They can do that anyway, everything has a price. This is a very roundabout way of going about getting their hands on a big franchise in a relatively small market segment. It’s about the spread across Mobile (where more competition would be very welcome) and PC as well as Console gaming (likewise) plus the possibility of streaming becoming a significant portion of the market in the future. But if they want to keep throwing money at big names for Game Pass they can do it without regulatory scrutiny. Either way, sadly, it looks like it will run and run.
It would be difficult to do but not impossible. That doesn’t make the offer in any way misleading or pointless though. What they’re offering seems pretty clear cut. There’s no obligation for them to offer absolute parity, as long as non-Xbox gamers have access to the games.
"Does this also promise to keep it on PS Extra at a fair price for those 10 years? Or will it be exclusive to Microsoft’s subscription service? "
Thats an interesting question. I'm not sure how, mechanically, they could do this. I know old COD games have been on Plus but the new games have never been on any streaming service. How would any agreement or any edict from regulators set down what that would be?
Essentially they would have to specify that MS are adequately recompensed for lost sales on PS so could they specify a figure based on the previous years sales? It would probably be too expensive for Sony as it would mean sacrificing their own royalties on top of whatever they'd have to pay but I wonder if something will be agreed.
The conclusion to this saga was always likely to be the point where MS have given away enough to persuade the regulators to pass the deal, and Sony have to realise when that point is or risk getting nothing. Steam and Nintendo agreeing deals with MS brings that point a lot closer. It’s going to be very difficult to convince the FTC, CMA etc that the same deal isn’t appropriate for Sony on any kind of competition or monopoly grounds now. And ‘but we might lose money’ isn’t going to be that argument.
“ Lol mate, were you even around during the PS3 days? The "get a second job", PSN outage days?”
True, I didn’t buy a PS3 until late 2009 which was very late given it was coming off the back of PS2. But the thing there is they never actually managed to alienate their fan base despite seemingly trying to. They were certainly nowhere near Atari in 1983 or Sega in 1995. I am seeing signs of that complacency recently from Sony though.
“ You should really read the legal document that Sony filed and the UK government published” I’m a Gaming business nerd who does frequent night shifts, I’ve read it all 😉 That’s where I believe Sony are framing a threat to them being able to trundle along doing what they’ve been doing for a few years and creaming off the profits of their dominance, as a threat to the industry and the consumer. They’ve seen an opportunity to regulate away that threat as an alternate to responding in other ways. I totally understand them trying to take it, regardless of how insecure or in some cases hypocritical it makes them look. Business is business. But I believe it’s shortsighted. If the goal is to stop COD going exclusive they are close to achieving that. If the goal is to stop the takeover altogether all that will happen is that competition can come after them in ways that can’t be ameliorated by a friendly regulator.
But either way, I agree it won’t go through so this is all academic.
“ And btw, good conversation”
Same to you sir. It’s nice to have a civil chat about these things Online. All the best.
There’s a huge difference in how Sony are ran, historically/across the company/on the PlayStation side compared to Sega and Atari though. The latter two were insanely cavalier when it came to the actual Company finances, and Sega basically went crazy around 1994/95, digging themselves into a hole they could never climb out of.
Sony don’t have any worries like that financially. They haven’t done anything to dramatically alienate their fan base like Sega did. They have a huge stable of established popular internally developed games.
Re.the takeover itself. I personally don’t care about COD but Sony are making themselves look really insecure. I’ve had at least one Sony Console in the house since January 1996 and have owned all of them, even the Vita. They’ve always been the big boys throwing their weight around and dominating the market. Now they’re complaining about the same happening to them and framing what is actually a threat to their market share and bottom line as bad for the industry and a threat to competition. If I was them I’d take the 10 year offer and pipe down.
I suspect if the regulators are going to try and block the deal it will be because of the potential for MS (with Azure) to dominate the streaming market. Sony are making themselves look a touch naive and hypocritical for no reason. In fact the end result of this deal being blocked might finish up worse for Sony (MS might have a portion of that $69 billion to throw around) and better for Tencent or whoever does then buy ABK.
