@Oram77 Turns out that placeholder data is meant to be for an AAA game at Summer Games Fest. It uses a Take 2 index, so I am guessing a Take 2 game that isn't GTA 6 (or maybe is, as those best buy dates were wrong). Expiry date is now showing 6th June.
Apart from Wolverine, I have little interest in PS5 1st party stuff. I don't expect to see any hardware announcements, and the SEGA/Altus games will be with Xbox now.
@Oram77 Pre-orders will drop on Monday, as I have seen this on my back-end systems now at my workplace, but no idea about trailers though that could be later
@themightyant That is the number of days that partners can earn their 5% commission by promoting pre orders, not the pre-order window. It is designed to push pre-orders ahead of the 21st May earnings call.
@Atreus97 True, but 3 days and the investor call is on the 21st. It's a common tactic to tell shareholders, "We have sold through X amount of copies in 3 days". I think we know where this is going. Obviously, I can see it on the system, but I understand your scepticism.
@Atreus97 Dropping pre-orders a week before release? R*/ any other AAA game which has not shadow dropped has never done that, and it would be pretty bad marketing for any AAA game company. They also have known the new date for 6 months.
Also helps that 18th May is showing up on my back-end work system now lol.
Sony purchased Gaikai in 2012; they have very good cloud infrastructure and capabilities. I don't mind them putting cloud streaming behind a paywall, but I do not see a world where anyone can justify locking your save progress behind a paywall, should you buy a new PlayStation. A free cap of X amount of 5-10GB is a perfectly reasonable request to be consumer-friendly (max is already 100GB).
Do we have confirmation that Sony has to pay Microsoft for Azure? Because I have not seen that. They use AWS (Amazon), from what I can see online.
Obviously, as a long-time PS player (Since PS1), I have been disappointed with the PS5 generation for the most part. The hardware, including the controller, has been great. They continue to innovate, and the PS Portal and PSVR 2 have been great. We have Mark Cerny and his teams to thank for that.
What hasn't been so great is the software strategy post 2020 led by Jim Ryan and Herman Hulst. They have wasted Billions on failed acquisitions, studio closures, and live service failures. They also approved the same old IP's with Naughty Dog and Insomniac finally being allowed to do new IP's that are coming late into this gen.
Sony has a lot of first-party studios. What I want to see is more new IP and a better cadence of first-party software (3-4 should be the aim, like Xbox and Nintendo). They don't need to be a 10/10 masterpiece, but a 3-4 games that suit different tastes. This year, I only have Wolverine to look forward to.
I get people are excited for GTA 6, I am too, but come on, there is a more mature way to behave towards other games. I am also looking forward to The Blood of Dawnwalker.
I think Game Informer might have underestimated the level of obsession in the GTA "community." They will now be in for a rough time for the next few weeks.
As for the GTA Trailer 3, I will probably get a nice surprise when it drops rather than waiting around for it every other day.
@TrollOfWar Pro has Quality mode at 60fps while the Quality mode for PS5 is 30fps. There is also PS5 performance mode at lower graphical settings/resolutions.
@TheArt Sony should 100% be sending their codes to retailers, and after the various lawsuits, it will be again. As you said, if they don't make any mistakes, there will be no issues, and consumers won't be locked to the PlayStation Store.
Normally, I plan EN dub, but this mixed approach is cool. The game director also mentioned that the 2 protagonists speak bad Japanese at the start but get better over time, which is actually awesome tbh. The whole theme of being an outsider in both places is really driven home.
No surprise, as it is a niche game like Returnal. Not my cup of tea, and not many people's cup of tea it seems (in relation to the addressable market).
Such a PlayStation-coded storyline lol. The writing hasn't been great in most 1st party games over the last few years, which leaves me curious about how Wolverine will pan out (Doesn't bode well). I already know how Intergerlatic will be written as it's Neil Druckman at the helm.
@Northern_munkey Yeah, I have the Pro. I find the 3rd-party support to range from non-existent to poor to really good. I think the benefit lies with GPU-bound games rather than a lot of the more recent AAA games, which can be CPU-bound. I expect Froza 6 to run at the same 60 fps as Xbox, but with higher graphical settings. For me, I would rather just play it on my Series X at launch than wait an unspecified amount of months to get a slightly better looking version on my Pro.
