Game News 2.0

pixelburp

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121199574#Comment_121199574

Cyberpunk done right would cost a fortune: and this game really indulged in body modification run wild. Not sure the budget exists for this show to do the visual aspect correctly - though The Creator showed you can do modified faces on a budget and it look fantastic.

PixelPlayer

There's definitely room for GAAS. I see it as a good fit for game pass. I dont play it personally but Sea of Thieves seems to be working well as a GAAS model within the context of game pass. I'm hoping they'll have a good model for Forza too with fresh new content to keep me coming back to it.

My personal favourite is COD. You buy a battle pass once and you earn enough coins within the BP season to buy another battle pass. €10 to have endless new content. Then there are the new maps and old favourite maps revived that come for free but no dpubt paid for by BP subs.

But they kind of killed it with MW2. The Battle Pass takes much longer to complete so you really have to grind to keep completing the seasons and keep your battle pass rolling off your original €10 investment. But you can complete a season, save the coins. take a break for a couple of season and then come back and pick up where you left off rolling seasons still off your original €10. It even span across versions. E.g complete BP on Cold War and then pick up a free BP on MW2.

Zero-Cool

The one thing i hate about GAAS is that it's while purpose is to stop you from playing other games. Grand if you only play 1 or 2 big games a year but if you have a few games on the go, then it becomes very apparent that the devs don't respect your time and lean on FOMO mechanics to keep you from straying.

I'm playing NBA 2K and even though I'm not participating in that battle pass, it's still got a sense that if i play something else, it's only going to delay upgrading my player to compete online unless i pay to upgrade him which the majority of players do. I love playing it but the 2K devs are the worst for the mechanics implemented.

Then I play Cyberpunk and as much flack (deserved) as it has gotten, it becomes very obvious when a game is created solely for the player to enjoy. I think that's why i get pulled into indies so much, you can tell when a game is made with love/soul and when it's made with greed. The Greedy game can be the best thing you could have played all year but you will not feel as good playing it as you do the lesser one made with love. Soppy rant over.

super_furry

Most people have only room for one of the 'games as a service' games in their life. If they have one already - COD, FIFA, whatever, they're not very likely to switch given just how much they've already invested in the game.

It's like when everyone was making MMOs thinking they were going to be the next World of Warcraft or DOTA/League of Legends clones, totally ignoring the fact that people aren't going to leave their games for your new one.

I think Sony could be in for a very bumpy ride over the next five years given just how much they've bet on GAAS.

OptimusTractor

It's GAAS craic altogether.

pixelburp

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121200252#Comment_121200252

Most people have only room for one of the 'games as a service' games in their life

I think you've hit on a really fundamental aspect of gaming culture that perhaps goes unreported or unnoted by the AAA sphere. Gamers now trend older, and with age comes more responsibility like parenthood. As you say, most people might reserve their scant free time for one GaaS and that's it; cos that's all they have time and bandwidth for. Grind just isn't an option, compared with easy "drop in" games you can pick up and enjoy for an hour or two.

PixelPlayer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121200164#Comment_121200164

I think that is a fair assesment. It needs to be implemented properly and most definitely with respect to the end user. I used Sea of Thieves as an example, I don't believe you need to buy any of the new content (outside of your GP sub). I'd like to see something similar with Forza. But they'll probably just go the paid DLC route.

Retr0gamer

There's just way too many great and unique game experiences for me to waste hundreds of hours playing the same game. GaaS just doesn't work for me when I just want to finish a game and move on to the next one.

McFly85

The idea of playing one game continuously and partaking in and endless grind for more and more loot sounds like absolute hell to me.

Theres far too many good normal games to play and 2023 is testing my limits as it is!

pixelburp

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121200603#Comment_121200603

Any game, once it resembles the monotony of daily chores, stops being a game and becomes work. Skinner boxes are all well and good as a psychological ploy but I don't htink gamers' brains are that mushy that we can't spot it when we're being corralled into doing busywork.

johnny_ultimate

LOL. If nothing else, he can ‘retire’ safe in the knowledge he absolutely decimated the reputation of the company with one single announcement 👍🏼

https://twitter.com/stephentotilo/status/1711530737940246725?s=46&t=nwvJe3fJtU0siJ7wj5mjTA

CatInABox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121216690#Comment_121216690

In fairness, he was destroying the reputation for a long time, the fees thing is just the straw that broke the camels back. What I find really annoying is that people like him get CEO jobs despite the fact that they're clearly terrible at it. Every company he ran succeeded despite his efforts, not because of them.