I’m aware of that. I don’t get emotionally attached to any of these big firms. They exist solely to make money and MS would love to wipe Sony off the face of the planet (and vice versa). I’m just saying it isn’t possible and they’re all realistic about that. That applies whether this deal goes through or not.
It doesn’t offer an existential risk. It offers a risk to their current strategy and business plan. If it does get stopped by regulators because of concerns over the Game streaming market that’s one thing. It cutting into the market leaders revenue isn’t an issue for regulators.
It seems very short sighted though. A big part of the deal for MS is the foothold it gives them in Mobile gaming and extra strength in the PC and esports market. Sony are trying to stop the whole deal because of their concerns over COD.
The end result could be a very annoyed MS and AB, and nothing to stop MS digging into their war chest to make COD exclusive, or better on Xbox, and/or put it on Game Pass. They may also go after other third party acquisitions that damage Sony.
I guess he’s talking from a Japanese point of view. FFVII released in Japan in early 1997 at which point the Saturn was very strong there, the SNES was still getting big RPGs and it wasn’t clear the N64 would tank in that territory.
When it surfaced in the West in late 1997 the success of the PlayStation was well and truly assured. Sonys marketing along with the Wipeout games, the Ridge Racers, Tomb Raider, Resident Evil, Crash Bandicoot, Telles 2 and many others had made sure of that.
Wouldn’t be surprised if MS walk away at this point, too much hassle. If it doesn’t go through there’s going to be an awful lot of MS cash in an Account and a lot of desire to get back at Sony. Really can’t understand why Ryan has made such a fuss about COD.
That’s a really strange post. As I say, if you can’t feel the difference fine, but others can. I’m not sure why you’re in denial about that, you just need to accept that fact and that you’re missing out. Either way, developers making sure games have 60FPS options isn’t something that should upset you so much.
Might just be a mistake. Let’s hope so, it’s really handy to know. Much better than the ‘surprise, guess what’s gone in two weeks!’ approach Game Pass takes.
“Gotham Knights is not that graphically intense compared Horizon forbidden West, and more. Huge games running at 60fps on ps5 right now so why would the developer all of a sudden say they can only do 30fps? Make it make sense”
They are games by different developers. Hope that helps it make sense.
I’ve seen the links. They don’t change the reality. There is no reason why they couldn’t have optimised Gotham Knights for Series X and PS5. Other developers have done so and there is no requirement for parity between Series S and the other two systems. It’s a total red herring and an excuse on their part.
Series S existing is not the reason Gotham Knights is stuck at 30fps. The developers could have optimised it for XSX and PS5 and it could have run at a better Framerate on the more powerful systems (as some games already do) but they just didn’t bother. It’s an poor excuse on their part.
Almost all of your post is wrong. Especially the bit about TVs, that made me laugh. If you can’t notice a difference fair enough but I can. That why the only way forward is to give people options.
There should aways be a 60FPS option. Doesn’t matter how much details and resolution have to be dialled back. The key is to give people options. No excuses
Not being a fan of God of War or VR I wasn’t expecting a lot. So while there was more in the Nintendo Direct for me I was pleasantly surprised by this State of Play. Nothing jaw dropping but definitely a few games to watch e.g.Stellar Blade, Pacific Drive
So, three years beyond the current agreement which IIRC includes this years, another iteration of Warzone and another game on top of that? Plus there’s talk of a COD releasing every two years rather than one. Don’t think it’s too realistic to expect a written contract for much more than that.
Either way, the two large profit chasing multinational corporations bleating is getting a little tiresome.
Always thought they would do this. Having the biggest franchise in the world on Game Pass (probably with the odd bit of exclusive content) is a big plus and they can keep coining it in from PS owners.
It seems unlikely right now but I’m old enough to remember when Sony and MS didn’t even make Consoles. Don’t rule anything out. If both sides can make the financials work, it can happen.
Couldn’t agree more. Everything we know about Ryan suggests he isn’t what Sony need right now.
For all the panic, Sony are still in a very strong position that they’ve worked hard to create over the last 27 years. They have earned tremendous loyalty from many fans. Challenges come and go, they’ve faced them down before, what they need now is energy, imagination, and creativity. I’d like to see a response in terms of new services, better backwards compatibility to exploit that huge back catalogue they have, development deals, a slew of announcements even.