It's no surprise, considering trailers 1 and 2 were shown off on a PS5 version.
Sure, Microsoft could have easily outspent Sony several times over to get the marketing rights, but at the time, Xbox was not looking to sell a high volume of consoles. Now with Asha, that may be different, but this deal was done years ago, and it would have been Sarah Bond's call.
As it stands, the money is better spent on Sony as their whole ecosystem is console, and they need to sell a lot of consoles to make the razor-thin margins work. Only Sony executives will know if the ROI has been worth it by the end of say 2027.
I think we will see a big uplift in both PS5 and Xbox Series consoles as we approach the launch. If PS5's sell out, then an Xbox Series is the only other way to play it day one.
@Northern_munkey I would not say Flight Sim 24, Avowed, or the Outer Worlds 2 are a big upgrade on the Pro vs the Series X. Playground games are more likely to put in more effort, though, as Forza and Fable are expected to be high sellers.
For pro, I would expect the 60fps mode with quality settings.
Makes sense, SEGA and Atlus love a Q1 launch. If Stranger than Heaven launches Oct-Dec, Revival looks to launch Jan-March.
We might get the Stranger than Heaven date at this Xbox special showcase, and Revival will undoubtedly get its date at the Xbox summer showcase, like with Persona 3 Reload (early 2024).
My guess is:
Oct - Stranger than Heaven (GP) (Like Metaphor)
Feb - Persona 4 Revival (GP) (Like Reload)
I look forward to the outcome of the UK lawsuit; this sets a positive precedent for UK claimants. It will also ensure Sony's games can be digitally brought outside PSN, like Xbox and Nintendo games.
It's not about getting money off Sony, it's about getting them to do the right thing for consumers in the long term.
That is a net positive for anyone who is involved in the PlayStation ecosystem, as it means you are not locked into the PSN store/ console bundle if you want to buy a digital 1st party game at a 3rd party retailer.
It's the reason I have a Switch 2. They have the most exclusives overall. We are lucky if Sony gives us a couple of 1st party games a year. Wolverine is the only exclusive I have been looking forward to since 2021.
The best time now will be when Sony does a summer or black Friday sale. The prices will probably not be much lower than the previous prices this time, though, which is a shame.
Spring ends on June 20th; the summer solstice is on June 21st.
As expected, we will see more at the Sony State of Play/Showcase in late May or early June.
As for Wolverine, I hope the writing is much better than Spider-Man 2. This actually might be a different team (I hope), as the Spiderman 2 team should be on Venom or Spiderman 3 now.
As much as Sony likes to fully milk successful IPs, I would like to see Insomniac do something different with one of its 2nd or 3rd teams.
@Vertere You don't need a Helldivers to make up for what Sony spent, you need a COD, GTA, Fortnite, Counter Strike 2, or Roblox to make back the kind of money they have wasted tbh. If Helldivers 2 alone were enough, they would not keep pursuing another live service hit. It has been a success for sure, but it seems not to be the juggernaut they want.
Comments 883
Re: State of Play Confirmed for 2nd June, 60+ Minutes of Wolverine and PS5 Games
I have low expectations for this showcase as I haven't enjoyed the last few, but the extended look at Wolverine will ensure there is something I like!
Re: 'Every Detail Matters': Sony Drops New Promo for $900 PS5 Pro
@Oram77 Turns out that placeholder data is meant to be for an AAA game at Summer Games Fest. It uses a Take 2 index, so I am guessing a Take 2 game that isn't GTA 6 (or maybe is, as those best buy dates were wrong). Expiry date is now showing 6th June.
Re: 'Every Detail Matters': Sony Drops New Promo for $900 PS5 Pro
Every earnings call matters lol
Re: 'It Should Be Free to Play Online Games': PS Plus Price Squeeze Taken to Task by PS5 Owners
Sony is about to go into their Xbox One Era lol
Re: PS Plus Price Increase Announced by Sony for New Members
Ah, that's great news! Keep it up, Sony.
Re: PS5 Will Reveal the Most Played Games with Steam-Like Player Numbers
That's great news; now, tourists can have more data to obsess over on Twitter.
