Next gen disappointments?
Discussion
A new wave of GFX cards is coming out for the PC with Nvidia starting the first salvo with good and astonishingly well priced top of the line consumer cards. The games on the consoles may get better but the gap to the PC master race is just going to grow.
This year we have had games release on last gen (PS3 n 360) and next gen (PS4 XBONE and PC), next year we will have games released on last last gen (PS3 n 360) and current gen (PS4 and XBONE) and next gen (PC).
Its going to get embarrassing when you can still buy the same game that basically looks the same and plays exactly the same on all platforms and most consumers have two of these sitting in their living rooms.
Will Sony and MS pull the plug on their old hardware? Is it even up to them?
This year we have had games release on last gen (PS3 n 360) and next gen (PS4 XBONE and PC), next year we will have games released on last last gen (PS3 n 360) and current gen (PS4 and XBONE) and next gen (PC).
Its going to get embarrassing when you can still buy the same game that basically looks the same and plays exactly the same on all platforms and most consumers have two of these sitting in their living rooms.
Will Sony and MS pull the plug on their old hardware? Is it even up to them?
el stovey said:
paul26982 said:
First year was always going to be slow, should see some epic stuff soon
But what epic stuff did we see on the last gen consoles? It's all just the same old stuff with better graphics. To me, the consoles seem to be similar to big Hollywood movie productions, i.e. massive budgets, look great, big names so pretty safe bets to do well at the box office/retailers. If you want different, quirky, less obvious titles then don't bother with Vue or a PS4, you need an indie cinema or a PC.
In a way, it's us as consumers that are to blame. If we bought the quirky, less obvious titles then they would continue to get made. As it is, we end up with endless versions of Guitar Hero, GTA, GT, Forza, Battlefield, Call of Duty etc because that's what we're buying.
A lot of modern games are a bit "Emperors New Clothes". I haven't bothered with GT6 as I was so disappointed with GT5. Undoubtedly pretty, but ultimately dull & that's true of many games these days. We seem to be obsessed with frame rates & draw distances & lag - and not whether a game is fun or not.
northwest monkey said:
A lot of modern games are a bit "Emperors New Clothes". I haven't bothered with GT6 as I was so disappointed with GT5. Undoubtedly pretty, but ultimately dull & that's true of many games these days. We seem to be obsessed with frame rates & draw distances & lag - and not whether a game is fun or not.
I think that phone OSs are where the game innovations are to be found. XBOX Arcade used to be a good area for Indie games with new ideas, not so sure that this is still the case.But yes, console gaming does seem very formulaic the last few years. It's been some time since I've felt truly immersed. Probably FC3 and before that Gears of War & Oblivion.
I have a PS4 and although I think the console is amazing, the games lack a little something.
The games are good but all seem to follow the same style. They're either FPS (BF4, COD), survivalist (The Last Of US, Farcry4), racing (Driveclub, NFS Rivals) or Watchdog/GTA style. There's simply no originality at the moment.
Game developers need to think of something completely new. I expect this is easier said than done!
Take something like No Mans Sky. A nextgen Elite-style game with completely random, procedural generated events caused by the gamer's actions. This looks set to be massive when it arrives!
I believe one reason for the constant disappointment is the over-hyping, regular drip-feeding of trailers, in-game videos and promises of supercool graphics and gameplay well before a game is due to be released.
Take Driveclub. This was meant to be released at the same time as the PS4 and promised amazing graphics (they're good) and excellent gameplay (it's ok) but over a year later many gamers appear to be a little disappointed again. Dodgy AI, poor sounding cars and server issues.
Similarly, Watchdogs was meant to be graphically outstanding and the playable trailers on Youtube backed this up but upon release they looked ok compared to the videos.
Back in the day of the PS One, Sega Megadrive, ST or Amiga etc, we didn't get all this pre-release crap and had to gauge the game when released. Not spend a year getting excited, only to be let down on release day.
A message to games developers, spend less time talking about your latest game and get the fecker released ONTIME!
I agree with other posts in that there should be some great games coming out soon and in 2015, The Division, No Mans Sky, Project: Cars, Evolve to name a few.
The games currently getting the most attention on our PS4 at the moment is Minecraft (the kids love it) and Battlefield 4(a good stress reliever!).
The games are good but all seem to follow the same style. They're either FPS (BF4, COD), survivalist (The Last Of US, Farcry4), racing (Driveclub, NFS Rivals) or Watchdog/GTA style. There's simply no originality at the moment.
