Vaako007

MS needs the PS and Nintendo fanbases whom actually buy games. Subsidized gamepass isn’t sustainable on its own. MS bragged about how well COD did last year. It would have done better without being a day one game.

And nothing to brag about here. Imagine Toyota buying the Volkswagen automotive group then Toyota bragging the next several months about how amazing their revenue is. It’s like MS bragging about being the biggest publisher on PS. Any publisher that owns a lot regardless of industry can tout the same feats.

@Foxx_64740 it’s not sustainable. As MS has to prop up the studios developmental costs plus salaries to offset the nearly free cost for consumers. Also MS has to pay off other companies to get their games on gamepass. And with inflation things go up each year. It’s why MS puts games on PS, as the PS base will buy new games at full MSRP for whatever interests them. If Xbox didn’t have Windows as a currency behind it, Xbox wouldn’t have considered the model years ago.

MS might as well just rename Xbox to Xbox Publishing as they will continue to acquire in the future I’m certain. As they put everything on all the platforms this will allow for them to acquire more. Xbox as a unique platform is gone. But MS still has its true winner which is windows, so Xbox hardware will likely just be the cheapest entry for a console/PC. Which could prove very popular if they keep the design bespoke and powerful for the money one pays. Either way I still want good competition. I hope that the Japanese brands retain almost all of their IPs and don’t put them on other consoles. PCs don’t count as they don’t compete with consoles. Young lads and their families still buy PlayStations. When that lad is over 18 and gets his first real job then a PC becomes a reality.

@Oz_Who_Dat_Dare brand identity is a console war I suppose. Not sure why people are ashamed to support it. All brands are in competition with each other for profit corporations. It’s the same for every other industry I.e automotive. Except in other industries, companies don’t give away IP without some type of mutual deal. But MS with each passing day is truly just a publisher which they haven’t directly said.

Really big numbers for a game I hear virtually no one talk about. Besides it’s worth seeing how it looks on one’s setup. I got the second one because I wanted to see how it looked too. Pretty game and superb engine. I just don’t like the characters or story. Not to my liking.

I don’t understand this mindset of the more people that can play games the better it will be for all. No one is entitled to the gaming hobby. People are free to spend their excess money and buy into a platform to gain access to some IPs. I hope Nintendo keeps its IPs under lock and I hope Sony does for most of its IPs. And PC isn’t a competitor. Many young lads still want PlayStations and families buy them still. Let us see what Sony has in mind for their IPs.

If it sold 5 million copies they would have said it. Player count has never been the metric of success for video games. So it’s underperforming. This is just word play to control the narrative to appear cool so people will still get it. As many people base their decisions on popularity. They need sells as they aren’t MS whom can afford to prop up its subsidized services.

@Luvstagrind don’t forget the PS3 and Xbox 360! That generation was as you describe. Games were launched playable still as that was the expectation.

@Bagwag82 I used to love to play the cat and mouse mode online! Such a fun game. Good times.

@Bionic-Spencer perfect translation of this corporate message and moves by Microsoft.

It’s an online game with influence from a non Sony derived IP. The PlayStation brand is fine. All I care about is the next four years of 1st party PS5 exclusives.

MS could have raised the price of windows and subsidized gamepass by 0.01$ to generate more revenue quickly. It sucks for these professionals. Hence forth those working within the gaming industry must have one foot in and one foot out mindset. It sucks because MS has the money but it’s all about projecting good numbers on MS PowerPoint to shareholders.

I hope its a powerful console at launch and expensive. That way there will be a lot of overhead as they can put in a relatively good GPU and CPU by the time the SOC is approved before production. What made the PS3 so special was that it was a state of the art console for the time and expensive to build as it was really custom.

@Oram77 I say make it expensive and powerful so that a pro isn't needed later on. If people cannot afford to make the leap the first few years of a PS6 then so be it. They will still support PS5 for the next 7 years starting now at least as we finally get PS5 games.

MS could raise the price of windows by 0.01$ overnight and other streamed services if they wanted to. If they wanted to hit a higher mark for their investors.

@GamingFan4Lyf sorry to hear that mate. Hopefully you found some employment that you are fond of that suits your skill set. As we all gotta eat and put a roof over our heads!