Re: 007 First Light Now Ready for Action, James Bond PS5 Game Goes Gold
Oh, for the review, please put the tagline "licence to shill?". lol
Re: What Do You Want from a May 2026 State of Play Showcase?
Apart from Wolverine, I have little interest in PS5 1st party stuff. I don't expect to see any hardware announcements, and the SEGA/Altus games will be with Xbox now.
Re: Of Course There's Already a New GTA 6 Pre-Orders Conspiracy Theory
@Oram77 Pre-orders will drop on Monday, as I have seen this on my back-end systems now at my workplace, but no idea about trailers though that could be later
Re: Of Course There's Already a New GTA 6 Pre-Orders Conspiracy Theory
@themightyant That is the number of days that partners can earn their 5% commission by promoting pre orders, not the pre-order window. It is designed to push pre-orders ahead of the 21st May earnings call.
Re: Of Course There's Already a New GTA 6 Pre-Orders Conspiracy Theory
@Atreus97 True, but 3 days and the investor call is on the 21st. It's a common tactic to tell shareholders, "We have sold through X amount of copies in 3 days". I think we know where this is going. Obviously, I can see it on the system, but I understand your scepticism.
Re: Of Course There's Already a New GTA 6 Pre-Orders Conspiracy Theory
@Atreus97 Dropping pre-orders a week before release? R*/ any other AAA game which has not shadow dropped has never done that, and it would be pretty bad marketing for any AAA game company. They also have known the new date for 6 months.
Also helps that 18th May is showing up on my back-end work system now lol.
Re: Of Course There's Already a New GTA 6 Pre-Orders Conspiracy Theory
Just checked my work emails - yeah, looks like this one is real. £69.99.
Re: Directive 8020 (PS5) - Dull Sci-Fi Thriller Is a Supermassive Letdown
To me the only thing worse than horror (not a fan) is boring horror.
A good game is good on it's own, it doesn't need any series context to "get it".
It looks like a average game that some people will like more and some people will like less.
Re: 007 First Light Now Ready for Action, James Bond PS5 Game Goes Gold
Might have to pick this one up on payday!
Re: Sony: PS Plus Gets 'Four to Six' Day One Games Per Year - And the Focus Is on Indies
@GeeEssEff
Sony purchased Gaikai in 2012; they have very good cloud infrastructure and capabilities. I don't mind them putting cloud streaming behind a paywall, but I do not see a world where anyone can justify locking your save progress behind a paywall, should you buy a new PlayStation. A free cap of X amount of 5-10GB is a perfectly reasonable request to be consumer-friendly (max is already 100GB).
Do we have confirmation that Sony has to pay Microsoft for Azure? Because I have not seen that. They use AWS (Amazon), from what I can see online.
Re: Sony: PS Plus Gets 'Four to Six' Day One Games Per Year - And the Focus Is on Indies
Sony should remove paying for cloud saves. It's free on Xbox.
Re: 'PS5 Is Just a Plastic Box if It Doesn't Have Content': Sony Explains Its 'Third-Party Focused' Ecosystem
Obviously, as a long-time PS player (Since PS1), I have been disappointed with the PS5 generation for the most part. The hardware, including the controller, has been great. They continue to innovate, and the PS Portal and PSVR 2 have been great. We have Mark Cerny and his teams to thank for that.
What hasn't been so great is the software strategy post 2020 led by Jim Ryan and Herman Hulst. They have wasted Billions on failed acquisitions, studio closures, and live service failures. They also approved the same old IP's with Naughty Dog and Insomniac finally being allowed to do new IP's that are coming late into this gen.
Sony has a lot of first-party studios. What I want to see is more new IP and a better cadence of first-party software (3-4 should be the aim, like Xbox and Nintendo). They don't need to be a 10/10 masterpiece, but a 3-4 games that suit different tastes. This year, I only have Wolverine to look forward to.
Re: GTA 6 Fans Crushed as Next Game Informer Cover Revealed
I get people are excited for GTA 6, I am too, but come on, there is a more mature way to behave towards other games. I am also looking forward to The Blood of Dawnwalker.
I think Game Informer might have underestimated the level of obsession in the GTA "community." They will now be in for a rough time for the next few weeks.
