Dm9982

@Kaloudz Oh most definitely good sir! That’s why I said we’ll likely not notice much of a difference between S2 and SX/Ps5 versions.

I’ll use Hogwarts and Cyberpunk as examples, both run and look great on S2, and I’ve also got their SX counterparts. On S2 it basically looks like Performance/Balance modes on SX/Ps5, minus a little extra lighting/shadow detail. Truly amazing what those games look and perform like on S2. Would not believe it if not for seeing it in action.

@Kaloudz In terms of pc specs, yeah it’s basically two gens behind. It’s based off of RTX 30xx tech, and the newest in that line is 50xx. That said, 30xx is extremely capable, and a full 3080-90 beats out Ps5 and Series X.

So considering it’s based on 30xx tech, but slimmed down and runs on like a 1/3 of the power draw, yeah it’s a capable little machine. Series S sounds about right near the power band for S2. Far more capable than PS4 Pro or XB1X.

I’m a happy camper with mine. And the fact that it is and will continue to sell incredibly well means it should get lots of dedicated developer support, so we may well see games that run and look better than their Series S counterparts. Bet SW Outlaws will show that.

Unlike with S1 (which I love as well) we won’t be seeing any jarring gaps in graphics and performance between S2, Ps5 and Series S/X.

Edit - Forgot to add “But in terms of console generations, it’s on par tech wise with this gen, whereas the S1 was not. It’s not on par power wise, but tech wise it is, and that means a LOT for developers and the games we’ll see published on it”

@TapeLoader Come to the USA mate, we’re already there! Crocs, crocs as far as the eye can see! 🤣

@TapeLoader I concur, it’s the same reason I really enjoyed moving over to console only. Ease of usage (I don’t have time as a parent to tinker), and each one having their own environment. Nintendo has grown theirs like a well maintained garden for MANY years. Sony and Xbox have struggled to cultivate the same environment, both largely relying on third party exclusives to try to win this “war” instead of turning inward and trying to figure out how to grow the garden, they hired lawn care specialists. And the difference shows.

Someone mentioned it above tho, Xbox taking the steps to get on as many screens as possible and making it so whenever and wherever you boot that game you see XBOX, is going to go a LOOOONG ways to growing the brand into something stronger.

The days of consoles are indeed coming to an end, primarily due to file sizes and such. At the rate things are expanding even pcs will barely be able to keep pace unless something drastic happens. If 4k is already producing games above 150gb, just wait till 8k.

Between processing bottle necks and such, and piracy, devs and publishers are going to force the cloud aspect to negate those issues. And it’ll happen sooner than you think. Likely we’ll see the shift next gen, with the following gen being exactly that.

Edit - And I’ll say this about Steam Deck, it requires far less tinkering than I’ve seen with Ally or Legion! Lol. This is, unless you’re trying to run the latest AAA title like Baldur’s Gate 3. In that case yeah it requires some steps to dial the settings so you can get anywhere near Xbox or Ps5. But most other stuff I’ve booted just works without issue. Went on Steam and bought MH Rise during a sale, booted and worked fine outta the box. Oblivion remaster did too - tho I ended up tinkering with graphics to better suit my taste (I don’t like motion blur and such)

@TapeLoader as a pc gamer, you’d be correct. Xbox moving to a “pc console” however isn’t aimed at you. It’s aimed at the same market as Steam Deck and traditional console gamer. Those that want to just toss a game in and it’ll work without tinkering, without downloading drivers, and without the pain of dealing with Windows. 🤣

I grew up on PCs. My first experience was with DoS way back when. Grew up through the 80s and 90s, saw birth of the GUI, and the rise of the internet. About 15 years ago my pc blew during a thunderstorm, and I had JUST built the rig 4-5 months prior. Couldn’t afford to build another, so I went console only and haven’t really looked back. Ended up getting a Steam Deck last year just so I could have a bit of a pc experience, or full fledged if I choose, but without all the hassle.

That’s the market Xbox is aiming for, and it’s a good market to cater to.

