Videogame News Thread

[ClockShot]

There's the move the Sony Army has been waiting for.

[Kalyx triaD]

And it's a dumb one.

[Fignuts]

Yeah, not seeing the benefit here since bungie literally only makes destiny, and yhey just said it wouldn't go exclusive. I guess their new ip could be exclusive.

[ClockShot]

I think down the road when Call of Duty goes bye-bye to Xbox Sony will give Bungie a call and tell them to get cracking on a new shooter just for PlayStation. I read an article that PlayStation got 3 more Call of Duty games per contracts.

According to TPWW testimonials, Destiny 2 is one of the if not thee best shooter around. Imagine if Sony gets an exclusive of that caliber.

For now, let's see how this plays out.

[Sepholio]

There's the move the Sony Army has been waiting for.

That is not the move they have been waiting on. Not even close. They'll need to pick up Square or Ubisoft to make those kind of waves.

[drave]

Google ditching Stadia...... kinda. Instead of focusing on gaming, they are essentially going to be creating//hosting content for "experiences" like Peloton and the like.


Nothing new with Google ditching yet another product.

[Kalyx triaD]

Destiny Witch Queen looking pretty stuffed.

[drave]

But how much grindy is grindy gun game grind?

[Kalyx triaD]

Well we'll be grinding to literally build some guns now so... grindy.

[RP]

In other video game news, I finally banged Miranda in the Engine room. Feeling good.

[ClockShot]

Pfft. Miranda?

So much for the secret relationship in Mass Effect 3. Sucker.

[ClockShot]

Destiny Witch Queen looking pretty stuffed.

Watched the ViDoc that the got released and have been thinking for a little while of dusting off my Hunter and getting back in the fight.

But, I'd probably be totally lost on most of the new stuff. I left off at Curse of Osiris and had access to the Warmind add-on. And since that stuff and Forsaken just got locked in the "vault", I'd probably be starting at Shadowkeep and working through Beyond Light and into The Witch Queen.

[Kalyx triaD]

I would suggest starting at Witch Queen from the jump. Right now you'd be bombarded with quests and people to talk to the moment you log in. A lot of stuff went down storywise but the jist is there's a Hive goddess that wants to kill us.

...And a while ago Prince Uldren was resurrected as a Guardian with no memories of his shadier self per the rules of this universe and he's a good guy now. Queen Mara is very conflicted about that and he's not too popular at the tower either, having killed Cayde in his past life and all. The plot was told over the course of the last year and it's the best story telling this game has ever done.

[Sepholio]

WOOOO NEW MARIO SOCCER ON JUNE 10TH

[Sepholio]

CHRONO CROSS REMASTER!
XENOBLADE CHRONICLES 3!
FRONT MISSION 1 AND 2 REMAKES!
SWITCH SPORTS~~~!!!~!~!!1`1`1`ione!!
MARIO KART 8 EXPANZIONZ

[Sepholio]

Nintendo Direct today KILLED it.

[drave]

TIME 2 SPORTS!

[drave]

ALLEGEDLY


Mario Kart is porting in shit from the free to play game. Not the tracks themselves, as they come from previous games in the series.... but the graphics and layout look like a "downgrade". Some people are upset, some don't care. Others are all "oh, this is why they can do 48 tracks so easily".

[Ruien]

I find it odd when people complain about Nintendo graphics. I never bought a Nintendo game because of the graphics. It does not even register in my mind.

[Kalyx triaD]

Nintendo's simplistic, expressive aesthetics is why Wind Waker still looks better than 80% of the hyper real ray traced shit now.

[drave]

Next Gen cyberpunk upgrade happening on my Series X right now.

[Kalyx triaD]

There's like 5 fucking challenges in Avengers that require playing with a person which is not happening in this dead game. Anybody wanna assemble for a few missions on Xbox?

[Kalyx triaD]

The audacity of such a quest questline in this state.

[ClockShot]

Capcom announces Street Fighter 6.

[Fignuts]

Sounds like it's going to use the RE engine. Should be pretty wild.

[Kalyx triaD]

Multiplatform according to a leak.

People are going to pay.

[drave]

The official Xbox Bluetooth headset for $99 is a helluva deal. Had them for about two weeks and they are by far the best headset I've owned. Easy to use, charges really fast and everything is crystal freakin clear.


Work for PC too, naturally.

[Kalyx triaD]

I'll look into it.

[ClockShot]

Forspoken gets delayed from May 25th to October 11th. Luminous Productions needs extra time for spit and polish.

Welp, there goes my big game for the summer.

[ClockShot]

Sony is buying Jade Raymond's studio Haven Entertainment.

[Destor]

odds purchase. studio has nothing. talented people there though. this says to me they showed sony whatever this game theyve got in the oven is and sony sees huge potential.

[ClockShot]

Well, Sony put up the starter investment money to Jade Raymond to get the studio off the ground.

And I bet the purchase price isn't much either. Low risk, potentially high reward I suppose.

[ClockShot]

Sony has announced it version of the Xbox Game Pass. It's called....................Playstation Plus. BUT WITH TIERS!

Here's the details.

PlayStation Plus Essential
Essential is the same PlayStation Plus service that currently exists, with no changes to the current pricing. It includes two monthly downloadable games, discounts, saved game cloud storage, and access to online multiplayer for most games.

PlayStation Plus Extra
The Extra tier includes all Essential benefits, and adds a catalog of around 400 PS4 and PS5 games that can be downloaded at any time while you're a member. It includes first-party and third-party games, but no new exclusives will launch into the service. In the US, it will cost $14.99 monthly / $39.99 quarterly / $99.99 yearly, and in the UK it will cost £10.99 monthly / £31.99 quarterly / £83.99 yearly. No Australian prices have been announced at time of writing.

PlayStation Plus Premium
Premium includes all the Essential and Extra benefits, and adds 340 extra games to the catalog, including PS1, PS2 and PSP games for streaming and download. PS3 games will also be available, but only to stream. Streaming can be carried out on PS4, PS5, and PC. Premium members will also receive time-limited trials of some games. In the US, it will cost $17.99 monthly / $49.99 quarterly / $119.99 yearly, and in the UK it will cost £13.49 monthly / £39.99 quarterly / £99.99 yearly.

Full article here. https://www.ign.com/articles/playstation-plus-ps-now-spartacus-subscription-tiers-price-ps3-xbox-game-pass-release-date

[Ruien]

Sounds like Xbox Game Pass still has a leg up but this is a start. Will be picking up a new system in the next couple months. This may sway me to the PS side.

[ClockShot]

E3 officially cancelled. No physical or digital show. Gonna try in '23.

[drave]

They have a LOT to do to try to catch game pass. They will need to start revamping and updating their cloud technology if they want to make it better. Stream-only will hurt quite a bit.

[drave]

Only reason, IMO, to go PS5, is for exclusives.

