other markets don't expect that to last.
Re: Xbox Execs Eager to Save Call of Duty Fans from PS5, PS4 Exclusive Perks
@Rob_230 As I mentioned the other day,not only does "Gamer" Phil get a free pass from his acolytes & certain gaming media when they parrot his "Sony is anti gamer" & the only ones who engage in 3rd party timed exclusives narrative.
Not only do they ignore history of 360 era MS/Xbox,but even under Phil's watch games like Tomb Raider,& Gamepass timed exclusives where PS versions didn't appear until months later eg: Carrion,Death's Door & we never saw Octopath Traveller!
Likewise his laughable hypocrisy when he claims his "game by game",promises prior to the Zenimax Bethesda buyout never meant Starfield, Elder Scrolls, or other future releases would ever be coming to PS5 when anything not inked in a Sony contract was cancelled.
"Gamer" Phil Spencer who decries timed 3rd party deals yet literally has been forking out billions to paywall 3rd party AAA publishers & IP's exclusively behind Gamepass/Xbox because its easier to remove competition rather than invest same billions into creating their own!🙄
Re: Pinball FX (PS5) - Messy Monetisation Overshadows Enormous Pinball Package
@Gamer_Guy Yep,played tables like Addams Family,Ripley's Believe or Not & other big name ones on my buddy's Pinball Arcade,hit the spot!
I found an old obscure pinball I hadn't played in years called Eight-Ball,& bought it the moment I saw it!👍
Re: European Union Likely to Pass Xbox's $69 Billion Buyout of Activision
Yep,wish I could say I'm surprised,but when you're dealing with governmental authorities inexperience in the subject,(in this case the games industry),& politics are a bad mix.
Microsoft being a multi trillion company have far reach in several areas,whether OS,Cloud etc. Keeping in mind companies like Facebook, Amazon & co.,have grown into megacorps.
For "Gamer" Phil & co.,to suggest the Ninty deal is a sign of their good intentions when Activision ignored Switch as unprofitable shows how shoddy the whole exercise is.
Zenimax Bethesda buyout showed how quickly Xbox moved to make previously 3rd party IP's & studios exclusive. Microsoft have openly argued that their previous exclusives ala Halo,Gears, Fable,Forza weren't enough so as they should be allowed to buy up as many 3rd party AAA publishers & IP's until it can shut out Sony.
Much like the line in Revenge of the Sith, undoubtedly to the thunderous applause of thousands of Xbots....at least til they find they'll only be able to rent games!🙄
Re: Sony Must Share Details of Exclusivity Deals with Microsoft in FTC's Court Hearing
Not that they'll happen,but since Microsoft is suddenly so interested in disclosures,it'd be interesting to see a comparative breakdown not only of what they pay to different publishers on gamepass deals but also any exclusivity they might stipulate that's been part of their inclusion- since Phil Spencer keeps pushing the narrative its only Sony.
Likewise,a full disclosure on how much Microsoft has bankrolled gamepass to undercut rival services,as pretty sure if the Xbox division were sold off as a separate entity,(or they come to dominate the console scene like they do Operating Systems & cloud & other services), you could kiss those $1 upgrade deals goodbye!
Unfortunately,always felt M$ will ultimately get away with the deal,but its bad for gaming when a 2trillion plus revenue company can keep buying up all the major 3rd party AAA publishers it wants just to keep them off rival platforms whilst crying foul about "competition",when its company history has been a catalogue of monopoly dominance!😕
Re: Pinball FX (PS5) - Messy Monetisation Overshadows Enormous Pinball Package
@Gamer_Guy Still give my ps4 a spin with it. Didn't pick up as many tables as a buddy of mine but everything felt just right & snappy.
Had a try of older Pinball Fx but just felt a touch more floaty ball at the time.
Moreso just hate the paywalling like has been done here.