I’ll use a good recent example for you. MH Wilds. I’ve followed the news about about it, and by a large margin the PC crowd is having the most issues, while Xbox and Ps have largely been ok.

So MS is aiming for, to quote Todd, the “It Just Works” crowd.

@OldGamer999 Another aspect to think about is that over the past few gens we’ve seen the trend of consoles becoming more in line with pc to ease developer woes when it comes to optimization and coding. Both Sony and Xbox are now pcs with propriety OSs, and Xbox in particular is just a modified version of windows.

Xbox as a “console” going forward is a silly notion, but a cheap efficient gaming pc with unification to your pc store fronts…… now THAT is what will sell and push forward Xbox as a “console”

Bonus points to them if they make ONE console with the ability slot in an upgraded graphics card if the consumer chooses. Instead of having two skus, one sku with the ability to boost.

Here’s the problem with MS and Exclusive that a lot aren’t seeing. Most of their games could not be their exclusive “mascot”. Of all their studios, even prior to acquisitions of other studios, not one has a Mario-like mascot that’s been able to drive brand - Banjo and Kameo were the closest that MS has gotten.

Almost all of MS studios prior exclusives have been either mature like Gears and Fable, or specific genre like Forza or Flight Sim. Massive sellers for sure. But not drive 100m sales sellers. Even Sony realized that they needed a Disney like character to drive mass appeal, so Sackboy was born. But that still is not Mario or Mickey. Their current and brand driving mascot is actually a license - Spiderman. When Spiderman is talked about in the gaming world it’s automatically connected to needing a Sony platform or PC. Kratos is their second mascot, but due to maturity, is not a mass appeal franchise - aka you can’t walk into a GameStop at any age and buy it.

As proven by Sony, it’s super difficult to create a brand driving mascot on a mass appeal spectrum. That’s also MS’ failing as well. Not exclusivity. Creating something completely exclusive worthy.

And in that regard I don’t think most of what Sony has is in that same category either. Kratos and Spiderman should def be multiplat as well. Sackboy was a great start, and if I’m not mistaken, Astro Bot is another that should be focused more on as PlayStation mascot.

MS should beef up and have Rare boost up Banjo, Kameo, and Conker as MS mascot leaders and exclusives if they truly want to get into a better brand drive for the console itself, and use all the other franchises as a way to lead players back to Xbox home by tossing those characters and references to them in their multiplatform titles. And/or grant exclusive content on their home console. Nothing major that makes others feel alienated for playing on another platform, but something like Marcus Fenix in CoD on Xbox only. Small nods like that.

The idea being to create a spider web across games that lead back to the center and make people think and associate more with Xbox.

Currently as it stands there’s not much I say I NEED my Xbox for. Fable….. that’s pretty much it. And again, that’s not an exclusive issue as much as it is brand drive and recognition. I’ve got a bunch of friends that only got Xbox just because of Fable. This should be the telling factor.

@Kaloudz This right here. MS strategy with games and publishing is currently truly the best idea.

Unless the developer/publisher actively has plans to future proof releases, all exclusivity has gotten us over the years is games locked on dead systems (like Metal Gear Solid 4 and Eternal Darkness….) and bickering amongst platform loyalists.

I get wanting to keep a mascot(s) on platform, like Mario or Mickey in Disney’s case, as that drives brand. But it still has to weigh in at the cost/benefit analysis of profits versus overall brand drive.

Overall MS would be wise to continue tossing games on Switch 2, especially considering how huge the Switch 1 install base was and S2 is likely to meet or exceed that.

I truly believe the biggest money makers for MS would be tossing Oblivion on there alongside the Fallout franchise, with Fable, Forza and Gears being the next biggest money makers on Switch 2. Avowed and Starfield would also be welcome additions, but I don’t believe they’d print money like the others would.

I would def double/triple/quad (in some cases) dip for copies of those on Switch 2. A few of those don’t run great on Steam Deck, but given S2’s extra oomf, I think they’d run pretty decent.

