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Who needs games: PlayStation 4's first year [EUROGAMER]

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none of the new systems have any must haves so far. it's not just ps4. difference is ps4 launched at a fair 399 price and runs multiplats better. deal with it.
 
right, but I think he was referring to 10 million units in the U.S. no 8th gen console yet has reached that milestone.

but here's the other thing.

we can all agree that sony was the winner of the 5th and 6th generation of consoles.

the answer is more tricky with the 7th gen. yes, the 360 was the first console to reach 10 million units, but eventually the Ps3 was able to match its sales worldwide; i dunno how many people bought the Ps3 in the U.S. i don't think there's a consensus as to who won the 7th gen.

Xbox has no chance at even being competitive in Europe.
 

twobear

sputum-flecked apoplexy
It's selling well because of the games. Look at how fast people dropped last gen consoles. Basically across the board you're seeing PS4 versions of games outsell last gen versions of the same game. The upgrade has been more than enough for them to just leave those old consoles behind.
I'm not denying that it's selling because of games, only that the games it's been selling because of are largely still available on PS3 and 360, or if they're exclusive they're not 'killer apps', traditionally construed.
 

Fafalada

Fafracer forever
SolidSnakex said:
It was worse if you start with the Japanese launch. If you start with the US launch then it had the best first year of any system ever.
Sure - but that's just moving goal-posts, ie. we could just restart the count from holiday 2014 onwards, and the new consoles will inevitably look nicer too.

Although the PS2 did have Ridge Racer V. So it had the best racing game of the group.
True - although in terms of mainstream appeal(ie. these kind of threads only care about system-selling potential of the library right?) PS4 launched with NFS:Rivals, which even Gaf seems to like (personally I thought it was awful, but nevermind that).
But yea I'd probably rate PS4 library way higher if they just put R5 HD on it :p
 

Data West

coaches in the WNBA
The shambles that is AC: Unity.

Remember me which score Eurogamer gave this game?

Considering Oli Welsh is the new Editor-in-Chief I would think he would have known better.

Says everything there is to say about a lot of games journalism.
 
Yep to everything in the article. I lined up for the midnight launch of the PS4 with a lot of optimism. Killzone was alright for a while, but the author nailed it with the "hollow" comment, at least for the single player. Ground Zeroes was over in a day. The only real meaningful experience I've had with the system in the past year has been Final Fantasy XIV, but I didn't need to buy a PS4 for that.

For the time being, I'm strikingly aware that, in stark contrast to how things looked in late 2013, I would have probably been happier had I just stuck with the Wii U - I could have just waited on the PS4 until the inevitable price cut and meaningful bundles. Here's hoping next year changes things; I'm holding out hope that Uncharted will be great and that the Deus Ex reveal will live up to Human Revolution's promise.

All that said, this article is about what it's about - the PS4's first year. I have little doubt that, like every Playstation before it, after 5 or 6 years I'll feel just fine about my purchase as long as the launch hardware holds up.
 
Can Second Son? May not be the popular consensus, but I enjoyed that a hell of a lot more than SO.

I've played and beat both. I enjoyed Second Son, but it isn't nearly as good as Sunset Overdrive, in my opinion. To me, Sunset Overdrive is the best exclusive on either platform by a far margin (given that TLOU:R is only a quasi exclusive, seeing as it was on PS3).

That being said, the Wii U actually kicks both of their asses for fantastic exclusives.
 

StevieP

Banned
how many times do i have to say this. yes I AGREE, but NOT EVERYONE WILL for reasons i've stated enough

There's nothing to agree on. Units sold = higher. There is nothing else to discuss.

This might be a little trollish to say but I feel like the Wii was just the Gamecube prolonging the 6th generation with a new interface & came in 2nd place to the PS2.

But on the other hand gameplay is more important than graphics so it's like the Wii started a new generation that Sony & MS joined 3 or 4 years later.

It was the highest selling console of the 7th generation regardless of its outdated CPU and GPU. We're getting into unrelated arguments here. The ps4 will take away this generation in the same way the wii took the previous generation (though likely with less units sold through).
 
