Yeah I agree, I need to be engaged to "chill out". But sometimes I read or hear something similar to hey, I had a tough day at work why would I want to come home and die over and over again in Sekiro? I guess I get that. I mean personally I like overcoming a challenge and that's what is really fun for me. Some people absolutely hate difficulty or delay. They hate not immediately overcoming a challenge, first try. They have kids, work, no time, no patience, etc.
My wife will only play "cozy games" (I argue with her that this is a real genre constantly.) Our game tastes could not be more different haha. And she really likes them. So I guess I see both sides of it.
I agree with your underlying point though, so much of trophy lists are just for playing the game normally and don't really memorialize any meaningful challenge. I think this was an inevitable side effect of requiring all games to ship with trophy lists, which I was always kind of against.
The good news for people who don't care about trophies is it is easy to turn off and hide, and there is no penalty for not engaging with it. While for those that do want to, it's a neat metaprogression game in itself and potentially a way to foster more community among the player base.
Thanks it's actually not so bad! I'd throw it at around a solid 8.5 / 10. I think it helps if you really, really enjoy the game, and I do love me some Wipeout.
I love that Wipeout is like if an arcade racer and Twisted Metal had a baby. It's just the most 90s series in terms of gameplay and presentation and I love it.
What's the verdict in this game right now for someone who loved 1 and 2 and kinda, sorta liked Diablo 3 after they got around to dumping the real money auction house?
Is it fun? Good story? Are the microtransactions insane? I'd look at a review but I'm guessing this isn't even the same game as it was at release.
Or am I better of replaying the original Diablo haha?
You can hide specific games in the PS4 / PS5 settings menu. They will still appear for you, but nobody else can see them.
They implemented that feature solely for all the trophy hunter types who wanted to hide their Hannah Montana: The Movie PS3 platinums I think. (I'm kidding... or am I?)
I actually remember getting the platinum in Undertale (great game) before even finishing the main story. And that, psychologically, put me off from even wanting to complete the game in the strangest way. Like I had to fight my way through to complete it because my lizard brain was telling me I was done, just because the trophy list said 100%. Weird.
I guess I agree with you in that trophies are implemented poorly in many (most?) games, and this actually detracts from the experience. But when they are done right, they are awesome. But it is hit and miss and all up to the devs (the Undertale dev is outspokenly against trophies, I wonder if he is one of the commenters on this article haha).
As evidenced by the comments here, you have avowed trophy fanatics and the people just sort of scratching their head as to why it's even a thing in the first place all these years later. And both parties always come out and make their opinions on the matter loudly heard.
There is a certain something about just playing a Nintendo game just to play it because there is no achievement / trophy metagame involved. It's... kinda nice.
After getting the platinum in Wipeout Omega Collection (and knowing I wouldn't have spent as much time with the game if not for the trophies, and how much fun I ended up having finally beating Zico), nobody can convince me trophies aren't a simple, cool way to expand games and my own enjoyment of them.
Nobody cares I have that trophy or how long it took me, or how rare it is or isn't. But I do. And that's enough.
Trophies if done right make you take a leap into a tougher difficulty you wouldn't have dared try, or play the game in a weird way out of your comfort zone (speed runs, anyone?). And in the end, I think it has amplified my own enjoyment significantly and actually sort of expanded my gaming horizons quite a bit.
I get though some people play games to chill out and aren't looking for all that mess haha. And I respect that too.
Counterpoint: multi-player trophies. These actually make me hate the game more the few times I had been foolish enough to attempt them.
For awhile, platting certain first party games would get an email sent your way with exclusive avatars. Horizon: Zero Dawn and Spiderman did this.
Pretty neat, no idea why they stopped.
It seems Sony just... really doesnt know what to do with the trophy system or how to meaningfully evolve it in any way after trying a lot of different things (integrating trophies into PS Home, giving store credit for plats, the PS Stars program failure, etc.).
It doesn't help they have zero follow-through with a lot of the programs they have tried. For example, PS Stars was planned to eventually be built into and viewable from the PS5 UI. PS Stars was a nightmare in terms of sluggish, shoddy implementation from the beginning, but it was a fun idea. Of course it was cancelled later before being fully implemented, just like most everything else relating to trophies.
The most hilarious benefit of trophies they have tried was granting priority queuing during customer support calls for having a high enough PS Stars level, which you raised by earning trophies... you can't make this up.
But you could make a sort of roundabout argument subsidizing the PS3 console at a massive cost built their market momentum, continuing into the PS4 and PS5 eras, helping somewhat to cement their current status as undisputed market leaders in their segment. Maybe the 3.3B cost earned them 33B in the long run on microtransactions. Who really knows or could say... but that was the general idea of subsidizing the consoles from the beginning. Spend some money today to make a lot more later.
Corporations and thinking beyond the next fiscal quarter don't really go together as much these days though. Lines must go up, right now. They think primarily in 3-month increments, not 10 years down the road. And who cares what happens next year, the CEO can just take a leap off the top of a building with a golden parachute when the short term cost saving calls hurt the long term health of the company - as they always do.
Curious to see what PS5 sales do in western countries, and what methods they use to extract more money from the current user base after sales fall through the sub-basement floor.
Couldn't you get around the massive hike increase from the digital to the disc model in Japan by buying or importing a disc drive add-on? Or is there some restriction on that specific to the language locked model?
It's just one gripe of many. I've got more. For example, it took them roughly five years to add what amounts to a glorified screensaver to the Welcome Home screen, a feature asked for by multitudes since launch. I could go on allll day. It's not just trophies because certainly a lot don't care (and a lot do), but rather the absolutely glacial pace this organization moves these days, particularly with basic UI updates.
Again, Fortune 500 company here. Thousands upon thousands of employees.
I'm convinced it would take this company $20 million and 6 months to a year to solve a rubick's cube.
Their UI engineering team is one guy working remotely from a basement in Djibouti or something.
How about we get a basic trophy leaderboard built into PSN, or whatever they call it now?
It's been, what, 17 or 18 years now and this somehow still hasn't been implemented? One guy running a website can do it (psnprofiles) but the Fortune 500 company just can't manage.
It's lazy.
Sony has fallen so, so far in its community engagement aspects. It's gotten worse each generation. With PS3, we had grand ambitions with PS Home. PS4 lessened that somewhat with its 'Communities' function. Now PS5 has... what?
Why does each gen feel more disconnected and clinical than the last? Trophy leaderboards would be such a simple thing to implement and increase the competitive, connected aspects for people who are into it.
Why can this titanic company literally not accomplish the most basic tasks? I'd wager it could be done in a week. Like I said, one unaffiliated dude (ONE DUDE!) has made it happen without access to Sony's internal engineering team or back-end.
I gotta be honest, I can't tell any difference in the "glow" from the photos. And I really looked.
But I was playing it with the update earlier today and it does seem to just pop more. Maybe something more easily appreciated in motion than a static image. Resolution bump is also welcome.
Edit: Studying the images a bit more, I can see the reflections in the car windows are quite different. Neat.
He's being generous with himself. He first made this prediction in 2009, saying PS3 / 360 would be the last. So... 17 years-ish he's been saying this over and over for each generation.
He wasn't relevant BACK THEN. Why are we talking about him in 2026?
Yeah we do sound like our parents, don't we haha. I agree physical will be gone -someday-. Just like you and me will be gone. Everything is inevitable over a long enough timeline. I was kind of just adding some tongue in cheek commentary on how Pachter doesn't really set timelines for his predictions, and therefore they really aren't usable predictions at all. This guy kinda has a rep I'm sure you noticed from the comments. I wish PushSquare wouldn't give him a platform, but he's controversial so he gets engagement.