Re: Yes, Sony Helped Optimise Final Fantasy 16 for PS5
@4kgk2 well when you have the same acolytes preach "Gamer" Phil Spencer's latest COD DLC for all nonsensical statements claiming timed exclusives "are not we're about",& yet Xbox have used the corporate credit card literally spending billions on Zenimax Bethesda & Activision to keep future 3rd party IP's permanently off Playstation says all you to know about their logic!🙄😂
Re: Beyond Good & Evil 2 Reportedly Loses Studio Head, French Labor Investigation Begins
@Rob_230 Yep,100% this! We could've just had a great single player game of Jade going after P'eyj & fix the primitive camera of the original game with a God of War style modern day one....but no, we had to get a live service based MMO thing with swearing gorillas & a maybe a sequel,maybe a prequel in name only!!😑🙄
Re: Sony Somehow Screwed Up The Legend of Dragoon on PS5, PS4
Its a shame that for all the dev studio start-ups & purchases of PC & Mobile dev studios by Sony that a similar effort to set up a studio dedicated to PS Classics/making definitive software ps1/ps2 emulated games run as well or better than those created by the home brew emulators.
Sadly unlike upcoming live service games it just isn't seen as a money maker by the bean counters despite the fact the legacy PS library would be a great selling point.😕
Re: Sony Has No Console Exclusivity Over Baldur's Gate 3
@Rob_230 Been finding it a bit rich for Xbox owners crying foul or accusing Sony of double standards "buying exclusivity" when they've been buying up Zenimax Bethesda,InExile & Obsidian & cornering the vast majority of the western rpg market!🙄
Agree regarding Octopath Traveller though I think it only just recently left Gamepass? It'd be nice to see the first game get a shadowdrop but who knows if the gamepass deal didn't exclude a PS version being developed at the time...look how long it took the original Mass Effect took to come to PS3,back in the day!
Re: Gallery: PlayStation Studios Boss Hermen Hulst's Twitter Avatars Are Just the Best
Although this article is a tad old,have to disagree that Shuhei Yoshida wasn't an active poster. With maybe the exception of when Shawn Layden was still there,Yosp was probably one of the most active...if anything his presence has increased since heading the 3rd party/Indie relations with Greg Rice.
Re: Xbox Series X|S Is Getting Trounced by PS5, Microsoft Weirdly Reveals
Microsoft/XB: We haven't been able to manage 90%+ dominance like we do with Windows on PC despite Forza,Halo,Gears,& buying up all the Zenimax Bethesda IP's & cornering most of those western rpg devs dammit! So we should be able to keep buying up as many other AAA publishers & IP's to keep 'em off Playstation as we want!🙄
Funny how all those Gamepass metrics which include PC's & Xcloud etc.,don't get an airing here or Gamer Phil's aspirations to push for billions of gamepass subs like they truly intend to chase cornering the major 3rd party IP's like this.😂
So suddenly Xbox sales matter again despite their insistence actual unit sales didn't matter since the XB 360 era!
Re: New PS1 Classics Can Be Bought Off the PS Store
@Shepherd_Tallon Hasn't been that many 3rd party psp/ps1 classics thus far,most of the Sony published ones seem to release with an option to purchase regardless of your PS Plus level.
The main exceptions I'd seen were Bandai Namco tying Tekken 2 behind Deluxe/Prwmium & sadly Capcom with Resident Evil...whilst the latter apparently can be purchased via ps3 & be added to your ps4/5 library,never saw Dino Crisis on the EU/AU PS3 store,so I fear if it ever arrives it'll be subscription only!😕
Re: PS1 Classic The Legend of Dragoon Does Indeed Have Trophies on PS5, PS4
@Ralizah Guess we'll find out in due course but ps1/psp classics like Hots Shots Golf etc.,have generally appeared on the new releases around $15 down under psn region...ironically despite a scornful tweet from one of the original Tekken devs on the initial $999 price tag of Tekken 2, its Namco Bandai & Capcom classic titles that are unavailable to buy on ps4/5 unless you subscribe to Premium/Deluxe or via ps3.
Re: Microsoft Admits Xbox Game Pass Is Harming Software Sales After All
@Rob_230 Not forgetting the other often repeated hypocritical lie heavily pushed on gaming news sites & socials of "Sony pays to keep games off gamepass!",whilst conveniently overlooking several indie games appearing on gamepass as timed exclusives with PS versions months later (if at all),or ones like Octpath Traveller never appearing,(yet here PS is getting the sequel!).
