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[Kacho]

 

[Punished Miku]

Horizon got ported to PC, and people kept telling me it was just one game.

That is surprising it was that long ago. 2020 I was all in on PS4 and Switch, just got a PS5 that November and PC was irrelevant and invisible to me. I'm not sure I even heard about it being ported in 2020, but I might have forgotten.

 

[HeisenbergFX4]

What was happening five years ago that was pointing to a multiplatform strategy coming down the pike?

Sony started porting their first party games to PC

 

[fallingdove]

It's funny because gaming platform wars is the only you really see in tech. I dont see anyone moaning about hoping PC, DVD/BR player, TV or stereo brands have exclusive content. Everyone buys the brand and model they want and expect all content available to be played on all models. They want content interchangeable because priorities are having everything available and if you buy a different brand later they want it all to still work. No different than an old DVD movie I got can be played on my old PS2, 360, Panasonic home theatre system or my old laptops which had an optical drive.

Nobody goes around hoping..... Hmmmm.... I hope Sony locks in Sony TV/movie content only for Sony DVD players. And then a Samsung user in return goes..... Hmmmm.... And I hope Samsung does their own exclusive content for their DVD players so we can all feel like going back in time to when we were 7 years old and I didnt want my friend to play with my Transformer because I was the only brat who had it on the block.

A Sony TV or DVD guy doesnt care if a Samsung or LG customer can play the exact same content. The only headbutting you get is Apple vs PC/Android, but most content will be available on both and nobody cares. Heck, can you still run Windows stuff on Macs if you partition your drive to run Windows and Office like the old days? I dont think any PC fan gives a shit if a Mac user can run that. And I dont think any Apple fan cares a PC user can run Apple apps on a Dell.

Your argument doesn't hold much water.
VHS beat Betamax because of exclusivity. Blu-ray beat HD-DVD because of exclusivity. Kids always want to play at the house with the cool toys, not the one that has the same toys as everyone else in the neighborhood.

On topic: Sending an email to PlayStation support hoping to assuage any concerns about exclusivity is moronic. Equally moronic are people in this thread recommending that PlayStation use Xbox's playbook "Destroy Your Brand While Increasing Engagement".

People wonder why Nintendo is so successful? They understand brand better than anyone and realized a long time ago that developing iconic properties exclusive to the Nintendo experience was far more important than short term profit. It's why they are so protective, it's why you will never see a marquee Nintendo title on PlayStation or PC.

 

[S0ULZB0URNE]

Imagine being a physical games collector locked to PS right now. I'd be fucking terrified.

What does this have to do with the topic..wrong thread?

 

[Topher]

Horizon: Zero Dawn's PC port had been announced and just released

Horizon got ported to PC, and people kept telling me it was just one game.

Sony started porting their first party games to PC

Ah....right. Guess I didn't realize that happened that long ago.

 

[Super Lemon Drop]

What a stupid timeline to exist in.

 

[Fahdis]

Im way...

too ... hurt by Sony...

 

[Fbh]

People switching from ps to pc is nothing new.

Iam really interested what's their selling point going forward if they kill physical and affordability of consoles going forward as well. Only weird people stay on a brand because they used to own it.

I think that while they'll loose some hardcore users to PC, the majority of their audience is happy on Ps5 and won't switch over just because some exclusives are coming to other platforms after a year (unless they are GAAS).
IMO the reason Sony started bringing more games to PC is that they realized there's a huge audience on PC that simply doesn't want to buy a console, and likewise there is a big audience on console that just doesn't want to switch over to PC.

I'd argue these days the main appeal of a Playstation for the standard user isn't the exclusives but just the fact that the hardware is pretty affordable, it's a more "plug and play" experience that requieres less tinkering, it's better optimized to be used on your TV from the couch , etc. It's only on gaming forums that Playstation is seen as a device to play first party games, for most normal users it's a third party machine with the exclusives being an ocassional bonus.

 

[FMX]

Are you telling me that some of you have lives that are so pathetic that you have actually have to contact Sony? It's not that serious.

