2023. Are you excited?

[Majora]

12 minutes ago, Oh Danny Boy said:

Might be also down to Nintendo still charging the same they did 6 years ago! It’s ridiculous that they expect £300 for six year old tech, sure it’s been selling so well that they haven’t changed it but they must be making lots of coin on each unit sold at this point. A simple price drop by at least a £100 would easily drive sales back up. 

 

Depends whether they think the increase in sales would offset the £100 price drop on each unit. I'm not sure it would to be honest, I think it's just the case that the Switch is reaching saturation point. It's sold 114 million units and is still expected to sell 19 million units during the current financial year. That's still an astonishingly high number for a 6 year old console. 

 

By the time the Switch stops selling it won't be a million miles away from the DS and PS2, numbers I don't think anyone really thought we'd ever see again in the console space.

[Popo]

Is anyone crying out for a new Nintendo console? I’ve still got stacks of unplayed games, and the thing still feels as fresh as a daisy. 

[Broker]

AAA wise it’s looking like a really exciting year. Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Starfield, Final Fantasy XVI, Dead Space, Resident Evil 4 and Silent Hill 2 are all must buys for me.

[stir fry]

22 minutes ago, Popo said:

Is anyone crying out for a new Nintendo console? I’ve still got stacks of unplayed games, and the thing still feels as fresh as a daisy. 

I want one so I can actually see wtf is going on in Bayonetta 3

[JPL]

27 minutes ago, Popo said:

Is anyone crying out for a new Nintendo console? I’ve still got stacks of unplayed games, and the thing still feels as fresh as a daisy. 

I’d love one. My original Switch got destroyed by my boys, so I’d need a new one to play Zelda. I just don’t fancy spending £280 for an ancient console for one game.

[gospvg]

I'm interested in how Starfield turns out and if it can tempt me to buy an xbox console otherwise I will most likely be playing games released in 2022. I don't buy that many games on release, I have more than enough to enjoy on my playlist which I will probably never finish.

[Stanley]

2 hours ago, Broker said:

AAA wise it’s looking like a really exciting year. Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Starfield, Final Fantasy XVI, Dead Space, Resident Evil 4 and Silent Hill 2 are all must buys for me.

Is Silent Hill 2 getting a remake? 

[Stanley]

2 hours ago, Popo said:

Is anyone crying out for a new Nintendo console? I’ve still got stacks of unplayed games, and the thing still feels as fresh as a daisy. 

I think now the issue isn’t with Nintendo games, which generally look fantastic, but in enticing more third party ports over. Realistically I think they’ll get another 12-18 months out of the Switch though. 

[Broker]

6 hours ago, Popo said:

Is anyone crying out for a new Nintendo console? I’ve still got stacks of unplayed games, and the thing still feels as fresh as a daisy. 

BOTW had some nasty framerate drops and it’s a launch game. I’m mildly concerned about how TOTK is going to run. 

 

4 hours ago, Stanley said:

Is Silent Hill 2 getting a remake? 

 

 

[fat flatulent git]

22 hours ago, Majora said:

 

Depends whether they think the increase in sales would offset the £100 price drop on each unit. I'm not sure it would to be honest, I think it's just the case that the Switch is reaching saturation point. It's sold 114 million units and is still expected to sell 19 million units during the current financial year. That's still an astonishingly high number for a 6 year old console. 

 

By the time the Switch stops selling it won't be a million miles away from the DS and PS2, numbers I don't think anyone really thought we'd ever see again in the console space.

 

It's also permanently sold out here in Japan.  My local Bic Camera and Yamada Denki never have any models in stock at all.  I've seen PS5s and Series S more recently than Switches.

[bumgut]

On 08/11/2022 at 14:34, Nick R said:

I'm looking forward to four games next year:

 

Street Fighter 6 on PC

Street Fighter 6 on PS4

Street Fighter 6 on PS5

Street Fighter 6 on Xbox Series X/S

 

Who knows? I might even upgrade my PC or get one of those four consoles in order to actually play it.

 

4 great choices there, a little something for everyone.

 

[James Lyon]

2023 is definitely the year Half Life 3 gets announced and released. Built in secret by Valve as a Steamdeck 2 exclusive.