As for the GTA Trailer 3, I will probably get a nice surprise when it drops rather than waiting around for it every other day.
Re: You Need a PS5 Pro to Play 007 First Light at Its Best on Console
@TrollOfWar Pro has Quality mode at 60fps while the Quality mode for PS5 is 30fps. There is also PS5 performance mode at lower graphical settings/resolutions.
Re: Xbox Cock Up Makes LEGO Batman Playable a Week Before Release
@TheArt Sony should 100% be sending their codes to retailers, and after the various lawsuits, it will be again. As you said, if they don't make any mistakes, there will be no issues, and consumers won't be locked to the PlayStation Store.
Re: Xbox Cock Up Makes LEGO Batman Playable a Week Before Release
Xbox got a timed exclusive haha
Re: God of War Boss Cory Barlog Appears Furious After PS5 Game Leak
All they make is GOW games, wish it were something else. Some of the Sony IP are getting a bit stale.
Re: Sony Ships 93.7 Million PS5 Consoles, But Recent Sales Down by Almost 50%
It will be difficult for the PS5 to reach PS4 levels by the end of next year, but 100 million units is still feasible and a good achievement.
Re: PS Store Deals Tab Returns, Confirms Next Sale for 13th May
Panic over everyone lol
Re: Yakuza Dev's Stranger Than Heaven Drops English Dub Option Due to Bilingual Characters
Normally, I plan EN dub, but this mixed approach is cool. The game director also mentioned that the 2 protagonists speak bad Japanese at the start but get better over time, which is actually awesome tbh. The whole theme of being an outsider in both places is really driven home.
Re: Poor Start for PS5 Exclusive Saros as First Sales Data Emerges
No surprise, as it is a niche game like Returnal. Not my cup of tea, and not many people's cup of tea it seems (in relation to the addressable market).
Re: Stranger Than Heaven Is a Yakuza Series Origin Story, Out on PS5 This Winter
Game looks great! might check it out on Game Pass.
Re: Forza Horizon 6's Soundtrack Leans into Japan with BABYMETAL, YOASOBI
Some great tracks there, can't wait until the 15th now!
Re: MindsEye Saga Hits a New Low as Mass Layoffs Cripple PS5 Flop's 'Comeback'
More like Out of pocket boy lol
Re: Lords of the Fallen 2's Idea of Female Armour Is Downright Embarrassing
Removed
Re: Fake Saros PS5 Story Details Are Circulating Online - Here's What Actually Happens
Such a PlayStation-coded storyline lol. The writing hasn't been great in most 1st party games over the last few years, which leaves me curious about how Wolverine will pan out (Doesn't bode well). I already know how Intergerlatic will be written as it's Neil Druckman at the helm.
Re: Forza Horizon 6 Is Likely a Substantial Download for Your PS5
@Northern_munkey Yeah, I have the Pro. I find the 3rd-party support to range from non-existent to poor to really good. I think the benefit lies with GPU-bound games rather than a lot of the more recent AAA games, which can be CPU-bound. I expect Froza 6 to run at the same 60 fps as Xbox, but with higher graphical settings. For me, I would rather just play it on my Series X at launch than wait an unspecified amount of months to get a slightly better looking version on my Pro.
Re: PS5's 007 First Light Will See You Embody the Charismatic James Bond for 20+ Hours
20-30 hours is a sweet spot for single player action adventure games like this.
Re: PlayStation Seemingly Lands GTA 6 PS5 Marketing Deal
It's no surprise, considering trailers 1 and 2 were shown off on a PS5 version.
Sure, Microsoft could have easily outspent Sony several times over to get the marketing rights, but at the time, Xbox was not looking to sell a high volume of consoles. Now with Asha, that may be different, but this deal was done years ago, and it would have been Sarah Bond's call.
As it stands, the money is better spent on Sony as their whole ecosystem is console, and they need to sell a lot of consoles to make the razor-thin margins work. Only Sony executives will know if the ROI has been worth it by the end of say 2027.
I think we will see a big uplift in both PS5 and Xbox Series consoles as we approach the launch. If PS5's sell out, then an Xbox Series is the only other way to play it day one.