Or how Bethesda RPG's suddenly went from AAA to being more akin to niche market indie titles when they successfully making their case to Brazilian authorities,justifying the lack of future Elder Scrolls,or planned PS Starfield versions etc!🙄
Re: Microsoft Admits Xbox Game Pass Is Harming Software Sales After All
This is a slur,an outrage!😱 Gamer Phil would NEVER lie!!🤯😋
I mean,Bobby Kotick & his Activision cohorts have been quite vocal recently advocating for the Xbox buyout & gamepass growing the Activision player base but for that dastardly Sony paying for marketing & timed exclusive dlc rights (& Bobby Kotick's 3rd mansion in the Bahamas)! 🤣
Yet in private,no surprise like Take-two with GTA, they rather like premium price points & premium live services to go with it!!😂
@get2sammyb Lost count of the times I've seen indie game launch announcements on twitter & Xbox players insisting they'll play it..."so long as it comes to gamepass"...the narrative/delusion is very real as is the disbelief that Microsoft's bankrolling of Gamepass & the AAA publisher buyouts aren't about muscling Sony out its current gaming space.
Competition is good for gamers as is choice. Not a great fan of Playstation's disdain for services like its lack of classics range & cheap emulation efforts of ps1/2 etc.,gaming accessibility.
But when you're old enough to remember the Computer & OS wars & Microsoft's bully boy tactics then,& compare how much more invasive their services like Windows 11 are,it serves as a warning that big corporates are not your friend, & be even more wary when they desperately want deals like Activision Blizzard to go through!
Re: Dead Island 2 Release Date Brought Forward, Resurrects One Week Earlier on PS5, PS4
@Cutmastavictory Who could forget that original tongue in cheek E3 trailer with the jogger?!😁
Quite the opposite in tone to the original Dead Island trailer!
Re: Bobby Kotick Says Sony Is 'Trying to Sabotage' Microsoft's Activision Bid
"Sony's trying to sabotage this deal!!"
Says the genius who took Blizzard from a "it'll be released when its done",to releasing bugfests like Warcraft 3 remastered?
From reducing Activision from a multi faceted publisher to being a largely one trick (albeit massive cashcow),in Call of Duty & was quite happy to receive the timed exclusive dlc pay checks from Xbox/MS then undoubtedly even bigger ones from Sony since the start of the ps4 generation?
The same genius who happily cull hundreds of employees if it meant protecting his precious bonus & 2023 home Sauna & spa extension?
The genius who drove the multi billion Activision Blizzard reputation & share price into such a vulnerable position due to years of mismanagement,& cover-ups that the current board gladly took the gold watch retirement package funded by Phil Spencer's corporate credit card?
It'd almost be funny to compare "Gamer" Phil's carefully curated "gaming for all,game by game" rhetoric prior to the Zenimax Bethesda buyout where both parties were at great pains to emphasise Xbox/MS had no direct control or influence in operations until the deal passed regulators & was finalised....but in contrast Activision Blizzard has acted like its already a wholly owned division of M$!🙄
Re: Capcom's Classic Life and Death Puzzler Ghost Trick Is Coming to PS4
So will they have extra content...namely where they go around Capcom & find the Ace Attorney Investigations 1 & 2 & finally get them out too alongside the remaining AA games yet to get modern ports?😋
Jokes aside,was always a tad curious but never took the bite & regretted it. Nice to see its return!
Re: UK Determines Xbox's $69 Billion Activision Buyout Could Harm Gamers
@Bionic-Spencer Yep,after "Gamer" Phil Spencer's pre-purchase promises of Zenimax "game by game",& quickly axing titles like Starfield,Elder Scrolls & anything else not inked in pre existing contracts,it's niave in the extreme to believe Xbox/Microsoft wouldn't exercise the same behaviour with all the backlog of IP's in Activision Blizzard's closet!