Beyond that I’d like to see a pivot to the Japanese market. Not just because personally I’ve been disillusioned by the Americanisation of Playstations output (and I have) but because there’s real potential there in terms of software that I think MS would struggle to exploit.
Well said. I really hope this focuses Sony and wakes them up. A renewed interest in the Japanese market would be a start. At the minute they’re in a pincer movement between MS attacking them in the West and Nintendo eating all their Sushi in Japan. They still have a very strong position, they just need to shake any complacency off. I just hope the current leadership are capable.
This might be a bit of an overreaction. First, COD may not go exclusive anyway. If you look at the best selling PS4 games as of Feb 2020, 6 of the top 14 are COD. This isn’t like Elder Scrolls or Starfield, that would be a lot of money to leave behind, especially with the MTX revenue that generates. There’s a benefit to Xbox just in having it on GP when other consumers have to pay £70, and in having exclusive maps etc. I also don’t think the average gamer who’s paid £450 for a PS5 expecting their annual COD/FIFA with a few other games on top would take too kindly to suddenly being told that isn’t happening. Xbox would have to tread very carefully with such a move.
If it does disappear of Playstation then yes that’s a blow to Sony. A lot of revenue disappears and a chunk of the casual market probably ups and moves to Xbox. But it isn’t the end of the world, it just means a closer Generation sales wise, possibly with MS edging out on top. But it isn’t just about ‘winning,’ Sony will still have a great system with a load of great games (some exclusive) and make a lot of money. If (like me) you were never bothered about COD in the first place PS5 will still be fantastic.
I think MS saw the chance to pick up a large Company for a decent price that gives them some of the family friendly properties (Crash and Spyro) they’ve been after for their games portfolio. A company that could do better if they can fix the poisonous culture-something good for the industry in general.
However it’s mainly about other markets. The deal gives them a good foothold in Mobile gaming, strengthens their position in esports with Overwatch and gives them a huge MMORPG that they don’t currently have. It’s about their battle with Tencent and Apple more than their battle with Sony in one segment of the market.
Good article. Fanboys will fanboy but it’s good to see Editorial content steering clear of zealotry. I agree with a lot of it. I thought it was a good, solid show overall but nothing Earth shattering though we do have to make allowances for the Covid effect. I bounced off GOW 2018 anyway and Ragnarok looks so similar it didn’t excite me at all. KOTOR was welcome but nothing was shown. Some other decent games but my PS5 is currently underused next to my Series X and Switch and nothing shown suggested that will change soon.
Comments 255
Re: Reaction: What Happens to PlayStation if Microsoft Buys Activision Blizzard?
Hopefully it will improve Playstation. Competition is always good and they need a stronger Xbox to keep them on their toes.
Re: UK Regulator No Longer Concerned About Activision Buyout's Impact on Console Competition
@Hypoman
Of course it’s Capitalism. Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo, ABK, EA, all of them only exist to make money.
Re: UK Regulator No Longer Concerned About Activision Buyout's Impact on Console Competition
@arsmolinarc
This is the U.K. regulator. The FTC has so far sued to stop it.
Re: The Enormous PS Store January Sale Gets Even Bigger with New PS5, PS4 Deals
@PenguinLtd
Not my favourite in the series TBH but still a great game.
Re: The Enormous PS Store January Sale Gets Even Bigger with New PS5, PS4 Deals
Tempted by Rift Apart but there’s a voice saying ‘that’ll be on PS Plus Extra soon’
Re: Microsoft Invites Sony to Sign Its Own 10-Year Call of Duty Deal
@thefourfoldroot1
They can do that anyway, everything has a price. This is a very roundabout way of going about getting their hands on a big franchise in a relatively small market segment. It’s about the spread across Mobile (where more competition would be very welcome) and PC as well as Console gaming (likewise) plus the possibility of streaming becoming a significant portion of the market in the future. But if they want to keep throwing money at big names for Game Pass they can do it without regulatory scrutiny. Either way, sadly, it looks like it will run and run.
