PapaGlitch

I'm on Alan Wake 2 now, after finishing SM2 last week. I'm about 5 chapters in and in all honesty am a little underwhelmed. While it is amazing in moments (notably the much discussed second 'chat show' chapter), it is sometimes too obtuse for its own good, to the point where I'm just wandering around aimlessly, constantly getting lost and even when I know what I'm doing, I'm often asking why. And the combat isn't great, made worse when enemies keep respawning when I inevitably get lost...

Nonetheless, despite the gripes the atmosphere is great and I'm keen to push on...

This is where Gamepass shows it's worth for devs - I played it through and loved it, show when the DLC hits I'll have no qualms at all about paying up

That's weird, I played (and completed it) yesterday and it already was 1.2.0.0. I know for sure because I was stuck on the final boss then saw it was tweaked in the update notes so went back to it and was finally able to best it.

Regardless - a tremendous game. I'm a big fan of the soulslikes but none of the non-FromSoftware ones clicked for me, but I loved Lies of P. Only criticism is its a bit too linear, but otherwise its probably one of my games of 2023

Would love to see it with the DLC on gamepass. I loved it on Switch years back and have been meaning to go back for the DLC

I was waiting until I finished Metroid Prime before jumping into Starfield, but may just hold off until the end of the year now until it is in better shape

It obviously won't get the same attention as the day ones, but I'm really keen to give Solar Ash a go. It's been on my radar for quite a while - great month for GP after a few lacklustre ones (for me)

@StylesT @Dan1283 mate, there's plenty of problems with the UK right now, but not waving through a multi billion dollar acquisition so you can play video games on your subscription of choice is not one of them.

The CMA have done their job, far better than the FTC to my mind, and have forced MS into real concessions that will alleviate potential advantages this deal would have in an emergent market

@XboxTheBestBox I'd have to disagree, I think the CMA has done well here - no matter where it is now, cloud gaming has the potential to be significant enough that this deal would immediately give MS an advantage in an emergent market. This now isn't the case, thanks to the CMA's misgivings

I assume not, but has there been any word on cross plat between the Steam and XBox versions? I'll just get it on Gamepass for console but if I can carry on my save on the Steam Deck I'll be sorely tempted to get a copy for Steam as well

Dammit, really wanted to play it on the Steam Deck. Skipping a PC release is a genuine e head scratcher

I really wish they would just add MP to gamepass console (even if it were a couple of quid more). I only use my Steam Deck for PC gaming so Gamepass PC is worthless to me - unless they eventually manage to to get it on the SD, but that seems unlikely at this point

@NorthwestEagle "Free games previously acquired with Live Gold will remain with the User's account" - from the leak. Not sure if that is the case when subbed to Game pass Core or it means they will now be on your account regardless

Damn it, wish it was UK too. I got excited when I saw the headline - should have spotted the dollar sign

I want to hop back onto COD4 (original) MP. Never bettered in the series IMO, before it became a bloated mess of skins, battle passes and all that nonsense. I can't even find the modes I'm after in the more recent games

Glad to see - I fully expect this deal to go through but hopefully this whole affair will discourage industry consolidation in the future.

Ouch. I'm wondering if this will start to see a bit of a decline in subs. It's already losing a bit of its shine since big show stopping titles (outside of first party) seem to be drying up, and PSPlus is now offering a similar service on the third party side. I know a lot of people, myself included, who kept up the sub bc of these types of deals (grabbing cheap live from cdkeys and converting it). I don't think I've really gotten into a GP game this year and I can see myself dipping in and out of subscribing going forward just for the odd first party offering.

Off the top of my head the games I've played to completion this year (that are available on the XBox) are RE4, Dead Space, Jedi Survivor, Planet of Luna and Hogwarts Legacy. And if I'm honest, against all odds my favourites are the last 2. Probably because of lack of anticipation (I don't care about Harry Potter and knew nothing about Planet of Luna), but Resi4 and Dead Space just weren't that memorable to me (possibly because I'd played the originals over a decade ago) and Jedi Survivor just wasn't as engaging as the Fallen Order.

