Videogames: The War (for equality) Has Just Begun

[Inigima]

"Didn't meet sales expectations" is bullshit, just FYI. The game did very, very well. The "expectations" were absurd and I think it eventually met them anyway.

[KiDisaster]

"Didn't meet sales expectations" is bullshit, just FYI. The game did very, very well. The "expectations" were absurd and I think it eventually met them anyway.

This. Supposedly they were anticipating profits from Tomb Raider being big enough to cover multiple other games that hadn't sold well.

[Tony Soprano]

Well, isn't that bullshit.

It's ridiculous how hard Microsoft is trying to cover it's alleged Xbox One losses by dishing out even more money to secure just timed exclusivity of multiplatform titles. Square Enix's excuse is pretty damn stupid too. Didn't Tomb Raider sell most on PS3/4?

[Shryke]

Well, isn't that bullshit.

It's ridiculous how hard Microsoft is trying to cover it's alleged Xbox One losses by dishing out even more money to secure just timed exclusivity of multiplatform titles. Square Enix's excuse is pretty damn stupid too. Didn't Tomb Raider sell most on PS3/4?

Sony does the same shit. It's the way the console game has always worked.

Hell, it's gotten BETTER. It's only timed exclusives these days.

[Muttering Bill]

"Didn't meet sales expectations" is bullshit, just FYI. The game did very, very well. The "expectations" were absurd and I think it eventually met them anyway.

Oh, I know. I just meant that if 3.4 million sales was disappointing, then as an XBone exclusive it's going to be doa. Exclusive to any system really. The PS4 doesn't have the install base to sell those kinds of numbers either.

Apparently there's a petition to release it on PS4/PC or "face a boycott on the game." :laugh: It's not a boycott, it's nobody being able to buy it. I'll still pick it up if it makes it over to PS4. And if it doesn't, then I guess I won't. :dunno: I'm guessing 3-6 months and they just have to hush up about the other platforms as part of the deal. Still salty about it though, so maybe I'll buy it used. :P <_<

Edit - the new Bloodborne trailer makes it all better. Unless you only play on PC...

[Shryke]

Threats of boycotts have never materialized in the video game buying customer base.

[The Anti-Targ]

I couldn't give a toss about timed exclusivity. I was never going to be a day 1 Tomb Raider buyer, indeed I only got the TR reboot off PSN+. Perhaps CD is a bit miffed that Sony put TR on PSN+ for PS3 at about the same time as the definitive edition was released on PS4. I probably would have got the definitive edition had it not been on PSN+, but "free" > prettier every time...at least when it comes to games.

Microsoft's desperation is turning out to be a good thing for Xboners. The money is flowing and so the game exclusivity is rising, even if only temporarily. I don't know how MS can give CD the cash that would make up for lost sales on PS and PC (probably 2/3 of the previous TR sales) for absolute exclusivity, and in terms of business decision surely the money hat needs to be at least as big as the revenue projected for PS4 and PC for it to actually be good business. I fail to see how taking it exclusive to Xb one is going to get it back to being one of the biggest gaming franchises. The way they seem to be talking it sounds like not a timed exclusive, but I guess even if it is a timed exclusive CD has to talk like it is an absolute exclusive for some time to give MS some advantage out of being timed exclusive.

In other news, it looks like Smite is coming to Xb one too.

[The Anti-Targ]

Edit - the new Bloodborne trailer makes it all better. Unless you only play on PC...

Yes, yes it does.

Not quite sure how you boycott a game that isn't coming to your favoured platform. And in any case video gamers are too addicted to ever boycott a franchise that is actually on their favourite system. The only "boycott" will be not buying a Xb one, which was probably never the intention of the so-called boycotters anyway.

[Tony Soprano]

Sony does the same shit. It's the way the console game has always worked.

Hell, it's gotten BETTER. It's only timed exclusives these days.

Yeah, I didn't mean this applies just to Microsoft. I just meant that spending money on exclusivity is kind of stupid considering the losses they apparently took thanks to the Xbone.

But yeah, whether it's them or Sony, timed exclusives are the cancer of the industry.

[Muttering Bill]

Threats of boycotts have never materialized in the video game buying customer base.

Of course. I just thought the petition header was rather silly.