Re: Microsoft Invites Sony to Sign Its Own 10-Year Call of Duty Deal
@thefourfoldroot1
It would be difficult to do but not impossible. That doesn’t make the offer in any way misleading or pointless though. What they’re offering seems pretty clear cut. There’s no obligation for them to offer absolute parity, as long as non-Xbox gamers have access to the games.
Re: Microsoft Invites Sony to Sign Its Own 10-Year Call of Duty Deal
Have Sony attempted to make a deal? For example we'll sign to keep Destiny multi-plat for 15 years if we get COD in return?
In their CMA filing they don't even mention Overwatch, why are they not asking about that, why just COD?
Re: Microsoft Invites Sony to Sign Its Own 10-Year Call of Duty Deal
@thefourfoldroot1
"Does this also promise to keep it on PS Extra at a fair price for those 10 years? Or will it be exclusive to Microsoft’s subscription service? "
Thats an interesting question. I'm not sure how, mechanically, they could do this. I know old COD games have been on Plus but the new games have never been on any streaming service. How would any agreement or any edict from regulators set down what that would be?
Essentially they would have to specify that MS are adequately recompensed for lost sales on PS so could they specify a figure based on the previous years sales? It would probably be too expensive for Sony as it would mean sacrificing their own royalties on top of whatever they'd have to pay but I wonder if something will be agreed.
Re: Microsoft Invites Sony to Sign Its Own 10-Year Call of Duty Deal
The conclusion to this saga was always likely to be the point where MS have given away enough to persuade the regulators to pass the deal, and Sony have to realise when that point is or risk getting nothing. Steam and Nintendo agreeing deals with MS brings that point a lot closer. It’s going to be very difficult to convince the FTC, CMA etc that the same deal isn’t appropriate for Sony on any kind of competition or monopoly grounds now. And ‘but we might lose money’ isn’t going to be that argument.
Re: Report: FTC Could File an Antitrust Lawsuit to Block Xbox's Activision Buyout
@Art_Vandelay
“ Lol mate, were you even around during the PS3 days? The "get a second job", PSN outage days?”
True, I didn’t buy a PS3 until late 2009 which was very late given it was coming off the back of PS2. But the thing there is they never actually managed to alienate their fan base despite seemingly trying to. They were certainly nowhere near Atari in 1983 or Sega in 1995. I am seeing signs of that complacency recently from Sony though.
“ You should really read the legal document that Sony filed and the UK government published” I’m a Gaming business nerd who does frequent night shifts, I’ve read it all 😉 That’s where I believe Sony are framing a threat to them being able to trundle along doing what they’ve been doing for a few years and creaming off the profits of their dominance, as a threat to the industry and the consumer. They’ve seen an opportunity to regulate away that threat as an alternate to responding in other ways. I totally understand them trying to take it, regardless of how insecure or in some cases hypocritical it makes them look. Business is business. But I believe it’s shortsighted. If the goal is to stop COD going exclusive they are close to achieving that. If the goal is to stop the takeover altogether all that will happen is that competition can come after them in ways that can’t be ameliorated by a friendly regulator.
But either way, I agree it won’t go through so this is all academic.
“ And btw, good conversation”
Same to you sir. It’s nice to have a civil chat about these things Online. All the best.
Re: Report: FTC Could File an Antitrust Lawsuit to Block Xbox's Activision Buyout
@Art_Vandelay
There’s a huge difference in how Sony are ran, historically/across the company/on the PlayStation side compared to Sega and Atari though. The latter two were insanely cavalier when it came to the actual Company finances, and Sega basically went crazy around 1994/95, digging themselves into a hole they could never climb out of.
Sony don’t have any worries like that financially. They haven’t done anything to dramatically alienate their fan base like Sega did. They have a huge stable of established popular internally developed games.
Re.the takeover itself. I personally don’t care about COD but Sony are making themselves look really insecure. I’ve had at least one Sony Console in the house since January 1996 and have owned all of them, even the Vita. They’ve always been the big boys throwing their weight around and dominating the market. Now they’re complaining about the same happening to them and framing what is actually a threat to their market share and bottom line as bad for the industry and a threat to competition. If I was them I’d take the 10 year offer and pipe down.
