Game News 2.0

Jordan 199

It has been a year since Gamestop exited the Irish market.

Mr Crispy

https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/days-gone-creative-director-never-say-never-about-a-sequel-after-game-director-says-exactly-that

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Jordan 199

Days Gone 2 - only on Xbox. That will make Zero buy one then 😉

RobbingBandit

There will be a bells and whistles version with dlc for those that wish and a shiny metal box with shiny dlc for those that like to play pretend(thats me!!!).

Retr0gamer

We are truly on the evil timeline if we get Days Gone 2 and not a Bloodborne PC port.

Potential-Monke

If there's one way to guarantee I won't even consider playing a game, even if free, is if they have unskippable, intrusive ads in the game. Seems EA think they haven't had enough of a scandal lately, and while a month ago they announced that they are looking at ways to implement ads in all their games, seems FC25 will be the first, and soon....

https://www.sportsjoe.ie/football/ea-set-to-introduce-in-game-ads-in-fc25-330929

It'll really depend on how they're implemented, but if they're charging for a game there better not be anything more than the odd in game billboard or cans of x drink everywhere. But if I have to watch a video, or have splash ads that I've to click to close, i will 100% not play that game, regardless of what it is. This is something that every gamer needs to vocally be against, because creep is real and a small thing now will be standard in the future. Remember, they said all their games. All of them.

Dr. Bre

I could see plenty of controllers being broken if ads pop up while playing lol!

pixelburp

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122302970#Comment_122302970

Is FIFA maybe something like CoD that is relatively controversy or critic proof? And given how completely commercialised the sport itself has become, will fans of the games even care that there'll be advertising? Not like experiencing the sport in actuality isn't awash with marketing.

Retr0gamer

Didnt 2K already do that with their NBA game? EA is in the same position with FIFA as there's no other game that can compete with their licenses. FIFA/whatever it is now is such a shockingly bad football game compared to some of the classic football games.

Potential-Monke

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122303799#Comment_122303799

Thing is, EA Sports since losing the Fifa licence is now going to have multiple competitors. We have whatever PES is called now, Fifa are bringing out their own game and Ronaldo has backed UFL as a direct competitor to EA. While it already has advertising, its (last I checked) relatively unobtrusive, in the background. So if that much is already there, what else is going to happen? I assume unskippable direct ads instead of loading screens, which should be a thing of the past with modern tech, so EA are actually looking to make loading worse for financial gain, if I'm correct.

NBA2K is already pretty bad and getting worse. Gatorade must be paying a bomb for the coverage they get. I'd be sure the game deliberately makes you tired quicker so you have to use the Gatorade boosts you can buy with real money. I think the already have screen covering ads briefly between modes/screens. And the forced advertising you have to do via fashion or whatever else crap they've added to the last career mode... I'm not even interested in the games anymore. 2k16 to 2k20 were great, but ruined by advertising and game breaking microtransaction requirements to play a game you already paid €70 for...

Mr.Saturn

Did anything ever come of the rumours of 2K getting the FIFA license? Granted, it's unlikely that having FIFA compete against 'FIFA' for dollars is going to get either EA or 2K to curb their excesses to any particular degree.

johnny_ultimate

One of my least favourite Microsoft trends is their delisting of Forza games. 2018's Forza Horizon 4 next up on the chopping block, from December, so get it while you can.

https://forza.net/news/forza-horizon-4-delisting

They aren't the only ones at this - Sony did the same with Drive Club. But always stands out as egregious given the popularity of the Horizon games. A particular pain for those who played the game through Game Pass. They're giving a free copy to any subscribers who bought DLC at least, but still a case study in the drawbacks of not 'owning' a game.

TitianGerm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122305468#Comment_122305468

Is this not delisted because of something to do with car licencing agreements or something?

johnny_ultimate

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122305505#Comment_122305505

Yeah car and music licensing. Personally, I think a publisher as big as Xbox should be doing everything they can to make sure license agreements on popular games don't expire after six years, especially given plenty of smaller publishers (including in the racing space) manage to maintain licenced content far beyond that.

Potential-Monke

DId we not see this coming due to the fact that every previous Forza has gone the same way? The Crew surprised me tbh, so I now expect it on that series too so reluctant to buy in to those games now, especially digitally, will continue to buy physical and trade. But I will always expect Forza games to be eventually delisted, and within a few years of release too. More of MSs short term blindness. How did GT manage all these decades without having their games delisted? (Or did they?)

We should see a return of games who made their own vehicles that most certainly are not based on real life vehicles. Time for Burnout to return!

johnny_ultimate

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122305560#Comment_122305560

Entirely expected, still ****.

Gran Turismo Sport is delisted AFAIK, which is also ****. Many of the other entries pre-date digital distribution so delisting wouldn't have been the same issue (ditto Project Gotham and early Forza games).