Ok now get me a Switch 2 version so I can buy that as well! And toss Fallout over as well pretty please! 😁🤣

Just for the love of god, don’t cap levels in the base game…..

We all play these games - Fallout, Elder Scrolls, Avowed, Outer Worlds, etc to become godly. Let us be godly! Especially those of us who like the Lone Wanderer / Solo Loner Hero.

I hate level caps in games….

@Kaloudz Honestly to me it’s Bethesda and Obsidian. I love the Fable franchise too, but MS acquiring Beth and Ob was their smartest move. Truly hoping for them to toss most their games the Switch 2 way so I can double dip and have stuff native and portable.

XBPlay App on App Store and Steam, well worth it. Has been able to stream 360 titles this whole time lol.

I’m sure there’s a lot of us Xbox fans that also grew up on Nintendo. Love both, but Nintendo will always remain my number one specifically because of Mario, Zelda, and fond memories of playing Bubble Bobble, Robowarrior and Sim City with my mom.

That said, and yes I’ll be trying to get it at launch, I can’t say I’m happy about prices, price increases, and paid for upgrades. I understand remaking a game to take advantage of specific Switch 2 features…. But there should be free performance/visual upgrades for those of us who don’t really care about the extra bells and whistles like built in guides, game chat, or mouse control options (tho this will be amazing for Civ 6/7!, and possibly EA tossing Sims 1&2 Legacy collections out way)

I’m still excited, and honestly impressed at the initial performance previews as well as the 120hz screen w VRR. Truly awesome considering 3 of 4 of its primary handheld competitors don’t offer that , only Ally does.

Really wish editors would point out that SNES and N64 games cost about the same back in the 90s, and given inflation in the states, we’d be looking at $130 per game if the game prices rose with the inflation over the years.

Granted im not happy to be paying more per game nowdays, already strapped for cash as is, but it could be so much worse….

Edit - adding a link for anyone curious as to what a 1996 TRU ad looked like….

https://www.gamingbible.com/news/1996-ad-shows-ps1-n64-games-stupidly-expensive-647465-20230104

Wouldn’t surprise me if indeed the Auto Save is messing something up. It’s insane but thinking back through to 360 so many games have had issues with auto saves, and many continue to release that way even in this generation. You’d think the companies would have that nailed down by now…..

I’m sure the patches will come to pc/steam, but hoping there’s also a patch in the works for Switch, plus a continuation of the series (plus Avowed) on Switch 2

Considering Sony released a Pro, I don’t think a new gen that’s fully backward compatible (and hopefully upgrades current gen games) is odd for Xbox. Just skip the Pro/MidGen refresh and go for a fully new one ahead of time. Especially considering I think this generation kinda started a year or so early given the circumstances that happened…. 20/20 hindsight there though.

That said, it would take a miracle and an immense amount of great advertising to shift focus from Ps5….. I also don’t think it would be possible without a native Xbox handheld. Remote is ultra nice, but I’d rather have native access anyway.

@VeganHerpes I’m quite happy with it!

I do have a bit more of a tolerance to stuff in a way than others. I’m ok with lower fps/res having grown up on old IBM PCs back in the 80s. As long as the frame pacing isn’t off in a way that induces motion sickness (like GoW 2016 did for me on a PS4 Pro…) and I can adjust features like Motion Blur. Which I did disable/lower that and the camera shake stuff - this does improve performance too, but was mainly disabled for motion sickness reasons.

Being a parent twice over now, having games portable and playable in any room truly makes a heck of difference. And while I love remote playing my Series X on my Steam Deck, some games like Avowed I want truly portable and not reliant on my internet connection - which my daughters could be hogging.

Also, if you’re an SD owner and Xbox owner, get the XbPlay app on the Steam store. It works SO much better than the official app. You can set bitrate for 1080p which improves the image quality greatly - official app only does 720p. And moreover, XbPlay allows you to remote 360 games, official app does not. Was $6.99 or 7.99 last I checked. Incredibly worth it. Stream quality is infinitely superior to anything I tried with the official app.