Not to go all list wars, but I don't even really understand the sentiment.

If you discount games that have been announced on other platforms altogether, like people want to do when the discount the PS4 advantage the list of Xbox One exclusive games is:

Forza 5
Fighter Within
Killer Instinct
Kinect Sports Rivals
Sunset Overdrive
Shape Up
Crimson Dragon
Powerstar Golf
Xbox Fitness
Dance Central
D4
Voice Commander

That's it. Well, that totally screams quality at me, and I can totally see why people would be rushing out to buy a One for its exclusives.

Where's Eurogamer's article on how the Xbox One is selling really well in spite of having no games?
 
They explicitly said they're gonna write about its first year in a week.

And you really expect it to be positive?

It's not about it being positive or negative.

It's about the fact that the One fares no better than the PS4 in their narrative, and I bet "has no games" won't show up in the article at all.
 
I'm not denying that it's selling because of games, only that the games it's been selling because of are largely still available on PS3 and 360, or if they're exclusive they're not 'killer apps', traditionally construed.

That's usually a sign that people need to throw away their traditional conventions then. Exclusives are not king makers anymore.
 

onQ123

Member
There's nothing to agree on. Units sold = higher. There is nothing else to discuss.



It was the highest selling console of the 7th generation regardless of its outdated CPU and GPU. We're getting into unrelated arguments here. The ps4 will take away this generation in the same way the wii took the previous generation (though likely with less units sold through).

Not really about the power of the CPU/GPU it was the fact that it really was like a revise Gamecube with a new control interface & DVD drive.
 

Atomski

Member
I bought my Ps4 for console exclusives.. everything else I buy on PC. After getting bored of Destiny I feel like the library on Ps4 is severely lacking. only thing I look forward to is Bloodborne.

Outside of that I should have just stuck to the PC/WiiU combo.
 

MDX

Member
Huh? My Ps4 has enough games. I already have a backlog.


All these people who are saying they are having "backlogs" as proof of a console
having games must also consider it sounds like the games you have aren't interesting or
compelling enough for you to play and finish them.
 
Not really about the power of the CPU/GPU it was the fact that it really was like a revise Gamecube with a new control interface & DVD drive.

Yup it was repackaged gamecube with motion controls, it sold based on being a fad, just look at its successor, it's selling like shit, and it had the biggest jump in graphics. All in all, its nothing like the ps4 and it will only outsell ps3/360 by 10 million when it's all said and done, it never even established a brand that last more then one generation.
 

F-Pina

Member
Are you kidding me?
I have been playing games on PS4 since I bought it in March. Always had something to play, from AAA to indies.
 

NastyBook

Member
jkutts.gif
Should've been first post.
 

Sorral

Member
All these people who are saying they are having "backlogs" as proof of a console
having games must also consider it sounds like the games you have aren't interesting or
compelling enough for you to play and finish them.

Or perhaps they don't have the time to play them all and have to choose which to play first...
 

mugwhump

Member
More and more the the slow realization will set in that obviously the stuff the mass market cares about is not the stuff that individual enthusiasts that are mad at the success care about.

I wonder why that is, given the access people had for sales figures for so many years.

Has been obvious since the Dreamcast died

RIP ;_;
 

StevieP

Banned
Not really about the power of the CPU/GPU it was the fact that it really was like a revise Gamecube with a new control interface & DVD drive.

It was a new system that took the generation. Theres no real need to discuss it further in this thread about the ps4 or to attempt to downplay its victory. It already happened. It's in the past. The goalposts don't need to be moved anymore. Just as goalposts shouldn't be moved that the ps4 will have this generation
 
The writer mentioned that they are doing a similar report for Xbone. Wonder how that will go.

Pretty disappointed inFamous isn't mentioned in the article. I mean it's probably the best first party game Sony has, but instead the writer just focuses on three other ones with poor reception. Biased much?
 