I suspect if the regulators are going to try and block the deal it will be because of the potential for MS (with Azure) to dominate the streaming market. Sony are making themselves look a touch naive and hypocritical for no reason. In fact the end result of this deal being blocked might finish up worse for Sony (MS might have a portion of that $69 billion to throw around) and better for Tencent or whoever does then buy ABK.
Re: Report: FTC Could File an Antitrust Lawsuit to Block Xbox's Activision Buyout
@Art_Vandelay
I’m aware of that. I don’t get emotionally attached to any of these big firms. They exist solely to make money and MS would love to wipe Sony off the face of the planet (and vice versa). I’m just saying it isn’t possible and they’re all realistic about that. That applies whether this deal goes through or not.
Re: Report: FTC Could File an Antitrust Lawsuit to Block Xbox's Activision Buyout
@Art_Vandelay
It doesn’t offer an existential risk. It offers a risk to their current strategy and business plan. If it does get stopped by regulators because of concerns over the Game streaming market that’s one thing. It cutting into the market leaders revenue isn’t an issue for regulators.
Re: Report: FTC Could File an Antitrust Lawsuit to Block Xbox's Activision Buyout
@Giancarlothomaz
It seems very short sighted though. A big part of the deal for MS is the foothold it gives them in Mobile gaming and extra strength in the PC and esports market. Sony are trying to stop the whole deal because of their concerns over COD.
The end result could be a very annoyed MS and AB, and nothing to stop MS digging into their war chest to make COD exclusive, or better on Xbox, and/or put it on Game Pass. They may also go after other third party acquisitions that damage Sony.
Re: Everybody's Favourite Exec Shuhei Yoshida Says Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest Saved PlayStation
I guess he’s talking from a Japanese point of view. FFVII released in Japan in early 1997 at which point the Saturn was very strong there, the SNES was still getting big RPGs and it wasn’t clear the N64 would tank in that territory.
When it surfaced in the West in late 1997 the success of the PlayStation was well and truly assured. Sonys marketing along with the Wipeout games, the Ridge Racers, Tomb Raider, Resident Evil, Crash Bandicoot, Telles 2 and many others had made sure of that.
Re: Splinter Cell Is Getting a BBC Radio 4 Adaptation, of All Things
Living in the U.K. the last few years have got us used to seeing news articles that make you go ‘huh…..wait what?!’
But this still stands out as an odd one.
Re: Report: FTC Could File an Antitrust Lawsuit to Block Xbox's Activision Buyout
Wouldn’t be surprised if MS walk away at this point, too much hassle. If it doesn’t go through there’s going to be an awful lot of MS cash in an Account and a lot of desire to get back at Sony. Really can’t understand why Ryan has made such a fuss about COD.
Re: Best Co-Op Games on PS5
Not a great list for the reason others have pointed out.
IMO Sackboy should be higher, brilliant game.
Re: Poll: Do You Care About 60fps on PS5?
@BlackTux
Stop making excuses for bad devs and cheap TVs
Re: Poll: Do You Care About 60fps on PS5?
@BlackTux
I’d happily cut back on graphics in favour of Framerate. That’s why Devs should offer a choice. It isn’t just about what you want.
Re: Poll: Do You Care About 60fps on PS5?
@streetzman
I don’t have to ‘prove’ anything. I don’t know why you’re so upset. Grow up or stop bothering me.
Re: Hideo Kojima Says Next Project Will Transcend Video Games, 'It's Almost Like a New Medium'
TBH I’d be more surprised if he came out and said ‘I’m making a retro shooter’
Re: Poll: Do You Care About 60fps on PS5?
@streetzman
That’s a really strange post. As I say, if you can’t feel the difference fine, but others can. I’m not sure why you’re in denial about that, you just need to accept that fact and that you’re missing out. Either way, developers making sure games have 60FPS options isn’t something that should upset you so much.
Re: Rumour: PS Plus Essential PS5, PS4 Games for November 2022 Leaked Early
Good month for an Essentials subscriber. Bit devalued if you’re on Premium.
