Support NeoGAF

[Lasha]

I definitely miss old Sony. The current exclusives are boring compared to the PS3 era.

 

[sainraja]

We just need an updated or new version of Calling All Cars! Omg, that was so fun!

 

[ergem]

I don’t think arcade style games would be worth it financially for Sony if the only business model is $40-$70 retail.

But if Sony would include PS Plus subscription into the equation and consider the arcade games as the games that will ‘eventually’ (6mos-2yrs) increase the value of the PSPlus service, then arcade games might be financially viable.

The formula on looking at its financial soundness should be in consideration of the PS Plus service.

 

[april6e]

deleted

 

[drezz]

Wonder what a Warhawk game would be like in VR.

 

[nial]

It's weird how nostalgic people get about the PS3 era nowadays, wait 5 years and everyone will start saying that the PS4 era was the best.

 

[VeganElduderino]

I just want a Split/second 2! And more Wreckfest

 

[NightmareFarm]

All the Sony studios did seem to have taken TLOU as a template, even if I think Uncharted's success was the real push. Lair, Heavenly Sword, Resistance, Killzone 2, Heavy Rain all aimed to be cinematic. God of War III too, was also very cinematic but it's excused because it was also very arcady and fun. Even third party exclusives were highly cinematic, like MGS4 being more movie than game. Yakuza as well, but like GoW it was also arcady and fun. The shift happened over time.

The problem here isn't really that Sony games have become cinematic, but as you said, boring. To me, they've become boring because they've become kinda of predictable. Every studio models their games after Naughty Dog. Even if the gameplay is different, there's a chasing after realism, mostly grounded combat, stealth, open world, padded side activities, cool looking but unchallenging traversal, skill tree, crafting, grieving mary sue protagonists, talkative NPCs, self serious story... Yeah compared to the variety we use to have it's rather dull no matter how polished they are.

Uncharted was the root of it but I think TLOU is when they started to just go full steam ahead on the interactive movie type games. In the early 10s you still had games like inFAMOUS 2, into the nexus and even a smash bros clone. They would never even think of putting out a smash bros clone nowadays.

>The problem here isn't really that Sony games have become cinematic, but as you said, boring.

They go hand in hand if you ask me.

> To me, they've become boring because they've become kinda of predictable. Every studio models their games after Naughty Dog. Even if the gameplay is different, there's a chasing after realism, mostly grounded combat, stealth, open world, padded side activities, cool looking but unchallenging traversal, skill tree, crafting, grieving mary sue protagonists, talkative NPCs, self serious story... Yeah compared to the variety we use to have it's rather dull no matter how polished they are.

Agreed. The only Sony series alive that is still worth playing nowadays is Ratchet and Clank, the rest are to be blunt shitty formulaic generic cinematic games.

 

[Oddvintagechap]

Less popular IPs and your example is Gow? Hmm, I'm not sure why should they bother at this point. It's not like they need switch and iphone to sell a Gow. They could create small teams inside studios if they were interested in lesser scale projects, they could build company culture and talent in house. I think they just don't care, now they are just too big.

I just used Hades developer as an example of Sony using indie developers to make reskins with Sony’s IP.

It can basically be a recap of the greek story of GOW for fans of the current GOW. They can do Jak and Daxter…

But we can use with any IP with any Indie studio. Indie studios can expand a little and reuse their engine, most mechanics, just use a different story & characters.

Yeah I don’t think small side projects inside the main studio is productive. Japan Studio was a mess because of that. They were completely unfocused.

 

[Pimpbaa]

Most of the games Sony puts out are open world or semi open not purely cinematic games, not every game is from Naughty Dog or Quantic Dream. Spider-Man/Miles Morales, Horizon ZD and FW, Days Gone, Ghost of Tsushima and to a less extent recent 2 God of War games which are semi-open world (while cinematic, most of you time you are fighting or exploring), those are games I think of when I think Sony’s games. Not linear cinematic games.