I understand why SE has been changing the gameplay for their FF IP. They want a bigger audience. The reality is that turn based fans while big enough not to ignore, it’s not big enough for their investors whom want classic western RPG money. What they need to do is focus on making a lean game that can be profitable. As the reality is that turn based isn’t coveted by a large swath of gamers yet. Like every studio they just need to focus on being profitable, controlling the budget and coming back down to reality. The suits need to get over this marvel effect in which so many executives have a go big or go home mentality.

@Reeneman the series X isn’t overhyped. It’s more powerful than the base PS5, with both series consoles having better CPUs. PS5 games run better as a result of PS5 having a huge base and the console being weaker than the series X. So console developers choose to optimize for PS5, then the series X just brute forces its way to being mostly similar to the PS5 version. Series s is just a matter of reducing graphics which means more work which is what developers are really complaining about. While MS suits have ruined the Xbox brand, engineers did a good job with the series X.

Great optimization is what we are seeing here with this game. This current generation touted about fast loading times. The few current generation only games have shown how fast loading is beneficial not just to our patience but to what can be achieved in a gaming world.

@AinsleyE yup exactly mate. Everyone getting excited for this current generation game which looks great. More current generation games only will come out from others, impressing gamers. Besides if everyone uses the same engine things will turn bad and less innovation will be present. Other genres will suffer.

@UltimateOtaku91 not every engine works for every game.

This is what optimization looks like for the current generation and not being held back by a previous generation (PS4). The second half of the generation will see nice looking titles.

@DennisReynolds it’s all about competition and leverage. You are right it’s arguably the best engine for open world RPGs. CDPR should have kept developing their own bespoke red engine. Instead they cheaped out and went with a common for all engine. Sony should only share the engine for exclusive games or their partners. Competition is a good thing.

I enjoyed watching others play DS1 but it wasn't for me. However this review of the sequel has intrigued me some. It has more combat options so that could lure me in.

@DennisReynolds nah corporations don't have to license out everything just to make more coin. This Sony engine is excellent and they can continue to leverage it for their own games. Similar to if Ferrari licensed out their excellent V12 engines. They would lose some leverage at the expense of making more coin. Competition is good and let others develop their own engines, instead of using the Toyota Camry one (UE).

I support the former A team Witcher 3 developers. As long as they sell a physical copy, I'll buy it.

I’m excited to see more eastern developers with a classic ethos. I only hope to see more with each passing year. This is a good thing. Competition is good and I hope western developers can ungeld themselves.

@Dimey I played RDR2 last year for the first time on the series x, 30 FPS is fine. As the game play is rather slow I thought. 30 fps didn’t dull my experience as the game was/is so smooth.

If there was no inflation then these numbers would be way more impressive to me. As if inflation was the same as the PS1 era, there would essentially be less layoffs and more titles created.

Looking forward to this game from the A team Witcher 3 devs and leaders.

I'll be curious how their next projects will be seeing how they are a publicly traded company now. Which comes with having to answer to overlords whom will most likely introduce corporate pandering to project to modernists, which has ruined so many newer games in recent memory. I hope majority share holders don't end up being an entity that does what I speak of.

@Vovander the PC base isn't the console base. So no cannibalization of sells like so many tout about. Now if Sony ever got so desperate and directly allowed so many of their IPs on xbox or nintendo hardware, then it would be more accurate to say multiplatform.

@N0CYmr0k When my younger family members want to play a game from a previous generation, I simple hook up the console and put the physical game medium in. My family still uses our OG PS3's and X360s which aren't connected to the internet. Since they don't have a permanent place on the entertainment shelf. And those games won't have any censorship too and can be enjoyed as they were when they came out for years to come in the family. Benefits of physical media whether its a game, movie, or book. One just has to go fetch it so to speak. It really matters to me.

Launch will still disappoint SE. As team Xbox historically doesn’t care for JRPGs as much. So they better keep their expectations realistic for final fantasy.

This is what the common rental leased UE can do for the current generation of consoles. I still think Sonys bespoke engine for Horizon is the one to beat for open world games. CDPR should have continued to develop their own engine for the type of games that they make.

I think people are so surprised judging by the comments on YouTube by how this looks. This is what the current generation has been capable of all along! If we see a new horizon just for this generation of PlayStation then Guerilla games will be able to do even more.