[Sepholio]

This just brings us back to the point that its smarter to just have a PC and PS5. Do not see any point whatsoever in having an Xbox console ever again.

[Fignuts]

Nah, if you want to take advantage of the game pass but don't want to shell out to buy a rig and keep it updated, Series x is still a good buy. This is a step in the right direction for sony, but as drave said, game pass still has a few advantages going off that presser.

[Ruien]

Isn't there only limited games from Xbox game pass on the pc though? Feel like having an Xbox gets you the better games.

[Sepholio]

Nah, if you want to take advantage of the game pass but don't want to shell out to buy a rig and keep it updated, Series x is still a good buy. This is a step in the right direction for sony, but as drave said, game pass still has a few advantages going off that presser.

Gonna havta press X for doubt here buddy. This whole argument about having to update PCs to keep them on top is overblown. I have a PC I built 6 years ago thats more powerful than the Series X (which will be around another 5 or 6 years) is ever going to be. They might catch the power of my newer PC in 2 more console generations. Maybe.

Isn't there only limited games from Xbox game pass on the pc though? Feel like having an Xbox gets you the better games.

I'd say 90% or more of the games on console are on PC on gamespass. Console does have a few exclusives, but they are all niche games, and PC has its on set of games that aren't on the console version as well to make up for it.

[Sepholio]

and Im not saying Gamespass is bad. It is a far superior service. I love it to death. But it doesn't make the Series X a smart purchase imo. There is a distinct reason why Sony still kills them in hardware sales even though they have the best deal in the business in Gamespass.

[drave]

The upkeep of PC's is much more than financial. When Little Jimmie wants to see a Little Tittie and fucks up his PC, it's all over.




Seriously though, its updates and technical knowledge that stop most people, on top of a ridiculous price tag if you want to run things "well". This is something I'm learning as my son has his first rig. He knows fuckall about computer updates, security 101, internet basics (I have this sorted for now), etc.


That's strictly the software portion of the issue. Don't even start with hardware.

[drave]

and Im not saying Gamespass is bad. It is a far superior service. I love it to death. But it doesn't make the Series X a smart purchase imo. There is a distinct reason why Sony still kills them in hardware sales even though they have the best deal in the business in Gamespass.




Name and brand recognition will do this, especially in other markets, especially Japan.


Current gen hardware is honestly pretty even. I'm interested to see what late-gen games look like with the playground devs have been given combined with things we've already seen. gonna be amazing.

[Fignuts]

Another massive update to No Man's Sky. Guess how much it costs.

It's free. Like every other update.

[drave]

Man I got sucked into that for about a month and then something else grabbed my attention.


Gotta admit though, the update sounds badass

[ClockShot]

Embracer Group acquires Eidos, Crystal Dynamics, and Square Enix Montreal for $300 million.

[Sepholio]

WWE has signed a deal to make a wrestling RPG. God I hope this works out because that could end up being a dream game.

[ClockShot]

WB Montreal has cancelled Gotham Knights for last gen consoles. PS5, Xbox Series X/S, or PC only.

[drave]

WWE has signed a deal to make a wrestling RPG. God I hope this works out because that could end up being a dream game.


SethRollnsCackle.mp4




Yeah right dude. It will be "MyCareer" mode from 2k with new fancy bells and whistles.

[Destor]

if you listened to the conference call vince said "a deal in the role playing gaming space." could be mobile. could be table top. no clue

[drave]

All the Bioshock games are free on PC via Epic Games store right now.


(Never played them, and going to take this new Macbook for a spin for funsies)

[drave]

NEVERMIND




Windows only. lol.

[Fignuts]

Starfield literally looking like Bethesda No Man's Sky.

[Destor]

i expected starfield to sell me an xbox...i did not. not saying it doesnt look worthwhile but its def a game that I'll play when i get around to it not day 1.

[ClockShot]

It's like No Man's Sky, Destiny, and Elite: Dangerous got thrown into a blender and this is what came out.

Not sold on it yet and I'm not going to run out and buy a Xbox when I can just back into either of those games whenever I feel the itch.

Tell me what I can "really" do, then I may change my mind.

[Fignuts]

Lots of cool looking new ips in xbox's showcase though. Pumped for a lot of those.

[Destor]

in 3-5 years theyll have a very impressive library

[Destor]

out of this showcase The Last Case of Benedict Fox and Ara: History Untold both looked really good

[Fignuts]

They said everything shown is releasing within the next 12 months.

Obviously, that doesn't count for delays, but if even half of those titles hit that mark, theres gonna be a lot of cool stuff to play within the year.

[Destor]

my comment is geared toward the 30 or so studios working on titles not yet announced. in 5 years time most of those games will have come to market. the bulk of the microsoft owned studios recently aquired are just getting going on thwir projects. by the mid point of this console cycle theyll have a very impressive library.

[Destor]

out of this showcase though the mentioned titles im really liking forward to checking out. both are hitting PC so ill check it out on the steamdeck

[Sepholio]

WOOOO Hollow Knight 2 finally getting close.

[drave]

<iframe width="800" height="448" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zmb2FJGvnAw" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>


:O

[Fignuts]

If Starfield is as moddable as previous Bethesda games, its going to have a lifespan longer than skyrim.

[Fignuts]

Finally playing cyberpunk. If the game had released like this, I think it would have been considered for game of the year.

Still the occasional bug, but no more than you'd find in any game of this scale. World is gorgeous and fun to explore.

Combat feels good. Started with a blade build and was iffy on it at first, but after getting the mantis blades and double jump it got really fun.

Story is pretty good so far. Im into it. Side quests are alright. Nothing even close to the witcher 3 though.

[drave]

For real tho.......


Go "cold blood" stealth build with throwing knives and blades. The last big patch made any knife automatically respawn in your hand, with the delay based on the quality of the knife.


That, with a few hacks to take out surveillance, makes for a reeeeeeealy fun "cyber ninja" build.


I still need to do one more play through. I've used the mantis blades and the wire (also really fucking cool), but haven't used the mini-launcher that you can implant in your arm. That shit should be fun. Just go in and blow shit up instead of being sneaky.


If you stick with it (because good LORD it's a great game after they fixed their shit), up the difficulty, as enemies get kinda dumb.

[Fignuts]

I've actually started putting all my points into quick hacking. Got a legendary hack that straight up instakills an enemy, and I've got a cyberdeck that will spread it to an additional enemy. I can level up the radius and amount of enemies it spreads to, so I could potentially take down 6 people with one hack if they're close enough.

[drave]

That was my first go too. It makes the game EZ mode because you can scan all your targets for an entire area via remote cams, and hack them from there.


You can take out entire objective areas barely even entering them. Enjoy it, it's a blast for a bit, but found myself wanting more "action" after a while.

[Fignuts]

Yeah Im still gonna bust out the mantis blades and katana.

Also want to level up that giant dildo.