Game developers need to think of something completely new. I expect this is easier said than done!
Take something like No Mans Sky. A nextgen Elite-style game with completely random, procedural generated events caused by the gamer's actions. This looks set to be massive when it arrives!
I believe one reason for the constant disappointment is the over-hyping, regular drip-feeding of trailers, in-game videos and promises of supercool graphics and gameplay well before a game is due to be released.
Take Driveclub. This was meant to be released at the same time as the PS4 and promised amazing graphics (they're good) and excellent gameplay (it's ok) but over a year later many gamers appear to be a little disappointed again. Dodgy AI, poor sounding cars and server issues.
Similarly, Watchdogs was meant to be graphically outstanding and the playable trailers on Youtube backed this up but upon release they looked ok compared to the videos.
Back in the day of the PS One, Sega Megadrive, ST or Amiga etc, we didn't get all this pre-release crap and had to gauge the game when released. Not spend a year getting excited, only to be let down on release day.
A message to games developers, spend less time talking about your latest game and get the fecker released ONTIME!
I agree with other posts in that there should be some great games coming out soon and in 2015, The Division, No Mans Sky, Project: Cars, Evolve to name a few.
The games currently getting the most attention on our PS4 at the moment is Minecraft (the kids love it) and Battlefield 4(a good stress reliever!).
After years of being a 'gamer' and a real nerdy one at that, dissecting new Jap consoles to work out how to RGB them, selling imports and distributing 'back up' systems back in the day, I can honestly say I can no longer be bothered with them.
Tell a lie, I have been playing Wii U and the 3DS, but not the PS4 and no interest in the Xbox One at all.
My son is only 6 and not been into games at all, however, he came in and saw me playing Mr. Nutz on the Super Famicom the other day and started playing. He loved it.
So we dug out the N64 and he has been playing Mario 64.
They are just good, balanced, and most importantly fun games.
There is no soul on the new games imho, I just feel like I am desperate to finish it.
Last Of Us is the only games I have played more than 2 hours worth in the last year on a non Nintendo system.
Tell a lie, I have been playing Wii U and the 3DS, but not the PS4 and no interest in the Xbox One at all.
My son is only 6 and not been into games at all, however, he came in and saw me playing Mr. Nutz on the Super Famicom the other day and started playing. He loved it.
So we dug out the N64 and he has been playing Mario 64.
They are just good, balanced, and most importantly fun games.
There is no soul on the new games imho, I just feel like I am desperate to finish it.
Last Of Us is the only games I have played more than 2 hours worth in the last year on a non Nintendo system.
I may have missed this, but when are the true next gen games due to appear?
I keep seeing games that are available on this generation of console and the last. I know there are some titles that are new console only. However, when is the good stuff due to arrive?
Haven't really been interested in the new consoles because of this, even though I've been gaming for years.
I keep seeing games that are available on this generation of console and the last. I know there are some titles that are new console only. However, when is the good stuff due to arrive?
Haven't really been interested in the new consoles because of this, even though I've been gaming for years.
funkyrobot said:
I may have missed this, but when are the true next gen games due to appear?
I keep seeing games that are available on this generation of console and the last. I know there are some titles that are new console only. However, when is the good stuff due to arrive?
Haven't really been interested in the new consoles because of this, even though I've been gaming for years.
Given the low volumes of the new consoles sold, vs the old ones, I'd say that no one is really going to make any serious exclusives for PS4/Xbone for a fair while yet.I keep seeing games that are available on this generation of console and the last. I know there are some titles that are new console only. However, when is the good stuff due to arrive?
Haven't really been interested in the new consoles because of this, even though I've been gaming for years.
It'd be like making a PC game for only Nvidia graphics card users with i7 processors. You'd be limiting your market massively when 90% of people have older or less powerful kit.
That's not to say you won't see nice stuff on those consoles, but just as with the PS3 and Xbox360, you won't be seeing the best for years yet.
Dave
It's always the same.
I remember getting a ps3 and the first few games I got were Motorstorm and Uncharted.
Both were great games in their own way. Plus Cod was still good and hasn't sold it's soul out.
I'm still having great fun on Gta, plus both Last of us and Tomb Raider are great with the revamp.
Never played Tomb Raider on the 3 so it's all new.
There is another Uncharted out next year, Batman as well.
I remember getting a ps3 and the first few games I got were Motorstorm and Uncharted.
Both were great games in their own way. Plus Cod was still good and hasn't sold it's soul out.
I'm still having great fun on Gta, plus both Last of us and Tomb Raider are great with the revamp.
