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[TimeEffect]

So is MS saying the only way to have Cross Play on X1 is if the PC version is on the Windows Store because MS simply prefer it that way?

OR, is there some Microsoft infrastructure thing holding Stream and X1 games from playing together?

Just seems like Microsoft want their own Windows version of the game, instead of allowing cross play with stream...They have always been very hard headed with this...

If I remember, it has to be a Windows game on PC. But this means making multiple PC versions which Psyonix wont do.

 

[JohnnyWestlake]

So is MS saying the only way to have Cross Play on X1 is if the PC version is on the Windows Store because MS simply prefer it that way?

OR, is there some Microsoft infrastructure thing holding Stream and X1 games from playing together?

Just seems like Microsoft want their own Windows version of the game, instead of allowing cross play with stream...They have always been very hard headed with this...

I suppose the UWP model makes it more difficult for hackers on the PC to get involved, which is good for the X1 community who by and large don't have to deal with such things. Ergo, allowing UWP Win 10 apps Xbox Live crossplay access is good, whereas offering it to every other game... not good - introduces the heightened chance to compromise the experience for the console playerbase.

So Microsoft probably intentionally choose to limit to UWP / WinStore only.

 

[Joni]

Maybe - yet the lack of big new IP speaks for itself IMO

The lack of new ip at the end of the last three generations does as well. But just look at ubisoft. They did watch dogs, the crew and if it didnt get delayed the division. Publishers are just even more risk averse, they aren't holding them back for the end of the generation, they are straight up making less of them. EA isn't going to hype something else like titanfall or Activision like Destiny. They have started it and now they switch into sequel mode.

 

[hawk2025]

Word of mouth must have exploded because of PS+. I assume they would have simply had a slower build up if not for PS+, but I dont imagine them having the fast success they have now. It feels like PS+ helped them capitalize on the momentum at great speed.

You have a friend who downloads it and loves it. He pesters his friend to try out this new indie game that he would otherwise not even look at. He gets hooked too. It snowballs.

PS+ removes the barrier of making a purchase and since online gamers need it, it becomes that much easier to download.

And that's all they need. The chance to get it into people's hands. Way too much skepticism by people who see Rocket League as another indie downloadable. And for good reason. There are a lot of indie games that are fun for like 5 minutes. No way would people put down $15 like that in my opinion.

I also could have sworn that Sony had to pay a little more for Rocket League, but that could very well be me being mistaken. I dont think it was originally supposed to be a PS+ game, was it?

In any case, I hope Psyonix is happy with the end result and that they can continue the momentum. Retail is perfect especially for certain regions and countries.

I am hoping one day we see awesome licensing for the Simpsons, Futurama, Star Wars, whatever.

Not a mistake at all, Psyonix almost backed down from the PS+ deal, but Sony supposedly sweetened the pot some more.

A lot of this discussion forgets that Rocket League constantly tops the PS DLC charts with *multiple* packs. These PS+ people are likely buying DLC as well.

Seems like they will strike at just the right time woth the retail release, too, which was very important for Minecraft for example.

 

[Cess007]

I still remember people in the PS Plus games of the month thread complaining that Rocket League looked stupid and bad.

Oh how wrong they were.

There hasn't been a month were i don't remind one of my friends the shit he talked about Rocket League when it was announced as one of the 'free' PS+ games

 

[Slixshot]

To think how big of a difference a name can make. SSARBC was just such a turn off

 

[Z3M0G]

To think how big of a difference a name can make. SSARBC was just such a turn off

Crazy indeed... this exact same game existed last gen and nobody cared. There is more to it though... PS+ and youtubers took it to a whole other level.

 

[Ardenyal]

Here's what they've said about that

It would have been a success to the extent of their expectation that the game would never have over 10k players playing concurrently. The game still has over 100k players most nights thanks to the hype PS+ brought.

 

[Aostia]

Impressive

 

[dmix90]

My one and only platinum trophy. GOTY 2015 on ps4 and now i am back to playing almost everyday on pc :O
This game is pure joy and so much fun to play even on the same maps. Simple rules with deep gameplay mechanics are the best. Ranked ftw.

Wow!

 

[_machine]

Maybe - yet the lack of big new IP speaks for itself IMO

Watch_Dogs, Destiny and Titanfall?

All the 3 big publishers had one new IP at the crossing of generations. They very much understand the value of introducing a new IP at the start of the generation, but with development requiring more and more resources and becoming technically more of a risk, it's not a surprise that they have mostly limited it to just a few.

 

[TimeEffect]

Not a mistake at all, Psyonix almost backed down from the PS+ deal, but Sony supposedly sweetened the pot some more.

A lot of this discussion forgets that Rocket League constantly tops the PS DLC charts with *multiple* packs. These PS+ people are likely buying DLC as well.