[ClockShot]

Skull & Bones. Ubisoft's pirate game spun off of AC 4: Black Flag, and known for being in development hell for a good 5+ years since being revealed back in 2017 at E3, could be finally coming to consoles soon. As you may know, it's been broken down and restarted more than once.

ESRB has given it a M rating. Usually that means the Board has been submitted a near or completed game for ratting approval.

Word going around the net is that Ubisoft will schedule a re-reveal of the game next week.

https://www.playstationtrophies.org/news/news-37252-skull-bones-rated-by-esrb-with-reported-re-reveal-next-week.html

[Fignuts]

Im hoping the long delay was because they were making it a full on pirate game, ala Sea of Theives, rather than the ship combat game it started out as. Id be down for a black flag mmo.

[drave]

That'd be amazing. Black Flag was VERY fun.

[ClockShot]

Set some time aside this Thursday.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Rx0TyU9yn30" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[ClockShot]

God of War: Ragnarok. November 9th.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dIQGI36BxDE" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>


Meanwhile, Forspoken still needs more time and has been pushed into January 24th 2023.

[Fignuts]

Well shit I guess I need to get a PS5 before November.

[Big Vic]

Mario Rabbids 2 coming out very hypeddd

If you have a switch the first one is free to play for a week.

[ClockShot]

Set some time aside this Thursday.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Rx0TyU9yn30" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

So, I watched it yesterday. Not digging it yet. I'm hoping that as time goes by, Ubisoft will slowly reveal stuff that they're still keeping under wraps. Maybe one you will think differently.

Launch is November 8th, 2022. Not the best day since G.o.D Ragnarok launches the next day. So, the Playstation players will probably skip this. They're taking reservations for beta testing. But's only available through the PC. Now.

Here's the full show if anyone is interested.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/P_c7F4PHzcc" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Fignuts]

Eh, looks like its almost all at sea, outside of docking in towns to buy shit, and small islands with chests.

I like ubisofts ship combat, but not enough to play a game thats just that.

[drave]

yeah, that'd get very tiresome very quick. :(

[Fignuts]

Fignuts here with your regularly scheduled news of No Man's Sky coming out with another huge update.

Completely free.

Again.

[drave]

duuuuuuuuude, i read about that and holy schnikes batman!!


I played it for a couple months, had a ship and don't remember exactly where I left off. Not a bad game, felt very time consuming, but overall enjoyable.

[ClockShot]

Report going around the internet says the Knights of the Old Republic remake for Sony and PC has been put on indefinite hold.

Aspyr's internal demo on how the game was coming along was shown to some Lucasfilm and Sony big shots and they were not happy at all. This has led to the firing of the design and art director.

https://www.ign.com/articles/star-wars-knights-of-the-old-republic-remake-reportedly-paused-indefinitely


Damn. And I was really stoked about this.

[Kalyx triaD]

Careful who you hire to write your RPG.

[drave]

A Wild Kalyx was spotted!

[drave]

OUch though, release moved back to 2025 - IF at all.

[Sepholio]

Wow, SNK announces a new Fatal Fury game after 23 years. Never thought I'd hear that name again.

[drave]

Not Terry Garou pls

[Fignuts]

Whaaaaaaat

Garou is arguably(not really) the best Fatal Fury game ever made.

Also, the picture showed Rock Howard so its most likely Garou 2.

[drave]

Just didn't like it. Much prefer Fatal Fury OG and Geese.

[Fignuts]

I just hope they choose a different art style for it. Maybe something like the new Samurai Showdown. The recent KOF games just look so mobile gameish

[drave]

Fair. That's my issue with Garou, is it just looks all same same as other fighters, really. The new Samurai Showdown art is SICK and I'd love it, but I'm not heavy into fighters to pay $70 for it.


I'm hoping for a GamePass or deeply discounted special GOTY or something, I dunno.

[Sepholio]

Fyi SNK is 96% owned by the Saudi royal family. It's a pet project of prince MBS. This makes their games prime targets for a little free range bootleggery as far as I am concerned. Better that than directly contributing to the Blood Money In The Bank Slush Fund and Trust.

[drave]

Masahiro Sakurai (created Kirby and Smash Bros) is creating an ad-free Youtube channel to talk about the game development industry, how things work and maybe small how-to's. Very cool.


https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv1DvRY5PyHHt3KN9ghunuw/featured

[ClockShot]

Assassins' Creed: Mirage announced today by Ubisoft after it was leaked early today.

September 10th will have a Ubisoft Forward show to tell all about it.

https://www.ign.com/articles/assassins-creed-mirage-officially-announced-reveal-next-week

[Sepholio]

Octopath 2 WOOOO. Zelda out next may as well. Nice.

[Destor]

Im outrageously amped for Octopath 2

[Fignuts]

Was all like "pfffffffft" over the final fantasy rhythm game.

Then they said it would have 385 songs.

Then they said dlc would be music from Saga, Neir, Octopath and Live A Live.

God damn it.

[Fignuts]

Also lol at like 5,000 new farming games.

[Destor]

A few of them looking meaty though. Harvestella looks to have some pretty solid action

[Fignuts]

Suikoden 1 and 2 hd remaster coming to all systems

[Destor]

Shame those games are so damn easy

[Fignuts]

4 of the characters from the leaked Street Fighter 6 roster will be dlc. Which leaves a starting roster of 18. Not a bad number. Not a great number.

Seems like there will also be a lot of content at launch, which was the bigger issue with street fighter 5.

[Sepholio]

I'm down for Suikoden remaster but only because I never got around to playing them back in the day even though I always heard they were good.

[Destor]

Theyre really cool but theyre pokemon level of easy

[ClockShot]

Google picks January 18, 2023 as the day the Stadia dies.

[Destor]

Theyre moving the tech into business. The tech will do really well.

[M-A-G]

Crystal Dynamics Legacy of Kain Fan Survey (https://gamerant.com/legacy-of-kain-survey-crystal-dynamics/)

OK, I'm probably the only member of the forums that this would apply to but I'm kind of giddy about this. Crystal Dynamics is asking fans of the Legacy of Kain series to take this survey about the games. Now the franchise has been long dormant ever since 2003 and even though several rumors have been floated around over the years about what might come of it under its current owners, nothing has materialized.

This bit of reaching out in the form of this survey is the first indication in a long time that SquareEnix might be a bit serious about moving forward with something involving the IP, be it a remaster of the old games or a straight-up sequel. The survey asks several questions to fans of the games about what they would prefer from any future projects.

Speaking just for myself, I would say a remaster of the old games, Soul Reaver especially, would be the most desirable. The franchise began more than 25 years ago with Blood Omen so there are a lot of potential new players that just aren't familiar with the series and its story. Doing a new entry would be difficult as a good chunk of the main characters are dead or the voice actors like Tony Jay and Renee Auberjonois are dead and recasting some of these roles would be a pain.

That would also be a hurdle as far as remastering the original games goes. I would hate for it to turn out like the Silent Hill HD Collection where the original work just got completely shit on with new voices and a director who had no love for the games and had his own vision.