Doesn’t surprise me in the least. On a whim I bought the Steam version so I could run it natively on my Steam Deck when I’m away from home. It’s runs surprisingly well considering it’s not fully optimized for SD yet and doesn’t have verification. Did need to turn off the default ray tracing and such, but I can run it all medium with a stable 30fps or I can set stuff lower and get a stable 40, or even 45 if I really tone stuff down. But 45 def compromises visuals!

Still, solid game and even more impressive optimization from Obsidian.

“We think you’d enjoy ‘MARVEL ULTIMATE ALLIANCE’!”

“Kiss my……”

I doubt I’ll ever jump back into WoW, spent the first two years of its life living in its world. Was amazing, but takes up sooo much time.

That said, Steam community has a layout that changes WoW to a “console” version on Steam Deck, and FF14 has been a very successful MMO on consoles. If those both exist, then surely a console port wouldn’t be that difficult at this point….. (granted, Steam Deck has access to trackpads which help balance things a bit better for traditional pc controls….)

Carmack and Romero knew about how to make games more easily accessible to the masses and how that drives sales as well as interest in games. They famously gave away the first episode of Doom (1993), and if you wanted more you had to buy the other two episodes. And yeah, the first Doom was episodic originally for those that didn’t know! First episode was shareware, and last two were mail order only at the time.

“The first taste is free!”

whispers

“Welcome to your new addiction….”

You can brute force stuff to run on powerful hardware, sure, but true innovation comes from overcoming limitations and boundaries. Nintendo has proved that with systems like Wii, DS, and Switch….

Never been a Call of Duty player, but I’ve worked in the retail side of things for a time, and this whole thing should come as no surprise to anyone.

A game that historically sold better on PlayStation, would likely continue to sell better on that platform, especially if that platform has a larger install base, regardless of owner of the game title.

The only way to force more sales of the Xbox version would have been to offer exclusivity, which would have hurt overall sales.

For anyone who, like myself, is a GPU subscriber, just think about how many games you still purchase even though it’s on GPU….. I still buy most of the major titles I want just in case I don’t feel like subscribing to GPU for a time, or I can’t afford it, or the internet goes out.

For a lot of us GPU allows us to have access to a bunch of games we otherwise wouldn’t have bought or couldn’t afford to also buy, but a game series we are fans of, well game pass isn’t going to change if we were to buy the game or not in most cases. It’s a great service to give you further access to your games, give you instant access when your digital library is low like when you first purchase a system, and a great continued way to try out new titles.

Ok cool, how about Fallout 3/4/NV or Fable1-3 on Switch? Please and thank you! Want me some portable Fallout or Fable goodness!

I just got a Steam Deck in Sept and I love that thing, so amazing to have that kind of power in the palm of your hands. I’d still jump at an Xbox Handheld asap as well as Switch 2 (if it’s bc) asap. I’ve been a handheld lover since the original Gameboy, and truly fell in love with handheld gaming during GBA era and that love continued into DS, 3DS, Wii U, Switch and now Steam Deck.

To say I’m excited for the future of handhelds is an understatement! Truly haven’t been this excited for gaming since probably the 360 or even the n64

@nomither6 Def Jam was so awesome! Shame they never continued the series. Was also a fan of Backyard Wrestling on OG Xbox too. Always loved wrestling games where the finishers were just soooo over the top

@Banjo- Don’t blame ya or your parents on the N64 titles. I love my n64 (original launch model) but the price of games back then was nuts. Toys R Us was the main place to buy games as Babbages was usually sold out, but either way you were spending nearly $100 per game after taxes. Pretty sure for the time only Neo Geo beat Nintendo in higher MSRP…. The only system I DIDN’T end up getting back then. Central Illinois here. Wasn’t exactly the software or electronic capital of the US back during the 80s and 90s. 😂😂

@nomither6 Not far off. For the most part GC was better than N64, especially for third party games. N64 was during a time when 3D physics and worlds were first blooming and it was ROUGH. Especially early cameras. That said, IMO n64 had better first party games than GC. Mario 64, Zelda OoT/MM , DK, Banjo, Conker beat out most of Nintendos offerings on GC.

