Sony officially embraces Astro as their mascot (TGS lineup video)
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The Lunch Legend
GAF's Nicest Lunch Thief and Nosiest Dildo Archeologist
DonkeyPunchJr
World’s Biggest Weeb
Wish they'd pick a mascot without such soulless devotion to the PlayStation brand
RCU005
Member
I like Astro Bot, but they seem to be just robot minions. Sackboy is the one who should've been the mascot, although, why no one mentions that Astro Bot is just a robot Sackboy? They have the same design.
TBH, I love that PlayStation's never had a real mascot. They have so many franchises, that really anyone could be. Too bad, this generation has been so weak when it comes to first party games, and specially with new IPs.
TBH, I love that PlayStation's never had a real mascot. They have so many franchises, that really anyone could be. Too bad, this generation has been so weak when it comes to first party games, and specially with new IPs.
Raven117
Member
This. The two sides kept the other in check. And we got great games.
Now… let's be clear… Sony feels like they are making Microsoft mistakes
Edit: and that video…. Lol. So very Japanese
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EDMIX
Writes a lot, says very little
lol unlikely.
That sounds like some wild cringe reaching.
Sony will never and has never really had some "mascot" and I think its for the best. The brand is built on the idea of many IP, new and old and it allows them to flow like water. When you put this idea behind 1 IP as a "mascot" , it makes it look like not liking Mario or Halo means don't buy either platforms.
Fuck you suppose to say about hating Jak and Daxter if Uncharted is that studios new IP? Oh you hate Uncharted, well they made The Last Of Us.
I don't get why many here don't understand this concept of moving on and not holding 1 IP as the end all of the whole brand.
Look at Netflix, there is no fucking "mascot" as why on Earth would they put all the eggs on 1 basket and have the company marketed with something that gives the illusion that all that they are, is that mascot? So there is a more bad then good that comes from that imho.
Nothing against Astro Bot, but I don't think any character should be held up as a mascot regarding the PS brand. The brand should be about the studios and the open idea of something new vs holding on to 1 image that could force a misconception or a perceived notion about the brand.
That sounds like some wild cringe reaching.
Sony will never and has never really had some "mascot" and I think its for the best. The brand is built on the idea of many IP, new and old and it allows them to flow like water. When you put this idea behind 1 IP as a "mascot" , it makes it look like not liking Mario or Halo means don't buy either platforms.
Fuck you suppose to say about hating Jak and Daxter if Uncharted is that studios new IP? Oh you hate Uncharted, well they made The Last Of Us.
I don't get why many here don't understand this concept of moving on and not holding 1 IP as the end all of the whole brand.
Look at Netflix, there is no fucking "mascot" as why on Earth would they put all the eggs on 1 basket and have the company marketed with something that gives the illusion that all that they are, is that mascot? So there is a more bad then good that comes from that imho.
Nothing against Astro Bot, but I don't think any character should be held up as a mascot regarding the PS brand. The brand should be about the studios and the open idea of something new vs holding on to 1 image that could force a misconception or a perceived notion about the brand.
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Topher
Identifies as young
Heimdall_Xtreme
Hermen Hulst Fanclub's #1 Member
Fuck u Sony
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ap_puff
Banned
Terrible news imoEverything that happens with PlayStation goes through this guy.
Complistic
Member
He's the perfect mascot, should be a no brainer
Rentahamster
Rodent Whores
Trailer couldn't be much more japanese than this.
And I love it.
The trailer is more Japanese than Assassin's Creed lol.
Ridicululzz
Member
Yes! His design is perfect and screams mascot
nial
Member
It's fine if you feel that way, but Toro Inoue, Piposaru and Astro Bot are the official mascots in Japan. And now they're pushing Astro to be the one worldwide; almost every regional PlayStation account in social media was using the character in their profile pictures.
EDMIX
Writes a lot, says very little
I'm not aware of Sony ever making any statements supporting that btw, like where have they ever officially stated any of this?
