Sony PS5 2

[PeteWorrell]

They had to quickly cut their losses on Concord since they promised updates every couple of weeks.

Releasing the updates would just have cost Sony more money and the game would not have been saved. If the updates were abandoned, then that meant that they had already given up on the game which sends a bad message.

Shutting it down and making customers whole really was the best option.

 

[The Merchant]

Not sure what it's gonna take for these megacorps to realize that the gaming community has a disdain for live service. It's just a shame that Jim Ryan was able to poison the well before being sent packing. That dipshit has done irreparable damage to the PlayStation brand.

 

[syz]

Not sure what it's gonna take for these megacorps to realize that the gaming community has a disdain for live service. It's just a shame that Jim Ryan was able to poison the well before being sent packing. That dipshit has done irreparable damage to the PlayStation brand.

The gaming community loves live service, it's also just those players are mostly entrenched in specific live service games already and it's difficult to get them to budge to another one.

The "hero shooter" genre is especially calcified at this point so Concord was a mistake from the beginning. Bit of bad luck that their promotion cycle/beta test largely overlapped with that Marvel game as well, which looks like it's probably a better game and also has a nuclear IP attached to it.

 

[SolidSnakeUS]

Looks like Astro Bot might be GOTY. Jesus lord what a release by Sony.

 

[robertmac43]

Looks like Astro Bot might be GOTY. Jesus lord what a release by Sony.

It's crazy how a tech demo of kinds is turning into a new IP that is beloved by Sony fans.

Cannot wait for this one, Sony has struck gold with it.

 

[93LEAFS]

Bloomberg - Are you a robot?

While Concord feels symbolic of the industry’s woes, Astro Bot feels like a model for a more sustainable future. It was developed by a team of 60 people in three years, a stark contrast to the six-year productions staffed by thousands of employees that have become common in recent times. Rather than chasing endless gameplay, Astro Bot is delightfully compact and can be completed in around a dozen hours — a godsend for busy parents or people with massive gaming backlogs.

 

[x Tame Impala]

Bloomberg - Are you a robot?

It seems like such an obvious notion that these mega studios are much too bloated and inefficient. Too many decision makers and too many tiers of leadership.

 

[93LEAFS]

It seems like such an obvious notion that these mega studios are much too bloated and inefficient. Too many decision makers and too many tiers of leadership.

It's not even just the massive studios. Like, Sony Santa Monica, Insomniac and Naughty Dog are all massive studios whose IPs and games I've loved for years. It's more the constant chase for live service. For every Helldivers 2, you get like 10 Concords. And, not every game needs to be AAA+, some studios can make unforgettable experiences that way, but what I've enjoyed most from MS in the past 3 years has been Psychonauts 2 and Hi-Fi Rush, neither of which likely touch the budget of Hellblade 2 or Starfield. It's why indies are thriving. Yes, there is a place for the Last of Us, Spider-Man's and GTA VI's of the world, but there is also a demand for things like Astrobot and great platformers or indie gems like Hades and the upcoming Hades II. Hopefully, Sony takes note with the success of this game, I haven't seen raw numbers yet, but seeing it sold out on Amazon in Japan, and for the first time ever I went to Best Buy at Eaton Center and it was sold out a day after release (then I went to an EB in the mall and thankfully they had it), that this game is doing numbers.

 

[x Tame Impala]

For sure. People just want to play fun games. I don't get the appeal of these FOMO, battle pass, live service titles. It feels like you HAVE to play the game instead of choosing to hop on and play for a while.

Astrobot is probably going to do insane sales numbers through christmas as well. Can't wait to play it myself.

 

[PeteWorrell]

Video game executives are obsessed with live services just like movie executives are obsessed with cinematic universes. They are businessmen with no creativity or vision so they just want games and concepts that they can milk for many long years like GTA V online.

 

[Jovavic]

For sure. People just want to play fun games. I don't get the appeal of these FOMO, battle pass, live service titles. It feels like you HAVE to play the game instead of choosing to hop on and play for a while.

Main reason why I stop playing Destiny, it started to feel like a chore

 

[x Tame Impala]

Main reason why I stop playing Destiny, it started to feel like a chore

I got back into HUT in NHL 23 and played again this year for NHL 24. I stopped all together a few months ago because it feels like I HAVE to log in and play otherwise i'm missing out on being able to upgrade my team. If my team isn't fully upgraded I lose more games and it's hard to catch up.

It's such an all or nothing mode unless I want to play the computer which is boring. I'm skipping it for at least this year and probably indefinitely. I don't want to have that level of responsibility to a freaking videogame lol

 

[Blitzkrug]

I got back into HUT in NHL 23 and played again this year for NHL 24. I stopped all together a few months ago because it feels like I HAVE to log in and play otherwise i'm missing out on being able to upgrade my team. If my team isn't fully upgraded I lose more games and it's hard to catch up.

It's such an all or nothing mode unless I want to play the computer which is boring. I'm skipping it for at least this year and probably indefinitely. I don't want to have that level of responsibility to a freaking videogame lol

This is the reason I've dumped pretty much everything I play online outside of Street Fighter.

Games should not be obligations. Street Fighter has battle passes but 99% of the stuff in them is worthless if you're in it just for the online grind/getting better at it.

Much more enjoyable to boot up a game and be able to play it on your terms.

 

[PeteWorrell]

I got back into HUT in NHL 23 and played again this year for NHL 24. I stopped all together a few months ago because it feels like I HAVE to log in and play otherwise i'm missing out on being able to upgrade my team. If my team isn't fully upgraded I lose more games and it's hard to catch up.