I couldn't give a toss about timed exclusivity. I was never going to be a day 1 Tomb Raider buyer, indeed I only got the TR reboot off PSN+. Perhaps CD is a bit miffed that Sony put TR on PSN+ for PS3 at about the same time as the definitive edition was released on PS4. I probably would have got the definitive edition had it not been on PSN+, but "free" > prettier every time...at least when it comes to games.

It's not like Sony can just give away any game they want on PS+. (As far as I understand how PS+ works) when they gave out TR, they made a deal with CD and/or SE and paid for the ability to do so. If the timing of it cost them sales on the Definitive Edition then it's their own fault.

[Matrim Fox Cauthon]

Meanwhile, an Obsidian-made Pathfinder CRPG is apparently going to be announced at GenCon.

'Meh' is really all I can muster for Pathfinder.

[The Anti-Targ]

I just realised that 3rd party / timed exclusivity and moneyhatting is not what irks me. A Business decision made for commercial reasons (sound or otherwise) is what it is. It's the PR bullshit that's used to try smoke and mirror the consumers into being convinced it is something other than simple financial maneuvering that irks me. It's the developers, publishers and platform owners treating us like idiots who can;t see through the smoke and mirrors that gets up my nose.

Perhaps despite the pretty great sales across the platforms SE/CD really did fail to turn a profit out of the TR reboot (or they just squeaked past it with tghe definitive editions, which won't be possible this time 'round), and the only way to fund RTR was the same as what happened with Bayonetta 2. With B2 they needed a platform owner to bankroll the game through an exclusivity deal in order to ensure the developer could actually make the game. Without that bankroll, and thus exclusivity, Bayonetta 2 would never get made.

Maybe it's the same with RTR. And of course its the smart business move to go to the platform holder that is most desperate and has the deepest pockets to get the best bankroll. Given Sony's current financial position Sony probably would have said no any way. And Nintendo probably doesn't have the pockets deep enough to make it Wii U exclusive. If that's the only way to get RTR funded then great, it's good to see there will be another TR because the game deserves another sequel. But a claim that being exclusive to Xb one will actually grow the franchise in terms of unit sales is simple BS. There is no way RTR on Xb one alone is going to sell more units than TR did across 5 platforms. Just like there is no way Bayonetta 2 is going to sell more units on Wii U than B1 did on PS360. Sure it might grow the franchise on Xbox, but it won't grow the franchise over all.

[Shryke]

I just realised that 3rd party / timed exclusivity and moneyhatting is not what irks me. A Business decision made for commercial reasons (sound or otherwise) is what it is. It's the PR bullshit that's used to try smoke and mirror the consumers into being convinced it is something other than simple financial maneuvering that irks me. It's the developers, publishers and platform owners treating us like idiots who can;t see through the smoke and mirrors that gets up my nose.

Look at the console warz.

The truth is there's TONS of idiots who can't see through the smoke and mirrors.

[Shryke]

Yeah, I didn't mean this applies just to Microsoft. I just meant that spending money on exclusivity is kind of stupid considering the losses they apparently took thanks to the Xbone.

But yeah, whether it's them or Sony, timed exclusives are the cancer of the industry.

Why? If it works, it's a good investment.

[Azzanadra]

Well I personally was never a big fan of Tomb Raider, I played the reboot on PC and while it was fun, it just felt really...shallow. Felt like it was lacking in puzzles and was more focused on action then previous instalments. Good for Microsoft, I guess.

[Francis Buck]

So for some random reason I tried out the Strider demo on PS3...and fucking loved the shit out of it. I haven't played these kind of side-scroller action Metroidvania-type games since I was REALLY young, young enough that I didn't really appreciate it.

After finishing Strider (on Easy, by the way...I'm not very good at these games yet, but I'm getting better), I then purchased Guacamelee, since I'd heard of it recently. I loved the shit out of it (although for me personally the platforming got really, frustratingly hard towards the end...but I digress).

So, my question is simple: what other games in this vein (especially Strider, but just the genre in general) are out there that are available on PS3, preferably as a digital download? I really know NOTHING about the state of this genre right now. I know there's Shovel Knight, which I definitely want to play, but that's only PC and Nintendo for now.