They often market titles this way, that doesn't mean its some official mascot for em, you'll see them do the same thing when they roll out Knack 3 lol
nial
Member
They constantly use mascot costumes for all three and have large scale figures of them at the Japanese HQs.
Has Nintendo ever made any statement on Mario being its mascot?
No, what I mentioned they don't. They never did it with God of War Ragnarok.
Shakka43
Member
They could had easily pass those IPs to other smaller studios and keep them alive as library boosters. the problem is, all they seem to want now is mega sellers and anything else got pushed aside. Games like Ico, Puppeteer and Gravity Rush are no longer a thought for Sony Executives.
Angry_Megalodon
Member
Everything that happens with PlayStation goes through this guy.
This man is a finance dude. I doubt he has ever played a videogame.
The strategic decisions are the responsibility of the two directors below him.
Topher
Identifies as young
Totoki is one who put those two in charge of their divisions and one of those guys is Japanese. The point is I don't see why anyone would say the "west" is in power here.
nial
Member
It doesn't matter, it shows that Japan never lost any control in PlayStation to begin with, especially considering that Totoki himself went on to choose Nishino (also a Japanese man if it's not extremely obvious) and Hulst for their positions as co-CEOs at SIE.
Vick
Member
Terrible news especially when you start to dig deep.
I would start paying close attention to Z zedinen posts over the last months..
1) SIE was easily the best managed company in the entertainment industry until Totoki took over (Totoki is in charge) :
-Nintendo sales and profits are in free fall (and nobody gives a damn)
-PlayStation overtook Nintendo in Asia
-PS5 sold 2.5 million units in Japan in 2023, the highest ever for a PlayStation console since the PS2 in 2004 ·
-PS is outselling Xbox 2 to 1 in the US for the first time in 20 years
-SIE games are selling better than ever in the US
-The PS5 generation has been as profitable as all the four previous generations combined
-Microsoft games are coming to PS5
2) Jim Ryan set the stage to sell 140m and dominate gaming like never before, but Totoki only cares about margins.
High margins will boost short-term profits and kill PlayStation in Europe and Japan
High margin strategy requires assets. And PlayStation (G&NS) is starving because Music are Pictures are eating well (atrocious capital allocation by Totoki)
3) PlayStation (G&NS) is a wonderful business owned by Sony Group, a dysfunctional conglomerate run by accountants in their 60s (Yoshida and Totoki) willing to increase their own compensation by squeezing more profits out of PlayStation.
Yoshida (1959) and Totoki (1964) have no future. They're willing to run PlayStation into the ground in order to achieve their financial goals.
4) David Gibson (MST Financial) has been warning people:
SIE is gambling on unproven companies (acquisitions and partnerships) because Yoshida and Totoki don't want to invest in Gaming, and yet, demand record profits. Apparently, SIE should be able to print money out of thin air.
Having said that, SIE is good at gambling (Genshin, Astro, Helldivers, Stellar Blade ...), but there will be more Concords and Factions: There is no success without failure.
The biggest threat to SIE is Sony Group.
Yoshida & Totoki's poor strategic decisions about capital allocation lead to a deterioration in free cash flow margins, worse liquidity metrics and lower stock prices.
Sony Group FY17 | CEO and President: Kaz Hirai ($1 = ¥110.9)
Cash ¥1,193.2 b ($10.75 b)
Debt ¥710.3 b ($6.40 b)
Net Cash ¥482.9 b ($4.35 b)
Sony Group FY23 | CEO: Yoshida; President: Totoki ($1 = ¥144.4)
Cash ¥993.3 b ($6.87 b)
Debt ¥1583.0 b($10.96 b)
Net Cash ¥-589.7 b (-$4.09 b)
Past Year
Topix 27.21%
Nikkei 225 25.68%
Sony -4.00%
G&NS sales have risen by 159%, but profits "only" by 114% since FY16 . In other words, G&NS lower margins lead to explosive profit growth.
