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[Heimdall_Xtreme]

With the sales and boom that the game Black Myth: Wukong is having , I am very pleased that China and South Korea are giving a great lesson to Western games.

Games that we do want, that are fun and with content.

I am glad that China is being strong in the sector and Japan is also a leader in the sector.

Let's support these factors, so that games with the Sweetbaby seal disappear.

I was going to buy the Star Wars Outlaws game, but screw it, now I bought the Wukong game

 

[ThisIsMyDog]

So nothing changed.

 

[FeralEcho]

So nothing changed.

Nothing more to add.

 

[winjer]

That's because eastern developers are concerned in making good games. While western developers are worried with tech demos and politics.

 

[R3TRO]

Their games feel dated so they're not for me but it's nice seeing the success.

 

[Punished Miku]

Traditionally, the majority of the games I prefer have been Japanese. Having Korea and China just beginning to enter the AAA console space is going to be potentially transformative for sure.

But I'm having to challenge my own preferences and assumptions as well. AA and indie stuff from the west is exploding. Just earlier today I made this list in the other thread of stuff we know about that's coming up in 2025 that I'm looking forward to. 1 Japanese game on the list; 2 if you want to count Metroid Prime 4.

02/11 - Kingdom Come 2
02/18 - Avowed
03/?? - Atomfall
??/?? - Citizen Sleeper 2
??/?? - Fable
??/?? - Clair Obscur
??/?? - Doom the Dark Ages
??/?? - Metroid Prime 4
??/?? - Mixtape
??/?? - Monster Hunter Wilds
??/?? - Replaced
??/?? - South of Midnight
??/?? - The Stone of Madness

2025 in video games - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The overwhelming majority of stuff coming out that is landing on my radar lately has been western. But the list will dramatically change as we get further into 2025 and see more dates locked in, and Nintendo stuff in particular. I continue being hyped for games from all over the world, not just Asia.

 

[Robb]

So nothing changed.

Pretty much.

 

[TommyCronin6969]

Is Sweet baby inc in the room with us right now?

 

[Madjaba]

Somewhere along those years, western AAA companies have forgotten that we are playing video games.
They gave away fun for political agendas and unnecessary techs. They gave away gameplay for money grab and media klout.

 

[Doom85]

Yep, as we all know, all Western games are complete flops.

Spidey 2 doing 11 million as of last April. Baldur's Gate 3 doing 10 million as of last February. Hogwarts Legacy at 24 million as of January. Jedi Survivor sales haven't been reported, but EA has said they're happy with the sales and a sequel is happening. Yeah, nothing but failures here.

Traditionally, the majority of the games I prefer have been Japanese. Having Korea and China just beginning to enter the AAA console space is going to be potentially transformative for sure.

But I'm having to challenge my own preferences and assumptions as well. AA and indie stuff from the west is exploding. Just earlier today I made this list in the other thread of stuff we know about that's coming up in 2025 that I'm looking forward to. 1 Japanese game on the list; 2 if you want to count Metroid Prime 4.

02/11 - Kingdom Come 2
02/18 - Avowed
03/?? - Atomfall
??/?? - Citizen Sleeper 2
??/?? - Fable
??/?? - Clair Obscur
??/?? - Doom the Dark Ages
??/?? - Metroid Prime 4
??/?? - Mixtape
??/?? - Monster Hunter Wilds
??/?? - Replaced
??/?? - South of Midnight
??/?? - The Stone of Madness

2025 in video games - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The overwhelming majority of stuff coming out that is landing on my radar lately has been western. But the list will dramatically change as we get further into 2025 and see more dates locked in, and Nintendo stuff in particular. I continue being hyped for games from all over the world, not just Asia.

 

[Magic Carpet]

North, South, East, West, Just make sure you put all your games on PC.

 

[Bartski]

unironically Crimson Desert looks and plays amazing and both Phantom Blade 0 and Khazan are about to make an impact on action rpg

 

[Woopah]

No one region is leading gaming. There's great games coming from all over the place, and that's an amazing thing.

 

[The Cockatrice]

Eastern European, Chinese, Korean and Japanese would be a better take. However Chinese and Korean are still kinda fresh on the whole singleplayer stuff as most of their games were online gatcha trash so I wouldnt exactly say China and Korea are leading as they have A LOT of bad seeds just like western countries do.

