HandsomeDead Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 If things were like what the were 20 years ago and everyone bought the "right" games (ones I like) then the industry would be cool and good. Great insight. I don't like these kinds of nagging arguments, they don't convince anyone. Most just aren't as invested as us and they're gonna play the game they know and like. And people feel better about a new game if they feel like they kind of discovered it themselves. You just gotta be more tactful with your recommendations. With digital games the big thing I don't like is the laws around licensing and ownership which makes games disappear into the digital abyss. I don't care that much otherwise. I'm more interested in changing that stuff than nagging about an individuals buying habits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nag Posted January 18 Author Share Posted January 18 Maybe I'm part of the problem but apart from books I have no interest in physical media whatsoever... in terms of games this was probably made easier once places to trade them in dried up near me and I can't be bothered with the whole Ebay rigmarole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maryokutai Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 These are two entirely different points or am I missing something? Any landscape is formed by what is succesful in the mainstream, like shiny said that's not a very videogame exclusive issue, and it's probably a stretch to call it an issue in the first place. Of course stuff like GOTY discussions and whatnot would be significantly more interesting if as many people had played excellent underdogs instead of just the hyped up blockbusters – which I think got quite nicely demonstrated this year by the huge amount of people raising their eyebrows at Balatro's nomination at the Keighly's – but that's an extremely unrealistic scenario to aspire to. You just gotta have to live with your casual gaming friends stumbling upon Watch Dogs and telling you it's the best game they've ever played. Which is fine, you can't be tuned into everything after all. The digital-physical thing is a lost cause at this point and the way physical games have been handled recently almost gives me anxiety anyway. Xbox has barely any finished code on discs so the only advantage those give are re-sell opportunities. While Switch cartridges, from what I understand, are built in a way that they need a miniscule amount of electrical charge to work, so in 15-20 years all those games might be dead and unusable. Which will leave me with a truckload of plastic waste in my living room. On the other hand, pumping full price in a download I don't 'own' doesn't really feel like the right way either, so I'm just sticking with the physical stuff for the moment. I agree about the point about how your perceive bought games. Having a copy to hold, unwrap, open and a media to put in your console is a very different feeling than pressing a button and waiting for a bar to fill. It's not quite as romantic, but for me it's comparable with the ritualistic nature of putting on a vinyl record vs. just clicking on a song on Spotify. There's something tangible getting lost, but whether that's just a nostalgic and subjective thing or something that'll eventually end up negatively affecting the whole media consumption aspect, I dunno. Probably the former though. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfnick Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 2 hours ago, Nag said: If it is not another EA Sports FC game or Call Of Duty, many don’t care to check them out. It’s been like this forever. Id also argue without digital there’d be even less variety in games now. We know AAA has budgets where they can no longer create new IPs & smaller games just don’t seem worth it to them anymore. But the rise of digital has helped keep some variety as Independents can be self published now, games can sold at a cheaper price & they don’t have to sell millions to be a success. You also have smaller publishers like Devolver having good success in this space. AAA wise though I do think there’s a huge problem & the ones made for more “traditional” gamers are dying off due to sales declining. But I’d squarely lay the blame on FTP, Live Service and Gacha games sucking up all the money and time as well as ballooning budgets I’ve explained before. These exist thanks to the digital marketplace but are detrimental for other reasons. The £70 price point is doing new releases no favours either. Inflation, yadda, yadda yadda. People are actually worse off now so it’s still prohibitively expensive. I still buy majority of games physical as it’s just too expensive on consoles to be digital IMO. Especially if you like to play a lot of games like myself. Games are significantly cheaper physically and I can sell them on. It helps loads. But I still don’t think that’s the main issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANGERMAN Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 I don't see the two parts of his argument are related, as @Maryokutaisaid. And as @one-armed dwarfsaid, Steam is evidence of that. It's an entirely digital and there's a ton of weird shit showcased. Everything from 1000xResist resist to Chinese malware and porn games sat alongside COD and Elden Ring I don't see digital stopping people trying new games. I can see something like Game Pass reducing patience but based on here, it means people will often try something new. I think it can suffer from that hard drive full of roms phenomenon, where you have so much choice you the slightest push back and you bounce It's not on the customer to try new things, it's on the marketing to convince them However, if said gamer moans about not having new things then they don't have a leg to stand on. Same in music or TV, when people say there's no good bands around that's bullshit, they've just not looked beyond what they're being served. Our Game of the Year thread showed that there's a quality and variety out there if you're willing to listen to other people's recommendations and gamble on a couple of things Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sly Reflex Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 The whole people buying the only big games and sequels has been a thing for decades. I have no idea what the fuck they're on about there. That's exactly where the argument falls apart. Being physical or digital has nothing to do with it. I would argue that digital allows smaller more arthouse games to flourish as well because they will give them equal footing on front pages. On the front pages of steamright now they are cycling through 16 games. Only 8 of them are big hitters like Final Fantasy and Fifa (or whatever the fuck it's called now), 1 is an older game (SW:KotOR) and the rest are games I've never heard of that are indie. Can you imagine going to GAME when it was a thing and them advertising Braid or Kingdom of Keftlings? Fuck no. Outside of something like Rocket League or Stardew I don't think I've seen anything small in one of those places. Feel free to step in and correct me if you have. This article is a load o shite. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nag Posted January 25 Author Share Posted January 25 Quote A reader suspects that Microsoft will be trying to ingratiate itself with Nintendo, in an attempt to make the Switch 2 more successful than the PS5. I’m glad to see that 2025 is starting at a fair sprint, for video games, after what seems like years stuck in slow motion, with nothing happening. So far, we’ve had the Nintendo Switch 2 reveal and the Xbox Developer Direct, both of which say a lot about the future. The Nintendo Switch 2 reveal confirmed everything we’d heard about the console so far and showed off a new Mario Kart, although I can understand those upset that Nintendo didn’t show more. For me though the most interesting part was just how popular the video was, with millions watching it and far more positive upvotes than I would’ve guessed seeing how much some fans have been grousing about it. The Xbox Direct was interesting too, with four good looking games and release dates that imply there’s a lot more coming in the second half of the year. PlatinumGames on Ninja Gaiden 4 was a nice surprise, and it all seems the most positive things have looked since Xbox went multiformat. To me, it seems obvious that the Nintendo Switch 2 is going to be a huge success and that Xbox has given up any hope of having console exclusives anymore. I know South Of Midnight isn’t on PlayStation 5 but I’m sure that’s just because they didn’t know about the change of policy when they started the game. So, Microsoft is now essentially a third party publisher. They say they have a next gen console coming up but until that appears the Xbox Series X/S is dead in the water and any money they make from software sales is going to primarily come from PlayStation 5 and PC. That means they’re want to get as pally as possible with Sony. Except Sony aren’t the friendly type and they’re always going to be suspicious of Microsoft, because they’ll always know that the Xbox was meant to oppose them and even if it didn’t work out Microsoft isn’t to be trusted. There’s a couple of Xbox games on Nintendo Switch at the moment, but not many. But considering Microsoft wants to see ‘growth’ and it already gets on much better with Nintendo than it ever has with Sony, I think we can assume that they are going to go all out in their support for the Switch 2 – Halo, Gears Of War, Fable… whatever they can get working they’ll release. We’ve already had exactly that rumour but I’m not sure the source on that didn’t make it up, because it’s so easy to guess anyone could’ve done it. Nintendo consoles regularly outsell PlayStation and Xbox – the Switch certainly has, this generation and last – and I think that Microsoft’s interest in Switch 2 will be two-fold. They’ll want to open up a new format to their games and greatly increase their audience and… they’ll want to get revenge on Sony. The more successful the Switch 2 is the less room there is for the PlayStation 5 (or PlayStation 6), especially if Sony’s first party line-up keeps being as bad as it is and the third party support for the Switch 2 is much better than the first console, and more in line with Xbox and PlayStation. If Xbox can help to draw customers away from the PlayStation then Microsoft will love that, if not for revenge then as a future opportunity to gain back ground as a console manufacturer again. The games industry might not need three consoles at once, but I think it will always need two. By reader Taylor Moon Tbh I can see this being partially true but the fact terms like "can't be trusted" and "revenge" are being used in regards these huge global companies seems incredibly fucking stupid to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maryokutai Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 That is quite the fanboy console wars fable. I suppose you could make the point that they own enough IPs to potentially make Playstation a less interesting ecosystem in the long run by not supporting it, but at the same time I also think they're not big enough even for that, especially as the casual market is driven by sports games, GTA and f2p titles from China, and they own neither of them. But in addition to all that, what would be the point? Take significant amounts of revenue cuts and maybe even losses for a decade or more just for a gamble to see prior competition fail? Sounds more like an anime plot than real life. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfnick Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 Yea I think this is utter bollocks. Xbox are 3rd party now and the Switch 2 is going to be very successful so of course they’re releasing there. But that’s not stopping them coming to PS5 - some will be better there too if you count the PS5 Pro as some have confirmed they’re Pro enhanced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HandsomeDead Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 Yeah, the PS5 may even be more of a focus since more of the audience is there and because the systems are similar. No doubt a lot of their games will be on the Switch 2, because surely PC versions of their games will need to be optimised in a way that brings them inline with the power of the Switch 2. There may be a few that are too much but I think it'll manage most. But the idea they'll leave the Playstation out for revenge via Nintendo is laughable. They have all those millions to make back and they aren't leaving cash on the table to get revenge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANGERMAN Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 yeah, same as everyone else has said. While you can see the logic of the Switch 2 selling stupidly well it will mean fewer sales for Sony (potentially, I'm not sure they're necessarily the same market), but they've completely missed the step that Microsoft might want to make some money in the meantime. Even then, is the Switch the platform for Gears, Halo, Starfield, COD, etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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