That said I’d probably choose GC overall just because of Eternal Darkness, Phantasy Star Online, and the Def Jam series alone….

@NEStalgia it’s not an addiction it’s a passion! I swear! 😂

As a parent I’m buying far more games than I have time to complete….. I wouldn’t change it for the world, but I wouldn’t mind having a pause button for all the life around me occasionally!

@Medic_alert Np, add to cart, I mean have a great day and happy gaming! 😂

@Medic_alert one of the big reasons I made a switch to buying more digital titles is because I kept trading in titles for the latest games even if I hadn’t played the traded titles much and ended up always regretting the trades. Now I don’t trade anymore. However I do now have a massive pile of backlog titles across Switch, Xbox and Steam…. 🤦🏼‍♂️

I can’t win…. Lmao

I typically get them on Switch or Steam Deck for portability. But also, there are a lot of great ones I’ve double or triple dipped on - Fallout, Baldurs Gate, Witcher 3 (own on all platforms), Stardew Valley, Balatro, Vampire Survivors, etc….

I’m not quite sure why they have that rep…. I’ve heard good things about most of the Layers of Fear series, good things about Medium, and good things about Observer. Maybe those were just the exceptions to the rule?

And isn’t Silent Hill 2 Remake doing good?

Either way I’m rooting for em, no reason to root for a dev to do bad! That just hurts us gamers in the end, so I say bring it on and show us what you can do! You got this

Edit - sometimes devs take time to find their spot and rhythm, I get that. I know I read an article recently about such a team that kept making meh games for a long while (years and years) before they finally hit their stride and gave us an amazing game. Though I can’t recall which studio and game currently, but it was def one of the ones that got a lot of attention for being waaaaay better than expected.

@TheSimulator Microsoft just playing the waiting game because they know in 8-12 months Ubisoft will be 60-80% off its original price.

@NeoRatt unfortunately I believe you’re 100% correct that eventually the industry will migrate fully to cloud streaming of games. It’s only a downside on our, the consumer end, of things. From a developer standpoint it makes things much easier to not have to build a game for different design specs of PCs and consoles. Just one version aimed at a computer with massive processing power. Not to mention it basically completely negates any worries of piracy.

Between exponentially expanding game sizes, limited storage, and such…. Yeah I think the push will end up to cloud streaming. But I do believe it’ll be a different cloud streaming than what’s currently in place. I think we’ll get a consumer protection act or something that guarantees Xx amount of years access to said game, or the distributors will offer us cloud storage packages to keep our licensed games in - much like digital games operate now, just without the drive being in our own houses. (Much like it seems MS is doing)

@TheEstablishment it truly is insane, but mostly in a good way. I can handle the move to digital and stuff, mostly prefer it due to no moving parts to break like disc drives and cart trays/ports.

Honestly my biggest gripe is how it’s become such the norm to release games in an unfinished state and just expect the consumer to deal with and wait for patches to bring it up to par. So annoying. I’m thankful for the ability TO patch, but NEEDING to patch is blah. I’ve gotten use to buying a game then needing to wait a year to play it properly - Bethesda game me this “patience” lol.

@TheEstablishment nah I knew that’s why I joked with it. This is a super smart move on MS part. I know from a consumer POV a lot of MS’s moves this year and last have been questionable, but as I was telling my friend they’re being super savvy going the direction they are. It ensures a nice stable future for them. You can only sell so many games on one console, so hitting “as many screens as possible” increases the possible target audience way further than just Xbox consoles or even including PC.

I was honestly thinking MS and Nintendo would end up working out a deal where there’s a limited selection of Game Pass titles on Switch…. Like MS studios titles like Gears, Ori, Fable, and maybe Fallout. Paying a royalty to Nintendo for the presence on the store, but also increasing possible GPU subs. Heck anything is possible anymore, the gaming world is a VASTLY different landscape than it was 30 years ago.

The joke part of me - “I pretty much already do this with Remote Play on my Steam Deck with XbPlay and my Series X…..”