Look, whatever happens we can agree vinyl is king.
Yes please, let's both revisit this in 10 years. Because I've been hearing this non-stop from "analysts" for the last 15. I'll be retired as well and we can re-connect and share a cup of tea over it.
And you are so right, vinyl just does sound better doesn't it? No digital file could ever replicate it. Or the tactile experience of just having it in your hands. It's a beautiful thing. It was worth the extra cost to you for the vinyl at the end of the day, you coulda got the music off iTunes cheaper. Why didn't you?
As far as last I checked, I've got a wall of physical, complete on disc physical PS5 games. They still got a disc drive. Physical isn't dead. Dying, maybe.
But like records and CDs, there will always be a decent subset of the market who want the real deal in their hands and will pay a premium for it.
I'm a better analyst than Pachter (almost everyone here is). And I'm predicting physical market holds steady at 20-25% into the PS6 generation. Which while much reduced gives publishers a financial incentive to cater to it. Hence the rumored optional disc drive attachment for PS6.
If he is saying physical will be a product of the past at some distant, undisclosed point in the future I couldn't argue with that, as it's really not much of a prediction at all. I predict the eventual heat death of the universe.
Move over Pachter! Where's my analyst paycheck? 🙂
No, I'm totally with you. It sounds cool as far as the concept and I would potentially be on board after cautiously waiting a year or two.
It's gonna sound ridiculous but it was God of War Ragnarok being cross gen for me. All the parts where you have to squeeze through narrow openings just made me realize, oh, it's a hidden loading screen because this is cross gen with PS4 and the PS4 doesn't have an SSD.
So the game design itself was getting held back and I couldn't help but thinking, "I guess I'm just playing a prettier version of the PS4 game." Which granted for some people might well be enough. Because the way they design these games, they go lowest common denominator (PS4), then scale up - not the other way around. It limits the newer version to be just an upscaled experience rather than a "current gen" experience, if that makes sense. I feel this cross-gen philosophy actually hurts the types of experiences we get and the ambition developers bring into it.
The quick loading times were a godsend, but I haven't seen a single game during the extended cross gen period which really made me go, yeah, this is a PS5 game - with the exception of Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart which was, ironically, an exclusive launch window game. Nothing that really intrinsically sets the games apart from a design perspective, just slightly prettier graphics. That was disappointing to me. And I get it might be wanting too much to expect more but maybe it was because Rift Apart's instant reality shifting mechanic impressed me so much right out of the gate. I immediately saw the potential of what the PS5's SSD could do when a game is custom-built around it.
And I get why they did it from a business perspective. Huge built in PS4 audience and all that. And it was COVID. I'd have been fine with 1-2 years but it ended up getting ridiculous near the end. I imagine the PS5-PS6 cross gen period will be even longer, and I just don't really want to pay to participate in that again. Just me though, I'm sure PS6 versions will bring some nifty enhancements regardless. It just likely won't be enough for me, personally, to be able to justify the expense.
I'm not too psyched with Sony's direction at the moment. I will absolutely be putting off a day one PS6 purchase for the first time since 1995. Whether it comes out in '27 or later. The PS4 / PS5 cross-gen period was abysmally long.
But this? A dedicated handheld is my kryptonite. Though I do remember how they took the VITA behind the woodshed and shot it. 🤔 Of course, price is THE question, but not the only question.
Then there is the PSVR2, which I dumped $600 on, then went on to also be largely ignored, which was the straw that broke the camel's back for me. As cool a piece of tech as it is. Sony doesn't have a good track record with this stuff.
Trust is a valuable currency, and they don't have mine right now. I guess we will wait and see if it's even a real thing first haha. They've gotten my last hardware dollar for the foreseeable future.
"That's Digital games, Content, Media etc - but the same basically applies to Physical although you do have the Physical disc and its more difficult to revoke that Licence and therefore could still give you access to some content after its been deleted/removed/revoked"
Let me put this simply: not really. Again, I refer specifically to complete physical games - not anything with a digital online component like Destiny. Certainly, the publisher has far more control with these live service experiences and can withdraw them - though some restrictions still apply there too.
For the second part, you are again conflating IP ownership with actually owning the physical disc you purchased and its contents. That is, you own that specific copy you purchased, not the intellectual property rights obviously. And that goes regardless of whatever unenforceable nomenclature they opt to use - a "license," or what have you.
To instill this idea in its most easy to understand form, consider this: they call a physical disc a license, and they say you do not actually own the disc or its contents for personal use in the TOS - and this may be freely revoked by them. However, here's my real question: how would they enforce that clause? Assuming a complete physical disc and, say, an offline console, they would have to physically come to your home and take it from you. Theoretically, this is what the TOS gives them the power to do if you interpret it in its most black-and-white, literal meaning.
And also, obviously, they won't and can't come to your house and take your possessions. That's ridiculous. They know that. The courts know that. But, yes, this is really the only way to enforce that specific 'license' clause for an offline, physical disc game.
Now Destiny? Yeah obviously (third obviously if you are keeping track), that's a different ballgame as it has, wholly or in part, a digital or online component they could remotely revoke.
And obviously (fourth obviously), the publisher retains the rights to the intellectual property. That's not what anyone is saying here. Just merely saying you do in fact own that disc and the 1s and 0s on it, in the truest sense. That single disc. I'm guessing this is the point of confusion here.
If you prefer though, call it a license. I call it my property and the courts here in my country would agree. It's really just semantics if you think about it. TOS's in certain parts and aspects hold no legal weight, regardless if both parties freely agree to it in advance. Overreach in contracts of any sort, including TOS's, are de facto unenforceable and invalid as a fundamental rule of contract law.
Again, this is why they have mandatory arbitration or mediation clauses as boilerplate. Look up what those are then ask Google why they include them in those TOS's. I promise I'm not making this stuff up.
Now your argument about how digital games distribution can actually be beneficial to preservation - that I can get behind. I'm done talking about this but I do encourage you to look into it, it's actually all very interesting stuff.
Mozzy my friend, you are talking about IP. Which yeah, obviously you don't own that! The disc, the content, the physical item? You do own that. Powerful distinction there.
But I encourage you NOT to take my word for it and do your own independent research - namely, court cases involving unenforceable clauses in the TOS. You will see a very clear pattern emerge.
But yeah... not the IP. Would be cool though if I bought a Batman comic and owned the Batman IP! 😄
I see your larger point but take some issue with the 'Even complete games are technically just a license now' argument. I've heard that bandied about a lot.
Yes, the publishers call the game a license in the terms of service agreement. Yes, it is written in so much legalese you don't actually own the game you purchased. But what a lot of people don't realize is those aspects of TOS agreements are untested in court to this day, and are likely entirely unenforceable in court when / if push came to shove.
TOS agreements have long been a bit of a joke to those that are familiar with modern contract law. The publishers know this well, which is why they include mandatory arbitration clauses in them (which themselves have been found to be broadly illegal / unenforceable in multiple court cases yet companies still opt to include them). I don't want to get into all the nitty gritty of contract law but it's actually all pretty interesting the crap they try to pull with those agreements.
The too long, didn't read version is: your (complete) physical game purchases are safe and TOS's are largely unenforceable garbage. Your (physical) games are not a "license," you do actually fully and outright own the disc and all content on it, regardless of what that agreement says. I realize you had other valid points about preservation but I wanted to address that specific one.
Darnit, I guess I'll just have to settle for playing Prey again then.