 

[saintjules]

This post couldn't go in the OT, bruh? lol

 

[MadchesterManc]

Calm down GAF

 

[Fbh]

While I do tend to prefer Japanese games, I think there is good stuff coming from everywhere.
That said, I'm glad Chinese and specially Korean devs are finally starting to embrace big single player games and breaking out from primarily focusing on MMO's and mobile.

 

[Generic]

Fortnite is still the most popular game.

 

[MiguelItUp]

I think what's "changed" is that we're seeing "smaller" studios pulling off larger success, which is an awesome thing to see!

I know they may not be everyone's cup of tea, but even Delta Force is getting a lot of positive feedback. Marvel Rivals as well!

What I played of Delta Force felt MUCH better than I ever thought it would, it's just another one of those situations that revolves around it depends on how it's monetized, the content at launch, the roadmap, etc.

I LOVED Marvel Rivals a LOT more than I thought I would. Like a lot of people I grew up adoring comics and Marvel in particular, so I'll always have a soft spot for it. I thought the idea of a hero shooter in the Marvel universe could work really well if done right. The tests that I've played in felt absurdly good, certainly better than I ever though. But again, it all depends on monetization, content at launch, and the roadmap. But man, launching the game with all characters being free is a good call. I think they mentioned the same about future characters as well.

Then seeing single player experiences like Stellar Blade and Wukong does as well as they are is also really exciting. I know a lot of us are tired of the (well known) AAA western market for a lot of reasons. So again, it's awesome to see AA and indies leading the charge. Hell even ones with AAA budgets and development, especially ones from other countries.

 

[Nankatsu]

A dont forget - gacha space is already theirs too.

 

[Hudo]

I think it's far too soon to tell. Let's take a look again in 10 years how this develops.

 

[Danjin44]

Thats hasn't changed for me. When I was younger I was mostly playing Japanese games and that still the case today.

For my taste Asian devs make games I enjoyed the most, while most western devs going further and further away from what like in video games.

 

[lughnasadh123]

It's great to see successes in many different regions but man it's weird when certain region's successes are ignored to push this narrative.

 

[Strategize]

Bringing Stellar Blade into this lol

 

[Saber]

They are just doing what most devs are supposed to do. Make a good and fun games.
See if Nintendo has stupidity as a problem.

 

[Mithos]

Let's support these factors, so that games with the Sweetbaby seal disappear.

Shift Up have already hired/going to hire someone whos partial responsibility will be to do ESG reports for the company though...

 

[ChoosableOne]

South Korean dramas and movies are something else. Seeing their rise in the gaming industry also makes me happy. I'm looking forward to unique games with great stories from them. They could become the next Japan for the gaming industry.

 

[PrefectAboro]

Out of the 200+ games I've played and replayed over the past 5 years....I can only think of 2 (western) titles that were legit masterpieces.

• Donkey Kong Country (SNES)
• Batman Arkham Asylum

(with special honors to Tetris and the recent Hitman trilogy). countless hours of fun with Mortal Kombat (1 and 2) and NBA Jam (shout out Midway)

I feel like I'm missing out on all the Wukong hype. I wonder how my GTX 1660 super would handle it LOL. Maybe I'll try it on Geforce now if it ever comes there.

 

[Boralf]

What the hell does "support" even mean?

 

[Skifi28]

I feel like 80% of the good stuff I've played these last couple of years have been Asian. They're on the rise while the west is imploding.

 

[Spooky Scary Skeleton]

Then this narrative quite down when games like GTA VI and The Witcher 4 hits the market.

It's a revolving door of bunch of nonsense narratives just like back when "jrpg" weebtards barfed all over their social media and forums saying western games are trash and jrpgs are the best.

Both regions are releasing some of the best titles. And people keep forgetting that sleeper AAA titles are also coming out of Eastern European countries, that they have completely different philosophy to traditional western studios.

 

[cireza]

Meh. Even if I tend to play more Japanese games than Western, honestly, they suffer the same issues as Western games. Especially the bigger projects, which are incredibly safe/no risk and riddled with insufferable bloat, social shit etc... Fucking RPGs that last for 100 hours while they should end in 40.

 

[Ozriel]

With the sales and boom that the game Black Myth: Wukong is having , I am very pleased that China and South Korea are giving a great lesson to Western games.

Games that we do want, that are fun and with content.

I am glad that China is being strong in the sector and Japan is also a leader in the sector.

