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[arkhamguy123]

I just finished my 2nd playthrough of the last of us 2, and had a thought recently while driving. That is that for all the talk about PS studios making walking simulators and movie games, (which I do think is partially true lately) these fuckers are actually kinda industry leading in gameplay. At least in modern times.

What games on the market have better combat than say Last of Us 2, Horizon, God of War, Ghost of Tsushima, Spider-Man? These games have outstanding combat. You have options, it looks great, it looks like you’re playing a cinematic, the animations are badass, it invites self expression and creativity, it feels satisfying. It’s amazing simply put. Even if we trace it back, Uncharted 3 and 4, Ratchet and Clank (any of em), Infamous 2 and Second Son, Killzone 2 and 3. All have fucking awesome combat. Who is even competing? The only ones off the top of my head that can match or surpass would be Bungie (Halo 1-Destiny 1), Fromsoftware, old Epic Games (Gears of War trilogy) and Old OG rocksteady with their GOAT free flow Batman combat. Even non combat we just had Team Asobi basically match goddamn Nintendo platform on their first AAA outing. This seems like the talent at PS first party studios is just next level

I mean what else is gonna compete? Ubisoft? No. Witcher 3? LOL. Tears of the Kindgom? Nah. Rockstar Games? Hmmm not quite. So despite aggressive wokeness and wannabe film/tv industry aspirations, do playstation studios actually stand at the pinnacle of the industry in gameplay when you get right down to it?

 

[vaibhavpisal]

Unpopular opinion, but GAAS titles have best gameplay.

 

[Represent.]

You’ll get laughed at. But yes I agree. Not even close really for me. They are the only studios that actually know how to blend combat, animation, presentation, and production values properly.

Most other studios completely ignore 2 or 3 of those things entirely. (FROM, Team NInja, Platnium, Nintendo, CDPRrojekt, Bethesda, Rockstar)

No one nails the entire package like Sony first party

Specifically the big 2 in ND and SSM

 

[Killjoy-NL]

Yes.

Anyone who says no is wrong.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Unpopular opinion, but GAAS titles have best gameplay.

Helldivers 2 is some of the best around.

 

[Three]

I'm not sure about best but they make games with very competent gameplay/combat and get too much stick about it.

 

[GrayChild]

If "the best" means flashy and cinematic, but also shallow and repetitive, then I agree.

 

[thicc_girls_are_teh_best]

What games on the market have better combat than say Last of Us 2, Horizon, God of War, Ghost of Tsushima, Spider-Man?

Well, probably any fighting game.

You're being too broad in this; too many different genres with too many different forms of combat to attempt saying games in one specific genre type (narrative-driven open-world action-adventure third-person) are objectively the best at it :/

 

[Hrk69]

Shits on all those games.

 

[Nankatsu]

 

[StueyDuck]

They own housemarque now so there is at least an argument.

But it's tough to say they do overall

 

[hyperbertha]

The Batman games stomp all over the Spiderman games in combat. It's not competition. I agree tlou is best in class, but that's about it.
Most Japanese devs ultimately beat out Sony studios. you are up against mgs5, dmc5 and final fantasy 7r, and nioh. It's not competition.

 

[HogIsland]

Last of Us 2 is probably the best example of 3rd person gameplay so far. I still think about that flooded mall in seattle doing stealth kills, shooting, and swimming all seamlessly. That's why cancelling the online mode hurts so bad.

 

[fart town usa]

At times the gameplay is really impressive but if you took all the 1st party games from PS3 to present you'd see the majority of them are generic as hell and not impressive.

 

[Saber]

Nah. As much I praise GoT, theres nothing much to it outside of cool style change, which sometimes felt alittle confusing since it's more about "type advantages" than actually using the style of combat that better suits your combat style. If one thing that it excels is on it's approach to defeat enemies. Most of them aren't revolutionary either, I love Spider-man but it's nothing more a Batman but a little worse. I wouldn't even use Uncharted aside from the first one, the rest it's what gave Sony it's cinematic experience nickname. Horizon it's an extremelly boring game, while LoU is waaaay to slow paced to be of any fun(if anyone can even find fun playing like a snail).