Never played Tomb Raider on the 3 so it's all new.
There is another Uncharted out next year, Batman as well.
Mr Whippy said:
Given the low volumes of the new consoles sold, vs the old ones, I'd say that no one is really going to make any serious exclusives for PS4/Xbone for a fair while yet.
It'd be like making a PC game for only Nvidia graphics card users with i7 processors. You'd be limiting your market massively when 90% of people have older or less powerful kit.
That's not to say you won't see nice stuff on those consoles, but just as with the PS3 and Xbox360, you won't be seeing the best for years yet.
Dave
Indeed.It'd be like making a PC game for only Nvidia graphics card users with i7 processors. You'd be limiting your market massively when 90% of people have older or less powerful kit.
That's not to say you won't see nice stuff on those consoles, but just as with the PS3 and Xbox360, you won't be seeing the best for years yet.
Dave
I just don't seem to get the new consoles. I understand that it will take years to harness the power of them, but they don't seem to be so technically advanced for the time like the last ones. I know technology has moved on and powerful equipment is cheaper. However, I have seen games played on them and they don't have the wow factor that would make me buy the hardware. This is taking into account the fact that they are closer to standard PC architecture now.
I also think that the console games are quite expensive. PC games seem cheaper and they have to work across many different platforms whereas the console ones are built quite to specific hardware requirements.
Funnily enough, most people I know who bought the consoles in the last year have been disappointed in them. One of my friends hardly touches his now.
I think that the lifespan of these consoles won't be as long as the last generation. I know frame rates and things aren't everything, but it is interesting to read how the new consoles are hitting certain limits. For now it's fine as games don't need stupendous rates to run nicely. In terms of future proofing though, it's not so great.
Also, I still can't get my head around the 500 gb hard drives. I know you can replace the PS4 one and you can plug extras in the Xbox, but that doesn't seem a massive amount for a modern device.
Oh well, these are just my opinions and they may be wrong.
Consoles are quite cheap for what you get.
But then they make their money back on games to a certain extent.
For example, a decent ish PC for playing games would set you back £600 I'd say, playing at 1080p on a TV.
I agree though they seemed to be a bit slow with releasing these ones and as such they've gone out a generation behind the last ones relative to PC stuff at the time.
BUT, generally developers get really nice results from them, for their power. It just takes time. The good think is those developments lead back UP to PC gamers, so we get nicer content at our end too.
In the end I'm happy with the way stuff goes and think consoles serve a purpose and fit a market.
I think the big issue right now is that game developers are not offering the variety of games that they could, and so why bother upgrading to a PS4 if the satisfaction you may get is the same on a PS3 or XBox360.
Yes it looks nicer, but if the games are just the same with flashier graphics, you can only push that so far to casual sofa game players.
What they need is more game developers really pushing some new ideas imo.
It's all just multi-player shooty s
t, and very little in terms of story (what stories there are seem very canned), and even free-roam games are clearly not really free-roam, they're just less free-roam than you'd expect.
Not like going for a walk in IGI and walking for 10hrs away from the mission area as I once tried haha
I'd buy a console if there were some genuinely good games I could play at my sofa that were not just complete junk.
For instance, I'd really enjoy a game like Freespace 2 on a console I think. A great single player game with tens or even hundreds of final outcomes so you can play it again and again.
I'm not sure if you've ever played EV Nova, but it's got three or four big final outcomes and a few quite nice story arcs. It's far from perfect but the game-play and storyline mixing are great.
Just no developers seem to want to take risks and that is why what you see for next gen are mostly all a bit poo.
It's just FPS re-hash crap again and again and again for the most part.
Dave
But then they make their money back on games to a certain extent.
For example, a decent ish PC for playing games would set you back £600 I'd say, playing at 1080p on a TV.
I agree though they seemed to be a bit slow with releasing these ones and as such they've gone out a generation behind the last ones relative to PC stuff at the time.
BUT, generally developers get really nice results from them, for their power. It just takes time. The good think is those developments lead back UP to PC gamers, so we get nicer content at our end too.
In the end I'm happy with the way stuff goes and think consoles serve a purpose and fit a market.
I think the big issue right now is that game developers are not offering the variety of games that they could, and so why bother upgrading to a PS4 if the satisfaction you may get is the same on a PS3 or XBox360.
Yes it looks nicer, but if the games are just the same with flashier graphics, you can only push that so far to casual sofa game players.
What they need is more game developers really pushing some new ideas imo.