 

[sncvsrtoip]

Why would people care? It doesn't stop them from playing the games on their PlayStations...

Some care about playstation future. Changing direction into crossgen, gaas and multiplatformer dev resulted in probably worst generation and it looks they still doesnt understand they slowly killing their product.

 

[bender]

I think that while they'll loose some hardcore users to PC, the majority of their audience is happy on Ps5 and won't switch over just because some exclusives are coming to other platforms after a year (unless they are GAAS).
IMO the reason Sony started bringing more games to PC is that they realized there's a huge audience on PC that simply doesn't want to buy a console, and likewise there is a big audience on console that just doesn't want to switch over to PC.

I'd argue these days the main appeal of a Playstation for the standard user isn't the exclusives but just the fact that the hardware is pretty affordable, it's a more "plug and play" experience that requieres less tinkering, it's better optimized to be used on your TV from the couch , etc. It's only on gaming forums that Playstation is seen as a device to play first party games, for most normal users it's a third party machine with the exclusives being an ocassional bonus.

One thing that Phil Spencer got right about the many failures of the Xbox is that they lost the worst possible generation as the PS4/Bone generation is where people really started to build digital libraries and I wouldn't underestimate how sticky someone's digital library can make them towards any given platform. And I agree with you about affordable hardware with modest performance that is only helped out by the ballooning costs of PC components and by graphics leaps seemingly plateauing...at least to your average consumer. One could argue long term cost saving so PCs, but the majority of people are only concerned about upfront costs.

 

[Kacho]

Some care about sony future. Changing direction into crossgen, gaas and multiplatformer dev resulted in probably worse generation and it looks they still doesnt understand they slowly killing their product.

Not really. The diehards make up a small percentage of the overall player base. The bulk of the money they make is from people playing GAAS slop and they don't give a fuck about this.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Your argument doesn't hold much water.
VHS beat Betamax because of exclusivity. Blu-ray beat HD-DVD because of exclusivity. Kids always want to play at the house with the cool toys, not the one that has the same toys as everyone else in the neighborhood.

On topic: Sending an email to PlayStation support hoping to assuage any concerns about exclusivity is moronic. Equally moronic are people in this thread recommending that PlayStation use Xbox's playbook "Destroy Your Brand While Increasing Engagement".

People wonder why Nintendo is so successful? They understand brand better than anyone and realized a long time ago that developing iconic properties exclusive to the Nintendo experience was far more important than short term profit. It's why they are so protective, it's why you will never see a marquee Nintendo title on PlayStation or PC.

Walmart is the biggest retailer in the world and they sell the most mainstream stuff you can get. Their exclusive private label like Great Value are consistently ranked poorly in quality and perception vs other retailers with higher quality store brands as their key differentiators. So you dont always need best exclusives.

Nintendo's domination actually comes from faddish products like Wii and anything handheld seems to sell a ton. When N64, Virtual Boy and GC did lousy, it was handheld that covered those years even though all the Mario, Zelda and Smash etc.. games got 90+ scores on console. Their pure consoles are hit and miss, including Wii U barely selling more than Dreamcast despite having lots of first party bangers and also COD that year (last Nintendo system to have a COD) and Virtual Boy sold I think only 1M units which is a totally different kind of game gadget. It was a smart move doing a hybrid model that covers both kinds of gaming.

If Nintendo still did it the old way where there was a Switch console (no handheld part) with joycon waving, and also a new 3DS handheld that couldnt be docked. I highly doubt a Switch console would do great. But I can still see a 4DS (or whatever it would be called) still selling well because it seems all their handhelds always do.

 

[EN250]

"While we continue to explore new ways to grow and evolve the gaming ecosystem, we are committed to preserving the unique identity that PlayStation represents," Sony wrote. "As we have in the past, we will always listen to feedback from our community, including valued players like you, and ensure that our decisions are aligned with the experiences you expect from PlayStation."