I'd pay around $60 for a complete physical edition with DLC and patches. For digital, I'd do about 10 bucks tops. Maybe should've spent the extra, I dunno, 50 cents to press a second disc.
I actually don't mind frequent remasters because they suppress the second-hand market values of older physical versions of these games. So they are usually a win from the point of preservation and collecting, even if they don't add any meaningful updates.
I own / played it on PS3. As well as having the PS4 copy. So I'm done with this (admittedly awesome) game for the foreseeable future.
For those that haven't played it? It's like a apocalyptic mash-up of Zelda and God of War wrapped up in Joe Mad comic book art. In other words, pretty cool.
I think there's an especially loathed category of game which falls into the "aggressively average" column. And in some ways this is worse than the outright bad experiences. Derivative, milkuetoast, forgettable - pick your word. But competent at what it does, if only moderately.
Thing is, some of these "average" games really resonated with me personally and are the most memorable. Because I have my own very specific and sometimes niche tastes those games might fall into. For example, I love 2D beat-em-up games like Mother Russia Bleeds and Streets of Rage clones. The wider conversation frequently designates them as average or skippable. So I approach those game reviews through a different lens of, yeah, I will enjoy this 6/10 game. And I do. A lot.
But yeah, I see how this game would fall into that most hated category of "average". Not quite good enough to be among the greats, not quite bad enough to fall into the 'so-bad-it's-good' or cult status bracket. Just nowhere for these games to land for general audiences, and so they ignore it.
I see it as, if you like Bethesda jank (some people find it charming) and are a fan of sci-fi, you may get more mileage out of this game than people would lead you to believe.
Me though? I'd just recommend playing / replaying Prey if you are looking for an immersive sci-fi world with RPG elements to really get lost in.
Reading the comments and chuckling. I've realized two things:
) Liam is the continuing and undisputed king of hot takes.
2.) I love that we have all collectively decided journalists are generally pretty bad at actually playing video games and this has somehow become the accepted internet zeitgeist.
I remember waaaaay back in the early days of PSN, circa 2008, maybe 2-3 digital games would release a week, every Tuesday. Young me was always so excited what the handful of new games would be every week and I refreshed the store page repeatedly every Tuesday morning to see.
Burn Zombie Burn, Plants Vs Zombies, Crash Commandos... cool stuff.
Now it's just a never-ending stream of digital diarrhea. Sometimes multiple dozens of garbage AI nightmare games which look like they were made in Microsoft Paint. I now actively avoid browsing the store for this reason.
Such an even spread across the entries, is impressive. There's really no "bad" RE entries as far as the mainline games go, with maybe only RE 0 being in contention there.
I'm not gonna get into a whole big thing of whether an 82/100 is a disappointment or not, but I will say this: the narratives writers for mainstream outlets build around games (both pre- and post-release) is part of the reason I seek reviews from independent reviewers on YouTube and similar platforms more frequently as time goes on.
I feel like stuff gets a fairer shake without as much of the baggage with an unaffiliated reviewer you trust. Whereas websites farm for engagement and ad revenue in small and big ways.
Reviews here seem well thought out and balanced for the most part, so I can ignore the occasional, mildy annoying clickbait headline here and there. Cost of doing business I guess.
This was insightful and I think you are 100% right. But I think I'm right too. You are totally right, Johnny buys Playstation because his friend Timmy plays Minecraft there, not because of any specific exclusive. So I guess that sounds like I'm contradicting myself.
But here's where I think we agree: Why did Timmy choose PS5 over the competiton to play Minecraft? He didn't, he got the console as a hand-me-down from his dad. His dad got the PS5 because he had some nostalgia for Crash Bandicoot from his PS1 days in college and wanted to play Crash 4 on it. Now Crash 4 isn't even an exclusive either, but he associates that game with the PS brand. It just feels more comfortable somehow, familiar. So he buys a PS5.
So if we rewind back, it was someone else's sweet nostalgic memory of Crash Bandicoot that got Timmy into the PS5 ecosystem, ultimately. Then his friend Johnny. Then their friend Susan or whoever. It spreads like a virus. But it all started with one person who just found comfort in Crash Bandicoot allll the way back in 1996. Not really the OS. Not really Minecraft or the controller.
In this crazy pulled-out-of my-behind hypothetical, I hope to illustrate how even if consumers appear arbitrary and capricious in their purchasing decisions, it does often tie - somehow - back to an exclusive game experience (even if on a past console) in a causal chain of events - even if they themselves do not realize it or directly interact with exclusives. Until they are locked into a digital ecosystem.
People point out first party games don't even generate all that much money and it's true. But they got them in the door somewhere back down the line, then they later branched out and started buying those sweet, sweet Fortnite microtransactions and making Sony some real money. Or their kids did for those of us who are getting a bit older.
I think it is all related in a subtle way. How a brand has sort of a life of its own and how that evolves to grow market share.
In my own very anecdotal experience, I really like Playstation. I really identify with the brand because of Metal Gear Solid, a series that isn't even ongoing on any console anymore. The game just blew me away and there was no going back, even if I did have a heck of a time with Halo later on. I've bought no less than 4 or 5 people PS5's over the years for their b-days or Christmas, unless they specifically asked for something else. My brother, damn him, asked for a Switch one year.
They all play PS5 now. Because I bought them one? No, because of Metal Gear Solid on PS1! They weren't even into games as we all got older but I keep pulling them back in haha. Now my other brother plays Marvel games on PS5, loves em, and rarely bothers with exclusives. But he does buy DLC. He does generate revenue, and he never bought another console. Locked in.
I think my story is more common than most think. I bet everyone reading this has a similar tale to tell, of how it all started with an exclusive - whether Nintendo, Xbox, or Sony.
Yeah I totally agree, and that ties into my point. But I should have been more clear, I meant the 'X Factor' between competing consoles, not compared to a PC.
We got pretty off topic from the subject of the article - PC ports - and ended up talking somehow about complete multiplatform between home consoles, no more exclusives at all, and how that would or wouldn't be feasible in a business sense for consoles specifically.
Some people think you don't need exclusives to differentiate one console from the next, and they could make it somehow more attractive than the competition through other stuff - like OS, controller, etc. even if they all had the same exact games. I don't believe that. But yeah... we were drifting into the hypothetical weeds.
😄. Love it. I see your point, but I like to think those more expensive headsets provide something tangible the cheaper sets don't, thus they sell better. In this context, maybe noise cancellation or overall comfort or battery life? Maybe it's something more intangible like brand recognition or heck, they just like how this one looks a bit better.
Does the same apply to consoles - people picking and choosing on those smaller peripheral aspects? I dunno, that's a leap for me. But maybe I'm stuck in 2001. I'm just a very pragmatic, meat and potatoes person - I just wanna know 1.) what games can it play, and 2.) what's the price.
And it can look like a futuristic router for all I care (ahem, PS5, ahem) as long as the functionality is there. But maybe I'm underestimating those smaller things. Just historically, it hasn't played out that way. Call it coincidence, but the console with the strongest exclusive library always came out on top in the end regardless of what other special features it came loaded with (OG Xbox was actually a beast of a machine and a heck of a value, but less exclusives).
Yeah I get ya but my point is that they wouldn't be different enough if they are just competing on things like OS and build quality, etc. It would all come down to a price war because OS's don't move units - games do.
So therefore the biggest competitor (Microsoft in this case) could easily price the others out in the short term until the others folded, since the products are so similar anyways and all play the same stuff. I know what I'm doing, I'm just buying thr cheapest one if they are all so similar. What percentage of users bought a PS2 over an Xbox for the OS?