Inuhanyou

Believes Dragon Quest is a franchise managed by Sony
Uh....the PS4 has many more games than Xbox One...so why isn't this about Xbox One? Because they have 2 or 3 more AAA titles?
 
There's nothing to agree on. Units sold = higher. There is nothing else to discuss.



It was the highest selling console of the 7th generation regardless of its outdated CPU and GPU. We're getting into unrelated arguments here. The ps4 will take away this generation in the same way the wii took the previous generation (though likely with less units sold through).

the whole world will agree that the ps1 and 2 were the kinds of the 5th and 6th gens, respectively.

can you get them to agree on that for the wii and the 7th gen?

there's a (more than a few) reason(s) why the wii u has been lukewarm in sales and responses.
 

farmerboy

Member
I find this narrative of no games really disappointing, especially so because I don't see anything on the other side of the fence that screams "more games".

Regardless, it seems to be a narrative that is gaining some traction. I think this now puts the focus on the PS Experience in Dec, as that event can hopefully erode some of the traction that this "no games" bullshit has been getting. The right message from that event can hopefully set up a great holiday period for Sony and reinvigorate their marketing for 2015.

Uncharted 4 gameplay that melts eyes and all is forgiven.
 
No better time than now to hop on the Wii U train!

OT, I feel if you're gonna level this criticism at PS4 you have to level the same if not harsher criticism at the XBO. While neither console's stable of exclusives is particularly good at this point, Sony objectively has a wider range and on average higher rated content and generally has the better performing version of multiplatform titles. On top of that the console itself is cheaper, MS's parity clause is visibly hampering their digital/indie games front, and even though I likely won't get one for a while PS4's upcoming library has way more titles both current and upcoming that I'm interested in. About the only 2 things I find the XBO has going for it atm are MCC (which doesn't even work terribly well apparently) and Sunset Overdrive (legit) - I'm not into racing sim's so Forza is out too.
 
This might be a little trollish to say but I feel like the Wii was just the Gamecube prolonging the 6th generation with a new interface & came in 2nd place to the PS2.

But on the other hand gameplay is more important than graphics so it's like the Wii started a new generation that Sony & MS joined 3 or 4 years later.

that's a good way of putting it.
 

Rymuth

Member
All these people who are saying they are having "backlogs" as proof of a console
having games must also consider it sounds like the games you have aren't interesting or
compelling enough for you to play and finish them.
Or they could be slow-ass in finishing them.
 

Melchiah

Member
For me it's been a decent year for ps4 exclusives, they appealed to me more than the xbone's, which is why I didn't get an xbone until last week.

Knack on Hard + 2 player co-op was tons of fun. On that difficulty, it was like a Lego game that requires more skill (and had some good boss fights as well), had deeper combat mechanics than expected. Really underrated game, I feel if they hadn't released it at launch it may have reviewed a little better.

Resogun was solid, and it was free with PS Plus.

KZ SF MP was fun, couldn't get through the SP though the graphics were gorgeous.

inFAMOUS Second Son - good, only the side missions were weak imo. The main story missions, the actual gameplay (powers, combat, traversal), the graphics, the music all lead to a good game.

The Last Of Us Remastered - Better version of one of the best games last gen, yes please.

Driveclub - Okay. I was mainly interested in playing this game offline and am not a big fan of open world racers. Like the gameplay, like the graphics environments daynight cycles etc. Sucks that they made certain cars unlockable only via clubs, so even though I want to play offline, the online problems they are having actually affect my experience with the game. Otherwise it would've been good. Due to free ongoing support my opinion could change.

These are just the exclusive that interested me, there are other exclusive games I didn't mention simply because this is my list of exclusive games that I liked in the first year of the ps4 Seems like a solid list to me.

Huh? I've been able unlock the club cars just fine.
 

orochi91

Member
Consoles launching a year before they're "ready" is par for the course, really. I'd say the current PS4/XB1 libraries are, at worst, slightly worse than the the PS2/PS3/XB/360 libraries were one year after launch. In particular the PS2 had nothing good until Ico, which released 16 months after the Japanese launch.