Let's support these factors, so that games with the Sweetbaby seal disappear.

I was going to buy the Star Wars Outlaws game, but screw it, now I bought the Wukong game

Black Myth Wukong, yes. Elden Ring, yes. Capcom is on fire and the new Monster Hunter will sell bucketloads.

Stellar Blade is a weird inclusion, though. It didn't sell that well for inclusion in this list.

Let's support these factors, so that games with the Sweetbaby seal disappear.

You bought and enjoyed Spiderman 2 and GOW Ragnarok before people convinced you that anything with the 'Sweetbaby' seal on it was bad.

 

[LazyParrot]

Let's support these factors, so that games with the Sweetbaby seal disappear.

Someday, something is going to kill Sweet Baby. But I'm pretty damn sure it won't be people buying Asian video games lol.

 

[Rhazer Fusion]

It's because Asian developers actually care about making good, fun and creative games while the majority of Western developers put identity politics and agendas first and foremost above all else.

 

[StereoVsn]

There are great games form many different developers.

I loved BG3, liked Hogwarts a lot, Cybeprunk, Wrath of the Righteous, many strategy games and so on from the West.

Let's not paint everything in the same general brush. There are a ton of crap games coming out of China, Japan and Korea as well.

 

[Zathalus]

I'd say I've enjoyed a balanced mix of games from both the west and east this gen so far.

 

[Clear]

It's because Asian developers actually care about making good, fun and creative games while the majority of Western developers put identity politics and agendas first and foremost above all else.

Reality is that in almost all instances Western devs can afford to self-sabotage 1 project with excessive DEI stuff, but 2 back-to-back will either force them to step back or put them out of business altogether. Its really that brutal, so mark your bingo-cards with those that already have a strike against them in this regard because they'll have to pivot or go under.

My money would be on them pivoting because the result is so predictable. Gaming is way too expensive and competitive to alienate a good chunk of the audience with political virtue signalling.
Especially now the number of notable underperformers is quite appreciable.

 

[Fahdis]

Bringing Stellar Blade into this lol

Still a better love story than twilight.

 

[Aenima]

The top 3 games in steam charts by all time peak in concurrent users are all from Asia.

- PUBG - Korea
- Black Myth Wukong - China
- Palworld - Japan

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

Art is the West seems corrupted and the immersion aspect has been broken by the adoption of certain political activism smeared all over the product, because they essentially hate vast swathes of their audience and want to use the medium as an opportunity to preach their new religion. So the art is dying/dead for the most part and I don't see a reversal anytime soon in this trend.

The games creation process in a lot of Eastern studios feels much more artist driven by the old hands that have been their since the 90s and 00s. Compare that to a studio like Ubisoft which might as well be a financial services company that bankrolls boardroom ideas and then gets a new generation of college graduates/activists who have little experience to produce it.

So with a few exceptions, I'll continue to stick mostly to games made in the East.

 

[Werewolf Jones]

No gay Monkey sex =

 

[SlimySnake]

Somewhat decent year for asia. But I wouldnt say they are leading. This is by far the worst year in gaming and its mostly because western devs are going last while Asian studios went in first.

Tekken 8 - Meh.
FF7 Rebirth - Everyone on gaf loved this but i thought this was extremely uneven. Sales werent exactly great so word of mouth isnt that great.
Dragons Dogma 2 - decent but extremely flawed. a Good 7/10 game at best.
Stellar Blade - This is basically a PS3 game in terms of combat and level design with PS4 era visuals. Wukong makes this look last gen as fuck. not sure why they chose to stick with UE4.
Rise of Ronin - one of the ugliest games ive ever played. Ive played PS4 games that look better. The trees especially look horrendous. Gameplay is ok, but nothing that made me want to continue playing after the 2 hour trial.
Wukong - A legit great game. Truly a next gen masterpiece in visuals. Excellent combat. A bit dated in game design as they are following souls formula a bit too closely instead of innovating, but while i would say they are leading in visuals, they are more or less following in gameplay/combat.