You entirely misunderstand Dogbreath (love the name). A vindictive desire to keep a game out of someone else's walled garden is the stuff of console warriors and/or people under the age of 16.
The concern is, let's say I offer you two products. Say, a toothbrush. They are very similar. Small differences here and there sure - slightly different grips patterns and maybe a different shade of blue.
Well you just happen to be in the toothbrush market to fight canine gingervitus, lucky me! Which are you gonna buy?
But I already know which one you are gonna buy. You inevitably will ask me what the price is. Well Toothbrush A is $10 and Toothbrush B is $15. You will pick Toothbrush A for sure right?
Well therein lies our issue. If these consoles cannot meaningfully differentiate themselves through exclusive games, you will just pick the cheaper option, every time. You'd honestly be crazy not to in my opinion.
So what ends up happening here is the company with the greatest ability to subsidize the console's cost to you, will be the victor. And who cares right? Cheaper is better after all.
Well, the other smaller companies get pushed out through this aggressive pricing strategy and inevitably you are left with one standing - boom, there's the monopoly you were talking about. Because they had nothing to compete on, except price. Bad place to be. That's why exclusives are important, they make the products meaningfully different and act as sort of a guarantee of their continued existence and competition (assuming the good games keep coming).
So really, you can see it's not vindictiveness but rather we want competition (competition is good).
I think the reality has long been services and peripheral aspects of a console experience (OS, controller, etc.) don't move units, the exclusive games do.
If what's inside the box itself was the selling point, the first Xbox should've outsold the PS2 handily and early GamePass should've absolutely cleaned house, etc. Its never really been about which controller a person likes slightly better or which tertiary service comes with it. Well, in the grand scheme at least. There are certainly some hard-core GamePass acolytes out there to this day.
But maybe someday I'm gonna find that person saying they bought Xbox for Quick Resume, and my whole worldview is gonna be changed on this 😄.
It's always been about the games. Nothing else. Everything else is cheap, pointless window dressing for people to fight over on game forums.
Agreed it gets weird in here sometimes. And I'm really not trying to console war, I got plenty of beef with Sony as a company too - but to me these are just like exquisitely basic concepts that people somehow find a way to argue about.
From a purely business standpoint, how does no exclusives work in practice? Like, how? But I'm getting off topic because this article is just referring to the recent PC ports, not the multiplatform utopia some people on here envision - which is moreso what I was referring to.
Like I said, those people all snuck off and I dont really hear it repeated around here all that much anymore. But back in 2021-22? Whoo boy.
See my comment above yours. It was bad here on PushSquare as well if I recall. They've all oddly gone very silent after watching the reaction to and results of Xbox's multiplatform push.
Sorry but it's so basic I don't know how anyone could question it. And yet they did. Company X needs something different from Company Y to make people buy it. Like maybe we need to draw it in crayon.
The X Factor of a console will never, ever be services or OS or Quick Resume or PSSR or any of that. It is the games. That's why PS2 blew a more powerful and online connected Xbox out of the water in sales - games. Simple, right?
Yeah well it took em awhile but glad they finally realized a basic business concept - exclusives distinguish your brand and draw people in. There has been some collective amnesia about that over the last 4 to 5 years around these parts and beyond.
'Exclusives bad' took off around the time the whole cross-play debate sprung up, and often the rationale underlying this thought was, 'Well, it'd be better for me if I could play all games on one platform, so why not?' The calculation among the public never got any more nuanced than that, failing to realize the implications and what the end result of that might be.
I'm sure Sony was well aware of the news long before we were. So no, they won't reactively respond to this as it was already a known factor - and I'm certain they are privvy to a great deal more.
I don't think the recent "leaks" that Sony is departing PC was any sort of coincidence either. It seems to me many of these leaks are very strategically timed, huh?
If anything, maybe a collective sigh of relief at the $1000-1500 expected price tag, as this lets them off the hook for their own $700-1000 machine in the future.
Next gen is gonna be pricey folks, whatever your hardware preference may be. I'd prefer 2029, give the PS5 more time to find its potential - because it hasn't just yet thanks to languishing in a cross-platform limbo for its first 3-4 years (thank you Jim Ryan).
Comments 910
Re: Gran Turismo Copycat Forced to Change Its Name for Release on PS5, PS4
@AgentMantis
I would... definitely play that game.
Re: Astro Bot's Adorable Set of 'Surprise' Figurines an Essential for PS5 Fans
@Steeleye25
I found like a deluxe Astro Bot figure at Target (Youtooz). It was a really cool find. I think they do a whole line with different PS characters.
Re: Crimson Desert Sells 5 Million Copies in Less Than a Month
I thought I read an article somewhere this game was a disappointment.
Re: Going Platinum: I Missed a Bunch of Trophies in The Messenger, But Playing It Again Was a Pleasure
Loved The Messenger and the Picnic Panic DLC they released later. Do you bother with going back to games for DLC trophies?
Re: PS5 Fans Want Trophy Upgrades After Xbox Improves Achievements
@MrPeanutbutterz
Yeah I agree, I need to be engaged to "chill out". But sometimes I read or hear something similar to hey, I had a tough day at work why would I want to come home and die over and over again in Sekiro? I guess I get that. I mean personally I like overcoming a challenge and that's what is really fun for me. Some people absolutely hate difficulty or delay. They hate not immediately overcoming a challenge, first try. They have kids, work, no time, no patience, etc.
My wife will only play "cozy games" (I argue with her that this is a real genre constantly.) Our game tastes could not be more different haha. And she really likes them. So I guess I see both sides of it.
I agree with your underlying point though, so much of trophy lists are just for playing the game normally and don't really memorialize any meaningful challenge. I think this was an inevitable side effect of requiring all games to ship with trophy lists, which I was always kind of against.
The good news for people who don't care about trophies is it is easy to turn off and hide, and there is no penalty for not engaging with it. While for those that do want to, it's a neat metaprogression game in itself and potentially a way to foster more community among the player base.
Re: PS5 Fans Want Trophy Upgrades After Xbox Improves Achievements
@GamingGod
Thanks it's actually not so bad! I'd throw it at around a solid 8.5 / 10. I think it helps if you really, really enjoy the game, and I do love me some Wipeout.
I love that Wipeout is like if an arcade racer and Twisted Metal had a baby. It's just the most 90s series in terms of gameplay and presentation and I love it.
Re: The Diablo 4 Positivity Continues with Promising Lord of Hatred Gameplay Drop
What's the verdict in this game right now for someone who loved 1 and 2 and kinda, sorta liked Diablo 3 after they got around to dumping the real money auction house?
Is it fun? Good story? Are the microtransactions insane? I'd look at a review but I'm guessing this isn't even the same game as it was at release.
Or am I better of replaying the original Diablo haha?
Re: The Team Behind Beloved Action RPG The First Berserker: Khazan No Longer Exists
Another AA dev taken before their time. 🫡
Re: PS5 Fans Want Trophy Upgrades After Xbox Improves Achievements
@nyr2k2
You can hide specific games in the PS4 / PS5 settings menu. They will still appear for you, but nobody else can see them.
They implemented that feature solely for all the trophy hunter types who wanted to hide their Hannah Montana: The Movie PS3 platinums I think. (I'm kidding... or am I?)
Re: PS5 Fans Want Trophy Upgrades After Xbox Improves Achievements
@Onearmbandit
I actually remember getting the platinum in Undertale (great game) before even finishing the main story. And that, psychologically, put me off from even wanting to complete the game in the strangest way. Like I had to fight my way through to complete it because my lizard brain was telling me I was done, just because the trophy list said 100%. Weird.