Retr0gamer

And like a turd that won't flush he will be appointed by another shareholder board to ruin another company.

Penn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121216989#Comment_121216989

...

awec

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121199752#Comment_121199752

The problem was the story was absolute incoherent garbage, and the story missions themselves very boring. Once you got those done, there wasn't a lot to do. You had the raid once a week. You had the weekly strike, which if I remember right was just a story mission, and then you had the hard-mode strike thing, which again was just a story mission.

It was the ultimate grind game, just repeating the exact same content over and over and over again.

Penn

Ubisoft's CoD-type game, XDefiant, has been delayed indefinitely

https://twitter.com/PlayXDefiant/status/1711472235095925059?s=20

At least they're not just rushing it out and "We'll deal with it post-launch".

Grumpypants

These games do well in times of cheap money. But now we are in a time of expensive money the risks are much higher. This isn't the first and won't be the last game that is pretty much ready to launch but gets held back.

Penn

New model of PS5 announced, which will also be the new default model going forward. No change in specs, but smaller, lighter, and with detachable disk drive which can also be sold separately.

https://blog.playstation.com/2023/10/10/new-look-for-ps5-console-this-holiday-season/?sf269561474=1

Retr0gamer

These slim models usually come with a price drop. Still way too expensive for me to even consider.

sniper_samurai

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121220020#Comment_121220020

There is a change in the specs, the internal SSD capacity has been increased from 800GB to 1TB.

johnny_ultimate

I do think it’s a smart design choice to keep the disc drive as an option into the future (even for digital console owners), and a positive after the leak suggesting the XBX will drop a drive. Although I fear we’re into the last gen of disc drive as standard.

Potential-Monke

Noice. That means the Pro is coming next year most likely.

johnny_ultimate

Say what you will about Activision, their games, their company culture, Bobby Kotick, the acquisition... but subjecting the poor staff to James Corden is a step too far.

https://www.eurogamer.net/activision-hired-james-corden-to-host-employee-meeting-with-bobby-kotick

pixelburp

I'm still somewhat flummoxed how Corden went to be one of America's biggest celebrity names; I just know him from a rando BBC3 sitcom Gwen & Stacey from fadó. Seemed harmless enough then next thing I know he's the biggest twat on American Telly.

johnny_ultimate

I did chuckle at the Eurogamer article pointedly referring to Corden as "the Cats star".

sniper_samurai

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121223046#Comment_121223046

He became one of the biggest twats on British telly in between with hosting the awful Rednapp sports quizcom shitefest A League of Their Own.

pixelburp

Came up in the Trek forum, but there's a new Star Trek game out tomorrow: a 4x strategy from Paradox Interactive, and looks like a good use of the franchise. Definitely a bit of a Spreadsheet Game at that.

https://youtu.be/Adebhvd_u2Q

Retr0gamer

EDF6 has finally been announced for western release after what seems like an absolute eternity. It's coming in Spring and even better there's a simultaneous PC release so on more waiting over a year for a PC port

https://youtu.be/h7khSg7y7KM?si=1dxPXgtUOzYU1-fS

Again announcement trailer just focuses in on how zany the game is when it should really be highlighting how much fun it is especially in coop and how it's a looter shooter with weapons that increase in sheer lunacy as well as power.

PixelPlayer

Microsoft\Abk deal has been cleared. MS must close the deal by 18th Oct.

Are we in a golden age for xbox/Microsoft games? Just in time for me to renew my GP sub. I'm on a free code at the moment and was really doubting whether I'll sign up by the year again or just dip in and out. This would make it worth keeping the sub full time for me.

https://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-set-to-buy-activision-blizzard-billion-2023-10?_gl=1*3usyjo*_ga*MTAxMTUyMjM1OC4xNjkwNDcyNTA3*_ga_E21CV80ZCZ*MTY5NzE5NjM3OS4xMTUuMS4xNjk3MTk2NjUyLjM5LjAuMA..

EoinMcLovin

Pete Hines, SVP, Head of Publishing for Bethesda Softworks announces retirement