[HarryBizzle]

My interest in gaming has taken a bit of a dive recently. Not much on that list makes me sit up and take notice. Was Avowed not 2023? That looks interesting.

 

I will probably buy another Switch to play BOTW2 and hope I love it as much as I did the first.

[Escape]

On 09/11/2022 at 04:44, MattyP said:

For me the perfect form and design of a console for a room and which blends in most is the Series S it's just so dinky and minimalist.

 

There's been a lot of talk about learning to love the PS5, but that's been the story of the S for me. I liked it when I got it, and have since grown to think it's a future classic alongside its pal the PS1. My desk accommodates my PS5 as a corner unit, where it blends in as much as possible, but it's still a big old slab.

 

I don't hate it, I just think it's one of the worst console designs.

 

On 09/11/2022 at 11:03, dumpster said:

The problem has become that video games are no longer aimed at you.

 

These new acts are fine.... It's me that's wrong.

 

All we have to look forward to is the same stuff again, better graphics maybe, better frame rates maybe...  But it's all been done.

 

I disagree with this in particular, and think it ties in with your other lines. Back around 1990 I'd be amazed by games and say “This is great, imagine how cool games'll be in a few years' time”. And sure enough, I repeated myself when DOOM hit, and then Gran Turismo...

 

We've had a million discussions on Moore's law, but towards the end of the '90s I was routinely less impressed by graphics than parallel advancements. GTA3's largely unheralded scope, say. I feel that that side of evolution's diminished more than graphics, leaving tons of potential on the table as lengthening dev cycles discourage exploration and commercial risk.

 

(Most PS1 games veered towards ugly at launch, but what an explosion of ideas.)

 

In more recent times we've seen a huge shift of focus towards younger gamers, with lootboxes, GaaS, game-extracted DLC and other forms of monetisation. Agreed. But when you say it's all been done before, I think it's actually the case that the industry's consciously moving away from us less lucrative older gamers, rather than vice versa, as alongside a greater aversion to monetisation our craving for untapped brilliance represents a tougher market.

 

Easier-to-please newcomers have proven their reliability at this point, with all sense of gaming as a volatile investment a remnant of our history in a land since Wetherspooned. I wish some of the big companies'd collaborate with indies, providing them resources gratis for original games without creative meddling. Microsoft are in a good position to supply talent on a one-game basis to successful applicants.

 

I just feel like my favourite genres were peaking in the '00s before being led astray by crafting, grind and profit mechanics. skinnerchildren.gif

 

Says him who's probably buying Street Fighter 6 and Tekken 8.

[Treble]

On 09/11/2022 at 20:31, Broker said:

BOTW had some nasty framerate drops and it’s a launch game. I’m mildly concerned about how TOTK is going to run. 

 

 

 

 

Me too, although I did hear it's being developed with the tech created by... someone? Forgotten who, but it's either the Xenoblade lot or the Fire Emblem lot, I think? One of the dev teams that manages to make the Switch not look like an old Nokia, anyway. 

[mushashi]

On 08/11/2022 at 14:56, sammy said:

I’m wondering if this Xbox streaming stick will see a release next year, I’d be up for checking out Game Pass on it if so.

 

 

 

They cancelled it in favour of other ways to get you to use XGP.

 

That list is so utterly dominated by existing brand extensions, with the exception of Bethesda's 2 actual new, but delayed from last year games, one of which at least will likely be very marmite.

[JPL]

19 minutes ago, mushashi said:

They cancelled it in favour of other ways to get you to use XGP.

Did they? Where did you hear that?

[mushashi]

On 09/11/2022 at 11:58, Stoppy2000 said:

That's the EA version - I want to see the non EA FIFA game. Presumably being worked on at FIFA HQ right now....

 

EA Sports FC will likely just be a rebadged FIFA 23 like you say.

 

FIFA announced their post-EA lineup recently, Web 3.0:

 

AI League: FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Edition
FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 in the Upland Metaverse
Matchday Challenge: FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Edition
FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 on Phygtl

 

https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/articles/fifa-unveils-range-of-new-web-3-0-games-ahead-of-fifa-world-cup-qatar-2022

 

 

 

[Vorgot]

Just Zelda for me but that's fine, I've got a truckload of games to play on my PS5 and Switch anyway. Maybe Resi 4 if it's different enough

 

But there will be loads of indie stuff and smaller games announced too, just AAA seems a bit barren at the moment.