Re: Random: Every American PS2 Manual Has Been Preserved on the Internet
What an amazing effort. Brilliant.
Re: Sony Seemingly Scraps PS Plus Game Expiry Dates
Might just be a mistake. Let’s hope so, it’s really handy to know. Much better than the ‘surprise, guess what’s gone in two weeks!’ approach Game Pass takes.
Re: Poll: Do You Care About 60fps on PS5?
@Don_Corleone
“Gotham Knights is not that graphically intense compared Horizon forbidden West, and more. Huge games running at 60fps on ps5 right now so why would the developer all of a sudden say they can only do 30fps? Make it make sense”
They are games by different developers. Hope that helps it make sense.
Re: Poll: Do You Care About 60fps on PS5?
@Don_Corleone
I’ve seen the links. They don’t change the reality. There is no reason why they couldn’t have optimised Gotham Knights for Series X and PS5. Other developers have done so and there is no requirement for parity between Series S and the other two systems. It’s a total red herring and an excuse on their part.
EDIT-It’s just a badly optimised game
https://twitter.com/naytny/status/1583318900090945536?s=61&t=p2f2AcdVDVykLq79geOjUw
Re: Poll: Do You Care About 60fps on PS5?
@Don_Corleone
Series S existing is not the reason Gotham Knights is stuck at 30fps. The developers could have optimised it for XSX and PS5 and it could have run at a better Framerate on the more powerful systems (as some games already do) but they just didn’t bother. It’s an poor excuse on their part.
Re: Poll: Do You Care About 60fps on PS5?
@streetzman
Almost all of your post is wrong. Especially the bit about TVs, that made me laugh. If you can’t notice a difference fair enough but I can. That why the only way forward is to give people options.
Re: Poll: Do You Care About 60fps on PS5?
There should aways be a 60FPS option. Doesn’t matter how much details and resolution have to be dialled back. The key is to give people options. No excuses
Re: PS Plus Essential Games for October 2022 Available to Download Now
Just me who thinks it’s a decent selection then….
Re: Tekken 8's Stunning Trailer Was Gameplay Captured Directly from PS5
It looks fantastic. Loved the depth to everything.
Re: Poll: Was Sony's Latest State of Play a Show to Remember?
Not being a fan of God of War or VR I wasn’t expecting a lot. So while there was more in the Nintendo Direct for me I was pleasantly surprised by this State of Play. Nothing jaw dropping but definitely a few games to watch e.g.Stellar Blade, Pacific Drive
Re: PS5, PSVR2 to Feature in Sony State of Play Livestream Tomorrow
Two presentations in one day like a mini E3? Can’t remember this happening before but I like it! Hope they both bring the goods now.
Re: PlayStation Bites Back At 'Inadequate' Call of Duty Offer from Microsoft
So, three years beyond the current agreement which IIRC includes this years, another iteration of Warzone and another game on top of that? Plus there’s talk of a COD releasing every two years rather than one. Don’t think it’s too realistic to expect a written contract for much more than that.
Either way, the two large profit chasing multinational corporations bleating is getting a little tiresome.
Re: PS5 Is the Only Console Getting Price Rise, Microsoft and Nintendo Have 'No Plans'
@AFCC
They get more like Apple day by day
Re: PS5 Price Increase Confirmed for UK, Europe, Japan, Canada, and More
@Dudeman1
“ no one cares when they go to the store and get charged 30% more for literally everything”
No one cares? What?!
Re: Poll: Did Sony's Latest State of Play Livestream Live Up to the Hype?
Not a lot for me personally at all, but objectively a pretty strong showing
Re: PS Plus Premium Brings PS1, PS2, PS3, and PSP Games to PS5, PS4
Very interested but depends on what the games library is.
Also where’s the Vita?
Re: Microsoft Says Call of Duty and Activision Games Will Keep Releasing on PlayStation Beyond Current Deals
Always thought they would do this. Having the biggest franchise in the world on Game Pass (probably with the odd bit of exclusive content) is a big plus and they can keep coining it in from PS owners.