"We're going multiplatform, please understand"

 

[sncvsrtoip]

Not really. The diehards make up a small percentage of the overall player base. The bulk of the money they make is from people playing GAAS slop and they don't give a fuck about this.

I wrote wronly using sony not playstation future. Dont care if sony make big money from gaas, not my money but for sure will think twice before buying their next console seeing their approach.

 

[Fabieter]

I think that while they'll loose some hardcore users to PC, the majority of their audience is happy on Ps5 and won't switch over just because some exclusives are coming to other platforms after a year (unless they are GAAS).
IMO the reason Sony started bringing more games to PC is that they realized there's a huge audience on PC that simply doesn't want to buy a console, and likewise there is a big audience on console that just doesn't want to switch over to PC.

I'd argue these days the main appeal of a Playstation for the standard user isn't the exclusives but just the fact that the hardware is pretty affordable, it's a more "plug and play" experience that requieres less tinkering, it's better optimized to be used on your TV from the couch , etc. It's only on gaming forums that Playstation is seen as a device to play first party games, for most normal users it's a third party machine with the exclusives being an ocassional bonus.

Prices aren't dropping anymore.

Consoles are already nearing the $1,000 mark once you factor in additional costs like PS Plus and increasingly expensive games.

While consoles are still more plug and play in theory, the experience has become more complicated than ever. Meanwhile, PCs have become more plug and play than ever before.

It'll be interesting to see how this plays out for them. It's not about exclusive games anymore, it's about the fact that consoles have gradually lost all the unique advantages they once had.

Even the people who argue that users are locked in because of their digital libraries, if sunk cost is the only thing keeping you on a platform, then that platform has no real value on its own.

 

[Kacho]

I wrote wronly using sony not playstation future. Dont care if sony make big money from gaas, not my money but for sure will think twice before buying their next console seeing their approach.

But why though? Where would you go?

I assume you are already invested in their ecosystem.

I assume you prefer their controller.

I assume you prefer their first party games.

It's hard to believe you would give that up just because they port games to other platforms.

 

[BennyBlanco]

It's like high end audio equipment. I know I could be getting better sound quality. I know there are sickos listening to crystal clear audio that sounds amazing. I just don't care because my wireless Arctis is good enough for me and I don't care to mess around with amplifiers and such.

This is how most people view gaming. Everyone knows PC has a bunch of advantages but consoles are easy and good enough to get the job done. Most people spending money are not hardcore gamers.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

I think that while they'll loose some hardcore users to PC, the majority of their audience is happy on Ps5 and won't switch over just because some exclusives are coming to other platforms after a year (unless they are GAAS).
IMO the reason Sony started bringing more games to PC is that they realized there's a huge audience on PC that simply doesn't want to buy a console, and likewise there is a big audience on console that just doesn't want to switch over to PC.

I'd argue these days the main appeal of a Playstation for the standard user isn't the exclusives but just the fact that the hardware is pretty affordable, it's a more "plug and play" experience that requieres less tinkering, it's better optimized to be used on your TV from the couch , etc. It's only on gaming forums that Playstation is seen as a device to play first party games, for most normal users it's a third party machine with the exclusives being an ocassional bonus.

If multiplat porting is so bad, PS5 console saless should had been hitting the shitter for years since PC ports started slow 5 years and then ramped up like crazy. Almost all their big name games are on PC now and anyone who follows this knows more are coming. Helldivers 2 was even a day one game when it came out a year and a half ago. So that should reinforce people bailing PS5 and go PC. And even better, the gamer would even make back some cash selling it, make back more with no online fees, and make even more as PC games are usually cheaper on Steam/GOG when it comes time for massive discount bargain bin deals. Sounds like a no brainer.

But I dont get a sense the avg PS5 gamer is bailing for PC, nor a core PC gamer dumping his rig switching to PS5 to play one of the few day one SP games that come out now (like that theory years ago about planting the seed and PC gamers switch to PS5).