Cyberpunk pretty much wipes the floor with disctinctive gameplay and combat, thanks to it's netrunner builds that allows you some spicier combat out of the typical fps. Street Fighter 4 allows follow up combos, range to simple to advanced, which rewards the player who learns and trains. Batman literally wins everything Sony has to date with a perfect mix of combat and "Batman" style approach. Fromsoftware literally created a genre.

 

[Fake]

Are you delusional or what?

 

[Gaiff]

For real though, most of their games have competent or even good combat. Far from the best though. I maintain that this over-the-shoulder perspective in GOW that is there solely to serve the axe is stupid as fuck. It’s a mess playing such a fast-paced game with such a horrid camera system.

 

[Seyken]

They're very good at making their combat look cinematic, but gameplay feeling wise and mechanics wise, a lot of asian devs are miles ahead.

 

[Bry0]

Shits on all those games.

Yup my first thought was “I have more fun in TN games than literally any of those”

 

[Reizo Ryuu]

 

[vaibhavpisal]

Helldivers 2 is some of the best around.

If you don’t wanna go that far, at least I would go for Doom Eternal/ Metroid Dread.

In these you get good at subconscious level. Perfect inputs come naturally without thinking.

 

[DannyDanger]

From Software

Honorable mention to Kojima for MGSV

 

[PauloRoberto]

No because of the hyperbole, PS Studios make great gameplay, but not the best, that's too personal.

 

[Ironman_Bad]

Naughty Dog and Santa Monica literally on everyone else in these categories, graphics too so yes not even close

 

[Zacfoldor]

Huge Sony fan here, would not agree.

I won't go into each one, I'll pick the most controversial on here, Ghosts of Tsushima, because that is really the only interesting one from a hot take perspective. IMHO it is also the most popular of those games on this forum.

Ghosts had really good combat. However, the combat in Ghosts is much like the overall gameplay in BotW. It is mildly tedious and reaches a breaking point of it feeling "old" by the end of the game. The animations are "on rails" enough to prevent much organic combat, ie there aren't gonna be stories about how crazy things happened during combat or how you just missed a swing or something. It's all very "heatseeking" lock you in, 100% dependable animations, which imho is not ideal. Good combat needs randomness, a certain level of jank that adds instead of subtracts from the experience. At about the 60 hour mark it really starts to lose its luster but it does put on a good show up until that point. I've give the combat in Ghosts an 8.5/10

Now let me go back to another game, Nioh 2.

Nioh 2 has some of the best combat ever in a game and it only gets better and better up to an infinite number of hours. It is fully organic and changes flavors multiple times over the course of the game. By the end, you are a super sayin, at the beginning you are a helpless babe, and also there are just so many weapons and combat styles that you could play the game forever.

Ghosts of Tsushima is a great, amazing game. One of my favorites. However the combat isn't as good as Nioh 2 or Elden Ring or any number of other games I could mention. So no. Nioh 2 and Elden Ring both have better combat by far than Ghosts of Tsushima.

Gameplay at Sony has a very high standard, but they aren't the best at any one game.

Astro is almost Mario level that's true, but not quite. Next astro they clearly need to ad some dexterity to the little guy and give him some jumps. Mario has been evolving the micro controls in 3d mario games since mario 64, so I get just having the hover but they will improve this gamplay. However, astro is my goty. I would give the gameplay a 9.5/10 and a shining example of amazing Sony gameplay. No shade, Astro is legit and your point is bolstered by astro.

There is one game that I can wholeheartedly agree though. Believe it or not, Destiny 2 is still the best FPS gameplay out there imho. So yeah, Sony got it going on in the gameplay department with D2.

 

[arkhamguy123]

Are you delusional or what?

Yeah I thought my crush was gonna text me back the other day but I don’t know what I was thinking there

 

[Ristifer]

This is why there are so many bad drivers on the road.

 

[Ceadeus]

Yeah they're very good. Sony Studios games combat mechanics are not complex though. They're made to be enjoyed by everyone. So they look incredible but easily mastered.

Capcom, on the other hand, always made the coolest game around which also require skills and learning curve. I can think of Dragon's Dogma 1&2 or Monster Hunter, a long time series who inspired too many Studios to count.