[bear]

On 10/11/2022 at 21:02, HarryBizzle said:

My interest in gaming has taken a bit of a dive recently. Not much on that list makes me sit up and take notice. Was Avowed not 2023? That looks interesting.

 

I will probably buy another Switch to play BOTW2 and hope I love it as much as I did the first.

Avowed and Fable were allegedly pencilled in for 2023 at some point but I didn't put them in as that'd kill my bad joke about Microsofts big 2023 games being the same ones I'd listed for 2022. 

 

At the very least I'd expect Hellblade 2 and Project Belfrey ( by the Banner Saga Devs apparently) to be published by MS next year. The Coalition have a smaller non-Gears game in the works and at one point InXiles and Compulsion Games next titles were 2023 games along with Contraband. 

[Stanley]

On 11/11/2022 at 10:10, Treble said:

 

Me too, although I did hear it's being developed with the tech created by... someone? Forgotten who, but it's either the Xenoblade lot or the Fire Emblem lot, I think? One of the dev teams that manages to make the Switch not look like an old Nokia, anyway. 

Yes it’s Monolith Soft who developed the Xenoblade Chronicles series, they also helped with Breath Of The Wild although it’s worth considering that the first game had Wii U as the lead platform whereas this is a Switch exclusive. Hopefully their experience and expertise on the platform means it should look pretty phenomenal. 

[James Lyon]

22 hours ago, mushashi said:

 

FIFA announced their post-EA lineup recently, Web 3.0:

 

AI League: FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Edition
FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 in the Upland Metaverse
Matchday Challenge: FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Edition
FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 on Phygtl

 

https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/articles/fifa-unveils-range-of-new-web-3-0-games-ahead-of-fifa-world-cup-qatar-2022

 

 

 

 

Oh my God, this isn't a joke post.

[glb]

I’m excited to see how Starfield turns out. And Spider-Man 2 should be a fun romp. Other than those two I’m keen to play the Dead Space remaster, but doubt I’ll buy it new. Nothing else in the OP list gets the juices flowing though.

 

As others have said, sure they’ll be some surprises along the way, and I’m quite content to keep getting value from Gamepass/PS+ while clearing my backlog. Although I’m also tempted to get another Switch for my commute, which will just make the pile of shame a little bigger.

[thesnwmn]

On 12/11/2022 at 15:26, JPL said:

Did they? Where did you hear that?

 

From an update to the Kotaku article where everyone got excited about the prototype in the background of a Spencer video...

 

Quote

Update: 10/10/22 2:58 p.m. ET: A spokesperson for Microsoft re-iterated that the device on Spencer’s shelf is an older prototype and that the company’s early statement that it had pivoted “away” from the current iteration.

 

https://kotaku.com/xbox-game-pass-cloud-streaming-keystone-series-x-1849639015

 

Doesn't mean it's a done idea entirely I guess but no one should really be expecting one at the moment. Which at least personally I find odd given how terrible I feel like XCloud app availability is across platforms. I don't assume getting it running on all the major sticks (Fire, Google TV, Roku I guess) plus major TV platforms (outside of about 4 TVs released this year) is easy but so far this is classic MS. A constant statement that it will be accessible from everywhere with not a lot to show for that for the average person outside of a few use cases.

[mushashi]

23 minutes ago, thesnwmn said:

Doesn't mean it's a done idea entirely I guess but no one should really be expecting one at the moment. Which at least personally I find odd given how terrible I feel like XCloud app availability is across platforms. I don't assume getting it running on all the major sticks (Fire, Google TV, Roku I guess) plus major TV platforms (outside of about 4 TVs released this year) is easy but so far this is classic MS. A constant statement that it will be accessible from everywhere with not a lot to show for that for the average person outside of a few use cases.