Cool news tho, I’ve messed around with XCloud a bit and it works surprisingly well considering I’ve only got a 25mb/1.5mb DSL service. Remote was jank on my phone, but I works great with the Steam Deck / XbPlay app.

Now if MS could just rush along a proper Xbox Handheld with Native game support….

@anoyonmus You’d be correct, mechanics are not what’s at issue here, at least not as many people think or believe.

@Headpirate pointed out on NL that there’s a few patents TPC and Nintendo have regarding Pokémon, and most of it is the way those games handle databases - aka where and how info is stored on an individual level level for each and every Pokémon, moves, IVs, EVs, etc etc. To put in the utmost simple of terms, you could think of this lawsuit more like forging a signature. The way a database is coded, handled, accessed, and such is super unique.

In the way back times, TPC and Nintendo didn’t have the funds to license database stuff like SQL from Microsoft. It would have cost a fortune, and the royalties going forward in the future would have been insane. So they made their own database and techniques while also managing to not infringe upon MS’s SQL parents. Trust that this was an absolute monumental task. While Pokémon appears simple on the outside, it’s likely one of the most complex games at a databasing level.

It’s likely these patents that have been infringed upon. And as some one who’s coded and worked in DBA before, yes it’s definitely a thing worth patenting when you create your own from scratch.

This has nothing to do with holding a monopoly on the genre at hand…. If that were the case countless other monster tamers like MH stories, Coromon, Nexomon, etc would not exist, and more over Nintendo would NOT promote them hardcore in their directs and such.

Rather have a native Xbox handheld where I can play all my games whenever wherever I want.

Also would be content with an official Xbox remote player akin to the Portal. But I’d want them to thoroughly test on a broad range of wifi set ups with varying internet speeds first. I live in a podunk town where the prime (only real) options for internet are a monopoly cable company (Casscomm) for fiber and it’s very unreliable, super varying speeds even if you pay for the 1T package, and has horrible customer support, or ATT for DSL which is highly reliable and has great customer support, but is capped at 25mb down, 1.5mb up…..

@Banjo- You nailed it with the exclusive thing. I got to thinking awhile back - about first party titles, dev costs, install bases, etc.

With Xbox and Sony maintaining this “most graphical power possible” angle in the industry, the dev costs are just going to continue rising, even for first party titles. How do you adjust for that? Charge the consumer more and more until it hits a breaking point that they won’t pay? Or do you increase your audience allowing for more sales? The answer is the latter, and the exact reason why Sony finally started porting to the PC.

You can’t force your own install base to grow any faster really, but you can take a bite out of someone else’s install base by tossing titles on their platforms to increase awareness of your own presence. Even Sony is doing this with Lego Horizon, and I’m willing to bet there will be more of this stuff in the future for both platforms.

Nintendo I don’t see following this suit. Maybe with older titles in an NES/SNES type collection like Rare Replay is, but I highly doubt we’ll see Mario jump over with latest entries. Nintendo’s brand is big enough and strong enough to drive itself. Nintendo is much like Disney in that regard, hell they even have their own theme park now.

That’s something that you really couldn’t do with Xbox or Sony first party IPs. I mean you could build a theme park outta either one, but I highly doubt either would be as profitable. Not to mention to do it right, certain sections wouldn’t be family friendly - aka Halo, Gears, God of War, etc lol.

TL;DR yeah like it or not, the main way these companies can continue to grow is by diversifying their brand to increase their recognition and demand. The larger your audience, the more money you can potentially make. Let’s just hope they reinvest back into the brands, and make great games we want to play instead of just pocketing the extra cash.

From a financial standpoint it makes the absolute most sense to reach the biggest audience you can with your ips in order to generate the most revenue. And the money is in the software, not hardware. Hasn’t been for years for Xbox or Sony.

This also makes the most sense on untested ips, as it’s easier to recoup your expenses having that larger audience rather than banking that half your install base will buy it. Even tried and true IPs can struggle to hit numbers like that while being exclusive to a console.