Capcom have been the best since the early Arcade era and nobody is ever gonna top them. They master multiple genre, from fighting, hack n slash, beat em up, third person shooter, action RPG, character action etc..

 

[arkhamguy123]

The Batman games stomp all over the Spiderman games in combat. It's not competition. I agree tlou is best in class, but that's about it.
Most Japanese devs ultimately beat out Sony studios. you are up against mgs5, dmc5 and final fantasy 7r, and nioh. It's not competition.

Oh no yeah I agree 100% with that first part. I think Batman curbstomps the Spider-Man games hard. And in many, many more ways than just combat and ill leave it at that lol

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

Lol, no they fucking don't. The games from Sony's studios tend to be overly obsessed with animation, which comes at the expense of responsiveness. That's their MO. TLOU2, in particular, also had some of the worst encounter design I've ever seen in a game of its type - just absolutely annoying design that's a pain in the ass to repeat. I have no idea why I even finished that game.

I play most of my stuff on PS5 at this point, but I cannot stand almost all of Sony's output purely from a gameplay standpoint.

 

[arkhamguy123]

If "the best" means flashy and cinematic, but also shallow and repetitive, then I agree.

They’re not shallow though. And they give you enough tools and variables usually to where if it’s repetitive it’s probably on you for not mixing it up enough

 

[Angry_Megalodon]

They are among the best, much better than they are given credit for.

To deny that Returnal, Astrobot, Days Gone, Stellar Blade, Infamous, GOW, Spiderman, Ratchet and Clank or TLOU have excellent gameplay is dumb.

This discourse of "bad gameplay" is usually championed by Pikmins whose only idea of good gameplay is abusing turtles.

 

[TerribleAtThisGame]

Where the fuck is Returnal? I put money on that being one of the best-feeling games ever made.

 

[Gaiff]

They are among the best, much better than they are given credit for.

To deny that Returnal, Astrobot, Days Gone, Stellar Blade, Infamous, GOW, Spiderman, Ratchet and Clank or TLOU have excellent gameplay is dumb.

This discourse of "bad gameplay" is usually championed by Pikmins whose only idea of good gameplay is abusing turtles.

Bolded have extremely average gameplay.

 

[arkhamguy123]

Nah. As much I praise GoT, theres nothing much to it outside of cool style change, which sometimes felt alittle confusing since it's more about "type advantages" than actually using the style of combat that better suits your combat style. If one thing that it excels is on it's approach to defeat enemies. Most of them aren't revolutionary either, I love Spider-man but it's nothing more a Batman but a little worse. I wouldn't even use Uncharted aside from the first one, the rest it's what gave Sony it's cinematic experience nickname. Horizon it's an extremelly boring game, while LoU is waaaay to slow paced to be of any fun(if anyone can even find fun playing like a snail).

Cyberpunk pretty much wipes the floor with disctinctive gameplay and combat, thanks to its netrunner builds that allows you some spicier combat out of the typical fps. Street Fighter 4 allows follow up combos, range to simple to advanced, which rewards the player who learns and trains. Batman literally wins everything Sony has to date with a perfect mix of combat and "Batman" style approach. Fromsoftware literally created a genre.

I think we disagree on everything except the last paragraph. Fromsoft and Batman go toe to toe with, or just outright outclass most (all?) playstation studios gameplay

 

[SlimySnake]

TLOU2 - Best Third Person Shooter combat thanks to fantastic shooting mechanics and equally good melee mechanics which are missing from 99% of FPS and TPS games. Only MGSV, RE2 and RE4 come close but dont have the melee moveset.
Days Gone - Best Open World TPS. So many weapons and abilities to choose from. Something completely lacking from other shooters. Hordes are the best damn enemy to fight against. RDR2 couldve learned a thing or two from this game's combat.
Spiderman - Worse than batman Arkham games, but still a lot of fun. Way better than other open world action adventure games from Ubisoft.
GOW - Best combat system in an action adventure game in the last 6 years. I'd say Sekiro, and jedi survivor come close.
Horizon 1 - Great combat. Probably the best bow and arrow shooter out there. Sequel destroyed the fun factor of the combat though in favor of build depth and mix max RPG bullshit.
Returnal - Best TPS mechanics since Max Payne 3. A lot of fun guns. Sadly, no real melee mechanics so feels limited in comparison to TLOU2 and Days Gone.
Ratchet - Fun but meh.
Ghost - Ended up really liking the combat. Not best in class or anything but definitely original and a lot of fun.