Re: Talking Point: In Theory, Could Xbox Game Pass Come to PS5, PS4?
It seems unlikely right now but I’m old enough to remember when Sony and MS didn’t even make Consoles. Don’t rule anything out. If both sides can make the financials work, it can happen.
Re: Reaction: Activision Blizzard Buyout Is Devastating for PS5, PS4
@NEStalgia
Couldn’t agree more. Everything we know about Ryan suggests he isn’t what Sony need right now.
For all the panic, Sony are still in a very strong position that they’ve worked hard to create over the last 27 years. They have earned tremendous loyalty from many fans. Challenges come and go, they’ve faced them down before, what they need now is energy, imagination, and creativity. I’d like to see a response in terms of new services, better backwards compatibility to exploit that huge back catalogue they have, development deals, a slew of announcements even.
Beyond that I’d like to see a pivot to the Japanese market. Not just because personally I’ve been disillusioned by the Americanisation of Playstations output (and I have) but because there’s real potential there in terms of software that I think MS would struggle to exploit.
But will we see that? I’m not confident.
Re: Reaction: Activision Blizzard Buyout Is Devastating for PS5, PS4
@NEStalgia
Well said. I really hope this focuses Sony and wakes them up. A renewed interest in the Japanese market would be a start. At the minute they’re in a pincer movement between MS attacking them in the West and Nintendo eating all their Sushi in Japan. They still have a very strong position, they just need to shake any complacency off. I just hope the current leadership are capable.
Re: Reaction: Activision Blizzard Buyout Is Devastating for PS5, PS4
This might be a bit of an overreaction. First, COD may not go exclusive anyway. If you look at the best selling PS4 games as of Feb 2020, 6 of the top 14 are COD. This isn’t like Elder Scrolls or Starfield, that would be a lot of money to leave behind, especially with the MTX revenue that generates. There’s a benefit to Xbox just in having it on GP when other consumers have to pay £70, and in having exclusive maps etc. I also don’t think the average gamer who’s paid £450 for a PS5 expecting their annual COD/FIFA with a few other games on top would take too kindly to suddenly being told that isn’t happening. Xbox would have to tread very carefully with such a move.
If it does disappear of Playstation then yes that’s a blow to Sony. A lot of revenue disappears and a chunk of the casual market probably ups and moves to Xbox. But it isn’t the end of the world, it just means a closer Generation sales wise, possibly with MS edging out on top. But it isn’t just about ‘winning,’ Sony will still have a great system with a load of great games (some exclusive) and make a lot of money. If (like me) you were never bothered about COD in the first place PS5 will still be fantastic.
I think MS saw the chance to pick up a large Company for a decent price that gives them some of the family friendly properties (Crash and Spyro) they’ve been after for their games portfolio. A company that could do better if they can fix the poisonous culture-something good for the industry in general.
However it’s mainly about other markets. The deal gives them a good foothold in Mobile gaming, strengthens their position in esports with Overwatch and gives them a huge MMORPG that they don’t currently have. It’s about their battle with Tencent and Apple more than their battle with Sony in one segment of the market.
Re: Marvel's Spider-Man 2 Is Massive, According to Venom Voice Actor
No rush. Take your time.
Re: Gran Turismo 7's PS5, PS4 Campaign Requires an Online Connection
No no no. Absolutely no justification for a single player game to require an Online connection. Just don’t.
Re: Reaction: PlayStation Showcase 2021 Was Good, But Not Good Enough
Good article. Fanboys will fanboy but it’s good to see Editorial content steering clear of zealotry. I agree with a lot of it. I thought it was a good, solid show overall but nothing Earth shattering though we do have to make allowances for the Covid effect. I bounced off GOW 2018 anyway and Ragnarok looks so similar it didn’t excite me at all. KOTOR was welcome but nothing was shown. Some other decent games but my PS5 is currently underused next to my Series X and Switch and nothing shown suggested that will change soon.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 388
PS5-Sackboy multiplayer with my wife and eldest boy. Great fun.
Series X-Desperados 3, Flight Sim, Deaths Door
Switch-Mario vs Rabbids Donkey Kong DLC