The morning Inbox discusses the controversies of the PlayStation 4′s day one patch, as one reader details his love for unexpected sequel Okamiden.
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More of the same
I didn’t actually buy it (didn’t need to as I already had it all) but the release of Borderlands 2 has reminded me just what a great game that is. I don’t know any others I’d be able to drag my three gaming buddies off of GTA V for just to play again and not one of us regretted. The thing is though it got me thinking about sequels and shooters, and I realised that I’m kind of the problem because there’s basically nothing that would stop me getting Borderlands 3 even though I know it’s probably going to be more of the same.
Assuming it’s next gen I’m predicting better graphics, bigger open world, better vehicles and… a bunch of bells and whistles that don’t really change anything. And you know what? I’ll lap that up. Even though I know it’ll take time and money away from me playing something more original I just want more of the same. I don’t like to feel like I’m a bad person but it’s hard to break the cycle when you like something. Maybe I should be hoping that Borderlands 3 is actually really bad!
Ben Crooper
Los Santos Stories
I’m not having a pop at the game, because I think it’s a great achievement, but is anyone starting to get a bit tired of GTA Online? As a few letters have suggested the deathmatch style stuff is pretty pointless thanks to the auto lock-on and there’s not as much variety to the rest of it as you’d think. Messing about with your friends is the best bit, but looking back on the experience as a whole I’ve got to say I’ve had a lot more fun with GTA V than the online game. And that’s ignoring the technical problems.
I know there’s a few minor bits of downloadable content coming to GTA Online, but is there any sign of big story-based combat? Are Rockstar planning something like Liberty City Stories or Undead Nightmare? I hope so because as much as new stuff for GTA Online would be good, let’s be honest and say it would only keep you going for another few weeks.
Tango Charlie
GC: Rockstar hasn’t said anything about downloadable content beyond The Beach Bum Pack and Content Creator for GTA Online. If they have anything planned for GTA V they haven’t hinted at it so far.
The invention of lying
I’ve been reading a lot of stuff lately about the Xbox One now magically being more powerful than it was first announced and frankly it sounds to me like a load of Microsoft-fed baloney that fans and journalists are eating up. The improvements to the chip speeds are very small and all this nonsense about the cloud making consoles more powerful is pure fantasy. I think… The thing is I’m only relatively computer literate but I do know that companies will lie through their teeth about anything and everything just in the hope someone will believe it or report it as fact.
But what do you think GC? How big will the gap be between the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 and will there even be a gap if publishers don’t take advantage of the PlayStation 4′s extra power? That’s what happened this gen with the PlayStation 3, and surely before that came out companies must’ve been assuming it would be a great success – and would have had ever reason to make an effort.
Gannet
GC: We haven’t a clue when it comes to the technical innards of a console but it never matters what they’re theoretically capable of, only the financial incentive publishers will have to take advantage of it. If, as we understand, the PlayStation 4 is more powerful that will – outside of first party games – only become evident if Sony ‘encourage’ publishers to put in the extra effort. The simplest form of encouragement will be if the PlayStation 4 sells better…
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A fine sequel
RE: Paulie. Gaming is funny when choosing what games to make sequels for and then there’s classic games which deserve sequels but are forever left to rot. It all boils down to what will sell at the end of the day. I will not let you dismiss Okamiden though. Granted it had it’s mistakes but it’s an excellent game which is very touching at times. How they managed to fit so much of Okami’s wonderful world into a DS game still baffles me now, but don’t knock it until you try it (unless of course you have and you didn’t enjoy it for whatever reason then fair enough).
Okamiden had unique characters, a beautiful art style and managed to retain the original music while adding a fresh twist to it. The great thing was that they had to reprint it because the initial, and originally the only print, sold out so quickly – it even charted in the top three if i remember correctly. Not bad for a game which was originally written off as being inferior. I’d love to see a sequel for it as it truly deserves one. If for any reason i have taken anything the wrong way, then I apologise, but to me Okamiden is one of the finest DS games available.
Just to add, just because a reviewer gives a game a lower than expected score doesn’t mean it or the reviewer is bad – they are giving their opinion. Everyone has their own views and they are entitled to it. We should respect that it’s their opinion and that they have a difficult job – I tend to use reviews as a guide to see what their about and have bought many a game which has been rated ‘low’ only to really enjoy it! It’s a case of damned if you do and damned if you don’t!
Bouncer0304
GC: We suspect he just meant it was surprising that Okami got a sequel, but your impassioned defence of the game warmed our cockels anyway.
