Episode 722: Off the Rails

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Podcast notes:

  • Sony backs down on demand that Helldivers 2 players log into a PSN account
  • Microsoft announces Xbox Games Showcase and mystery Direct for June 2024
  • EU rules iPadOS must comply with Digital Markets Act, opening door for Fortnite
  • Hades 2’s surprise early access release already has more stuff in it than the first game
  • Square Enix announces it’s tanked $140 million in losses due to “content abandonment”

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Episode 646: Late April Fool’sEpisode 646: Late April Fool’s

[This episode has been re-uploaded due to technical issues]

This week’s episode deals with the fact it was published on April Fool’s Fool’s Day, and discussion of the games that have been floating the hosts’ boats. This week’s Gaming Flashback is the magnum opus of Telltale Games: The Walking Dead. The guys also discuss the upcoming Kingdom Hearts 4 and whether anyone cares about it.

The news includes:

  • Digital games on PS3 and Vita are reportedly “expiring” and becoming unplayable
  • Ubisoft ends its NFT experiment in Ghost Recon Breakpoint
  • Konami details eFootball 2022 v1.0 update due next week
  • Blue Box: Abandoned has not been canceled

Let us know what you think.

Rock and a Hard Place: Sony’s Japanese DilemmaRock and a Hard Place: Sony’s Japanese Dilemma

What a dilemma it is, Sony’s PlayStation 3 isn’t as hot as the Nintendo Wii in Japan. Even the Xbox 360 has had some minor success stories in Japan while Sony sits back saying “wtf?”

President, SCE Worldwide Studios, Shuhei Yoshida is pointing the finger at the publishers saying, “What’s happening is that lack of support from the Japanese publishers – not necessarily from intentions but from development capabilities.” (kotaku) Why, though, would publishers push to produce games on the console that’s currently losing market share?

Sony’s position is very tough to deal with because they’re not market leader so publishers are looking for the biggest bang for their proverbial “buck” and that’s not the PS3 right now. You can produce an expensive game for an expensive console or a cheaper game for a cheaper console and make more money.

How, then, can Sony get out of this situation? They must find a way to promote an incentive for publishers to create Sony exclusives or, at least, a Sony “port” of a game to build up their library of must-have titles. Perhaps Sony’s punishment at the hands of Nintendo and Microsoft in the States has a bit to do with their global marketplace issues — they need to put a concerted effort into one of their regions and champion themselves in one realm before trying for all of them. Right now, they’re a watered down expensive console with very few exclusive titles.

Metal Gear Sold 4, Home and Little Big Planet are great reasons to own a PlayStation 3 if the price was a bit more reasonable. Looking at the future, we’ve got Resistance 2 and a few other titles that may make some waves in the industry, at least in the United States, but it’s going to be an uphill battle in which they are the second best this time.

It’s always easy when you’re on the top. PlayStation 3 is not on the top so it’s time to start struggling, cutting prices or enticing publishers to build good exclusive titles.

Gaming Podcast 129: My WalkmanGaming Podcast 129: My Walkman

This week is full of crazy energy. We seem to have gone 100% Sony on news chatter but we level that out with some great community feedback about our question of the week. We hit a little Burgertime action in our gaming flashback and bust through some Data East company history.

  • podcast-200x200Analyst says Sony Motion Control beats MS Natal
  • Sony dropping the PS3 price?
  • EA heading for a takeover?
  • Sony backing Home
  • Sony making a PSP Phone?
  • Sony Exclusives not anything great

This week we’re asking the question, what is your favorite end-boss in a video game from todays games to the past classics?