 

[HeisenbergFX4]

Some care about playstation future. Changing direction into crossgen, gaas and multiplatformer dev resulted in probably worst generation and it looks they still doesnt understand they slowly killing their product.

The vast majority are casuals who don't give a shit and just want to play their Fortnite, COD and sports titles and maybe sprinkle in a single player game here and there

 

[ProtoByte]

I assume you are already invested in their ecosystem.

Ecosystem investment is extremely overrated when it comes to gaming, especially on consoles. People do not buy new consoles to play old games or have perpetual access to a whole bunch of shit they probably didn't even finish.

And technically, the people still on PS4 are in the PS "ecosystem". If you strip it of all propriety, "ecosystem" just becomes another meaningless term/metric like "MAU".

Multiplat does not have to mean GAAS
Plus in my own personal opinion the quality of Sony games as of late has not been great anyhow

Again Heisenberg, do you think that it's a coincidence that the live service spamming came along at the same time from the same leadership that conceived PC ports and now this? Because it isn't.

Plus its on leadership to ensure said quality and goes back to what I have said before that Phil Spencer can't really spot a good game, thats been MS downfall of quality

The main role of the highest levels of leadership is strategy. The reason Phil can't spot a good game besides his lack of taste is that the strategy if flawed to its core.

 

[sncvsrtoip]

The vast majority are casuals who don't give a shit and just want to play their Fortnite, COD and sports titles and maybe sprinkle in a single player game here and there

And they will do it on pc

 

[StreetsofBeige]

The vast majority are casuals who don't give a shit and just want to play their Fortnite, COD and sports titles and maybe sprinkle in a single player game here and there

Exactly.

Even more nitpicking stuff the avg mom and dad casual gamer with his kids doesnt give a shit about...... Oh shit, I wonder if this game has Quality Mode and Performance Mode, and what native res does the game output in each mode? I hope the game has a good version of DLSS 5028f version 36b because the kids and wife were concerned it has version 36a.

Let's call a family meeting and watch a DF video together to see the results.

 

[GermanZepp]

Already moved to pc. Too late Sony.

 

[Unknown?]

It's not stopping games coming to PlayStation and it's not stopping PlayStation being the best place to play games (for people that like the console experience)

I think the fact that SIE decoupled software from hardware a couple of years ago means they both have to compete on their own terms. No more subsidies for hardware sales and reliance on exclusives (maybe). The fact that we are getting so many new hardware products is the early signs of this.

If all works out, Playstation will have the best games that work best on the best console, maybe worth timed exclusivity.

But if you look at Sony as a wider entertainment business, they've always looked at secondary markets for their products. Imagine just releasing a movie at the cinema and not then getting additional revenue from Blu Ray and streaming platforms. I think that this may be their thinking, they will see PC and other consoles as those secondary markets for people that were never going to buy a playstation.

I personally think keeping a few select games as true exclusives strategically would be smart.

It won't work out. They will stop selling 100M+ hardware and may get a million or two extra sells from those on other platforms but the extra they sell elsewhere will be offset by less demand for their hardware(hence less sold on their own platform) and then they lose tons of revenue from less 3rd party games sold on their platform so less budget for games.

It's already proven to have killed Xbox and there are those who think this could work elsewhere?

 

[sncvsrtoip]

But why though? Where would you go?

I assume you are already invested in their ecosystem.

I assume you prefer their controller.

I assume you prefer their first party games.

It's hard to believe you would give that up just because they port games to other platforms.

As I said downgrade in amount and quality already visible in this generation, cant see for now change in that direction and I probably will also go back to pc gaming. As for sony sadly they can go sega route.

 

[Kacho]

Ecosystem investment is extremely overrated when it comes to gaming, especially on consoles. People do not buy new consoles to play old games or have perpetual access to a whole bunch of shit they probably didn't even finish.

And technically, the people still on PS4 are in the PS "ecosystem". If you strip it of all propriety, "ecosystem" just becomes another meaningless term/metric like "MAU".

To casuals? Absolutely. It's not overrated to enthusiasts though. Look at Steam. People won't budge because they built libraries on there for 20 years.