I guess I agree with you in that trophies are implemented poorly in many (most?) games, and this actually detracts from the experience. But when they are done right, they are awesome. But it is hit and miss and all up to the devs (the Undertale dev is outspokenly against trophies, I wonder if he is one of the commenters on this article haha).
As evidenced by the comments here, you have avowed trophy fanatics and the people just sort of scratching their head as to why it's even a thing in the first place all these years later. And both parties always come out and make their opinions on the matter loudly heard.
There is a certain something about just playing a Nintendo game just to play it because there is no achievement / trophy metagame involved. It's... kinda nice.
Re: PS5 Fans Want Trophy Upgrades After Xbox Improves Achievements
@MrPeanutbutterz
After getting the platinum in Wipeout Omega Collection (and knowing I wouldn't have spent as much time with the game if not for the trophies, and how much fun I ended up having finally beating Zico), nobody can convince me trophies aren't a simple, cool way to expand games and my own enjoyment of them.
Nobody cares I have that trophy or how long it took me, or how rare it is or isn't. But I do. And that's enough.
Trophies if done right make you take a leap into a tougher difficulty you wouldn't have dared try, or play the game in a weird way out of your comfort zone (speed runs, anyone?). And in the end, I think it has amplified my own enjoyment significantly and actually sort of expanded my gaming horizons quite a bit.
I get though some people play games to chill out and aren't looking for all that mess haha. And I respect that too.
Counterpoint: multi-player trophies. These actually make me hate the game more the few times I had been foolish enough to attempt them.
Re: PS5 Fans Want Trophy Upgrades After Xbox Improves Achievements
@chatbot
For awhile, platting certain first party games would get an email sent your way with exclusive avatars. Horizon: Zero Dawn and Spiderman did this.
Pretty neat, no idea why they stopped.
It seems Sony just... really doesnt know what to do with the trophy system or how to meaningfully evolve it in any way after trying a lot of different things (integrating trophies into PS Home, giving store credit for plats, the PS Stars program failure, etc.).
It doesn't help they have zero follow-through with a lot of the programs they have tried. For example, PS Stars was planned to eventually be built into and viewable from the PS5 UI. PS Stars was a nightmare in terms of sluggish, shoddy implementation from the beginning, but it was a fun idea. Of course it was cancelled later before being fully implemented, just like most everything else relating to trophies.
The most hilarious benefit of trophies they have tried was granting priority queuing during customer support calls for having a high enough PS Stars level, which you raised by earning trophies... you can't make this up.
Re: PS5 Price Hike Hits Japan Hard as PS5 Pro Sales Sink to Xbox Levels
@MamaSymphonia
But you could make a sort of roundabout argument subsidizing the PS3 console at a massive cost built their market momentum, continuing into the PS4 and PS5 eras, helping somewhat to cement their current status as undisputed market leaders in their segment. Maybe the 3.3B cost earned them 33B in the long run on microtransactions. Who really knows or could say... but that was the general idea of subsidizing the consoles from the beginning. Spend some money today to make a lot more later.
Corporations and thinking beyond the next fiscal quarter don't really go together as much these days though. Lines must go up, right now. They think primarily in 3-month increments, not 10 years down the road. And who cares what happens next year, the CEO can just take a leap off the top of a building with a golden parachute when the short term cost saving calls hurt the long term health of the company - as they always do.
Curious to see what PS5 sales do in western countries, and what methods they use to extract more money from the current user base after sales fall through the sub-basement floor.
Re: PS5 Price Hike Hits Japan Hard as PS5 Pro Sales Sink to Xbox Levels
Couldn't you get around the massive hike increase from the digital to the disc model in Japan by buying or importing a disc drive add-on? Or is there some restriction on that specific to the language locked model?
Re: PS5 Fans Want Trophy Upgrades After Xbox Improves Achievements
@FuzzieGinge88
It's just one gripe of many. I've got more. For example, it took them roughly five years to add what amounts to a glorified screensaver to the Welcome Home screen, a feature asked for by multitudes since launch. I could go on allll day. It's not just trophies because certainly a lot don't care (and a lot do), but rather the absolutely glacial pace this organization moves these days, particularly with basic UI updates.
Again, Fortune 500 company here. Thousands upon thousands of employees.
I'm convinced it would take this company $20 million and 6 months to a year to solve a rubick's cube.
Their UI engineering team is one guy working remotely from a basement in Djibouti or something.
Re: PS5 Fans Want Trophy Upgrades After Xbox Improves Achievements
How about we get a basic trophy leaderboard built into PSN, or whatever they call it now?
It's been, what, 17 or 18 years now and this somehow still hasn't been implemented? One guy running a website can do it (psnprofiles) but the Fortune 500 company just can't manage.
It's lazy.
Sony has fallen so, so far in its community engagement aspects. It's gotten worse each generation. With PS3, we had grand ambitions with PS Home. PS4 lessened that somewhat with its 'Communities' function. Now PS5 has... what?
Why does each gen feel more disconnected and clinical than the last? Trophy leaderboards would be such a simple thing to implement and increase the competitive, connected aspects for people who are into it.
Why can this titanic company literally not accomplish the most basic tasks? I'd wager it could be done in a week. Like I said, one unaffiliated dude (ONE DUDE!) has made it happen without access to Sony's internal engineering team or back-end.
What even is this company haha.
Re: Hands On: Cyberpunk 2077 Is Now Utterly Essential on PS5 Pro
I gotta be honest, I can't tell any difference in the "glow" from the photos. And I really looked.
But I was playing it with the update earlier today and it does seem to just pop more. Maybe something more easily appreciated in motion than a static image. Resolution bump is also welcome.
Edit: Studying the images a bit more, I can see the reflections in the car windows are quite different. Neat.
Re: 'The Solution Is to Get Rid of Consoles': Analyst Predicts $1,000 PS6 and a Transition to Game Streaming
@VeganH
He's being generous with himself. He first made this prediction in 2009, saying PS3 / 360 would be the last. So... 17 years-ish he's been saying this over and over for each generation.
He wasn't relevant BACK THEN. Why are we talking about him in 2026?
Re: 'The Solution Is to Get Rid of Consoles': Analyst Predicts $1,000 PS6 and a Transition to Game Streaming
@GeminiX53
Yeah we do sound like our parents, don't we haha. I agree physical will be gone -someday-. Just like you and me will be gone. Everything is inevitable over a long enough timeline. I was kind of just adding some tongue in cheek commentary on how Pachter doesn't really set timelines for his predictions, and therefore they really aren't usable predictions at all. This guy kinda has a rep I'm sure you noticed from the comments. I wish PushSquare wouldn't give him a platform, but he's controversial so he gets engagement.
Look, whatever happens we can agree vinyl is king.
Re: 'The Solution Is to Get Rid of Consoles': Analyst Predicts $1,000 PS6 and a Transition to Game Streaming
@GeminiX53
Yes please, let's both revisit this in 10 years. Because I've been hearing this non-stop from "analysts" for the last 15. I'll be retired as well and we can re-connect and share a cup of tea over it.
And you are so right, vinyl just does sound better doesn't it? No digital file could ever replicate it. Or the tactile experience of just having it in your hands. It's a beautiful thing. It was worth the extra cost to you for the vinyl at the end of the day, you coulda got the music off iTunes cheaper. Why didn't you?
There's your answer.