 

[01011001]

no can do...
YOU WILL WALK SLOWLY WITH RESTRICTED CONTROLS FOR PROLONGED PERIODS OF TIME AND YOU'LL LOVE IT! -Sony probably

 

[sono]

What is arcady racing without rubber banding lol.

Better. Known goal at a level etc.

 

[Ar¢tos]

This needs a remake:

I think Sony owns the IP.

 

[Zekra Dezivad]

I just used Hades developer as an example of Sony using indie developers to make reskins with Sony’s IP.

It can basically be a recap of the greek story of GOW for fans of the current GOW. They can do Jak and Daxter…

But we can use with any IP with any Indie studio. Indie studios can expand a little and reuse their engine, most mechanics, just use a different story & characters.

Yeah I don’t think small side projects inside the main studio is productive. Japan Studio was a mess because of that. They were completely unfocused.

I know it was an example, I just found interesting that it was Gow. I think it shows that the example was focused of the game itself rather then the idea to rejuvenate forgotten ips. If the logic was to booster an ip I don't think you've come up with indie god of war on switch to begin with. It seems... strange? I mean, I think that it didn't work at all with the idea
Japan Studio lacked direction, incubation projects and autonomous teams in multi project studios are a totally different story

 

[thicc_girls_are_teh_best]

Only bona fide hit in your list is GOW.

They should hire indie studios to work on their less popular IP and make it multi platform to negate risk.

For example Supergiant Games can basically use the Hades engine to make a cheap reskin retro GOW game. So people can play on the Switch and iPhone. ditto.

I kind of agree with you on them working with smaller 3P teams to take on those type of IP. Do something like Sega has with SoR4 and Sonic Mania, for example.

However I disagree they need to make them multiplatform to negate risk. More specifically, multi-console. I think some of those games would be made with mobile in mind but also available for PS consoles, maybe some as digital purchases, maybe even a few as inclusions into PS+ as Day 1 releases.

But what is necessarily the point in bringing those games to Switch or Xbox? I can't think of any. PS4/PS5/mobile would be enough and maybe do compilations for down-the-road releases on Steam or something like that.

Supporting SEGA back then might have helped having more arcade games today.

It would've (and I'd definitely prefer a market with them as a platform holder than one without), but it might have also helped if Sega didn't cannibalize themselves with idiotic business decisions that ate away at their core fanbase and customer confidence .

I wouldnt mind seeing Sony invest in games similar to these...

But seems this gen they are much more interested in cinematic western games.

I mean they kinda are still? They have at least three games now through the China Hero Project, hopefully they're doing something with Black Myth Wukong and (while not Chinese) DokeV.

Internally, supposedly Pixelpous is making some type of AAA platforming-style game (IIRC), we also need to see what Team Asobi (which still has a lot of Japan Studio alumni) is up to at some point. Sony have definitely scaled back on some of the quirkier style of non-cinematic games that would've been nice to see persist, that's for sure, but so have quite a lot of big Japanese and Western publishers, so I don't get why the derision is always seemingly directed at just Sony.

It's also not like they have 100% ditched those games to focus on just cinematic 3P action-adventure AAA games. They have Returnal, GT7, R&C: Rift Apart, Demon's Souls Remake (it doesn't fit the cinematic profile of something like a TLOU or Uncharted), Astro's Playroom etc. and that's all from just the past two years alone. Again, though, yes they could be doing more with some of the quirkier legacy IP or with a bit more genre variety.

I'd personally love a new Parappa/UmJammer, Tomba! and maybe a new Jet Moto expanding on that formula (maybe they can make it their type of arcade racer that doesn't have too much bleed-over into GT series since it's not using cars), either with partnered 3P studios or 1P teams. But I still acknowledge the games they make which aren't just GOWR, HFW etc.

 

[Killer8]

Not a Sony game, but a new Ridge Racer desperately needs made. Still cannot believe Namco broke the trend of making a RR for a PlayStation launch on PS4. Series has been essentially MIA for a decade.