 

[HeisenbergFX4]

Again Heisenberg, do you think that it's a coincidence that the live service spamming came along at the same time from the same leadership that conceived PC ports and now this? Because it isn't.


The main role of the highest levels of leadership is strategy. The reason Phil can't spot a good game besides his lack of taste is that the strategy if flawed to its core.

The live service exploded in popularity because Fortnite exploded and everyone wanted that

And Phil actually plays all these games and he okayed shit like Redfall and the first Halo Infinite trailer

And they will do it on pc

Playstation already ports to PC and the PS5 is making record bank, porting more titles to PC isn't going to drastically change Playstations position as the main console people buy

Sony would have to do something very stupid moving forward to change this course

 

[Kacho]

As I said downgrade in amount and quality already visible in this generation, cant see for now change in that direction and I probably will also go back to pc gaming. As for sony sadly they can go sega route.

Fair enough

 

[The_Mike]

Imagine being a physical games collector locked to PS right now. I'd be fucking terrified.

Why? Playstation ain't going anywhere.

 

[Fabieter]

To casuals? Absolutely. It's not overrated to enthusiasts though. Look at Steam. People won't budge because they built libraries on there for 20 years.

The sunk cost fallacy is a cognitive bias where people continue with a course of action, even if it's no longer the best decision, because they've already invested resources.

Its basically what staying on consoles because of your library is.

 

[Kacho]

The sunk cost fallacy is a cognitive bias where people continue with a course of action, even if it's no longer the best decision, because they've already invested resources.

Its basically what staying on consoles because of your library is.

Why would investing in PlayStation no longer be the best decision if that's where they prefer to play games?

 

[adamsapple]

Its basically what staying on consoles because of your library is.

Staying with hardware that retains all of your purchased items so you can access them anytime you want instead of having to rebuy them on a quote unquote more popular system is not sunk cost fallacy, wtf.

 

[Fabieter]

Why would investing in PlayStation no longer be the best decision if that's where they prefer to play games?

Well yeah you can't beat emotional reasoning.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Imagine being a physical games collector locked to PS right now. I'd be fucking terrified.

That's digital for ya.

You'd either have to be a collector putting it on a shelf and not caring whether you can run it again (collect for fun and not to play), keep your old optical drive consoles, or hope and pray future systems always have an add-on optical drive option.

 

[Kacho]

Well yeah you can't beat emotional reasoning.

Where should the non-emotional people move to?

 

[Unknown?]

If multiplat porting is so bad, PS5 console saless should had been hitting the shitter for years since PC ports started slow 5 years and then ramped up like crazy. Almost all their big name games are on PC now and anyone who follows this knows more are coming. Helldivers 2 was even a day one game when it came out a year and a half ago. So that should reinforce people bailing PS5 and go PC. And even better, the gamer would even make back some cash selling it, make back more with no online fees, and make even more as PC games are usually cheaper on Steam/GOG when it comes time for massive discount bargain bin deals. Sounds like a no brainer.

But I dont get a sense the avg PS5 gamer is bailing for PC, nor a core PC gamer dumping his rig switching to PS5 to play one of the few day one SP games that come out now (like that theory years ago about planting the seed and PC gamers switch to PS5).

No crap, the average Xbox gamer didn't bail on the 360 when it started sucking balls, they did so in the next generation. It was accelerated by stupid choices but many people were disappointed by 360 in its final years which caused them not to come back.

People keep talking like things have changed but they haven't. You attract people to your platform with games, not hardware. Sometimes shitty hardware will override games and cause people to not buy it regardless but games almost always sells your product.

If Sony ports games to everything, even if it's a year to go to Nintendo and Xbox, I guarantee you PS6 won't break records and won't sell 100 million. It may even do worse than PS3.

 

[Fabieter]

Staying with hardware that retains all of your purchased items so you can access them anytime you want instead of having to rebuy them on a quote unquote more popular system is not sunk cost fallacy, wtf.

