NishimaruX

@Mr-Cage

You're confusing negativity with being realistic.

@Weebleman

Some of the members in here don't have a single grasp on reality.

"They'll be fine!"...they said

"It was a necessary evil for the greater good!"...they also said.

Well that didn't age well.

I'm not convinced Sharma will be able to keep the next generation hardware below $1000 with PC integration

Not a chance in Hell. If anything you're looking closer to £1500

I wouldn't be at all surprised to wake up one morning and see a headline reporting that Microsoft have pulled the plug on Helix altogether.

That's bait...☝️

(So obvious)

@Coletrain

people are negative because it's the start of a slippery slope

...and because they're not raving fanboys who think Microsoft's handling of users losing their entire library and then Microsoft lying about it was an example of peak customer service from a company that really values their fanbse.

My X pre-owned so no idea how old it is is, but it's very quiet.

@Fiendish-Beaver

I actually agree with you on this one. A game should be judged in its own merits, remake or not.

@Coletrain

You should bookmark this page for when ads have found their way into other GP tiers and prices to avoid said ads have increased.

"People should get comfortable with not owning their games"

• Philippe Tremblay, Ubisoft

@cragis0001

Home console gaming and mobile gaming are two completely different markets. They're not comparable.

This is how ads start with all streaming media. It's the backdoor technique.
Get enough people to sign up to it initially and soon ads will seep into other tiers. Want the ads to go away? Cough up more than you're paying now.

Honestly, consumers bring it on themselves most of the time and gamers are seemingly amongst the most gullible.

@Balaam_

The only way for a platform holder to take my disc away is to literally come to my house and physically attempt to take it away…

Exactly.

It's wearisome that digital cheerleaders can't seem to grasp this.
Even more bizarre is how they have have convinced themselves that digital and physical media is exactly the same. No, it is not.
I literally had someone on these pages just the other week trying to tell me publishers could stop me accessing my physical music and movie collection.
When asked how a publisher could "magic away" the music on my vinyl collection they went all quiet.
From that I can only deduce a lot of these people are quite young and so don't really understand how physical media works and so think it's the same as digital because that's all they've known.
Either that or they really are impossibly stupid.

@TheCrafter1578

It's very good campaign with some excellent movie quality beats.

@Ancelyn13

I'm currently playing the game and I'm curious, what "virtue signalling" are you talking about?

Playing as a woman? Black characters?

Do tell.

@Deformedpye

Physical media is dead and other mediums have accepted it

While the games industry are pulling the plug that is not correct for music and film. In fact, it's complete nonsense.

CD, vinyl, Blu-ray and DVD continue to see new releases regularly and the continued support of a huge back catalogue. Millions of consumers still invest in physical music and film - even in light of streaming channels.

I don't stream movies or use Spotify and yet am regularly purchasing new music and film month to month. If it were dead then that wouldn't be the case now would it?

While the landscape has certainly changed and some Netflix/Amazon exclusives don't move outside of their respective platforms physical music and film will be here long after the games industry pulls the plug.

The games industry is handing out the digital koolade and a lot of people are clearly quite content to slurp it down.

I'm currently enjoying SoM. I sincerely hope Compulsion Games continue to move forward as a developer and not become just another victim of Microsoft's mismanagement.

@NicolausCamp

Yes given Sharma credit for parachuting in on projects she had no hand in is frankly bizarre.

Dean is quite correct. Jez stating it's a "non-story" is painfully shortsighted.

Jez needs to start looking at the bigger picture...

@ILuvGames

Locked ecosystems are always going to be more expensive and restrictive

I don't think console gamers really have a grasp on this at this time. There's no question once physical console media has gone there's going to be a rude awakening for many. A closed ecosystem with the platform holder in complete control and no competition ? Yeah, that doesn't sound great.

Same story on Push Square with 350 comments.

All the digital-stans are in full gloat mode, a position that they'll come to lament when the reality that only having one store front for their PlayStation console will see them totally under the booted heel of Sony.

Or maybe they'll just double down, even in light of being completely at the whim of Sony. 🤷

@TheSimulator

On paper sounds like it would work, but how many other kart games have reached the lofty popularity of Mario Kart?

None.

@oopsiezz

Me neither, just lucky I guess. Bear in mind literally millions upon millions of people are online playing video games.

Hours played is utterly meaningless. Imagine standing in front of one's shareholders stating:

"We haven't actually made a profit this quarter, quite the opposite. In fact we foresee mass layoffs as a result. However, lots of people are using the product that we practically gave away so you know, silver lining and all that!"

😂

Of course Sharma and co know it's an absolute nonsense, but its an effective way of pulling the wool over people's eyes, in particular the Xbox faithful who frequent a combination of boards like this one and social media platforms.

It's the flea circus, and Microsoft have gotten pretty damn good at it of late.

Unless there's a huge paradigm shift I think people need to resign themselves to the very real possibility that console hardware could find itself becoming redundant, replaced by integrated apps and streaming services.

Sad times if that happens, but there it is. In many ways the end consumer will have had as much a part to play in such a possible future as anything else.

The price of "convenience"

@Sol4ris

Hey, there! Completed unrelated, but I wanted to get back to you on South of Midnight, as promised.

I'm really enjoying it.