I say let ‘em cook and do what they do. They know better than any of us on how to improve brand recognition, increase profit margins, and turn that into good products for us to consume.

That said, we’re definitely into some weird times, far removed from the structure of ways gone by. My biggest fear is moving into a Netflix-esque cloud only future. Which I’m sure will happen, just not sure when.

I’d say it’s pretty important still, and won’t loose any more relevance until MS releases Xbox Handhelds. Co-op gaming on handheld via internet/bluetooth/WAN is much better than split screen tv - which is what I consider traditional local co-op. Traditional local is still good fun, but my family and I tend to prefer a local WAN session on our Switches in handheld mode rather than on the tv. Granted there are exceptions like a local session where there ISN’T a split screen, aka Mario Party, Smash, or Bluey.

I really want an Xbox handheld to go along with my Switch and Series X. But I really don’t want to deal with Windows again. I did PCs and pc gaming from 1985 to 2013 when my last rig blew. I’m done fiddling with windows, registries, etc to get things to work good, and done with spending ridiculous amounts to keep up with gaming.

Switch has ruined me for gaming because I want exactly that in a handheld - good form factor, amazing battery, and plug and play gaming ability. For those reasons I’m leaning toward a SteamOS, just wish it had native GPU support. Not a huge deal tho, as I can still remote play and most games I want to play I can buy natively on Steam sale.

Just waiting for more news on Xbox handheld and Switch 2 before I make any jumps to get a Steam Deck.

The Legend of Fenix: Colossus Hunting. I’m intrigued. Will toss this in the watch list

@SuntannedDuck2 If you liked Theme Hospital and Sim Tower, I’ve got some fun news for ya….. Two Point Hospital is a great spiritual successor to Theme Hospital (you probably already know this though!)

However, a lot of people don’t know about Project Highrise, which is an amazing Sim Tower successor!

@SuntannedDuck2 Oh lord, I haven’t heard anyone else say Road Rash in awhile. Last I played that was around Sega CD / Saturn era…. Loved the games but the rubber banding AI sucked hardcore, lol.

That said, there’s a spiritual successor called Road Redemption. I got the switch version but haven’t spent much time with it. It’s got rogue elements, which may actually benefit that type of racer.

@SuntannedDuck2 Yeah that’s the type of racers I liked, where I could start with a base/junker, and mod it up slowly but surely by winning money from races. Turismo and Forza didn’t click with me because when you’d build them up to a certain level they’d bump you up and force you into another class…. Sometimes I just want a demon of a car to lead the pack like I could do with an Elise on Sega GT or R34 on TXRZ….

The closest I’ve been able to find has been on Switch, Gear Club Unlimited 1&2…. Has a rewind feature for when ya biff it into a wall, which is a blessing and curse…. Would always tick me off when I raced perfect till the last second and then biff it…. But being able to rewind any mess up also removes any penalty for poor performance lol.

@OldGamer999 Yay I’m not the only grumpy gamer! Lol Been button mashing since 1985 and I mostly concur.

D4 I don’t agree with, but I’m not gonna lie, I’m biased toward D2 being superior in nearly every way. D4 is still too arcady and still retains too much D3. Love them going back to dark tone however. Should have went back to a focus on skills and skill trees instead of keeping damage tied to weapons and having enemy scaling. I feel like D4 is mostly D3 reskinned.

Forza is lost on me as racing peaked at Sega Gt, Tokyo Extreme Racer and Project Gotham I feel. Those were incredibly fun racing titles.

The rest of the list I agree with, solid titles you can’t go wrong playing.

Well that’s a shame. Personally speaking I’d rather have a 3rd person Mando game though anyways. Motion sickness with FPS, plus I just like being able to see my character.

Honestly speaking, they could probably use a very similar formula to Star Wars Jedi for a Mandalorian game and it would work well. There’s plenty of action adventure rpgs / souls likes that prove ranged weapons / playstyle can be an option.

“It’s not a bug! It’s a feature!”

Scrolled all the way and didn’t find it, so I posted it!