Saw an article on Kotaku AU where Bobby Kotick again trying to tie TV show spin-offs & the number of successful single player games that Sony & Nintendo have created equals a monopoly that must be stopped by little old Indie start-up Microsoft,USA,USA,USA!🙄
How Xbox's "failure" to spread beyond Forza, Halo, Fable,Gears of War, somehow justifies their buying up all the 3rd party publishers & their back catalogue of IP's just to prevent their appearance on rival platforms is considered competitive?
The current Activision board are just looking for a nice gold watch retirement package to make up for their blundering mismanagement.
Re: Activision Blizzard Exec Says Last of Us HBO Proves Microsoft Acquisition Should Go Ahead
I'm sorry,did I miss the part where Sony has deep pockets in having dominated the PC Operating system scene for decades now, has transitioned its dominance in its Office suite to mostly being subscription based (vs buying it outright anymore),nevermind its presence in Azure/Cloud services?🤔🙄
There's been a couple or more Halo spin-offs, so by her standards shouldn't that rule them out too?!😅
The "Xbox/Microsoft is just a small indie startup" is getting a bit ridiculous...this is all about getting Bobby Kotick's management tanking Activision's value bailed out on a nice Microsoft funded golden parachute.🙄
Re: Actress Annie Wersching, Who Played Tess in The Last of Us, Has Passed Away
Not that I totally disliked the Anna Torv version but the OG game version was the best version wherein Annie's version depicted her as a rightly feared & respected badass to then flipping that entirely on its head when insisting Joel complete the task & take Ellie to Bill & Frank's,with that emotive speech teasing but never revealing the true nature of their past together.
Part of me would've liked to have seen a prequel or dlc explore that backstory further though much like Anakin in the Star Wars prequels it would've had an inevitable dark finale so possibly for the best we didn't find out.
In any case,the definitive Tess & way too young. Cancer can bugger off. RIP & thank you Annie.
Re: Trails from Zero on PS4 Misses Out on New Improvements Coming to PC, Switch
@ShogunRok Unless they do a Square Enix down the line & announce a "remaster" ala Dragon Quest but as a totally separate edition whether on ps4 or ps5 but essentially it'll be the Ninty/PC one! 🙄
Re: Mini Review: Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider (PS5) - 16-Bit Samurai Cyberpunk Sidescroller Is Sensational
Haven't finished Blazing Chrome yet,but same team did this i believe. Absolutely love those who keep the 16bit style alive & make them play as well they look with lots of TLC! 👍
Re: Skull and Bones Delayed Yet Again as Ubisoft Cancels Three Games
Ubisoft: We've delayed Skull & Bones slightly to polish the look of the water...noone will have better looking water than Skull & Bones!!😋😂
Also Ubisoft Exec 1: Why aren't people buying our samey live service games...are we out of touch?
Executive 2: Just Dance & Mario+Rabbids had single player modes,didn't they? Why waste $$ on that? We'll tell 'em they can make their own stories up online,especially when there's not much else to do in those open world fetch quests!🙄😂
Heaven forbid for the days when they made games like the Splinter Cell series,or Beyond Good & Evil,or Rayman etc.,that actually focused on a good story or were fun to play,rather than online grindfests!🙄
Re: Soapbox: More Publishers, Including PlayStation, Should Celebrate Their Catalogues Like Atari 50
There's absolutely scope for having multiple editions of ps1,ps2 etc era anthologies & having historical anecdotes would be icing on the cake.
Likewise you could say the same for other companies...eg: a Capcom one with the Resident Evil series,or their RPG's,or Ghosts'n'Goblins series into the Maximo ones....
Unfortunately,one only has to look at the PS Classic,or more recently PS Deluxe wherein there's been no effort to overhaul the basic, buggy ps2 classics on ps4 emulation & add further games,& just a handful of mostly lacklustre psp/ ps1 games....current management are mostly interested in expanding to live service games or remasters tied into TV/movie spin-offs.
When they throw crumbs of poor effort emulation that don't sell well,it perfectly serves their argument "it isn't popular"....would be nice if instead of splashing out for mobile game devs they spent the money on a legacy game/emulation studio that concentrated on bringing ps1/ps2 (even ps3),era games back with the sort of emulation/love to details they deserve!