It's such an all or nothing mode unless I want to play the computer which is boring. I'm skipping it for at least this year and probably indefinitely. I don't want to have that level of responsibility to a freaking videogame lol

That's the feeling i had when i played World of Warcraft 20 years ago. If i wanted good gear, i needed to be part of a good guild. That meant that i had to follow a very rigid weekly schedule so that i could get points to pay for randomized loot that may or may not drop any given week.

Let's just that i got burnt out after a few months and i have never touched any kind of MMO or live service game since. I want to play games to have fun and take my mind off of things. If i want to stop playing for a few weeks because i am busy or just don't feel like it, i don't want to be punished for it.

 

[robertmac43]

This is the reason I've dumped pretty much everything I play online outside of Street Fighter.

I'm the same here. One of the rules I made for myself last year was to only play games where you can roll credits. I have some exceptions like FM24 and CIV but overall I have felt like gaming is a chore less often since the shift

 

[Blitzkrug]

I got back into HUT in NHL 23 and played again this year for NHL 24. I stopped all together a few months ago because it feels like I HAVE to log in and play otherwise i'm missing out on being able to upgrade my team. If my team isn't fully upgraded I lose more games and it's hard to catch up.

It's such an all or nothing mode unless I want to play the computer which is boring. I'm skipping it for at least this year and probably indefinitely. I don't want to have that level of responsibility to a freaking videogame lol

HUT is so horrendous these days.

I used to love it back in the day. You could spend like 20, 25 bucks on packs and have a legitimate squad to carry you through the entire year. I remember in 14 i made it to division 1 just running with a squad of players i liked in real life. Full TOTW Jets line, the Bruins top line, other players like Jamie Benn, Loui Eriksson, Brian Campbell, etc. 17 was the last one i played heavily since iirc they did a mid-season pack refresh that updated a bunch of cards and completely tanked the market making getting a great team piss easy.

Now? Now it's a poorly disguised gacha simulator disguised to turn you into a worker bee with no capacity to focus on anything else. I absolutely despise what they did to base cards. Base cards used to hold their value all year, now they're set fodder/junk by week 3. All so you can pull 45 variations of Connor McDavid to replace the last one you were using.

 

[x Tame Impala]

HUT is so horrendous these days.

I used to love it back in the day. You could spend like 20, 25 bucks on packs and have a legitimate squad to carry you through the entire year. I remember in 14 i made it to division 1 just running with a squad of players i liked in real life. Full TOTW Jets line, the Bruins top line, other players like Jamie Benn, Loui Eriksson, Brian Campbell, etc. 17 was the last one i played heavily since iirc they did a mid-season pack refresh that updated a bunch of cards and completely tanked the market making getting a great team piss easy.

Now? Now it's a poorly disguised gacha simulator disguised to turn you into a worker bee with no capacity to focus on anything else. I absolutely despise what they did to base cards. Base cards used to hold their value all year, now they're set fodder/junk by week 3. All so you can pull 45 variations of Connor McDavid to replace the last one you were using.

Don’t even get me started bro. Despite it being illegal they lie about pack odds. Pack pulls are terrible. The rare cards are so hard to get even if you pour real money into their store.

To make it worse they f*** with the “attribute effect” sliders so your 99 OVR cards get beat racing to a puck by base cards. They can pass through your 99 defense, snipe your goalies. It’s a racket. I just love hockey and can’t help myself. Since franchise mode is so boring it’s the only interesting mode to me.

It’ll be a while before I play it again, if I ever do

 

[93LEAFS]

I used to religiously buy EA games up until maybe 2013. I'd have Fifa, NHL, Madden and NCAA football every year, then franchise just got progressively worse and they started pushing me into ultimate team so they could get me to spend more money after I already paid 80 CAD for their game. Have maybe bought one EA Sports game in the past decade. Part of that is getting older, the other part is what I enjoyed about the games was replaced to syphon me into something I hated.

I remember setting hot dog prices in Madden, trying to turn a bad team into a dynasty. Now, it's about having people with endless wallets getting a certain Mahomes card.

 

[Mikeaveli]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1833158510030516386

PS5 Pro reveal tomorrow morning

 

[SolidSnakeUS]

Gonna grab one and gift my old one to a friend of mine who doesn't have a PS5.

 

[PeteWorrell]

Let's see how needlessly expensive it is.

 

[Blitzkrug]

I have zero desire for a mid generation refresh.

Sony will probably get more use out of it than if Xbox were doing it, but is there any games that actually demand this? Outside of Returnal and Spiderman 2, almost every big PS5 game was cross generational.

Needless is definitely the word i would use. I think i'll save my money for the Switch successor.

 

[x Tame Impala]

I just got my PS5 back in June. I wonder if there's a reasonable trade in value there to upgrade. Highly doubtful and probably not necessary at all.

Spiderman 2 and TLOU 2 looked gorgeous on my TV so i'm not sure how much nicer it's realistically going to get.

 

[PeteWorrell]

Plenty of games are still coming out on the PS4 nearly four years after the release of the PS5.

Developers are still releasing games with the PS4 in my mind. That means that not many PS5 games are exclusives and not that many push the console.

 

[93LEAFS]

I have zero desire for a mid generation refresh.

Sony will probably get more use out of it than if Xbox were doing it, but is there any games that actually demand this? Outside of Returnal and Spiderman 2, almost every big PS5 game was cross generational.

Needless is definitely the word i would use. I think i'll save my money for the Switch successor.

GTA VI would be the game I'm looking at for what this likely helps. Especially since the odds of GTA VI launching day and date on PC is probably pretty low.

I'd say there are some others. FFVII Rebirth would be pretty notable. Helldivers 2 is on PC, but is PS5 exclusive too. Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart and I believe Demon Souls are also PS5 only (and I believe they did better numbers than Returnal).