Fair points.

I suppose instant gratification is what I'm looking for.

The perils of adopting early :3

Uh....the PS4 has many more games than Xbox One...so why isn't this about Xbox One? Because they have 2 or 3 more AAA titles?

"PLAYSTATION HAS NO GAMES" is a holdover from past gen.

Give it time; by the end of 2015 that moniker will be pretty rare.
 
Uh....the PS4 has many more games than Xbox One...so why isn't this about Xbox One? Because they have 2 or 3 more AAA titles?

Pretty much. It's baffling to me that after last generation's training people still seem to have this mentality that only games that come in a box justify a system.
 

Mooreberg

is sharpening a shovel and digging a ditch
PS4 must be the first platform in history that has no games, but still somehow moves more software than competing systems. Are they that oblivious to how much bigger multiplatform games have become over the last six years? It is hard to say how they regained favor of third party publishers in what seems like record timing, but I'd guess it is just a combination of how badly the Xbox One was presented, and how overly long the previous hardware cycle was. People were and continue to be ready to move on, and Microsoft did not provide the most attractive option this time.
 

StevieP

Banned
the whole world will agree that the ps1 and 2 were the kinds of the 5th and 6th gens, respectively.

can you get them to agree on that for the wii and the 7th gen?

there's a (more than a few) reason(s) why the wii u has been lukewarm in sales and responses.

It doesn't matter what salty hardcore gamers and gaming journalist man children think. Sales numbers matter. That's it.
 
I really did not expect this article to spark such argument, it seems pretty straightforward. The PS4 is winning and will win, but it's first year was awful. "Wait" was the key term in "greatness awaits," and there's a reason it's "Soony." It's a perpetual waiting game.

But everyone crying "indies!" or "uh, Infamous!!" is missing the point. It has nothing to do with whether software of any kind can actually be run on the machine. It has to do with games that make people feel: wow, this is next-gen, this is a new experience, I NEED to upgrade to experience this. A common refrain so far is everything has been "more of the same" and I think that's true on PS4.

2015 will probably be great for the console. The games will finally start coming, and by "games" I mean the games that give a good reason to hop into next-gen gaming. But Sony fans should be happy. Sony managed to repeat the strategy of PS2, which is to win purely on promise and hype alone. The console is selling, now it's time for the promises to be delivered. It's time for "greatness awaits" to become "greatness is here."
 
PS4 must be the first platform in history that has no games, but still somehow moves more software than competing systems. Are they that oblivious to how much bigger multiplatform games have become over the last six years? It is hard to say how they regained favor of third party publishers in what seems like record timing, but I'd guess it is just a combination of how badly the Xbox One was presented, and how overly long the previous hardware cycle was. People were and continue to be ready to move on, and Microsoft did not provide the most attractive option this time.

Yup. People who say that are just showing how out of touch they are. Third party games are driving the industry right now. Its about giving gamers the most comfortable/convenient place to play them. MS did that last gen. Sony was (or has, at least so far) able to do that this generation. Things that "hardcore" gamers overlook, like how big game streaming and has become and Sony is leading the way in that, like how getting free games every month via Plus (another thing Sony led on) have been really appealing to the average consumer yet people on places like GAF and more hardcore sites seem completely oblivious to it. Whenever I talk to people who I would consider more "casual" about games, they bring up is how on PS4 you can get free games and you can stream yourself playing and watch other people play. Granted you can do that stuff on XBone too, but it's all about perception, and the perception is that Sony does that stuff first/better.
 

Majmun

Member
All these people who are saying they are having "backlogs" as proof of a console
having games must also consider it sounds like the games you have aren't interesting or
compelling enough for you to play and finish them.