 

What's odd about not making dedicated hardware for an idea whose entire hypothesis and sales pitch is practically zero barrier to entry because it's available on a device you already own? More surprising they wanted to waste money on a stick whose primary purpose was Cloud gaming in the first place. Valve tried something similar a while ago for home streaming and soon realised the error of their ways too.

 

It'd be like Netflix or YouTube bringing out a streaming stick instead of making an app for all the popular existing hardware platforms.

 

If Microsoft, with their vast resources, can't even beat Google or Netflix at app implementation, then they should find somebody to sort it out, right after that person fixes the Microsoft gaming store on PC, which should be an even higher priority, given their recent statements about growth rates for XGP.

[Uncle Nasty]

On 09/11/2022 at 14:27, Broker said:

AAA wise it’s looking like a really exciting year. Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Starfield, Final Fantasy XVI, Dead Space, Resident Evil 4 and Silent Hill 2 are all must buys for me.

 

Yeah, it's really exciting to see some new games and franchises on the horizon. So glad I bought the latest consoles.

[thesnwmn]

Just now, mushashi said:

 

What's odd about not making dedicated hardware for an idea whose entire hypothesis and sales pitch is practically zero barrier to entry because its available on a device you already own? More surprising they wanted to waste money on a stick whose primary purpose was Cloud gaming in the first place. Valve tried something similar a while ago for home streaming and soon realised the error of their ways too.

 

It'd be like Netflix or YouTube bringing out a streaming stick instead of making an app for all the popular existing hardware platforms.

 

If Microsoft, with their vast resources, can't even beat Google or Netflix at app implementation, then they should find somebody to sort it out, right after that person fixes the Microsoft gaming store on PC, which should be an even higher priority, given their recent statements about growth rates for XGP.

 

But where are these apps?

 

How many TVs can actually access XCloud? Netflix and YouTube are on everything. Big screen. Little screen. Everywhere. XCloud is basically nowhere on a big screen.

 

I understand why they don't want to make hardware. And support it. And people will wonder why it doesn't have all the other stuff they expect from a streaming box. So Yep, fine. Don't get into that business.

 

But they're saying or suggesting they don't need to because... what?  No movement beyond a Samsung app on very few screens this year?

 

Of course that leaves me believing that the reality is they're aware the market doesn't exist right now. Sales of a dedicated device would be zero. The realistic market for XCloud users is Xbox owners. They don't need a TV device because those people can play on their XBox. Those people can dip in on PC, phone, tablet, or Steam Deck.

 

Maybe in a few years that changes. And but they they have finally built this range of apps.

[Broker]

2 hours ago, Uncle Nasty said:

 

Yeah, it's really exciting to see some new games and franchises on the horizon. So glad I bought the latest consoles.

Yeah I’m really excited about all the games I’ve never heard of or have no idea how good they’re going to be. 

[Uncle Nasty]

59 minutes ago, Broker said:

Yeah I’m really excited about all the games I’ve never heard of or have no idea how good they’re going to be. 

 

I'm just pulling your chain. I'm pretty much up for all of this as well.

[thesnwmn]

42 minutes ago, Broker said:

Yeah I’m really excited about all the games I’ve never heard of or have no idea how good they’re going to be. 

 

Not being excited by the list of sequels or well understood well trodden titles doesn't require that you are excited about specific unknown things. You don't have to be either. The list can be uninspired and full of known qualities and not be exciting without knowing what you are excited by.

 

(Not to say I agree with Mr Nasty here... I think there's lots to look forwards to on all platforms, it's just not in this space).

 

We can even be excited about the unknowable quality of something. I don't have to know it will be good to be excited for the idea of it. I'm much more excited by* Planet of Lana, High Water, Inkulinati, The Invincible, Terra Nil, Dredge, and The Plucky Squire and more than are on these "list of sequels". Some of them will not be great. But I'm excited by their promise. The idea of an experience I cannot predict.

 

*  admittedly some coming just before the end of the year

 

But I admit remembering all the glimpses of things is trickier particularly when (understandably) most games coverage is so heavily focused on a such a small number of publisher's and developer's titles. Many of the most exciting things might as well basically be unannounced until they're released in the public's consciousness.

 

And of course I'm excited by what I've not seen at all yet. But that does make for shit discussion on a forum.