Overall, I'm just glad to see that there is still some degree of interest in the series. I'm sure you all noticed my gushing in the most recent Rate the Game thread. :o

[Sepholio]

Soul Reaver 2 is one of my favorite games ever.

Also I'm pretty sure this has nothing to do with SquareEnix. Think they sold Crystal Dynamics and Eidos to Embracer/THQ Nordic. THQ Nordic likes to resurrect old series so this is a good sign.

[M-A-G]

Soul Reaver 2 probably has the best part of the story. I could listen to that dialogue over and over. Plus, it's just one twist after another as you head into the final parts of the game. The combat is a bit better, too.

I'd forgotten about the SquareEnix thing. Like I said, nobody was doing dick with the IP. There was that dumb attempt to inject multiplayer into the mix with Nosgoth and that abomination that was known as Dark Sun. Thankfully, they died the horrible deaths they deserved.

[Sepholio]

I honestly wouldn't mind if they tried to do another Blood Omen too, but with the original Diablo-clone style of the first.

[ClockShot]

Yeah. I took the survey. Had to. Want this franchise back so bad.

[M-A-G]

I was on track to writing an essay for that final question. I was a bit insulted by it asking what kind of features should a new game include and one of the options being multiplayer.

[M-A-G]

I honestly wouldn't mind if they tried to do another Blood Omen too, but with the original Diablo-clone style of the first.

That presentation helps Blood Omen stand out from the other titles. It's just that after it was released, everyone and their mother was going the Tomb Raider/Super Mario 64/Gex route of being full 3D so it stood to reason that they would go the same way with Soul Reaver. If they ever do a remaster or remake, I'd appreciate them polishing up the combat of Blood Omen while keeping the same visual presentation, even though exploring those areas in 3D would be fucking sweet.

[drave]

Not news, just a mashup of two things I enjoy and find pretty damn funny, especially the end.


<iframe width="1254" height="705" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JCoLaOEftJw" title="Ace Ventura in Cyberpunk 2077" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Sepholio]

LOL 1499 for the new Meta Quest Pro VR headset.

That price tag is how you kill VR lol

[drave]

yep - VR anything just isn't really "there" yet IMO. The Half Life 2 VR game is insanely good...... but that's about it for me, personally.


I've read that Meta employees haven't been using the Metaverse because most of them don't own a VR headset. Other reasons include:



it's a terrible fucking idea
it's already been done and it sucks
shit looks like roblox from a decade ago, lulz

[Fignuts]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Friends, Worldlings, Bayonutters. Hear ye!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PlatinumGames?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PlatinumGames</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Nintendo?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Nintendo</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Bayonetta?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Bayonetta</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Bayonetta3?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Bayonetta3</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Bayonutters?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Bayonutters</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Boycott?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Boycott</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NintendoEurope?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NintendoEurope</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NintendoAmerica?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NintendoAmerica</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NintendoJapan?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NintendoJapan</a> <a href="https://t.co/h9lwiX2bBt">pic.twitter.com/h9lwiX2bBt</a></p>&mdash; Hellena Taylor (@hellenataylor) <a href="https://twitter.com/hellenataylor/status/1581289084718227456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 15, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[Fignuts]

I mean, boycotts rarely amount to anything, but that's still pretty fucked up.

[Destor]

If the rate wasnt fair no one else wouldve taken the job. Sounds like she thought she *was* bayo and could demand more money. These games arent cheap to make. New VO sounds just fine.

[Sepholio]

Yeah but you have to admit that 4k for a full game is a trash rate considering the tens of millions they probably spent so far.

[Sepholio]

It's like they left a 0 off.

[Destor]

I dont know what VOs go for. I know her replacement, Jennifer fucking Hale, is on the short list for the best in the business so im certain she's not out here working for a rate that's not market competitive

[Destor]

One thing to keep perspective: this game is sold in dozens of languages. She isnt the voice of bayo. She's a voice of bayo. In the games 2nd most popular language.

[Fignuts]

Theres ALWAYS someone willing to do the job. That doesn't mean it isn't insulting to completely low ball someone like this. The games cost a lot of money to make, but they also make a lot of money. And good voice acting contributes to that success, especially in character action games like this where the charisma of the main character is a selling point and right in front in the marketing.

Voice actors in productions of this magnitude make anywhere between 20-80k. 4,000 is an extreme low ball.

[Destor]

I get betting on yourself and wanting better pay. Truly. Sounds like she overestimated her value. Thats happened me. No regrets. You gotta take that chance when youre negotiating. Turns out though whatever rate she thought she was worth she wasnt. And its pretty suspicious that she lists their offer and not her ask. Makes me think she was so high on market value that she knew people in the know would call her out. This shit is petty af.

[Destor]

Also read that her role was a cameo and the protag bayo in this game is an alternative bayo. So the role she was to play was just a few scenes. Dunno. Seems legit.

[Ruien]

I make 4k in like a week. Gtfo.

[Fignuts]

I dont know what VOs go for. I know her replacement, Jennifer fucking Hale, is on the short list for the best in the business so im certain she's not out here working for a rate that's not market competitive

Jennifer Hale is great. I really have a hard time believing Hale would take the job for that amount.

Maybe theres more going on. Original actress hard to work with so they forced her out?

But no way is Hale doing this for 4k

[Destor]

Just did some digging. VOs make around 80k/a. Seems about right. 4k for a week or 2s work.

[Destor]

Alls i know is if Hale said yes theyre paying their VOs right. Hale is top tier and can choose what roles to take

[Ruien]

Probably low balled her to get Hale.

[Fignuts]

Also read that her role was a cameo and the protag bayo in this game is an alternative bayo. So the role she was to play was just a few scenes. Dunno. Seems legit.

Are you sure? Cause everything I've read says they hired Hale after the pay dispute. Theres even side by side footage of early gameplay featuring Taylor's voice compared to the finished product with Hale.

[Fignuts]

Kamiya's tweet imply theres some bullshit going on but he cant talk about it.

[Destor]

Jennifer Hale is great. I really have a hard time believing Hale would take the job for that amount.

Maybe theres more going on. Original actress hard to work with so they forced her out?

But no way is Hale doing this for 4kwell considering shes going to twitter to forge a boycot her being a pain in the ass seems pretty certain

[Fignuts]

Probably low balled her to get Hale.

Kinda what I'm thinking.

[Destor]

Are you sure? Cause everything I've read says they hired Hale after the pay dispute. Theres even side by side footage of early gameplay featuring Taylor's voice compared to the finished product with Hale.
No im absolutely not sure. Thats the issue. She makes this post where she's an angel and immediately i raise an eyebrow. Its pretty rare where you're a blameless victim. There's clearly something going unsaid here.

[Destor]

This doesnt pass the smell test at all

[Destor]

I dont know what i dont know but i know i dont know what i need to know

[Ruien]

Will be hilarious if she fabricated the story. She would be done 100% as a VA.