Re: 'The Solution Is to Get Rid of Consoles': Analyst Predicts $1,000 PS6 and a Transition to Game Streaming
@GeminiX53
As far as last I checked, I've got a wall of physical, complete on disc physical PS5 games. They still got a disc drive. Physical isn't dead. Dying, maybe.
But like records and CDs, there will always be a decent subset of the market who want the real deal in their hands and will pay a premium for it.
I'm a better analyst than Pachter (almost everyone here is). And I'm predicting physical market holds steady at 20-25% into the PS6 generation. Which while much reduced gives publishers a financial incentive to cater to it. Hence the rumored optional disc drive attachment for PS6.
If he is saying physical will be a product of the past at some distant, undisclosed point in the future I couldn't argue with that, as it's really not much of a prediction at all. I predict the eventual heat death of the universe.
Move over Pachter! Where's my analyst paycheck? 🙂
Re: 'The Solution Is to Get Rid of Consoles': Analyst Predicts $1,000 PS6 and a Transition to Game Streaming
Michael Pachter predicting the death of consoles AGAIN? He's been doing this for decades.
I guess whenever it does finally happen, he can say he was right the whole time 😄. Actually quite clever. I see you, Michael.
Re: Hardware Snoop Tips Rumoured PS6 Handheld to Be a Beast
@twitchtvpat
No, I'm totally with you. It sounds cool as far as the concept and I would potentially be on board after cautiously waiting a year or two.
It's gonna sound ridiculous but it was God of War Ragnarok being cross gen for me. All the parts where you have to squeeze through narrow openings just made me realize, oh, it's a hidden loading screen because this is cross gen with PS4 and the PS4 doesn't have an SSD.
So the game design itself was getting held back and I couldn't help but thinking, "I guess I'm just playing a prettier version of the PS4 game." Which granted for some people might well be enough. Because the way they design these games, they go lowest common denominator (PS4), then scale up - not the other way around. It limits the newer version to be just an upscaled experience rather than a "current gen" experience, if that makes sense. I feel this cross-gen philosophy actually hurts the types of experiences we get and the ambition developers bring into it.
The quick loading times were a godsend, but I haven't seen a single game during the extended cross gen period which really made me go, yeah, this is a PS5 game - with the exception of Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart which was, ironically, an exclusive launch window game. Nothing that really intrinsically sets the games apart from a design perspective, just slightly prettier graphics. That was disappointing to me. And I get it might be wanting too much to expect more but maybe it was because Rift Apart's instant reality shifting mechanic impressed me so much right out of the gate. I immediately saw the potential of what the PS5's SSD could do when a game is custom-built around it.
And I get why they did it from a business perspective. Huge built in PS4 audience and all that. And it was COVID. I'd have been fine with 1-2 years but it ended up getting ridiculous near the end. I imagine the PS5-PS6 cross gen period will be even longer, and I just don't really want to pay to participate in that again. Just me though, I'm sure PS6 versions will bring some nifty enhancements regardless. It just likely won't be enough for me, personally, to be able to justify the expense.
Re: Hardware Snoop Tips Rumoured PS6 Handheld to Be a Beast
I'm not too psyched with Sony's direction at the moment. I will absolutely be putting off a day one PS6 purchase for the first time since 1995. Whether it comes out in '27 or later. The PS4 / PS5 cross-gen period was abysmally long.
But this? A dedicated handheld is my kryptonite. Though I do remember how they took the VITA behind the woodshed and shot it. 🤔 Of course, price is THE question, but not the only question.
Then there is the PSVR2, which I dumped $600 on, then went on to also be largely ignored, which was the straw that broke the camel's back for me. As cool a piece of tech as it is. Sony doesn't have a good track record with this stuff.
Trust is a valuable currency, and they don't have mine right now. I guess we will wait and see if it's even a real thing first haha. They've gotten my last hardware dollar for the foreseeable future.
Remember the VITA, folks.
Re: PlayStation Studios' Mobile Push Seems Dead as Layoff Reports Continue
Sony stock down 20% YTD. Just saying.
Re: Remember When Call of Duty Said Its New Skins Would Be Sensible? Well, Here's Dave Chappelle
Dave Chapelle, the GOAT. Okay, I'll allow this I suppose. Just saw him in Portland - what an absolute legend.
Re: Starfield PS5 Won't Play Off Physical Disc without a Download
@BAMozzy
"That's Digital games, Content, Media etc - but the same basically applies to Physical although you do have the Physical disc and its more difficult to revoke that Licence and therefore could still give you access to some content after its been deleted/removed/revoked"
Let me put this simply: not really. Again, I refer specifically to complete physical games - not anything with a digital online component like Destiny. Certainly, the publisher has far more control with these live service experiences and can withdraw them - though some restrictions still apply there too.
For the second part, you are again conflating IP ownership with actually owning the physical disc you purchased and its contents. That is, you own that specific copy you purchased, not the intellectual property rights obviously. And that goes regardless of whatever unenforceable nomenclature they opt to use - a "license," or what have you.
To instill this idea in its most easy to understand form, consider this: they call a physical disc a license, and they say you do not actually own the disc or its contents for personal use in the TOS - and this may be freely revoked by them. However, here's my real question: how would they enforce that clause? Assuming a complete physical disc and, say, an offline console, they would have to physically come to your home and take it from you. Theoretically, this is what the TOS gives them the power to do if you interpret it in its most black-and-white, literal meaning.
And also, obviously, they won't and can't come to your house and take your possessions. That's ridiculous. They know that. The courts know that. But, yes, this is really the only way to enforce that specific 'license' clause for an offline, physical disc game.
Now Destiny? Yeah obviously (third obviously if you are keeping track), that's a different ballgame as it has, wholly or in part, a digital or online component they could remotely revoke.
And obviously (fourth obviously), the publisher retains the rights to the intellectual property. That's not what anyone is saying here. Just merely saying you do in fact own that disc and the 1s and 0s on it, in the truest sense. That single disc. I'm guessing this is the point of confusion here.
If you prefer though, call it a license. I call it my property and the courts here in my country would agree. It's really just semantics if you think about it. TOS's in certain parts and aspects hold no legal weight, regardless if both parties freely agree to it in advance. Overreach in contracts of any sort, including TOS's, are de facto unenforceable and invalid as a fundamental rule of contract law.
Again, this is why they have mandatory arbitration or mediation clauses as boilerplate. Look up what those are then ask Google why they include them in those TOS's. I promise I'm not making this stuff up.
Now your argument about how digital games distribution can actually be beneficial to preservation - that I can get behind. I'm done talking about this but I do encourage you to look into it, it's actually all very interesting stuff.
Re: Starfield PS5 Won't Play Off Physical Disc without a Download
Mozzy my friend, you are talking about IP. Which yeah, obviously you don't own that! The disc, the content, the physical item? You do own that. Powerful distinction there.
But I encourage you NOT to take my word for it and do your own independent research - namely, court cases involving unenforceable clauses in the TOS. You will see a very clear pattern emerge.
But yeah... not the IP. Would be cool though if I bought a Batman comic and owned the Batman IP! 😄
Re: Starfield PS5 Won't Play Off Physical Disc without a Download
@BAMozzy
I see your larger point but take some issue with the 'Even complete games are technically just a license now' argument. I've heard that bandied about a lot.
Yes, the publishers call the game a license in the terms of service agreement. Yes, it is written in so much legalese you don't actually own the game you purchased. But what a lot of people don't realize is those aspects of TOS agreements are untested in court to this day, and are likely entirely unenforceable in court when / if push came to shove.