Re: Another 22 PS Plus Extra, Premium Games Available Now on PS5, PS4
@Quintumply What's probably more ironic is remember when the creator of Tekken was quite vocal in blaming Sony when ps1 Tekken 2 was listed at a ridiculous price point...when the reality its Bandai Namco,joined Campcom in making their games unpurchaseable on ps4/5 platforms!🙄😑
Re: US Government's FTC Will Attempt to Block Microsoft's Activision Buyout
Fully agree that the expressions of the FTC's concerns,& moreso Microsoft/Xbox's track record speaks for itself that this is a poor deal for gamers....that is,any gamers that play on systems in direct competition to XB.
Phil Spencer made such a big deal about 3rd party timed exclusives being anti-gamer & then spun the "gaming for all" rhetoric during the lead up to the Zenimax purchase only to show their true intent once the ink dried & anything not already under contract with Sony instantly went exclusive.
It's been laughable to hear them arguing in Europe that titles like Elder Scrolls were small selling franchises like they were an indie developer! As it stands,for all the rhetoric of "But what about FF7 remake!",XB/MS has been quietly cornering the western rpg IP's under their exclusive umbrella already.
Likewise,for all the PR War/carrot dangling of COD,the silence on the rest of the IP's like Crash,Spyro,future Diablo/Starcraft,etc. have been deafening.
Rather than bother investing billions into creating new IP's,Phil Spencer has been weilding the corporate credit card & taking the easier route of buying existing entire AAA publishers & use the established 3rd parties & Gamepass as a means to block competition including timed exclusives or PS Plus etc.
Timed exclusives are annoying...but they are timed...even Square recently stated its unlikely to continue doing one format releases in the future like it had been this past ps4/ps5 gen.
As to if this'll survive the courts & a desperate Bobby Kotick looking for a golden parachute out of his mismanagement? Maybe not due to years of mega corps like Google,FB,Disney etc. But it'll be a thorn in their side from doing much meantime.
Re: Preview: 20 Hours of Diablo 4 on PS5 Has Us Believing in Blizzard's Latest Trip to Hell
Still curious how much of a story campaign there'll be in this in comparison to the inevitable online mode(s) with mtx? 🤔
Like it or hate it though,given the way Xbox/MS is gobbling up the 3rd party western themed RPG's/ARPG devs/publishers there'll be fewer opportunities for PS players so enjoy the opportunities whilst there still available!
(Slightly off topic,but can't help but think CDPR could be a future XB target for similar reasons at this rate).
Re: Microsoft Invites Sony to Sign Its Own 10-Year Call of Duty Deal
Oh yes,that lovely PR machine chestnut again of "Let there be competition!!"...saysthe 2 trillion dollar Microsoft whom rather than spending 70billion on creating their own IP's,instead buys out one of the biggest AAA 3rd party publishers so it can restrict the potential future releases to maybe just one IP (at its discretion),as well as which subscription service.🙄
The same 2 trillion dollar "indie" who also killed off PS5 versions of Starfield & Elder Scrolls 6 the moment the ink dried on the Zenimax deal whilst initially spouting the same "gaming for all" mantra & Gamer Phil's infamous timed exclusives are anti gamer rantings?
Yes,all console makers engage in 3rd party deals, like it or hate it...but to pretend Xbox is just a tiny little indie developer when their parent company is actively spending billions buying up the biggest AAA Publishers & 3rd parties around to do the exact opposite of what defines competition & get away with it truly astounds.
Re: PS Plus Premium Likely Getting Star Wars Battlefront II from PSP
@get2sammyb It still seems bizarre how despite marketing PS Deluxe/Premiun as a tier for PS1,PS2 & PSP games alongside streamable PS3 titles,the reality seems to have been a relatively poor ps1 emulation with promises of dual NTSC/PAL version choice abandoned for further titles,literally a couple of PS2 titles rebadged from the PS4 Classics range & no attempt to redo or improve that ps2 emulator which leaves a sporadic few psp "new" releases! 😕
The whole exercise seemed little more than a rebadge of PS Now which still remains unavailable for most psn regions
For a revamp meant to gain more subscribers, Sony's reluctance to expand it seems destined to let it wither on the vine & again claim legacy psn support isn't popular when the reality is they haven't really committed resources to it.😕
Re: Report: FTC Could File an Antitrust Lawsuit to Block Xbox's Activision Buyout
After all the promises made during the Zenimax purchase I tend to take any public promises of COD staying multiplatform with a pinch of salt.