[Destor]

She could be blackballed regardless. Working with her has got to viewed as a risk

[Destor]

A game bayos size looks to be about 1 weeks worth of work btw. So at 4k were talking 200k a year if you stayed booked. Yeah im firmly not siding with her on this

[Ruien]

Hellena Taylor isn't doing her any favors. She was paid 2k to 3k for voicing 3 characters in Breath of the Wild. Which was a above average pay rate due to voicing 3 characters at once

[Big Vic]

Does anyone know how much she got paid for Bayo 1 & 2?

[drave]

Depending on the amount of lines/work, especially if pitched as a short cameo, 4k might have been spot on...... but no, this doesn't seem that way.




In any profession, this low of an offer, IMO, seems like an easy way to say "fuck off".


They extended an offer they already knew was silly, but did it to say "we offered, they rejected" - legal base covered.

[Destor]

Got some real numbers


Median for VO comes out to 20.56/hr. If this was a 5 day project like speculated based on how many lines are in the previous games thats $822 assuming 8 hour days. If its a 2 week project, which would be extremely lengthy based on previous games length, obviously we're st $1622. So her offer way way way above market standard.



Whats occurring here is people hear "actor" and think "they make bajillions!" VO work isnt a high paying field, its a middle class job.

[Destor]

They offered her between 50/hr to 100/hr depending on if this was a 1 or 2 week project

[Destor]

For a job you can do in your pajamas thats doing pretty ok id say

[Ruien]

What if she had to wear business casual work attire?

[Destor]

Double the pay.

[Fignuts]

According to ZipRecruiter, industry averages include: Entry-level voice actors: $13,500–$31,999 per year. Mid-level voice actors: $69,000–$87,499 per year. Experienced voice actors: $111,500–$199,000 per year.

[Fignuts]

Also need to factor in that voice actors probably have to take breaks in between bigger jobs to give their vocal chords a rest due to some of the screaming and grunting required. They're not maki g that hourly rate all 52 weeks of the year.

[Fignuts]

For a job you can do in your pajamas thats doing pretty ok id say

Technically, you could do most jobs in your pajamas.

Its just frowned upon.

[Ruien]

Honestly, even if she was right, who is really going to boycott a video game because someone unknown VA didn't get the offer she thought she deserved? I doubt 99% of the fans even knew who she was before this. Just seems insane.

[drave]

Technically, you could do most jobs in your pajamas.

Its just frowned upon.




Also need to consider that Hale is union, Taylor is not - so it most definitely is NOT a $$$ thing.




2x Also - working in my pajamas every god damn day until I have to leave the house.

[ClockShot]

G4 Network is dead again. Comcast has decided to pull the plug. Not bringing in the cash or the viewers.

https://www.ign.com/articles/g4-is-being-shut-down-less-than-a-year-after-it-launched

[drave]

Yeah...... I just learned it was a thing about a few weeks ago. I don't have cable, and don't watch a ton of TV anyway, but still..... no clue it was around again.

[drave]

fuck that Esquire bullshit they pulled though. That shit was wank

[Fignuts]

Frosk's rant may have killed it

[Destor]

Also need to consider that Hale is union, Taylor is not - so it most definitely is NOT a $$$ thing.




2x Also - working in my pajamas every god damn day until I have to leave the house.
Theyre both union. SAG.



Preorders have spiked up since the story broke btw. Bayo 3 briefly passed madden on amazon

[Sepholio]

Now I'm curious how much Pratt is making for the Mario movie...

[Destor]

Film pays better (and objectively should.) Excluding interactive narratives like The Last of Us or thing The Quarry the VOs arent the game. Take this case i realized it was Hale in the trailer when i frist heard her but i didnt realize it hadnt always been Hale. You arent buying games for the VOs as good as they are.

Where wages need to rise in gaming is on the dev side. When this actress calls for boycotts shes calling to ruin the work of a few hundred people. People who dont get paid per hour near what she rejcted.

Obviously there's only so much they can pay when youre talking about an industry that has a credit scroll as long as modern games do but they have overtaken cinema and thats worth note.

But unless theyre willing to charge a fair market price for these games, which would be much closer to $120 or more, the higher pay will never come.

[M-A-G]

There's been fuckery in the video game world for voice acting since it's been a thing. Just look at Konami's brilliant handling over the legal mess involving the Silent Hill HD Collection voice redo fiasco.

[Sepholio]

Silent Hill 2 remake.

I guess they forgot there was a part 1.

[Fignuts]

More interested in Silent Hill f.

Ryukishi is a horror genius.

[M-A-G]

Silent Hill 2 remake.

I guess they forgot there was a part 1.

It's not that they forgot, it's that they don't care.

There's this really weird consensus in the development community, and even in a small section of the fanbase, that Silent Hill 2 and all its themes and ideas are the only thing that's important and all that the series is and should be about. Post-Silent Hill 4, virtually every team that has had a hand in making a new entry has taken large chunks, if not all, of the elements of the second game and tried to apply it to their creation. Devin Shatsky, one of the people behind Downpour, just flat out said that he wasn't interested in the stories presented in the first and third games and thought it was all confusing. That's all well and good if you're not a fan of what the series is about, but the bottom line is that is what the series is about.

The excuse people use is that Silent Hill 2 is somehow separate from the rest of the series. This is in no way true but even if it was, if you were going to continue making games that you claim are "true to the series" and "going back to the roots", why would you make them basically carbon copies of the one game you claim has nothing to do with the other games?

The answer is that they're lazy and/or stupid. The latter might be a bit harsh but it's fairly clear if you listen to what a lot of these developers say, they have absolutely NO IDEA what the series is about. The story of the second game, by comparison, is the easiest to copy. Why bother coming up new lore about the cult? Why bother with the history of the town? All we apparently have to do is get some schmuck with "inner demons", drop him in the middle of the town, and just reveal at the end that there was some tragedy that he forgot all about! BOOM! Done! Silent Hill, baby! Where's our check?

And don't even get me started on that shit that was Book of Memories.

[M-A-G]

More interested in Silent Hill f.

Ryukishi is a horror genius.

Without Hiroyuki Owaku or Keiichiro Toyama, or just someone who knows the series like those two, this is just another waste.

[M-A-G]

Silent Hill 2 remake.

I guess they forgot there was a part 1.

As an addendum to my previous post addressing this:

This also screws over any potential new fans because they're not introduced to how it all began. The original game is on a console 4 generations old and copies of it cost a pretty penny nowadays so it's not easy getting started with the series at its roots. The second game is the one that gets the heaviest push and since it's so separated from the original and the follow-ups, a disconnect is created if that's the one people play first.

[Fignuts]

Without Hiroyuki Owaku or Keiichiro Toyama, or just someone who knows the series like those two, this is just another waste.

I mean, its a spin off so its not like its replacing a new main entry made by those guys.