I have a fulltime job and a gf. And I also play a lot on my 3DS and Vita. Can't really game all day. Even if I wanted to. :(

My current Ps4 backlog (games I've bought but haven't finished yet)

The Evil Within (currently playing next to my FIFA 15 and PES2015 sessions)
Wolfenstein
Transistor
Lords of the Fallen

And I already preordered GTA V and Far Cry 4 as well. The Ps4 has more than enough games for me. But I don't have enough time to play them all.
 

kungfuian

Member
The fact that this article even exists points to a much larger problem within the games media. It's obvious to anyone who regularly keeps up with games news that these outlets, and the games media in general, absolutely must have controversy to survive.

This article is just another blatant attempt at creating/maintaining the console war narrative they feed on; because everyone knows a neck in race is much more fun to watch than a one sided one.

Even more insulting is how it relies on the myopic instant appeal nature of the gaming community (for example having a good game now is better than having good games all year) and passes off blatant one sided opinion as fact. It's complete and utter click bait garbage like 99% of all gaming 'news' opinion pieces that came before it.

If I were a mod I might consider this an almost site ban-able level of reporting, despicable.
 
So that article is implying that PS4 has no games. Meanwhile, I've been swimming in them ever since August and come Tuesday I'll be drowning.
I think it really depends upon what level of complexity you're looking for. Killzone was underwhelming for me mostly because in order to enjoy the FPS genre, the game has to be excellent in some way and KZ:SF just wasn't. Infamous was like every other Infamous for me - they're fun but I've never finished one. Destiny didn't turn out to be the game I was hoping it would be.

One thing though - I went back to playing ME2 and ME3 on PS3 and good lord, the number of system freezing glitches is reminding me that I haven't had anything like that on PS4...so I guess the 'stability' updates have been working.
 
All these people who are saying they are having "backlogs" as proof of a console
having games must also consider it sounds like the games you have aren't interesting or
compelling enough for you to play and finish them.

Or it could just mean that people have lives outside of playing video games. Wtf? Who interpret things like that
 

Raziel

Member
It is the greatest question of our time: If PS4 games top the software charts every month, but no games media is around to see it, do the games still exist?
 

sploatee

formerly Oynox Slider
Wow. The internet, eh! From disagreement to rage to conspiracy in the blink of an eye. :D

I think I've felt this way recently and the article really sums it up. It's a well-written and fairly accurate article, imo.

Maybe I'm too old for this, but I don't understand how you can get so angry about the article. Is it because you can only afford one console, so you have to defend it for fear of regretting your purchase? That's probably a bit facile, I know, but it just seems bizarre to me. That's how it was in my day lol - way back when I had a Megadrive which was better than the SNES because the SNES was for kiddy games.

For what it's worth...(and I think I've said this a couple of times today)...

I bought my PS4 over the launch weekend (well, my fiancée did), mainly for Resogun, which is still brilliant, and for Killzone Shadow Fall (I loved Mercenary on the Vita).

I think if you have somewhere else to play the indies (e.g. a Vita), there's only really one or two outstanding games on the PS4. It's all a matter of taste, I know, but aside from TLOU I don't think the exclusives have been that good. Infamous is shallow, repetitive and I think GAF overrates it massively. Killzone was - exactly as the writer says - hollow. Knack was truly dreadful - probably the worst AAA game I've played in a long, long time.

All of the games I've really enjoyed I could've played elsewhere - and I don't see anything on the Xbox or PS4 which really feels like an advancement from the last generation. It might be a bit sharper, but it's still 30fps. It might have a speaker in the controller and a pointless lightbar, but it's still the same old thing.

I was caught up in the hype and have had some fun with the machine. But recently I'm looking over at the Xbox lineup and feeling a bit jealous of Titanfall and the MCC.

This doesn't mean I hate Sony (they're a corporation, not a person and I don't really care about them on an emotional level) or the PS4. It just means that it's been a pretty dry year for both consoles. 2015 will probably see the PS4 come into its own and develop an identity outside of running last gen games with slightly prettier graphics.

I've been around the block a few times - it's just a fallow year. It happens.

And, just to finish off, 2014 has really been the year of the Wii U. It's insane how good the lineup is on that machine.
 
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