Seems like they will strike at just the right time woth the retail release, too, which was very important for Minecraft for example.

I know Im certainly buying dlc

I think the beta was the real first sign that this was going to be big

I think without ps+, psyonix would have probably prioritized making a demo for pc and ps4. Sony must have seen that the beta was huge

I think a demo is still planned, but it got pushed back

 

[SolidSnakex]

It would have been a success to the extent of their expectation that the game would never have over 10k players playing concurrently. The game still has over 100k players most nights thanks to the hype PS+ brought.

In another interview they said that their expectations were for it to sell a couple hundred thousand units.

 

[DavidDesu]

If I'd had to have paid £15 for this on release I doubt I'd have ever played it. It looked kinda fun but also, without really getting hands on with it it was an easy game to dismiss. There's lots of games that look like they could and should be fun, and aren't.

PS+ undoubtedly played a huge part in the success of this. Sure they would have lost some definite sales, but I think, like me, most of those people have at least bought a DLC pack or two as compensation, or bought on PC as well. For each lost sale though the hype created has undoubtedly sold several more copies. Games like this do not shift 10 million copies, never mind 4 million at full price like this has.

 

[whoszed]

Crazy indeed... this exact same game existed last gen and nobody cared. There is more to it though... PS+ and youtubers took it to a whole other level.

Same idea? Sure. Exactly the same game? Not at all. Rocket League is much, much better executed and polished. The ball cam is awful in SSRPBC

 

[khaaan]

I got the game via PS+ and then eventually re-bought it for PC. I know I'm not necessarily representative of the masses, but it happened.

Spoiler

I think I've played a combined total of less than 10 hours. I got it to play with my friends but for whatever reason the game really clicked with them and they were miles ahead of me before I was ready to play. I want to play but I'm pretty sure everyone else is already so much better than me, plus I have wins where my friends carried me through matches so I'm going to get stomped

 

[BumRush]

No matter what time of day, you can get a game on PS in a minute or less. It's uncanny. I assumed there was a good number of unique players but 10 million plus is awesome.

 

[Lister]

No matter what time of day, you can get a game on PS in a minute or less. It's uncanny. I assumed there was a good number of unique players but 10 million plus is awesome.

Well 10 million people tried it atleast, that doesn't mean there are 10 million still playing it, same on PC. 2.7+ million sales, but I know I'm no longer playing it.

Still the active fanbase is pretty huge, specially for a non AAA game.

 

[Lan Dong Mik]

Happy for every single person involved in creating this game. It's one of the greatest indie games ever made imo. I still play it all the time.

 

[Gator86]

Deserves every sale

Yup, just a stellar game.

 

[Joni]

No matter what time of day, you can get a game on PS in a minute or less. It's uncanny. I assumed there was a good number of unique players but 10 million plus is awesome.

The game is crossplatform as well, so you might be seeing PC gamers as well.

 

[MikeyB]

And that is why great PS4 games with widespread appeal are generally not on PS+. It may be shortsighted, it may be simplistic, but with PS + being mandatory for online play and thus having great coverage of the user base, you're giving away your game to a huge audience this gen.

It looks terrible unless you have metrics on how a big initial install base creates more customers later.

 

[muzzymate]

Just bought the Xbox One version last night. Had a blast. Looking forward to more.

 

[Roddslayer]

What a success! It's one of my favorite games of all time so I'm glad to hear they're getting rewarded for such a creation.

 

[msdstc]

PSplus was the best thing that could happen to this game. So many people learned of this game through plus, and on top of that I'm sure it has seen a big jump in the numbers regarding DLC.

 

[Maintenance]

Amazing game, just got back recently and I'm hooked like I was day one. Going through ranked this time, shit's intense.

 

[MUnited83]

Well 10 million people tried it atleast, that doesn't mean there are 10 million still playing it, same on PC. 2.7+ million sales, but I know I'm no longer playing it.

Still the active fanbase is pretty huge, specially for a non AAA game.

SteamSpy tracks unique players as well. Around 1.1 million users have played the game in the last 2 weeks.

 

[RoKKeR]

Congrats to them, really is a wonderful game. Happy to finally play it on XB1 last week.

 

[Seven4sses]

I should buy this game. I bought the soundtrack alone after hearing the Xbox announcement trailer and the music drew me in. Mike Ault made some great tunes for this game, that's for sure. My favorites are Darkness, Lacuna, and Angel Wings.

 

[WorthlessBums]

Turns out making your own sport can be super lucrative xD

 

[Oddvintagechap]

I wanted to kick xbox butt now i only get to kick pc master race butt

 

[Daffy Duck]

Wow, that's amazing. Game is a lot of fun.

How does PS+/GWG stuff work? Do Sony/MS pay a huge lump sum to the dev to get the game on that to compensate 'lost' sales?