A good horror game is a good horror game, and I have high hopes for this

[Fignuts]

Silent Hill relies heavily on psychological horror and you're talking about the guy who made Higurashi: When They Cry.

Pretty good fit, if you ask me.

[Sepholio]

Review embargo lifted on Gotham Knights. It is getting hammered.

Remember the furor over the locked 30fps on consoles? Shit, it can't even hold 30 stable on the Series X. Drops constantly.

[Fignuts]

Yeah, not surprising. From the very beginning, the game just looked cheap. Like a mobile game upscaled for consoles.

[Sepholio]

Apparently the only redeeming qualities in the game are that the design of the sandbox is nice and the cosmetics are cool lol

[Fignuts]

The different costumes do look cool, but the sandbox? From every account I've heard and video I've seen, it looks like a step down from the Arkham games in terms of detail and atmosphere.

[Sepholio]

Maybe that compliment is just people being nice then.

[Destor]

I grab it when its half prices. Or on ebay for $20.

[M-A-G]

Silent Hill relies heavily on psychological horror and you're talking about the guy who made Higurashi: When They Cry.

Pretty good fit, if you ask me.

But it's psychological horror tackling certain themes with a lore and rules already set. If no one is going to make a game expanding on what the first four games did, I'm not interested. He can make his own separate horror thing like Kojima ended up doing. I'm just tired of the series being treated like the redheaded stepchild of the gaming world where anything goes when some new developer wants to take a crack at it but all other franchises are sacrosanct. It's not an anthology series and ignoring what's been established has led to diminishing returns, so much so that it left so many fans desperate for a savior that they were willing to gobble up Kojima's pile of nothing that was P.T.

The only game that might actually have a shot is that Townfall one, since a few Team Silent members are on board. Everything else? No thanks. I can't believe they're going to allow Christoph Gans another shot at shitting the bed with another fucking movie.

[Fignuts]

Well, look on the brightside. If it ends up being really good, it could generate renewed interest in the series as a whole, and you could end up getting the game you want.

[Destor]

Bayo deets are out there. Been confirmed that the offer was 4k per session for 5 sessions totalling roughly 20 hours all together. Unconfirmed but the scuttlebutt is she refused and wanted 6 figures plus residuals.



They offered her over 1k/hr though

[Destor]

The original voice actor stated when questioned about this "id just want to move on"

[Destor]

TL;DR my initial gut reaction was exactly on the money

[Destor]

I get betting on yourself and wanting better pay. Truly. Sounds like she overestimated her value. Thats happened me. No regrets. You gotta take that chance when youre negotiating. Turns out though whatever rate she thought she was worth she wasnt. And its pretty suspicious that she lists their offer and not her ask. Makes me think she was so high on market value that she knew people in the know would call her out. This shit is petty af.

[drave]

No Regerts

[Fignuts]

Gotham Knights gets a 5 from ign.

I read reviews for information rather than an influence on my opinion, but if a game can't even get a 6 from sweet old grandmother of review sites, thats probably not a good sign.

[Destor]

The scores are going to be middling based on the 30fps if nothing else and it seems like theres a lot else

[Destor]

(I only ned 24fps but sub 60 and 90% of people will riot)

[drave]

90% of people are dumb.

[Sepholio]

Im perfectly content with 30 frames stable. I care more about the pretty than needing a million fps like whiny people who only play first person shooters.

[drave]

or Minecraft bro.

[Sepholio]

I bet they play Roblox too.

[drave]

Lotsa Roblox games are first person.




Beyond excited for my son to get his new Xbox. he plays his One X so hard it overheats quite often. Never, not a single instance, ever had that problem with any of my consoles.


Definitely on it's last legs. Have him using his PCMR cooling pad under it for his Destiny 2 sessions. He finished up his season pass yesterday and was pretty stoked about it.

[Sepholio]

lol I'm pretty sure my sons PS4 Pro is in a similar state of impending doom. I keep expecting to come home to a hole in my roof where it blasted off into space.

[Fignuts]

(I only ned 24fps but sub 60 and 90% of people will riot)

In fairness, the graphical advancements between generations is nowhere what it used to be. The big difference between this generation and the last one is in performance.

So when people pay $500 for a new console and a game doesn't offer those performance upgrades, its understandable that it would get called out for it. Especially in a 3rd person action game, where that bump in framerate makes a difference.

[drave]

Case-in-point - FO76.


The load times from One to Series X is...... incredible. The world loads < 10 seconds. Interiors are nearly instant.

[Destor]

Taylor now admits they offered 15k for bayo and that the role was only a cameo

[Big Vic]

4k for the cameo.
15k if she returned in the first place.

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/original-bayonetta-voice-actor-responds-to-backlash-confirms-she-was-offered-15k-for-bayonetta-3/1100-6508548/

[Fignuts]

lol

[Sepholio]

Callisto Protocol cancelled in Japan. Apparently the game is just too gory for the Japanese rating board and they won't pass it unless the game is changed.

But you know, tentacled monsters sexually assaulting little girls, sorry I mean 3,000 year old fairies who look like little girls, is just perfectly fine.

This game is must play for me now. If Japan bans it its gotta be wild.

[Destor]

Well JPN can just use the US digital store like we do for JPN exclusives so its weirdly moot in 2022

[Fignuts]

Is the Japanese Ratings Board aware that Berserk exists?

[Fignuts]

Where the fuck did this come from? It's the first I've even heard of it.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ird250ZlUKI" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Destor]

Well that got my preorder. Maybe they guys at rockstar will see that and remember that westerns can feel fun. Ya know, like RDR1.

[drave]

Very late Assassins Creed games vibe with a Western coat of paint.

[Sepholio]

Red Dead Ragnarok

[drave]

Can you picture Kratos wearing a cowboy getup and walking around lamenting about THE BOYEEEEEE and saying HOWDEEEEEEE all curmudgeony.


I'd buy it.

[drave]

^

Feels like something that should be on Robot Chicken tbh

[Sepholio]

Atomic Heart finally gets a release date of February 21, 2023. Been excited for this since the first time I saw it. Soviet Bioshock.

[Fignuts]

New trailer looks badass.

[DAMN iNATOR]

^

Feels like something that should be on Robot Chicken tbh

This post reminds me of all the adult swim games I used to play on my phone - Robot Unicorn Attack, Giant Boulder of Death, and Monsters Ate My Condo. Good times.

[ClockShot]

Watch out, Elden Ring. Kratos & Boy are coming for that Game of the Year award.

[ClockShot]

Happy N7 Day everybody.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Happy <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/N7Day?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#N7Day</a> from across the stars! 💫 We found this interesting footage you may want to 🔍 a bit more closely. <br><br>Download in HD ​​⬇️<a href="https://t.co/gyydhuuT1e">https://t.co/gyydhuuT1e</a> <a href="https://t.co/h97zjH5C1G">pic.twitter.com/h97zjH5C1G</a></p>&mdash; Mass Effect (@masseffect) <a href="https://twitter.com/masseffect/status/1589656874416500739?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 7, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[Fignuts]

Watch out, Elden Ring. Kratos & Boy are coming for that Game of the Year award.