Re: Poll: Vote for Your PS5 Game of the Month (April 2026)
Pragmata hands down.
I don't intend on playing Saros, but would that not be best placed in next month's poll?
Re: Forza Horizon 6 Is Likely a Substantial Download for Your PS5
Can't wait! I will be playing on my Series X as I don't want to wait to play the PS5 version.
Re: Forza Horizon 6 Is Likely a Substantial Download for Your PS5
@Northern_munkey I would not say Flight Sim 24, Avowed, or the Outer Worlds 2 are a big upgrade on the Pro vs the Series X. Playground games are more likely to put in more effort, though, as Forza and Fable are expected to be high sellers.
For pro, I would expect the 60fps mode with quality settings.
Re: Rumour: Persona 4 Revival Release Date Narrowed Down to Early 2027
Makes sense, SEGA and Atlus love a Q1 launch. If Stranger than Heaven launches Oct-Dec, Revival looks to launch Jan-March.
We might get the Stranger than Heaven date at this Xbox special showcase, and Revival will undoubtedly get its date at the Xbox summer showcase, like with Persona 3 Reload (early 2024).
My guess is:
Oct - Stranger than Heaven (GP) (Like Metaphor)
Feb - Persona 4 Revival (GP) (Like Reload)
Re: Sony's $7.85M Settlement Could Mean PSN Payouts for Millions
I look forward to the outcome of the UK lawsuit; this sets a positive precedent for UK claimants. It will also ensure Sony's games can be digitally brought outside PSN, like Xbox and Nintendo games.
It's not about getting money off Sony, it's about getting them to do the right thing for consumers in the long term.
That is a net positive for anyone who is involved in the PlayStation ecosystem, as it means you are not locked into the PSN store/ console bundle if you want to buy a digital 1st party game at a 3rd party retailer.
Re: Gamers Still Pick Consoles for Exclusives, New Data Finds
It's the reason I have a Switch 2. They have the most exclusives overall. We are lucky if Sony gives us a couple of 1st party games a year. Wolverine is the only exclusive I have been looking forward to since 2021.
Re: The Outer Worlds Will Offer Free PS5 Remaster Upgrade Amidst Delistings and Price Drops
@beltmenot There is no Switch 2/Spacers Choice (Next Gen) version to upgrade it to yet. Maybe in the future.
Re: Now Even Refurbished PS5 Consoles Cost a Fortune
The best time now will be when Sony does a summer or black Friday sale. The prices will probably not be much lower than the previous prices this time, though, which is a shame.
Re: No Need to Brick It, LEGO Batman Primed for PS5 Release as It Goes Gold
Gone gold but sadly no Switch 2 release date
Re: 007 First Light: A Full Debrief After 3 Hours with IO's New James Bond Game
Great article,More of the themed stuff please!
Re: PS5 Game Expiry DRM Potentially Explained, Sony Still Yet to Comment
Sony has handled this badly.
Re: Wolverine PS5 Updates Still Coming in the Next Few Weeks
Spring ends on June 20th; the summer solstice is on June 21st.
As expected, we will see more at the Sony State of Play/Showcase in late May or early June.
As for Wolverine, I hope the writing is much better than Spider-Man 2. This actually might be a different team (I hope), as the Spiderman 2 team should be on Venom or Spiderman 3 now.
As much as Sony likes to fully milk successful IPs, I would like to see Insomniac do something different with one of its 2nd or 3rd teams.
Re: Steelrising, GreedFall PS5 Dev Spiders Is Reportedly Soon to Close
"Awesome! One of the few devs that probably had it coming lol."
Is this bait or stupidity? Call it.
Re: Dawnwalker Is PS5's Most Promising RPG, Chomps Down on September Release Date
Looks great! September should be pretty busy with this, Wolverine and Trails' 2nd Chapter already confirmed for September.
Re: PS5 Live Service Fairgames Reportedly Roasted in Recent Pre-Alpha
@Vertere You don't need a Helldivers to make up for what Sony spent, you need a COD, GTA, Fortnite, Counter Strike 2, or Roblox to make back the kind of money they have wasted tbh. If Helldivers 2 alone were enough, they would not keep pursuing another live service hit. It has been a success for sure, but it seems not to be the juggernaut they want.