Talking nonsense about G&NS profit margins allows Totoki to avoid taking responsibility for his own decisions and take control of the only segment that can save his ass.
Which is why we' ve seen mass layoffs after the best Q4 in PlayStation history (Operating Income +173% YoY)
Totoki, a 60-year old man alien to the industry, couldn't care less about PlayStation future. He has designed SIE structure with the sole aim of maximizing short-term profits and save his own ass.
SIE Chairman: Totoki
SIE CEO: -
SIE President: -
CEO Platform: Nishino
CEO Studio: Hermen
SIE needs a CEO, a president and assets; PS5 needs a price cut.
I hope all the laid-off employees land on their feet.
Totoki intends to achieve a new profit record in the PS5 generation because the market is bigger (Operating Income: FY23 ¥270B / FY16 ¥135B)
30 billion in profit from the third quarter expected to slip into the fourth quarter
F2P has been a major contributor
Game is expected to be the driver of ROIC growth (According to Totoki, ROIC is the most important financial metric. There is a trade-off between profit margin and capital turnover: companies with low profit margins tend to have high capital turnover, those with high profit margins have low capital turnover)
SIE keeps profits artificially low by investing money right back into its business in the form of R&D and CapEx. Sometimes it works (Helldivers), sometimes it doesn't.
R&D: FY22 ¥271B / FY16 ¥95B
D&A: FY22 ¥87B / FY16 ¥25B
Jim Ryan was largely responsible for reviving PlayStation Asia, which was on the verge of collapse:
The PS3 nearly destroyed PlayStation.
Sony hit rock bottom in the early 2010s and the Vita became the worst-performing PlayStation.
The PS4 was delayed due to lack of Japanese games and its lifespan was cut short.
PS5 sold 2.54 M in Japan in 2023, the highest ever for a PlayStation home console since the PS2 in 2004.
Japan: LTD Week 35
2024 PS5 6,017,484
2010 PS3 5,465,392
2017 PS4 5,193,454
2015 PSV 4,037,034
Japan: LTD After 199 Weeks
PS5 6,017,484
PS4 5,654,958
PS3 5,465,392
PSV 4,108,845
Japan: LTD
PS3 10,274,113
PS4 9,504,101
PS5 6,017,484
PSV 5,863,022
China
India
SIE leadership
PS5 needs to lower the price to increase adoption. At this point in the PS4 cycle the system was ¥29,980 …
We've seen this before.
YTD: Operating Income
Yoshida and Totoki are about to loot PlayStation
Good bye, Europe and Japan
July EUR: PS5 -56% YoY
July JAP: PS5 -37% YoY
Totoki has already made his mind up: nothing will change.
Japan plays F2P titles
AAA games are expensive to make and have no guarantees of return on investment (TOLU 2 and Forbidden West sold less than their predecessors)
Sony wants to become less reliant on 3rd party games
A good reason to get angry.
Will Yoshida and Totoki invest Jim Ryan's profits in PlayStation ? Good luck.
PlayStation's ROIC is light years ahead of rest of the industry.
47.5% in FY20 / 41.9% in FY21
Yoshida and Totoki don't give a shit about PlayStation. It's a cash cow for the rest of Sony and Xbox sales are collapsing, CoD will remain on PS for 10 years ...
SIE's profit margin is low because of its strategy of aggressive growth and the prevalence of cross-subsidized investments across Sony Group with the cash flows generated by PlayStation.
SIE could easily dwarf Nintendo profits:
SIE's adjusted OIBDA reached ¥337 billion in FY22
SIE's R&D spending reached ¥271 billion in FY22
SIE spends considerable sums of money each year on marketing deals and partnerships, while the hardware is sold at loss in the first few years.
SIE keeps accounting profit artificially low by investing money right back into its business. And it's working.
An incomparable legacy.
Six month left. The best is yet to come ...