Your view on the combat being a bit ropey I can totally see, but I don't have a real issue with it myself. It serves the purpose.

Anyway, yes, it's a very enjoyable romp with lovely aesthetics and quality music throughout.

Game Pass has reached that Spotify peak moment - good for the end consumer, bad for everyone else.

Microsoft have pushed themselves into a corner with GP and there seemingly no way out that doesn't end badly in one way or another.

@Markatron84

live service has always meant a game that is regularly being updated with new modes/content to keep players invested and spending

Live service in a nutshell.

Any game that employs this strategy is a live service title. Unfortunately that seems to be a lot of games these days.

We are committed to making this clearer

Well they failed in that endeavour.

Microsoft either commit to exclusivity or they don't. It really is that simple.

All this toing-and-froing and indecision makes them not only look incompetent, but it shows a lack of faith in the Xbox brand - and consumers will pick up on that.

@FraserG

At the very least, it's nice to see Xbox isn't ignoring this issue

Only because their hand was forced, not out of some sense of loyalty and/or goodwill. It's a distinction that should not be overlooked.

@MrStark

Xbox showing they are the best at communication and consumer satisfaction

In which universe?

Given your comment history I swear to God this is a parody account.

Microsoft literally lied then did the old twist and shout when legal hands got involved. Microsoft's actions have been anything but resembling customer satisfaction. Quite the opposite.

@Nakatomi_Uk

Yes it's an awful remake that forgets everything that made the original so memorable.

I imagine they'll be butchering FFVII next.

Over the course of these past few weeks I do hope all those who lost there jobs, not just at id but across the board, see these pages and can rest easy knowing that there are people setting the record straight by showing them that they deserved it for reasons x, y, z.

"It's okay honey, total strangers on the internet said it's fine that I lost my job. In fact, I probably deserved it. You can now put the kids up for adoption with a clear conscience..."

@fizban3332

I said sloppy remasters/remakes, not remasters/remakes as a whole. 🙄

For example, The RE remakes are superb. Bethesda's efforts at remastering their catalogue are dreadful by comparison.

There's a difference between quality and cash grab.

Helix won't have a disc drive. Accept it.

@MrStark

The Oblivion remaster was absolutely dreadful. It'll be the same here. This is nothing to sing about.

So, far from being "excellent times"...unless you think repackaged and overpriced slop as something to celebrate.

Won't be buying either of the for the same reasons I never bought any Skyrim remasters - PC mods not shackled by the limitations of console mods.

My Skyrim and Oblivion are already ten times better than anything Bethesda can and have pushed out the door. It will be the same here

The idea of shelling out for sloppy remasters I can surpass with a little time and patience is anathema to me.

As a fan, one who still has their gorgeous PC boxed copy, I was utterly gobsmacked at what they did with Remake.
Remake tore out the very soul of what made the original FFVII so special.

I'm generally in favour of remakes, but in this instance they should have left well alone.

Late to the party, Halo CE Anniversary.

Played everything up until Halo Reach since then.

@MrStark

Feel free to let the Xbox team know that you like the update

No, I did the opposite. I don't like the Xbox dashboard all that much and the update did nothing to change my opinion.

Very dissatisfied - Too much clutter on the front end.

(Although as often the case with mega-corporations they only care for positive feedback 99% of the time, its why we never see anything that genuinely approves quality and experience)

Steam Big Picture is vastly superior.

Updating the X now. Haven't switched it on for a while. I always like new ways to display one's library, small as mine is.

Well that was disappointing. 🙄

I just wish they'd give us the option to turn off features on the front end.

Currently it follows as ads for features etc, then sales then 'games we've picked for you' before my groups. I'd like option of removing all three as it's a clutter. The only way to change this is by going offline, which I tend to do.

@KnightRider1982

Comparatively to previous PlayStation generations? Perhaps. But overall and against Helix? No, highly unlikely.

Even with Sony's recent announcement it's pretty obvious PS6 will outsell Helix. The vocal minority online losing their minds over a discless future on PlayStation are not representive of the wider audience - who simply won't care either way.

While I rarely mention it on these pages, (and I don't engage in social media), I do a lot of retro gaming via myself via GoG, PS3 and my Linux tower.

I also recently unpacked my Xbox 360 and smiled to myself as I looked through my small collection of titles. Around 30 in all, including Amped 3, Conan, Alice: Madness Returns, Street Fighter X Tekken, Lost Odyssey and Halo CE: Anniversary.

Gaming is a business like any other and while nostalgia is a powerful emotion I feel there's certainly a much larger sense of disconnect between the industry and the customer these days compared to previous generations.

Blops 1&2 were hugely popular amongst the CoD masses at the time so it's no surprise they're being lapped up.

This is interesting....

https://youtube.com/shorts/XuYRkudQclg?is=0j_8tfwbkaLZwrgs

I've always said in time console hardware will be ditched altogether. That Asha is discussing it in an interview pretty much says this is where we're headed.

@Deformedpye

You watch Netflix and listen to Spotify

I don't and am buying new DVD, Blu-ray, CDs and vinyl regularly.
It's only the games industry that is intent on removing physical media altogether. There's absolutely no doubt I'll still be buying music and film on disc long after the games industry pulled the plug on physical media.