Suggestions?

[The Anti-Targ]

Why? If it works, it's a good investment.

If being the operative word. The number of people who are die-hard TR fans, who do not have or were not intending to buy Xb one, but who will follow where TR leads them and will now buy Xb one is possibly a very small number. Who the hell knows the cold hard maths around these things, but I have serious doubts that there will be a long term financial gain for MS or SE out of this, and the short term financial gain is all SE's.

Look at the console warz.

The truth is there's TONS of idiots who can't see through the smoke and mirrors.

More a case of willful ignorance than actual idiocy I think. The console warz makes propagandists of a lot of people, who are willing to push whatever barrow of shit they get handed and claim it's gold. But deep down they know it's shit. Or on the flip side, looking at a gold nugget and trying to convince people it's shit.

[The Anti-Targ]

So for some random reason I tried out the Strider demo on PS3...and fucking loved the shit out of it. I haven't played these kind of side-scroller action Metroidvania-type games since I was REALLY young, young enough that I didn't really appreciate it.

After finishing Strider (on Easy, by the way...I'm not very good at these games yet, but I'm getting better), I then purchased Guacamelee, since I'd heard of it recently. I loved the shit out of it (although for me personally the platforming got really, frustratingly hard towards the end...but I digress).

So, my question is simple: what other games in this vein (especially Strider, but just the genre in general) are out there that are available on PS3, preferably as a digital download? I really know NOTHING about the state of this genre right now. I know there's Shovel Knight, which I definitely want to play, but that's only PC and Nintendo for now.

Suggestions?

Oddworld: Abe's Oddyssey and Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus. On PS3 they are only available as the PS 1 classics. On PS4 Oddworld: Abe's Oddyssey has been re-made entirely and released as Odd World New and Tasty.

It it less fast paced than Strider but it's still a standard 2D side scroller. And in Exoddus you get to possess your farts, control them with your mind, then blow them up, what's not to like?

Little Big Planet is the premier side scroller for PS3.

[Muttering Bill]

I just realised that 3rd party / timed exclusivity and moneyhatting is not what irks me. A Business decision made for commercial reasons (sound or otherwise) is what it is. It's the PR bullshit that's used to try smoke and mirror the consumers into being convinced it is something other than simple financial maneuvering that irks me. It's the developers, publishers and platform owners treating us like idiots who can;t see through the smoke and mirrors that gets up my nose.

After reading the comments from CD, I got the impression that it's a timed exclusive. And that their PR speak was trying to hint at that, probably because their deal prevents them from saying it outright at this point.

So, my question is simple: what other games in this vein (especially Strider, but just the genre in general) are out there that are available on PS3, preferably as a digital download? I really know NOTHING about the state of this genre right now. I know there's Shovel Knight, which I definitely want to play, but that's only PC and Nintendo for now.

Suggestions?

Rogue Legacy. It's another Metroidvania type game. It's difficult, and you'll die a lot. But you're supposed to; that's how you level up and buy gear.

The Puppeteer is and old style platformer that had a lot of buzz around it for a while. I got it free on PS+ but haven't gotten around to playing it yet.

[Shryke]

If being the operative word. The number of people who are die-hard TR fans, who do not have or were not intending to buy Xb one, but who will follow where TR leads them and will now buy Xb one is possibly a very small number. Who the hell knows the cold hard maths around these things, but I have serious doubts that there will be a long term financial gain for MS or SE out of this, and the short term financial gain is all SE's.

Considering they've done it for years and years now, evidence points towards it working.

It's not about the die-hard fans, it's about being able to say "Only on the Xbox One" in ads and build your brand. That's the entire point of exclusives. You aren't counting on one thing, you are counting on building a pile of things that all make the purchase in the consumers mind possible.

More a case of willful ignorance than actual idiocy I think. The console warz makes propagandists of a lot of people, who are willing to push whatever barrow of shit they get handed and claim it's gold. But deep down they know it's shit. Or on the flip side, looking at a gold nugget and trying to convince people it's shit.

Irrelevant whichever way you think it is. It's a propaganda war and the soldiers need their marching orders.

Regardless of what you think, propaganda and marketing work and they work because people buy the messaging. And so the messaging will continue.