Totoki and Yoshida (not our Shūhei, the other) are prioritizing short-term margins above all else, while redirecting most of PlayStation profits into other divisions. They're completely neglecting the need to nurture a larger future install base, and their approach will inevitably cause unprecedented long-term damage to the brand to the point it's almost as if they see there's no future. Ominous stuff.
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nial
Member
With the kind of games they published this year, I respectfully disagree.
EDMIX
Writes a lot, says very little
Astro Bot literally just fucking released lol Same with Stellar Blade, Ronin, sir I don't know what you are talking about...
You seem to also ignore all of their VR stuff too
So I have no clue where you got this "all they seem to want is mega sellers" lol
Ok and neither is Infamous, Motorstorm, Killzone, Syphon Filter, Socom, Warhawk etc
They have teams move on, that isn't some wild idea at Sony only for titles like Ico or Gravity Rush bud, that is something they do across their whole catalog. They move on.
This.
Loomy
Thinks Microaggressions are Real
And do what with it? The market outside of Japan is exponentially wider than what they can address in Japan. Sony and Playstation has been a global company for decades now and they're better for it.
I also don't think this is a permanent thing. Astrobot is the latest game to do really well so they're capitalizing on it. As soon as Ghost 2 comes out, Atsu will be front and center in all Playstation marketing. The idea of a mascot is not a thing anymore. Especially with half their studios making struggle fantasies that also well really well.
nial
Member
Sony Group's chiefs have been saying some insane shit the past year, I agree, but I'm not sure if it's time to freak out yet. They were ultimately right about the irresponsible management at the SIE Group (during its whole existence, not only for the past 5 years or so), but hopefully the recent hardware sales in Japan gives them a good idea of how not to approach these things.
I do suggest everyone to expect PlayStation Studios-produced mobile Asian gachas in the future.
Rhazer Fusion
Member
AstroBot is cool, but Eve from Stellar Blade would be a nice mascot as well.
nial
Member
Rhazer Fusion
Member
Alright, that works.
Saturn Dragon
Member
That would be an ass move by Sony.
Heisenberg007
Gold Journalism
Inb4 Astrobot becomes the victim of Rule 34.
Heisenberg007
Gold Journalism
FoxMcChief
Gold Member
Missed opportunity.
Caio
Member
This.
ThisIsMyDog
Member
ConkerTheSquirrel.
Member
Missed opportunity.
RetroGamingUK
Member
Crash died for Jak & Daxter
I've got an old Official PlayStation Magazine issue where ND are being interviewed about Crash 3 (best in the series).
They pretty much said they're bored of making Crash games at that point and won't be making any more.
nial
Member
Crash died 24 years ago, pal.
GymWolf
Gold Member
Then you can say i'm in de-nial
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PharaoTutAnchAmun
Member
CRASH is not longer in the hands of Sony anymore, its on the way to the graveyard of franchises that MS has toke over
Physiognomonics
Member
Of course. They want to erase Concord from existence. All 3 bosses do for their own sake.
But unfortunately AstroBot profits will be barely enough to compensate for Hulst failures (and future failures, oh yes it's only the beginning hehe).
The best platformer game Sony had (before AstroBot) was Jak & Daxter 1. But here they badly mismanaging that IP as they transformed that beautiful game into a bland shooter which later became Uncharted.
But unfortunately AstroBot profits will be barely enough to compensate for Hulst failures (and future failures, oh yes it's only the beginning hehe).
Stop it, I forbid you. Crash was never as good as Mario. The best Crash game is Crash 4 and it was shockingly done by the COD company.
The best platformer game Sony had (before AstroBot) was Jak & Daxter 1. But here they badly mismanaging that IP as they transformed that beautiful game into a bland shooter which later became Uncharted.
GymWolf
Gold Member
I was talking mostly about the design, crash for me was iconic, astro design is a bit meh.
Maybe i just have nostalgia goggles.
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