I'd say on a whole they are the best. Ubisoft sucks now. MS is mid at best. Gears and halo aint what they used to be and Hellblade 2 and Starfield were meh at best. EA barely makes video games now but I suppose jedi survivor could give GOW a run for its money but GOW is way better in terms of boss battles and setpieces.

 

[cinnamonandgravy]

i wouldnt be playing video games if they were the best

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

Returnal, TLOU, Ghost of Tsushima, God of War, Helldivers 2, Spider-Man, etc…

Yeah they make some of the best combat in the industry by far. Look at take 2, Ubisoft or EA games and the combat is significantly worse

 

[SweetTooth]

They have tight gameplay coupled with deep stories and people love that.. only LOSERS (literally) who fault this and try to paint it as only "cinamatic" or "shallow"

PS Studios are literally the gaming highest of the high ends!

 

[cireza]

You meant Team Ninja.

 

[Danjin44]

Horizon 1 - Great combat. Probably the best bow and arrow shooter out there.

Fuck no…..

 

[hemo memo]

What games on the market have better combat than say Last of Us 2, Horizon, God of War, Ghost of Tsushima, Spider-Man?

Devil May Cry 5
Bayonetta 3
Sifu
Monster Hunter Rise
DOOM Eternal

 

[arkhamguy123]

TLOU2 - Best Third Person Shooter combat thanks to fantastic shooting mechanics and equally good melee mechanics which are missing from 99% of FPS and TPS games. Only MGSV, RE2 and RE4 come close but dont have the melee moveset.
Days Gone - Best Open World TPS. So many weapons and abilities to choose from. Something completely lacking from other shooters. Hordes are the best damn enemy to fight against. RDR2 couldve learned a thing or two from this game's combat.
Spiderman - Worse than batman Arkham games, but still a lot of fun. Way better than other open world action adventure games from Ubisoft.
GOW - Best combat system in an action adventure game in the last 6 years. I'd say Sekiro, and jedi survivor come close.
Horizon 1 - Great combat. Probably the best bow and arrow shooter out there. Sequel destroyed the fun factor of the combat though.
Returnal - Best TPS mechanics since Max Payne 3. A lot of fun guns. Sadly, no real melee mechanics so feels limited in comparison to TLOU2 and Days Gone.
Ratchet - Fun but meh.
Ghost - Ended up really liking the combat. Not best in class or anything but definitely original and a lot of fun.

I'd say on a whole they are the best. Ubisoft sucks now. MS is mid at best. Gears and halo aint what they used to be and Hellblade 2 and Starfield were meh at best. EA barely makes video games now but I suppose jedi survivor could give GOW a run for its money but GOW is way better.

My man

 

[Angry_Megalodon]

Bolded have extremely average gameplay.

In the games I mentioned I'm not referring to the game loop but how tight it feels to control the characters. Spiderman and Ratchet feel great to play. If the game becomes repetitive or boss fights suck, it's a different design problem.
When compared to Ubisoft or even CD Projekt, I think they are better. Before RDR 2, Rockstar's gameplay wasn't a standout either.

 

[Little Chicken]

No.

 

[Fahdis]

I actually agree for once. I'd say they are the masters at animation and cinematic feeling blended into one. Capcom has the gameplay down to a fine sheen. Square has the anime feel to games be on point. Nintendo just does platformers better. Think some companies just do things in a more meticulous way than others.

 

[FalsettoVibe]

OP, what is this? You know no decent conversation can be had from this thread.

 

[King Dazzar]

 

[Holammer]

Unpopular opinion, but GAAS titles have best gameplay.

There's a reason why people play them for several 100s of hours. Addictive gameplay loops and design.

 

[hemo memo]

I actually agree for once. I'd say they are the masters at animation and cinematic feeling blended into one. Capcom has the gameplay down to a fine sheen. Square has the anime feel to games be on point. Nintendo just does platformers better. Think some companies just do things in a more meticulous way than others.

Anime feel is Bamco and Level 5.