No matter how good Ragnarok is ( and I'm sure its VERY good) I doubt its going to make people rethink what an entire genre could be, the way Elden Ring did.

[Destor]

The real issue is Elden Ring is esoteric. Ragnarok is much more digestible. Even if its worse its easier for it to review more favorably. Edlen is fighting up hill if its half as good as its reviewing. Especially with recentcy bias on its side

[Fignuts]

That is true. All the people who vote for Ragnarok are wrong though, and need to git gud.

[Sepholio]

Feel like Fignuts doesn't have a playstation and hes super jelly some of us get to play the game of the year while he's stuck with the runner up.

[Sepholio]

Honestly Elden Ring would be an easy winner if....if they presented a story in the way 99% of games do. The lack of a narrative driving the game and the lore being almost entirely hidden in item descriptions and a handful of conversations hurts its chances a lot. The fact that you can play through the game entirely and get no story/context unless you do that extra digging is kinda whack.

[Sepholio]

and before I get the inevitable "git gud" comment, just know I beat that game 8 ways to Sunday.

[Destor]

Thars def what i was driving at with the "esoteric" comment. I, for the record, dont criticize them for the choice. The lore is there if you want to dig for it and many people really get off on doing that leg work. That said it holds the game back from being anything more than a game.

Narrative has the ability to transcend the human condition and effect the way you view yourself and the world. It allows games like GOW 2018 and TLoU to be something more than simply fun toys and push into becoming very serious art.

So when we talk critical acclaim GOW has a distinct advantage because it exists in a dimension the souls genre doesnt have any ambition to compete in.

(To be clear i have nothing against games being games. My game of the year is triangle strategy with xbc3 in a distant 2nd and id be stunned if thats going to be topped.)

[Fignuts]

Yeah, I've always appreciated a great narrative and the last god of war was one of my favorite games ever, partly for that reason. But at the end of the day, I believe great gameplay, and innovations in that area should be treated with higher regard.

A game with a bad narrative but great gameplay can be enormously successful. But if the gameplay doesn't cut it? Doesn't matter how good the story is.

[Fignuts]

Speaking of which, everything we've seen from Forspoken's narrative looks boring and generic, but holy french fried titty fuck does the gameplay look fun.

[Destor]

Edit: Slightly off topic post incoming but i think about this a lot

This particular argument i dont think we're going to have to choose between story and gameplay. GOW 2018 played as great as its narrative. Gaming is a weird medium though. Some of my favorite experiences have been visual novels.

13 sentinels is 80% VC 10% combat and 10% exploration. The "game" aspects are minimal. Outstanding game all the same. Some greta VCs have no gameplay whatsoever which begs the question "are they even games?" Then you have the interactive narratives like Detroit, Until Dawn, Walking dead etc. What even is a game? Is having a controller in your hand all it takes? Would the same "game" on your phone still be a game?

Ive thought about this a lot before as a medium when you start to push around the edges its honestly not very clear philosophically.

This thought really hit my mind when death stranding was making its waves. The argument for it being a bad game was most commonly "its not fun."

Now if i wrote a film review and said "its a bad movie its not fun" for Schindler's List i wouldnt be a credible critic. Its not meant to be fun. So if games are only good when theyre fun then they are not games. They're toys. But if gaming is a serious medium fun cant be king.

Which isnt to discredit fun. There's nothing wrong with that. My point is if the medium is to truly evolve, not just genre but the entire medium, its these kind of boundries that are going to have to be explored. Things like Alan Wake where the gameplay is pushing the narrative devices forward. For example.

Fun games will always exist, i hope atleast. But the conversation of what makes a game is the one i want to see pushed, ignoring what makes a good game, atleast primarily. Lets find out what makes one good later; first lets find out what one even is.

tl;dr

I definitely enjoy having things that are fun to play just like i enjoy fun movies to watch. But not always.

[Sepholio]

I've said this before in regards to Death Stranding.....I don't know if I loved it, or hated it, or what I felt. I just know I couldn't stop. Weirdest gaming experience of my life.

[Sepholio]

Still think about that game all the time.

[Destor]

Say what you will but Kojima was aiming for something. An experience that challenged the audiecne as gamers. Not in dexterity or git gud but with the form itself. Love it, hate it, whatever it. you cant discredit it though with "oh well it wasnt fun." That seems smoothe brained AF.

[Destor]

By all rights hate though, im not saying thats not valid

[Sepholio]

The best word I can use to describe that game is "compelling". I was driven to play it even though I had no idea why.

[Destor]

Right. Exactly. Captivating, engaging, intriguing. These are reasons we might read a book, for example, outside of fun. Dare i even: informative? Is there space in gaming thats not geared toward 4 year olds thats informative? Can we mix informative with compelling? Great novels mange it.

I dont know if we'll ever really explore much in gaming beyond fun but when i think of boundaries pushing that's where my head goes. Elden Ring pushing the souls like genre forward isnt nothing and it isnt small either. What Hades did the the rouguelike genre is comparable.

im not dismissing that kind of achievement but i do think pushing the mechanisms of narrative delivery in games like GOW 2018 are definitely at the edges of gaming too.

[Destor]

Its an interesting topic is all im saying im not trying to take sides i havent played ragnarok

[Sepholio]

Elden Ring will be looked at as nothing more than a stepping stone once someone comes along and releases a clone of it with a fleshed out narrative.

[Sepholio]

Its still one of my favorite games of the year though. The world design is pretty fucking peak. Had fun exploring it.

[Destor]

Elden ring felt like the biggest game since animal crossing. Everyone was playing it.

[Destor]

It was stunningly huge

[Fignuts]

I don't say it should go over ragnarok lightly. Elden Ring was more than just a great game. It challenged how we look at open world games in an era where they are immensely prevalent. It put the rest of the industry on blast so hard that some devs couldn't handle it and got defensive on twitter.

Its ripples it caused are going to stretch beyond this year and influence how people make open world games in the future. That is why I give it the edge, combined with why it innovates so much. Every piece of the map combined with the enemy placement in that geography, all specifically placed to offer unique challenges. Nothing just copied and pasted. Everything there for a reason, and so many subtle details and hints that people are still discovering to this day.ACTUAL exploration, and discovery. Not just climbing a clearly visible tower and having 50 icons on your map, telling you where to go and what to find.

And I've felt this way since the first dark souls but the extreme vagueness of the story and lore is what adds to the incredible mystique and atmosphere of the games. Dark Fantasy is my wheel house and in almost all the different series I've experienced, it always gets to a point where you've learned enough about the world and experienced enough exposition where it doesn't hold that same mystique as when you first started.