You don't have to buy new hardware because of that.

 

[Unknown?]

Why would investing in PlayStation no longer be the best decision if that's where they prefer to play games?

For the same reason why so many abandoned Xbox despite being there from the original.

 

[Fabieter]

Where should the non-emotional people move to?

Depends on their motivation.

 

[Kacho]

For the same reason why so many abandoned Xbox despite being there from the original.

I'd say that's more because their future hardware plans are iffy. PlayStation is far from having that problem.

 

[Esppiral]

Why would people care? It doesn't stop them from playing the games on their PlayStations...

But how they will feel special then?

 

[Unknown?]

I'd say that's more because their future hardware plans are iffy. PlayStation is far from having that problem.

That, IMO, is a bad take on the situation. It has been going downhill for awhile and before there was anything questionable about its future.

Their biggest problem was they didn't launch with any exclusives, the ones they did come out with weren't good, and then they made them available everywhere.

 

[Topher]

For the same reason why so many abandoned Xbox despite being there from the original.

Not really. There was little reason for those Xbox fans to stay. There were no digital libraries keeping Xbox gamers in the fold. BC wasn't there at launch and when it did come around, it was too little, too late. By the time PS5 was launched, PlayStation had become the default console platform for Call of Duty, Madden, etc. Now gamers are fully entrenched with digital libraries and PS has a massive foothold there. They are not going to up and switch platforms for the hell of it.

 

[Fbh]

Prices aren't dropping anymore.

Consoles are already nearing the $1,000 mark once you factor in additional costs like PS Plus and increasingly expensive games.

While consoles are still more plug and play in theory, the experience has become more complicated than ever. Meanwhile, PCs have become more plug and play than ever before.

It'll be interesting to see how this plays out for them. It's not about exclusive games anymore, it's about the fact that consoles have gradually lost all the unique advantages they once had.

Even the people who argue that users are locked in because of their digital libraries, if sunk cost is the only thing keeping you on a platform, then that platform has no real value on its own.

Console prices aren't dropping but PC components aren't getting cheaper either.
Consoles are also significantly cheaper up front, which is attractive to many people. The percentage of the target audience that's going to sit down and calculate the actual cost difference over a 4-5 years period by taking into account things like Ps+ and the average price difference between console and PC games is tiny, and they are probably part of the audience that Sony is willing to give up for the increased revenue of selling their games on other platforms.

 

[Kacho]

That, IMO, is a bad take on the situation. It has been going downhill for awhile and before there was anything questionable about its future.

Their biggest problem was they didn't launch with any exclusives, the ones they did come out with weren't good, and then they made them available everywhere.

Nah. Unless you are Nintendo, exclusives don't really move the needle for the average buyer. Sony has the mindshare so they have the casuals. People can invest in that ecosystem with confidence. Xbox doesn't have that which is why they've been bleeding out slowly for the past decade.

 

[R3TRO]

Do these people have jobs...

 

[Unknown?]

Not really. There was little reason for those Xbox fans to stay. There were no digital libraries keeping Xbox gamers in the fold. BC wasn't there at launch and when it did come around, it was too little, too late. By the time PS5 was launched, PlayStation had become the default console platform for Call of Duty, Madden, etc. Now gamers are fully entrenched with digital libraries and PS has a massive foothold there. They are not going to up and switch platforms for the hell of it.

I disagree. Especially if they're playing Madden or COD or other casual games. Those players never go back to play old editions, it's always about what's new so having Madden 2015 in their library isn't going to make them attached to one system or another.

 

[Fabieter]

Console prices aren't dropping but PC components aren't getting cheaper either.
Consoles are also significantly cheaper up front, which is attractive to many people. The percentage of the target audience that's going to sit down and calculate the actual cost difference over a 4-5 years period by taking into account things like Ps+ and the average price difference between console and PC games is tiny, and they are probably part of the audience that Sony is willing to give up for the increased revenue of selling their games on other platforms.

We will see if ps6 can keep up with the ps5.