Looks aside this Witcher 4 won’t have the same ethos of 3. As CDPR has had shake-ups and their recent moves told me what I need to know. It’s the OG blokes that make the game not the name of the studio whom owns the IP.

@Blofse it costs money to maintain data centers and keep them relevant. Energy bills plus equipment costs.

The prices are justified. Games have more polygons, better voice acting, better animations, more pixels, more in game systems etc.. I could go on. Like every other product in the consumer economy, the price has gone up. If the prices stay low then more professionals will lose their jobs. As people in the gaming industry don't work for free. They want good compensation for their technical skill sets and benefits. Both of which the companies have to pay for. The increase in prices for games is in line with everything else in the vanity consumer goods industry.

People need to be more concerned about the costs increases for basic human needs things. Like food to eat and a roof over our heads. Outside of that everything else is just vanity and one isn't entitled to vanity goods if they don't have a surplus of funds to have fun in the west.

Lastly this is why people should have supported physical media as it gives people a chance to get used copies.

@nessisonett No one is entitled to any hobby or vanity if its not attainable for their financial situation.

Credit where credit is due. The artist needs to be compensated. Since this is a live service game, if I was the artist I would settle for a lump sum of money plus a continuous royalty fee. As if the game is wildly popular then the artist deserves a continuous cash flow.

All I can do is pray for his soul and that he will be granted many more years.

@RudeAnimat0r that’s not how private or public entities usually operate. For private companies the owner can have their ideas take priority. As for a public company the board and corporate overlords can dictate to a studio their production. Lastly people are free to start their own studios with their own ideas. I see nothing conceded about focusing on the founders ideas which in his case are widely popular.

Since they are doing things “right” from their perspective. I wonder how they will explain how the main character in this game got the two sword technique which Miyamoto Musashi is credited with creating. Not many trained blokes even used it in the passing years in real life as swords require strength. Unless the time frame for this story is after him then it could make slight sense why the style is shown for the main character in this story.

@Rich33 a fully agree about a finished product being a requirement for justifying the new unit price. Everything else we buy in life we accept as complete. I cannot imagine buying a car full price that will have modules added later and software updated later so that the vehicle can operate as advertised. Also imagine paying full price for a movie in which the special effects aren’t polished and the frames for movie scenes are out of order. People would not accept that.

Gamers need to put even more pressure on these studios to release a full base product that is playable in the first patch of the game.

@themightyant I’m not salty against these critics nor any journalist. Why would I be? As they aren’t the doers as in the ones providing tangible value (products). It’s easy to work with any company in the testing phase of any product. Having not been a part of the development cycle. I just don’t see why people place these critics so highly as if they were the creator of all this art that we value. If companies paid DF for consulting to fix their code and the game released with a DF logo on the box then it would be different. However that won’t happen at all as that would be having real skin in the game.

@MrPeanutbutterz I understand that point and that they review the tech that others work with/develop. I just think many place them too high up in the age of digital media. Folks just need to enjoy the entertainment and not focus so much on these critics. As it’s easier to critic people’s work after the fact. I’d have more respect for those blokes if they contributed to optimizing code and games released with a DF logo on it. Not just saying well we noticed the game doesn’t run well here.

Perhaps FPS foundry can provide actual value and fix the code for this game. Along with fixing the code for every other game they critic with their analysis software. Many people are still enjoying this game.

@RatmCky i think people are so accustomed to the fake happy world in which only “likes” are displayed. I.e. YouTube and sites like this one. The real world doesn’t work like this. Just because people put a bad input doesn’t mean it’s review bombing. People just need to let the entertainment art speak for itself and if people don’t like it then so be it. Personally I would love for all sites on the net to show dislikes along with likes.

@carlos82 of course mate. Anything bespoke or purpose built will always be better than a multi purpose tool. I.e. a purpose built sports car or purpose built off-roader. The unreal engine has always been the toyota camry of game engines. Sure its good for all the shoes if has to fill but it will never be exceptional at any one thing as they cater to many clients whom don't want to spend the money on their own engines.

Mafia I & II had great stories. I expect this to be the same. I look forward to this title.

@Quintumply If I was rockstar I'd charge 100$ for the base game. Especially considering how ambitious this project seems to be. If it doesn't launch at 100$ then it will be 100$ at at some point in the next decade after release. Perhaps the PS6 definitive edition haha.