TOS agreements have long been a bit of a joke to those that are familiar with modern contract law. The publishers know this well, which is why they include mandatory arbitration clauses in them (which themselves have been found to be broadly illegal / unenforceable in multiple court cases yet companies still opt to include them). I don't want to get into all the nitty gritty of contract law but it's actually all pretty interesting the crap they try to pull with those agreements.
The too long, didn't read version is: your (complete) physical game purchases are safe and TOS's are largely unenforceable garbage. Your (physical) games are not a "license," you do actually fully and outright own the disc and all content on it, regardless of what that agreement says. I realize you had other valid points about preservation but I wanted to address that specific one.
Re: Starfield PS5 Won't Play Off Physical Disc without a Download
Darnit, I guess I'll just have to settle for playing Prey again then.
I'd pay around $60 for a complete physical edition with DLC and patches. For digital, I'd do about 10 bucks tops. Maybe should've spent the extra, I dunno, 50 cents to press a second disc.
Re: Re-Releases Go Too Far with New PS5 Version of Darksiders 1
@SEVENTEENSOILS
Dante's Inferno remaster would be most welcome. We need some more of that AA goodness in our lives.
Re: Re-Releases Go Too Far with New PS5 Version of Darksiders 1
I actually don't mind frequent remasters because they suppress the second-hand market values of older physical versions of these games. So they are usually a win from the point of preservation and collecting, even if they don't add any meaningful updates.
I own / played it on PS3. As well as having the PS4 copy. So I'm done with this (admittedly awesome) game for the foreseeable future.
For those that haven't played it? It's like a apocalyptic mash-up of Zelda and God of War wrapped up in Joe Mad comic book art. In other words, pretty cool.
Re: Opinion: Does Starfield Suck? People Keep Telling Me to Skip Its PS5 Release
I think there's an especially loathed category of game which falls into the "aggressively average" column. And in some ways this is worse than the outright bad experiences. Derivative, milkuetoast, forgettable - pick your word. But competent at what it does, if only moderately.
Thing is, some of these "average" games really resonated with me personally and are the most memorable. Because I have my own very specific and sometimes niche tastes those games might fall into. For example, I love 2D beat-em-up games like Mother Russia Bleeds and Streets of Rage clones. The wider conversation frequently designates them as average or skippable. So I approach those game reviews through a different lens of, yeah, I will enjoy this 6/10 game. And I do. A lot.
But yeah, I see how this game would fall into that most hated category of "average". Not quite good enough to be among the greats, not quite bad enough to fall into the 'so-bad-it's-good' or cult status bracket. Just nowhere for these games to land for general audiences, and so they ignore it.
I see it as, if you like Bethesda jank (some people find it charming) and are a fan of sci-fi, you may get more mileage out of this game than people would lead you to believe.
Me though? I'd just recommend playing / replaying Prey if you are looking for an immersive sci-fi world with RPG elements to really get lost in.
Re: Hands On: Crimson Desert Runs Well Enough on PS5 Pro, But What About That Intro?
Reading the comments and chuckling. I've realized two things:
2.) I love that we have all collectively decided journalists are generally pretty bad at actually playing video games and this has somehow become the accepted internet zeitgeist.
Re: 'We've Always Wanted to Do It': Todd Howard Says He Knew Starfield PS5 Would Be a 'Matter of Time'
Todd "It Just Works" Howard. What a legend.
Re: 'We'll Still Release on Switch, Xbox, and Steam': Dev Responds to Delisting as Sony Axes 1,000s More PS5, PS4 Games from PS Store
@CrispyMango92
The Uncharted sequel we were all waiting for, finally.
Re: 'We'll Still Release on Switch, Xbox, and Steam': Dev Responds to Delisting as Sony Axes 1,000s More PS5, PS4 Games from PS Store
I remember waaaaay back in the early days of PSN, circa 2008, maybe 2-3 digital games would release a week, every Tuesday. Young me was always so excited what the handful of new games would be every week and I refreshed the store page repeatedly every Tuesday morning to see.
Burn Zombie Burn, Plants Vs Zombies, Crash Commandos... cool stuff.
Now it's just a never-ending stream of digital diarrhea. Sometimes multiple dozens of garbage AI nightmare games which look like they were made in Microsoft Paint. I now actively avoid browsing the store for this reason.
Re: Congratulations to Resident Evil, 30 Years Old Today and Better Than Ever
Such an even spread across the entries, is impressive. There's really no "bad" RE entries as far as the mainline games go, with maybe only RE 0 being in contention there.
My all time favorite franchise.
Re: Round Up: Crimson Desert Reviews Are a Major Disappointment
I'm not gonna get into a whole big thing of whether an 82/100 is a disappointment or not, but I will say this: the narratives writers for mainstream outlets build around games (both pre- and post-release) is part of the reason I seek reviews from independent reviewers on YouTube and similar platforms more frequently as time goes on.
I feel like stuff gets a fairer shake without as much of the baggage with an unaffiliated reviewer you trust. Whereas websites farm for engagement and ad revenue in small and big ways.
Reviews here seem well thought out and balanced for the most part, so I can ignore the occasional, mildy annoying clickbait headline here and there. Cost of doing business I guess.
Re: 'Sony Finally Understands': Over 70% of PS5 Fans Agree with Decision to Scrap PC Ports
@RoomWithaMoose
This was insightful and I think you are 100% right. But I think I'm right too. You are totally right, Johnny buys Playstation because his friend Timmy plays Minecraft there, not because of any specific exclusive. So I guess that sounds like I'm contradicting myself.
But here's where I think we agree: Why did Timmy choose PS5 over the competiton to play Minecraft? He didn't, he got the console as a hand-me-down from his dad. His dad got the PS5 because he had some nostalgia for Crash Bandicoot from his PS1 days in college and wanted to play Crash 4 on it. Now Crash 4 isn't even an exclusive either, but he associates that game with the PS brand. It just feels more comfortable somehow, familiar. So he buys a PS5.
So if we rewind back, it was someone else's sweet nostalgic memory of Crash Bandicoot that got Timmy into the PS5 ecosystem, ultimately. Then his friend Johnny. Then their friend Susan or whoever. It spreads like a virus. But it all started with one person who just found comfort in Crash Bandicoot allll the way back in 1996. Not really the OS. Not really Minecraft or the controller.
In this crazy pulled-out-of my-behind hypothetical, I hope to illustrate how even if consumers appear arbitrary and capricious in their purchasing decisions, it does often tie - somehow - back to an exclusive game experience (even if on a past console) in a causal chain of events - even if they themselves do not realize it or directly interact with exclusives. Until they are locked into a digital ecosystem.
People point out first party games don't even generate all that much money and it's true. But they got them in the door somewhere back down the line, then they later branched out and started buying those sweet, sweet Fortnite microtransactions and making Sony some real money. Or their kids did for those of us who are getting a bit older.
I think it is all related in a subtle way. How a brand has sort of a life of its own and how that evolves to grow market share.
In my own very anecdotal experience, I really like Playstation. I really identify with the brand because of Metal Gear Solid, a series that isn't even ongoing on any console anymore. The game just blew me away and there was no going back, even if I did have a heck of a time with Halo later on. I've bought no less than 4 or 5 people PS5's over the years for their b-days or Christmas, unless they specifically asked for something else. My brother, damn him, asked for a Switch one year.
They all play PS5 now. Because I bought them one? No, because of Metal Gear Solid on PS1! They weren't even into games as we all got older but I keep pulling them back in haha. Now my other brother plays Marvel games on PS5, loves em, and rarely bothers with exclusives. But he does buy DLC. He does generate revenue, and he never bought another console. Locked in.