But in all honesty, Tears of the Kingdom dwarves everything else released so far this year, and I really can't see it being topped anytime soon for me

I can only assume that they hope to recoup some of the losses from Skull and Bones development by reusing some of the assets for a recognisable IP.

@themightyant I've got to say mate, I spot you commenting on a few of these sites and I always find myself nodding along; it's good to have some sane voices among the rabble now and then.

The fact of the matter is, these 2 are businesses. Jim and Phil will both do what is best for their businesses, which would naturally include diminishing their competitors. You could just as easily argue "MS used revenue from games Sony shipped to buy publishers like Zenimax to keep games off PlayStation!!"... well, duh, of course they do, and visa versa. These corporations aren't your friends; they're businesses, and if you like the products they put out the great - continue to support them. But don't delude yourself into thinking one is more ruthless than the other.

@BaldBelper78 far from a click of the fingers - I would be shocked if Gamepass came to Switch as its just not how Nintendo operates. But I'm sure MS would love for it to happen.

Case in point is that Xbox Cloud Streaming is available on Steam Deck - and Microsoft actually provides a detailed step by step guide on how to do it

My heart bleeds for the multi billion dollar mega corporation

I don't get the reaction at all, looks great to me. Sure, the music is terrible but that's just par for the course for game trailers nowadays, and I assume it won't be in the game itself.

What worries me (along with the negative reaction to the new 2D sonic's price point) is that a certain section of the audience just considers 2D games as lesser nowadays, which is just depressing. Honestly these 2 games were 2 of my highlights

Lovely game, and the first game I managed to complete in its entirety over xcloud (via Steamdeck) and have to say, other than I think maybe 2 momentary drops it ran flawless for me. Xcloud definitely seems to have come along since I last tried it

@BooBreaker I did, because I've never actually played a MGS so voted it just for fun!

It was the constant CGI fest that bothered me the most, so hopefully XBox will do better on that front. So far as the exclusives go it was certainly a win on the surface, although it's important to remember that those dozen or so Studios ARE working on exclusive titles, even if they weren't shown, and they surely can't be as painfully generic looking as that Payday/Ubisoft looking game. So whereas with the majority of the Microsoft Studios everyone already knows what they're working on, XBox would do well not to rest on their laurels as Sony still have the ability to surprise and excite when they inevitably do reveal what they have coming up (unless it turns out they're all working on terrible GaaS games...)

Isn't he currently dealing with the Man City Premier League breaches? Hope he's not spreading himself too thin...

@Lup same. I just don't get on with Arkane games at all

It'll definitely come in the next month, as PlayStation are about to put it on PSPlus. They did the same with Deathloop just before that came to Gamepass

Did they just nick the Shadow of Mordor/War font?

@themightyant @Kaloudz 100% agree with mightyant. I rarely bother with DLCs, but FromSoft's are something else (the only disappointments I can think of were Dark Souls 2, but that can be said of the game as a whole to be fair). The quality is almost always as good or better than the base games and sizeable. Bloodborne's in particular is outstanding, and they tend to be a step up in terms of challenge. Honestly, the games don't tend to feel complete without them, so this has got me incredibly excited.

@Romans12 I admit their day one drops have tended to be a little underwhelming of late (Hi-fi Rush aside), but in a way I feel that's where GP shows its strength- giving you a free (well, price of sub) chance to give games like this a go

This is where GamePass comes into its own; seems like a 50/50 as to whether you'll get on with it, but easy to give it a whirl if it's thrown in with the sub

I've heard some pretty good things about this and keep thinking of giving it a go. The only problem is I actually am a TV Editor so worried it may turn out to be a bit of a bus man's holiday! Will give it a whirl if it turns up on Gamepass or PS Plus though

Huh, I felt sure that it had already come to PlayStation...