Negative answer
I know hardware figures are always hard to come by, but has Nintendo revealed how well the 2DS is doing? In some ways, I hope it doesn’t become a rip roaring success, or developers may become inclined to ditch 3D games altogether…
ttfp saylow (gamertag)
GC: Nintendo are actually about the best for reporting accurate hardware figures, but you’ll have to wait until their next quarterly report that covers the period the 2DS was released in. Only if they’re really bad will they try to hide them, and even that gives an answer of sorts.
A necessary inconvenience
So the PlayStation 4 needs a day one update in order to use functions such as DVD, Blu-ray and PS Vita compatibility. Like I’ve said before it seems odd that people call Microsoft dishonest. They were quite clear on the restrictions of the Xbox One. Sony made out like their console would be nothing but gamer friendly and problem free and and then dropped initial European Gaiki backwards compatibility support, delayed a key exclusive and now this. They got a lot of credit early on by simply staying relatively quiet about the realities of a console launch and the online reliance of gaming’s future.
But to read some forums it’s like people have gone mad. I’ve now seen people say they’re cancelling their preorder because of this day one update and are now getting an Xbox One! Even though one of the reasons they preordered a PlayStation 4 is because the Xbox One has an even more restrictive day one update (you can’t even play a game without an initial patch). I’ve also heard people complain about not being able to use online features without the PlayStation 4 update. Surely if they plan to use these features they are already online anyway so what’s the problem?
And still more people wishing for a return to simpler times before updates and patches. Well if you want simpler times just buy an old console. A console which had simpler games and features which when buggy and broken never got fixed.
The overwhelming complexity and quality of current games such as GTA V is well worth the inconvenience of the odd downloadable patch. To me, complaining that more complex games require the odd patch is like complaining that they take longer and more money to make.
Developers aren’t using patches and cloud based features just to spite you. They are doing it because that’s what’s required to move gaming forwards.
@PjDonnelli
GC: We’re not sure why you keep claiming Microsoft were clear on the restrictions. We were there the day they (sort of) announced them and they couldn’t have been disingenuous and evasive if they were politicians. And judging by the interviews they’ve given since then their attitudes have barely improved. The rest of what you say though, we agree with.
I’m asking for a friend
Anyone know why there is such a large gap between the American and European release dates of the new Lego Marvel Super Heroes game? It was released on Oct 22nd in in North America (and worldwide on Steam), but isn’t out until November 15th in the UK. ‘My son’ is desperate to play this…
DangerousHill
GC: Warner has been acting a bit odd with with release dates all-round lately. Batman: Arkam Origins came out on a Friday in America, which we don’t recall ever happening before. If there’s a sensible reason for Lego Marvel’s delay it’s either stock problems or some sort of marketing tie-in that is unique to the US or Europe.
Catch up on every previous Games Inbox here
Sensible scoring
I agree, time to stop arguing about average scores, here’s my angle on things, hope you don’t think I am being obtuse. I don’t want to sound mean, but it’s time to sum things up and get a final answer. If you add the number of letters in favour of scores and those against and divide by two the median will probably be a completely meaningless number. There you go, no multiple choice answers and an end to the division amongst gamers. Just to go off at a tangent, if I start a petition against average scores would anyone cosine it please?
Steve R.
Right… all games should be scored using food… bad games could be a sloppy kebab and a good game could be a Nando’s with a great game being a spicy curry pot noodle!
Chris
Inbox also-rans
Just a quickie for you. Is the Director’s Cut of Human Revolution worth buying if you have the original? Does it come with any of the downloads?
Alx25 (PSN ID)
GC: That’s not really a question anyone but you can answer. We tried to address all the relevant factors in our review though.
I used to think that I was an average gamer, but now I think that I’m at least a 6.
Crazy-Crusha (PSN ID)
This week’s Hot Topic
It’s Halloween this week and yet horror-themed video games are rarer than ever. So this weekend’s Inbox asks whether you enjoy being scared when playing games – and if you think there’s a future for survival horror.
Horror games have been on the decline all generation but this year has seen a number of prominent indie titles take up the slack – from Lone Survivor to Amnesia: A Machine For Pigs. There’s also big budget retail release The Evil Within coming next year, but do you think it’s enough to turn the genre around? Or are hybrid games like The Last Of Us the best we can hope for?
Do you enjoy horror games and if not is it the scariness or something about the gameplay or storytelling that put you off? Have you played any of the recent indie games and if not, why not? What do you think needs to happen to make survival horror mainstream again? Or do you think the very nature of the games – the slow pace and the often powerless protagonist – means they can no longer be successful on the scale they used to?
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