Note however not a snippet of a suggestion of any other Activision Blizzard IP's seeing Playstation sequels.
Keeping in mind that for all the FF7/XVI timed exclusives XB/MS have cornered the vast majority of the western RPG AA/AAA developers already & just a cheque away from buying CDPR. Not to mention they've already indicated they're keen to make more buyouts including the Japanese market too.
All that means either Sony has to pursue further buyouts or spread themselves thin developing other games eg rpg's etc.,that have traditionally relied on 3rd parties for.
Gamepass might seem wonderful value for day 1 indie games alongside the eventual heavy hitters of Starfield,Elder Scrolls,COD,Diablo, Fallout etc., but if they're the only service to offer them one has to doubt those $1 XB live gold to gamepass deals would stick around....much less the concept of buying games.
Do I think the U.S. authorities would block such a deal? In this day & age of Facebook, Amazon,Apple & juggernauts like Tencent & Netease,its unlikely...but contrary to the nonsense XB have been spouting,you can't have competition when there's less viable players in the market.
Re: Microsoft Admits Its Games Are Worse Than Sony's
Microsoft: We can't make games as critically good as Playstation!!🤯
Also Microsoft: But we can sink billions into buying 3rd party publishers & all the 3rd party IP's that were multiplatform & keep them off the competition going forward instead of creating our own,that's just waaay too much work!!😂🙄
Re: PS Plus Extra Was Designed as a 'Best of' PS Now Game List
@DualWielding @Rob_230 Not only haven't they added any PS2 games since the defunct PS4 range,I seem to recall noting several of those titles were listed as incompatible or "significant issues" working on PS5 list.
It saddens me that for all the millions being spent on live service games studios,mobile studios etc.,the current PS management seem totally indifferent to putting any resources into a studio or two like a Digital Eclipse that could develop a good emulation base for PS1 & PS2 classics to work properly & with good features for a true classic games library to be converted/made available!
Nevermind a similar group to maybe redo some of the PS3 back catalogue if emulation is considered too hard for the PS5.
The current strategy of relying on effectively PS Now streaming not only feels cheap,but where are they supposed to source more of the server blades to roll out in regions like mine where PS Now never existed?
Given PS Deluxe probably exists in more regions than those with Premium,they're reaping $20/year more than Extra (my region. Nearly double the 12month price of Essential overall),for a retro games library that's barely been added to & certainly lacking PS2 Classics like the recent Premium additions of Ratchet & Clank & Sly Cooper!
Instead we get silence & a hope the issue goes away or Jim Ryan to again claim Classic Games aren't popular with low Premium/Deluxe metric usage when the reality is they never really backed it in the first place!
Re: Disgruntled PS Plus Premium Members Can't Downgrade for Black Friday Discount
@thedevilsjester Still is an issue on older Plus titles,sadly! They did change it a little while ago obviously,but seems like in those instances they release a "plus" version & there's the store version.
@get2sammyb Despite Playstation management claiming to always be "listening" to feedback whether the blog/Twitter etc.,the utter silence they've given to PS Deluxe regions & indeed the entire subject of people asking where are the ps1/ps2 classics additions has me shaking my head!
Re: Ubisoft Shares Early Splinter Cell PS5 Remake Concept Art
Whilst a full on remake will hopefully not turn into another Ubi live service grindfest,it's still saddens me another opportunity for an updated,working ps2 classics emulation for Deluxe/Premium to release the OG series or port the HD Trilogy (rather than be locked into PS Now type streaming),over goes begging!
Though more a Sony issue than just Ubisoft, it does highlight again the lack of effort in updating/ replacing the old ps2 classics emulation with an improved,working one on ps4/5.
There's money to be made in classics Mr Ryan,it just helps if you have a management that doesn't do it on the cheap & then claims it isn't popular to justify the expense!