Western Studios:
Suicide Squad - Trash
Helldivers - Biggest Selling game of the year so far. Everyone loved it. Some said best coop game of all time.
Hellblade - Best looking game of all time. Worst playing game of all time. This cancels itself out.
NCAA Football - A true return to form for EA. Great visuals. Everyone loves it. Topped Helldivers as the best selling game in U.S.
Star Wars Outlaws - Might flop but looks good visually.
AC Shadows - Looks far better than Rise of Ronin, FF7 Rebirth and Stellar Blade with a great new combat system. Though might not be a GOTY contender like most AC games.
Silent Hill 2 - Looks stunning visually. Bad animations but could be a decent remake of a classic. nothing so far screams bad. Looks way better than Konami's own Japanese UE5 MGS3 remake.
Space Marine - Legit next gen showpiece. Great previews. Everyone loved it.
Dragon Age - looks mediocre. Maybe Dragons Dogma 2 level average.
Indiana Jones - Bad graphics but could have fun gameplay.

Western devs are set to end the year strong. I think if you average out their metacritic scores, you will see that they will even out.

 

[yurinka]

With the sales and boom that the game Black Myth: Wukong is having , I am very pleased that China and South Korea are giving a great lesson to Western games.

Games that we do want, that are fun and with content.

I am glad that China is being strong in the sector and Japan is also a leader in the sector.

Let's support these factors, so that games with the Sweetbaby seal disappear.

I was going to buy the Star Wars Outlaws game, but screw it, now I bought the Wukong game

I'd add ZZZ to the list:

 

[Jibran#one]

They also got all the gacha market I don't think there is one good f2p gacha game from a western developer That comes close to the quality of zzz and genshin

 

[RickMasters]

Their games feel dated so they're not for me but it's nice seeing the success.

I sort of agree with this but at the same time games like elden ring show they still have a knack for great game design and character control….. but then some Japanese games do feel dated especially in terms of character movement/animation and environmental simulation ( though that last Zelda game showed they can really get into environmental and physics simulation)

 

[Unknown Soldier]

Asia still out there making games to entertain players unlike the West which is making games to push woke ideology down players throats

 

[Generic]

The top 3 games in steam charts by all time peak in concurrent users are all from Asia.

- PUBG - Korea
- Black Myth Wukong - China
- Palworld - Japan

But once the hype drops, the Top 10 chart becomes dominated by western games, especially multiplayer games.

 

[RickMasters]

Somewhat decent year for asia. But I wouldnt say they are leading. This is by far the worst year in gaming and its mostly because western devs are going last while Asian studios went in first.

Tekken 8 - Meh.
FF7 Rebirth - Everyone on gaf loved this but i thought this was extremely uneven. Sales werent exactly great so word of mouth isnt that great.
Dragons Dogma 2 - decent but extremely flawed. a Good 7/10 game at best.
Stellar Blade - This is basically a PS3 game in terms of combat and level design with PS4 era visuals. Wukong makes this look last gen as fuck. not sure why they chose to stick with UE4.
Rise of Ronin - one of the ugliest games ive ever played. Ive played PS4 games that look better. The trees especially look horrendous. Gameplay is ok, but nothing that made me want to continue playing after the 2 hour trial.
Wukong - A legit great game. Truly a next gen masterpiece in visuals. Excellent combat. A bit dated in game design as they are following souls formula a bit too closely instead of innovating, but while i would say they are leading in visuals, they are more or less following in gameplay/combat.

Western Studios:
Suicide Squad - Trash
Helldivers - Biggest Selling game of the year so far. Everyone loved it. Some said best coop game of all time.
Hellblade - Best looking game of all time. Worst playing game of all time. This cancels itself out.
NCAA Football - A true return to form for EA. Great visuals. Everyone loves it. Topped Helldivers as the best selling game in U.S.
Star Wars Outlaws - Might flop but looks good visually.
AC Shadows - Looks far better than Rise of Ronin, FF7 Rebirth and Stellar Blade with a great new combat system. Though might not be a GOTY contender like most AC games.
Silent Hill 2 - Looks stunning visually. Bad animations but could be a decent remake of a classic. nothing so far screams bad. Looks way better than Konami's own Japanese UE5 MGS3 remake.
Space Marine - Legit next gen showpiece. Great previews. Everyone loved it.
Dragon Age - looks mediocre. Maybe Dragons Dogma 2 level average.
Indiana Jones - Bad graphics but could have fun gameplay.

Western devs are set to end the year strong. I think if you average out their metacritic scores, you will see that they will even out.

I have high hopes for space marine, indy and Star Wars. Oh….. and stalker 2.

 

[YeulEmeralda]

The future is waifu old man.