If souls games have mastered anything, its retaining that feeling of mystery from start to finish while still giving you just enough where you have cool relevations and plot lines coming together as you connect the dots. To me, that is just as impressive as a more substantial, more traditional well told narrative.

[Destor]

Comparing Elden to a Ubisoft game for example definitely should be embarrassing for the guys over in France. Thats how ive felt about what The Witcher 3 did. All the detail in that world and they still lazily churn out the same game every few months and wonder why it goes stale.

And the sense of discovry in ER (Miyazaki games in heneral tbf) is something that you can basically only get in his games. Like i said from the get go those that get hooked on his method of lore delivery will only be able to get their fix from him. Its truly unique. I think for mass audiences that works against it in direct comparison to more organic methods but not because i think its bad at all. Just that when we get into the general perception its weaker.

But against my own point Sekiro, which is my favorite Miyazaki game, won GOTY and while the pack was pretty weak that year there was very little push back when it did. And ER is 5x more popular than Sekiro was. ER was CoD popular.

[drave]

Right. Exactly. Captivating, engaging, intriguing. These are reasons we might read a book, for example, outside of fun. Dare i even: informative? Is there space in gaming thats not geared toward 4 year olds thats informative? Can we mix informative with compelling? Great novels mange it.

I dont know if we'll ever really explore much in gaming beyond fun but when i think of boundaries pushing that's where my head goes. Elden Ring pushing the souls like genre forward isnt nothing and it isnt small either. What Hades did the the rouguelike genre is comparable.

im not dismissing that kind of achievement but i do think pushing the mechanisms of narrative delivery in games like GOW 2018 are definitely at the edges of gaming too.

Edit: Slightly off topic post incoming but i think about this a lot

This particular argument i dont think we're going to have to choose between story and gameplay. GOW 2018 played as great as its narrative. Gaming is a weird medium though. Some of my favorite experiences have been visual novels.

13 sentinels is 80% VC 10% combat and 10% exploration. The "game" aspects are minimal. Outstanding game all the same. Some greta VCs have no gameplay whatsoever which begs the question "are they even games?" Then you have the interactive narratives like Detroit, Until Dawn, Walking dead etc. What even is a game? Is having a controller in your hand all it takes? Would the same "game" on your phone still be a game?

Ive thought about this a lot before as a medium when you start to push around the edges its honestly not very clear philosophically.

This thought really hit my mind when death stranding was making its waves. The argument for it being a bad game was most commonly "its not fun."

Now if i wrote a film review and said "its a bad movie its not fun" for Schindler's List i wouldnt be a credible critic. Its not meant to be fun. So if games are only good when theyre fun then they are not games. They're toys. But if gaming is a serious medium fun cant be king.

Which isnt to discredit fun. There's nothing wrong with that. My point is if the medium is to truly evolve, not just genre but the entire medium, its these kind of boundries that are going to have to be explored. Things like Alan Wake where the gameplay is pushing the narrative devices forward. For example.

Fun games will always exist, i hope atleast. But the conversation of what makes a game is the one i want to see pushed, ignoring what makes a good game, atleast primarily. Lets find out what makes one good later; first lets find out what one even is.

tl;dr

I definitely enjoy having things that are fun to play just like i enjoy fun movies to watch. But not always.




This just made me think of Nier Automata. That game will forever stick with me. The game I started playing was not the same game I finished. The way this was presented was unlike any other ever, nor will there ever be another for me. Maybe it's because I often wonder about this existence/life and what it's all about / why we're here.


I couldn't stop playing. I found myself wanting to move forward regardless of what was in front of me. And the "ultimate sacrifice" at the true end (5th play through I think?


That story is unrivaled IMO. I honestly felt a heavy "lift" when I finished the story, exhaled deeply and just kinda sat back and thought about it all. It was incredible, and yet I don't know if I could ever play it again at the same time.

[Sepholio]

Nier: Automata is on my short list of favorite games ever honestly. Only game besides Chrono Trigger that I actually felt invested in getting every single ending. And they all ruled, even the 20ish little "side" endings.

[drave]

I remember accidentally stumbling onto one of the endings just by going the wrong way at the 1st mission.


Something along the lines of "2B never showed up, the end" or something, lol.


My first "WTF" moment of the game.

[Destor]

I need to give nier a 2nd chance. I played maybe a half hour and the combat really didn't gel with me. I dont like bullet hells

[drave]

Eh, it is not a difficult bullet hell game at all. It looks like it, but the movements are so fluid and fast, it's quite easy to maneuver around. Not only that, but I feel like the game quasi-leaps gaming genres from moment to moment, it keeps it fresh. Then.... proceeding playthroughs only increase the ways you play, and keeps you on your toes.




The narrative too, is just.... man it's fucking heavy but so well executed.

[drave]

I need to give nier a 2nd chance. I played maybe a half hour and the combat really didn't gel with me. I dont like bullet hells




Also just remembered this was my first experience. Think I got to the first little town/village and it just didn't click.




When it does though, insanely hard to put down.

[OssMan]

Death Stranding ruled. I enjoyed it a lot and I'm not sure if I classify it as fun but it was definitely very close. I loved playing it. I also love doing very boring tedious tasks as long as theres a long term goal I care about in sight, so building those fucking roads was very enjoyable and rewarding for me. I love that game. I also loved and enjoyed reading Anna Karennina, if that means anything.

[Destor]

We've talked about my gripes with Tolstoy before so I'll save it but id def say those books arent fun but they almost required reading and def work as a great example of what im driving at.

[Sepholio]

lol Nintendo flirting with the idea of increasing the price of the Switch. Says they won't right now but will continue to look at the option.

[Destor]

Virtually everyone who wants one has one but there's no reason why they shouldn't increase prices to match the failing currency. A switch selling at the current price after 8% inflation and climbing is shrinking the very narrow profit margin the consoles always have.

Microsoft is having the same issue on the xbox side. Theyre now losing $200 per unit sold. Those prices will likely increase in the next 18-24 months. Their situation is different of course as theyre trying to tank the losses and use the lower price to gain a market share advantage, grow game pass, and then adjust the price.

[Destor]

None of the current prices can hold though industry wide.

[Sepholio]

Yeah but Switch was never sold at a loss like Xbox and PS. It has been profitable since day 1. And that 8% inflation has been more than offset by the price drop on 6-7 year old components that make up the switches guts.

[Sepholio]

We aren't exactly talking about current tech at this point when it comes to switch. That system was woefully weak at launch. It's just laughable now. The steam deck is only 50 bucks more and somewhere around 60% more powerful.

[Sepholio]

Oh man those are BS inflated power ratings I used for switch. The steam deck might be in the 2x-3x more powerful range in reality.

[Sepholio]

Shit I did it again, found the actual FLOPs a switch does. Steam Deck is 4x as powerful as undocked switch, 3x as powerful as docked.

[Destor]

Steam deck is way more powerful than the switch that cant even be in question