 

[Corpekata]

Wow, that's amazing. Game is a lot of fun.

How does PS+/GWG stuff work? Do Sony/MS pay a huge lump sum to the dev to get the game on that to compensate 'lost' sales?

Don't think anyone's ever really said, seems to be NDA'ed pretty heavily.

Article on Gamasutra about it http://gamedeveloper.com/view/feature/191966/playstation_plus_good_for_.php?print=1

Only real comment is someone from Avalanche, who saw no money for putting Just Cause 2 on it, but they presume Square got paid for it.

Reading around it looks like it's a case by case basis probably. Think there's speculation it's just a lump sum or by the download, but no one has commented clearly on it.

 

[Chola]

sony pays for the publisher for putting their game on PS+ right

 

[Hoo-doo]

I don't think this would have been anywhere near as succesful without the initial PS+ mindshare. This is simply a game that needs to be played to understand what it's all about and the word of mouth will do the rest.

Congrats, Psyonix!

 

[Greg_le_Casual]

As a side effect, does it mean that many publisher will BEG Sony to put their game for free on the PS+ program at launch ?

"Our game plays fantastic, let's ask it's a PS+ freebuy to get attention !"

Yes please.

 

[SolidusDave]

So in other words, 6 million PS+ subscribers added RL to their library.

Do we have an idea of the total number of PS+ subscribers (and how many own a PS4)? I wonder how many don't bother with the monthly games / don't purchase them all.


I also wonder how much they get per PS+ copy, I would guess a game releasing on PS+ for its initial release can get a higher compensation that some old-ass game.
Went fine for them considering it still sold over one million regular copies on PS4. That million alone probably generates enough profit for that kind of game even without counting the PC sales on top.

 

[Zepp Twofist]

The only way they could do an XB1 + PC crossplay, is if they put it up on the Windows Store, but obviously they don't want to fragment their PC users.

So basically Windows Store is more or less a software console at this point, and isn't really the same as PC gaming in general. I wonder who comes up with this shit at MS.

 

[Lylo]

These guys deserve the success, but i think the betas were as important for the game success as PS+, the word of mouth was very strong. I for one, couldn't stop recommending my friends to try the game.

 

[LukasTaves]

So is MS saying the only way to have Cross Play on X1 is if the PC version is on the Windows Store because MS simply prefer it that way?

OR, is there some Microsoft infrastructure thing holding Stream and X1 games from playing together?

Just seems like Microsoft want their own Windows version of the game, instead of allowing cross play with stream...They have always been very hard headed with this...

For cross play with xbone Ms requires to use the live toolset, which currently they are only giving access to win store developers, so yeah that's by their design, they want cross play to be a thing, but only for their platform.

 

[clay_ghost]

It's a OK game but not really my cup of tea. I can see why people like it, I like spamming good save or something similar when I myself miss a save. Haha.

 

[Raldoh]

Started playing it yesterday on X1, instantly put a smile on my face in a way that no other game has done since I was a kid. The controls are very intuitive and the objective is dead simple, but the physics of the game creates a lot of depth simultaneously. Splitscreen co-op seals the deal.

Gave the controllers to my adult sisters who rarely play videogames without any instructions. They had an absolute blast within a minute. That says a lot.

 

[woen]

It's a great couch game, simple mechanics but hard to master them, lots of fun instantaneously. Deserved and I'd like to see what they'll do next (sequel? another sports game?)

 

[Cormano]

Probably the greatest football game of all time.

 

[Agent X]

A lot of this discussion forgets that Rocket League constantly tops the PS DLC charts with *multiple* packs. These PS+ people are likely buying DLC as well.

That's a good point. I got Rocket League through PlayStation Plus, and have greatly enjoyed the game. As a result, I have purchased 3 of the DLC packs that they've released.

 

[mckmas8808]

And to think that the original game didn't do so hot on PS3.

It's amazing how important a good name is

Isn't the game actually better too?

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

Isn't the game actually better too?

Yes. It's more memorable, and gets straight to the point.

 

[Darth Smurf X]

That's a good point. I got Rocket League through PlayStation Plus, and have greatly enjoyed the game. As a result, I have purchased 3 of the DLC packs that they've released.

I've purchased almost all of the DLC for Rocket League even though I barely use most of it, just to support the devs since I got the game for free. The only one I haven't purchased has a trophy that looks nearly impossible to get, so I have avoided it thus far.

 

[U2NUMB]

We were saying for nearly 20 years that the magic combo of cars and soccer was not being tapped...

Congrats and well deserved.. I am responsible for 3 of those copies on 3 platforms, zero regrets.

 

[mckmas8808]

To think how big of a difference a name can make. SSARBC was just such a turn off

Except that game scored a 67 on Metacritic. Rocket League has a 85 on Metacritic. Clearly SSARBC wasn't as good of a game.