I think my story is more common than most think. I bet everyone reading this has a similar tale to tell, of how it all started with an exclusive - whether Nintendo, Xbox, or Sony.
Re: 'Sony Finally Understands': Over 70% of PS5 Fans Agree with Decision to Scrap PC Ports
@RoomWithaMoose
Psychonauts 2 is an amazing game.
Re: 'Sony Finally Understands': Over 70% of PS5 Fans Agree with Decision to Scrap PC Ports
@Flurpsel
Yeah I totally agree, and that ties into my point. But I should have been more clear, I meant the 'X Factor' between competing consoles, not compared to a PC.
We got pretty off topic from the subject of the article - PC ports - and ended up talking somehow about complete multiplatform between home consoles, no more exclusives at all, and how that would or wouldn't be feasible in a business sense for consoles specifically.
Some people think you don't need exclusives to differentiate one console from the next, and they could make it somehow more attractive than the competition through other stuff - like OS, controller, etc. even if they all had the same exact games. I don't believe that. But yeah... we were drifting into the hypothetical weeds.
Re: 'Sony Finally Understands': Over 70% of PS5 Fans Agree with Decision to Scrap PC Ports
@RoomWithaMoose
😄. Love it. I see your point, but I like to think those more expensive headsets provide something tangible the cheaper sets don't, thus they sell better. In this context, maybe noise cancellation or overall comfort or battery life? Maybe it's something more intangible like brand recognition or heck, they just like how this one looks a bit better.
Does the same apply to consoles - people picking and choosing on those smaller peripheral aspects? I dunno, that's a leap for me. But maybe I'm stuck in 2001. I'm just a very pragmatic, meat and potatoes person - I just wanna know 1.) what games can it play, and 2.) what's the price.
And it can look like a futuristic router for all I care (ahem, PS5, ahem) as long as the functionality is there. But maybe I'm underestimating those smaller things. Just historically, it hasn't played out that way. Call it coincidence, but the console with the strongest exclusive library always came out on top in the end regardless of what other special features it came loaded with (OG Xbox was actually a beast of a machine and a heck of a value, but less exclusives).
The correlation is hard for me to escape.
Re: 'Sony Finally Understands': Over 70% of PS5 Fans Agree with Decision to Scrap PC Ports
@RoomWithaMoose
Yeah I get ya but my point is that they wouldn't be different enough if they are just competing on things like OS and build quality, etc. It would all come down to a price war because OS's don't move units - games do.
So therefore the biggest competitor (Microsoft in this case) could easily price the others out in the short term until the others folded, since the products are so similar anyways and all play the same stuff. I know what I'm doing, I'm just buying thr cheapest one if they are all so similar. What percentage of users bought a PS2 over an Xbox for the OS?
Then it's monopoly time.
Re: 'Sony Finally Understands': Over 70% of PS5 Fans Agree with Decision to Scrap PC Ports
@Dogbreath
You entirely misunderstand Dogbreath (love the name). A vindictive desire to keep a game out of someone else's walled garden is the stuff of console warriors and/or people under the age of 16.
The concern is, let's say I offer you two products. Say, a toothbrush. They are very similar. Small differences here and there sure - slightly different grips patterns and maybe a different shade of blue.
Well you just happen to be in the toothbrush market to fight canine gingervitus, lucky me! Which are you gonna buy?
But I already know which one you are gonna buy. You inevitably will ask me what the price is. Well Toothbrush A is $10 and Toothbrush B is $15. You will pick Toothbrush A for sure right?
Well therein lies our issue. If these consoles cannot meaningfully differentiate themselves through exclusive games, you will just pick the cheaper option, every time. You'd honestly be crazy not to in my opinion.
So what ends up happening here is the company with the greatest ability to subsidize the console's cost to you, will be the victor. And who cares right? Cheaper is better after all.
Well, the other smaller companies get pushed out through this aggressive pricing strategy and inevitably you are left with one standing - boom, there's the monopoly you were talking about. Because they had nothing to compete on, except price. Bad place to be. That's why exclusives are important, they make the products meaningfully different and act as sort of a guarantee of their continued existence and competition (assuming the good games keep coming).
So really, you can see it's not vindictiveness but rather we want competition (competition is good).
Re: 'Sony Finally Understands': Over 70% of PS5 Fans Agree with Decision to Scrap PC Ports
@BAMozzy
I think the reality has long been services and peripheral aspects of a console experience (OS, controller, etc.) don't move units, the exclusive games do.
If what's inside the box itself was the selling point, the first Xbox should've outsold the PS2 handily and early GamePass should've absolutely cleaned house, etc. Its never really been about which controller a person likes slightly better or which tertiary service comes with it. Well, in the grand scheme at least. There are certainly some hard-core GamePass acolytes out there to this day.
But maybe someday I'm gonna find that person saying they bought Xbox for Quick Resume, and my whole worldview is gonna be changed on this 😄.
It's always been about the games. Nothing else. Everything else is cheap, pointless window dressing for people to fight over on game forums.
Re: 'Sony Finally Understands': Over 70% of PS5 Fans Agree with Decision to Scrap PC Ports
@Zeke68
Agreed it gets weird in here sometimes. And I'm really not trying to console war, I got plenty of beef with Sony as a company too - but to me these are just like exquisitely basic concepts that people somehow find a way to argue about.
From a purely business standpoint, how does no exclusives work in practice? Like, how? But I'm getting off topic because this article is just referring to the recent PC ports, not the multiplatform utopia some people on here envision - which is moreso what I was referring to.
Like I said, those people all snuck off and I dont really hear it repeated around here all that much anymore. But back in 2021-22? Whoo boy.
Re: 'Sony Finally Understands': Over 70% of PS5 Fans Agree with Decision to Scrap PC Ports
@Zeke68
See my comment above yours. It was bad here on PushSquare as well if I recall. They've all oddly gone very silent after watching the reaction to and results of Xbox's multiplatform push.
Sorry but it's so basic I don't know how anyone could question it. And yet they did. Company X needs something different from Company Y to make people buy it. Like maybe we need to draw it in crayon.
The X Factor of a console will never, ever be services or OS or Quick Resume or PSSR or any of that. It is the games. That's why PS2 blew a more powerful and online connected Xbox out of the water in sales - games. Simple, right?
Re: 'Sony Finally Understands': Over 70% of PS5 Fans Agree with Decision to Scrap PC Ports
Yeah well it took em awhile but glad they finally realized a basic business concept - exclusives distinguish your brand and draw people in. There has been some collective amnesia about that over the last 4 to 5 years around these parts and beyond.
'Exclusives bad' took off around the time the whole cross-play debate sprung up, and often the rationale underlying this thought was, 'Well, it'd be better for me if I could play all games on one platform, so why not?' The calculation among the public never got any more nuanced than that, failing to realize the implications and what the end result of that might be.
Re: Opinion: I Wonder if Xbox Helix Will Force Sony to Break Its PS6 Silence
I'm sure Sony was well aware of the news long before we were. So no, they won't reactively respond to this as it was already a known factor - and I'm certain they are privvy to a great deal more.
I don't think the recent "leaks" that Sony is departing PC was any sort of coincidence either. It seems to me many of these leaks are very strategically timed, huh?
If anything, maybe a collective sigh of relief at the $1000-1500 expected price tag, as this lets them off the hook for their own $700-1000 machine in the future.
Next gen is gonna be pricey folks, whatever your hardware preference may be. I'd prefer 2029, give the PS5 more time to find its potential - because it hasn't just yet thanks to languishing in a cross-platform limbo for its first 3-4 years (thank you Jim Ryan).