Retr0gamer

The old resident evil games are coming back to PC on GoG. These haven't been available since the PS3. Hopefully Dino Crisis gets a port as well:

https://twitter.com/GOGcom/status/1805881218241560963?t=qlZD-fLW-1YN8X65eHIv2g&s=19

CatInABox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122305560#Comment_122305560

I think it's unfair to entirely land this on MSs plate, to be honest, or even mostly. If car companies are only offering terrible deals, then the choice is to make a game with no licensed cars, or to accept the stupid terms. Again and again, people show that they buy games with licensed cars, and don't like games with "pretend" cars, so these companies are stuck with these stupid terms and conditions.

You see this with all car games, if there's licensed cars, expect it to get delisted at some point. PGR, The Crew, Forza, GT, they're all suffering with stupid license terms.

SuperBowserWorld

Wondering, so if you have the physical games, do you keep the licensed cars "forever" ??

Zero-Cool

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122306024#Comment_122306024

Depends on the manufacturer. I heard Toyota send people around to your house to forcefully take the game back from you.

CastorTroy

Now I'm wondering does Mario Kart still have the Mercedes?

JimBurnley

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122306045#Comment_122306045

Do they fix your Yaris whilst they're there

johnny_ultimate

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122306004#Comment_122306004

There are many big publishers in it - Sony and Ubisoft among them - many of whom surely have the financial resources to extend licenses or at least avoid the nuclear option of delisting. Car and music licensing terms are maybe to blame, but a lot of smaller companies are much more active with keeping games available.

Why it's somewhat more comment-worthy in Microsoft's case IMO is they've been the major publisher most active in degrading digital ownership through aggressively focusing on Game Pass. Makes me concerned as well about what happens to a game like Hi-Fi Rush when they're not willing to pay the music licensing costs a few years down the line. Of course other subscription services also face the same concerns, but Game Pass is the daddy in terms of scale.

Potential-Monke

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122306004#Comment_122306004

I dunno. Forza is shutting due to the end of licensing agreements, whereas it looks like shutting GT Sport was most likely led by wanting people to transition to GT7 and not related to licensing (that they've admitted). Could be wrong on that, searching on a phone so...

Delisting due to age is one thing (and merits it's own argument), but delisting due crappy terms agreed between two major money making companies is different imo. Online only and delisting are still the strongest arguments for keeping physical media. Can't expect online only games to past forever so, at least personally, I know there'll be an eventual end when I purchase. But unknown licensing terms are now a consideration. If GT come out and say "Soz, all your Mitsubishis are no longer available in game cuz we didn't pay Mitsubishi enough" or that they're shutting down because of licensing, then I'd be very unlikely to digitally purchase the series going forward.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not defending end of online life nor delisting due to licensing, both are crappy for the gamer. Just one feels more crappy because its backroom deals we can never know about. Should we take it for granted now that 6 years appears to be Microsofts deal term. I wouldn't even consider the series if not for Gamepass.

And personally I much prefer the non real car racing games. Burnout, Destruction Derby, Wreckfest, Blur, arcade racers. I get the requirement for real cars in sims, but arcade racers like Horizon could do without imo. Then again, I'm no longer the target audience for most games. Hopefully Wreckreation is good.

SuperBowserWorld

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122306045#Comment_122306045

I'd imagine most of these games are containers of cars that are added/removed on a server. So, even if you own the physical games they can still remove content remotely.

CatInABox

The content isn't being removed though, they're just not selling it anymore. If you've bought it, either digitally or physically, you're still able to use it, and redownload it, etc.

They just stop you from buying it.

CatInABox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122306491#Comment_122306491

Yeah, these deals are frustrating, particularly when it's stuff that I'd consider to be tangental, at best, to the actual game.

I recall that one developer of an old semi-classic game talking about how he enquired on buying the rights to his old game from a non-gaming company that had acquired them from a long series of acquisitions, and they quoted a price that would have been way in excess of all previous profits from the old game plus all predicted profits from a new game. There's just a load of companies out there that don't really get how games work. Like FIFA, asking for billions.

Bleakly enough, gun manufacturers know exactly what type of deals should be made.

johnny_ultimate

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122306646#Comment_122306646

I would also prefer generic cars to having the game stripped from sale. And TBH Horizon games assault you with more cars than you'll ever possibly use, which I've never found a compelling element of the games. But licensing is a solvable problem. Assetto Corsa is over ten years old and it and its DLC still have licensed cars. That's a smaller, self-distributed title so they wouldn't have the resources Microsoft, Sony or Ubisoft have. I've no doubt the rights clearing process is complicated and messy, but I also believe these large publishers have the resources (if they wanted to) to secure the rights for these games further into the future. It should be part of what they factor in when budgeting for these licensed-to-hell games. I don't think having these games delisted after 5-6 years is a beneficial situation for anyone.

Forza Horizon 4 has risen to 20-30,000 active players on Steam alone since the announcement and steep Steam discount, so there's still life - and therefore money - in the game yet.

sniper_samurai

Xbox cloud gaming will be available on Amazon Fire Sticks.

https://twitter.com/Xbox/status/1806327189320908944?t=I64C6WqXzWEpE3u2Fbd3mA&s=19

Zero-Cool

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122310496#Comment_122310496

Works with Dualsense and DS4 controller, wow, I'll be giving this a look if available in Ireland.