I wouldn't leave any sleep over any of these to be honest

I find myself oddly compelled to give this a try, despite my total apathy towards any 3D Sonic game of the last 20 years. I'll probably bite once it hits around £15 or it hits GPU or PSPlus, whichever is sooner. Given how quickly the price has dropped, I can see that being the case by January

@Stamnoso I too have only recently come aboard the XBox train (well, 2 years ago), having never had one even during the 360 era when they were dominant. MS are undeniably building momentum. Although I still have a PS5 too. And a Switch, and recently a Steam Deck. So maybe I just have more money than sense these days!

@ThatFilbo oh I'm in complete agreement, neither giant mega corporation is our friend, they both just see us as sentient cash machines, which is why it irritates me when people get suckered into the supposed PR of "we're in it for the consumers"

And you're probably right that Sony almost certainly could continue making the games they are while putting them on PSPlus, but again, they won't because they will take a financial hit, and if its a choice between them maintaining their quality or making them available day 1, I would choose for the former.

I just dislike the the suggestion here that subscription models are the right, consumer way to go. It works for Xbox and good for them, I myself am a fully paid up GPU member, but it isn't the be all and end all, and frankly not wanting to play by Microsoft's rules don't make Sony's concerns about the acquisition necessarily invalid. MS have the finance bouyancy to swing their d*** around the industry and I think its only fair that that's a little concerning. Much as I would like to not have to pay for an occasional dalliance with COD.

I really can't stand this arrogant attitude to be honest. MS know damn well that Sony wouldn't be able to afford to mimic their day 1 policy while keeping up the quality of their first party output. And frankly, I wouldn't want them to. Gamepass is great and all but MS acting like they are the all knowing saviors of the industry really sticks in my craw

Wow, I've never seen an S in the flesh and hadn't realised how small it was compared to the deck. Got my deck on the table beside me and can't get my head around it!

Yikes! That's pretty galling!

I wouldn't be surprised if it gets shadow dropped onto gamepass later this week when the exclusivity finishes, and it just hasn't been mentioned as the exclusivity deal forbids it

It's only a hunch, but my reasoning is Sony named the mid month PS Extra additions at the start of the month, whereas ordinarily they announce them on the Wednesday before they are added. It makes me wonder if they announced early to get it out before it gets added to Gamepass.

Regardless, I'll give it another go. I sold it on PlayStation late last year as I just couldn't get into it (like all Arkane games), but I think I ought to give it another go seeing as it got such good write ups.

@Dezzy70 I think you're a bit mixed up there. Looking at the article it says PS5 is £1.43 per week, not per hour (based on the assumption of 2 hours playtime per day). Series X is £1.09.

@darkswabber for comparison I booted up TLOU remastered after a stint on the remake and honestly, the remake feels far better than the screenshots etc make it look. Don't get me wrong, it isn't worth £70 (I only went for it as I've got a bunch of vouchers and my wife is away for a few days so had a hankering for a game I could get fully immersed in), but I honestly would dispute it being a remaster - you can tell they've gone further than just up-rezzing it. Probably a bit between remaster and a remake.

As for Gears 2, as it would undoubtedly be on gamepass I would give it a go, as I've never played it before. But then ago, I found Gears 4 and 5 impossibly dull, so maybe they're not really for me

I'm fairly sure it was Castle of Illusion, the Master System version

I've had an XBox for around 2 years and Portal 2 Will be the first game I've bothered to claim. Although I played it back in the day, will be good to have a digital copy

Oof, some biggies for me there. Most notably Hades and Spiritfarer

Great. I've heard good things but have always had a suspicion I will hate it, so happy to try it at zero cost

That's a shame, but I can imagine it'll turn up on PS Plus Extra in the next couple of months

Generally, exclusives are bad and any time a game goes multiplatform is a positive for the gaming community. This is an exception. As few people as possible should have access to this rubbish