It's all just multi-player shooty s
t, and very little in terms of story (what stories there are seem very canned), and even free-roam games are clearly not really free-roam, they're just less free-roam than you'd expect.Not like going for a walk in IGI and walking for 10hrs away from the mission area as I once tried haha
I'd buy a console if there were some genuinely good games I could play at my sofa that were not just complete junk.
For instance, I'd really enjoy a game like Freespace 2 on a console I think. A great single player game with tens or even hundreds of final outcomes so you can play it again and again.
I'm not sure if you've ever played EV Nova, but it's got three or four big final outcomes and a few quite nice story arcs. It's far from perfect but the game-play and storyline mixing are great.
Just no developers seem to want to take risks and that is why what you see for next gen are mostly all a bit poo.
It's just FPS re-hash crap again and again and again for the most part.
Dave
Yes. It's a shame that really good story games seem massively outnumbered by rinse and repeat shooters.
There are some gems out there, they are just swamped with no brainers.
One thing that I do find annoying though is the delivery of a game that isn't finished or is buggy as hell. It seems that some publishers now just want to get the next instalment of x out without properly completing it. Don't worry, we'll release a massive patch in a few months. I don't think there are many items that people would buy incomplete. Could you imagine buying a car with no wheels?
Most of the time the game is an update of something else anyway, so it's not like they have broken any ground or tried anything new and risky.
We'll see how it goes.
There are some gems out there, they are just swamped with no brainers.
One thing that I do find annoying though is the delivery of a game that isn't finished or is buggy as hell. It seems that some publishers now just want to get the next instalment of x out without properly completing it. Don't worry, we'll release a massive patch in a few months. I don't think there are many items that people would buy incomplete. Could you imagine buying a car with no wheels?
Most of the time the game is an update of something else anyway, so it's not like they have broken any ground or tried anything new and risky.
We'll see how it goes.
After taking about a decade out of playing games from 2000 to 2010, I've recently got back into them in a big way and have played several titles on the PS3 and PS4 relentlessly, so have experienced the next gen/last gen step first hand.
I too was initially disappointed with the step from PS3 to PS4, the graphics didn't seem to be "different league" better and many of the games contained bugs/glitches that make them all but unplayable at times.
However, where the next gen consoles seem to shine, is the increased number of players in multiplayer/co-op. Having 64 players on the maps in BF4 is a massive step forward and the 6 player co-op raid (which actually requires teamwork) on Destiny is something I haven't come across in any other game and is very rewarding (when it goes well!).
Having said that, there seems to be a general lack of content in next gen games, which is a real shame, as they show a huge amount of potential with massive "worlds" to experience, but instead you find yourself doing the same things in the same places over and over again to earn the reward.
I too was initially disappointed with the step from PS3 to PS4, the graphics didn't seem to be "different league" better and many of the games contained bugs/glitches that make them all but unplayable at times.
However, where the next gen consoles seem to shine, is the increased number of players in multiplayer/co-op. Having 64 players on the maps in BF4 is a massive step forward and the 6 player co-op raid (which actually requires teamwork) on Destiny is something I haven't come across in any other game and is very rewarding (when it goes well!).
Having said that, there seems to be a general lack of content in next gen games, which is a real shame, as they show a huge amount of potential with massive "worlds" to experience, but instead you find yourself doing the same things in the same places over and over again to earn the reward.
youngsyr said:
I too was initially disappointed with the step from PS3 to PS4, the graphics didn't seem to be "different league" better and many of the games contained bugs/glitches that make them all but unplayable at times.
Having said that, there seems to be a general lack of content in next gen games, which is a real shame, as they show a huge amount of potential with massive "worlds" to experience, but instead you find yourself doing the same things in the same places over and over again to earn the reward.
On the former, any good artwork will look good forever, to a certain extent.Having said that, there seems to be a general lack of content in next gen games, which is a real shame, as they show a huge amount of potential with massive "worlds" to experience, but instead you find yourself doing the same things in the same places over and over again to earn the reward.
I've been playing X Wing and Tie fighter from almost two decades ago recently, and after 30mins you're just back into the game-play again. It doesn't even matter it's old tech, it's still good art!
Between artwork, story, gameplay, and visual wow, the visual wow can really come last, which makes any next-gen console kinda pointless unless it can improve artwork itself (unlikely), story (up to the developers and no one else), and gameplay (same again)
Bugs, I'm not so sure about. But if they're hurting gameplay then they ultimately un-do all the other work in story, artwork and visual wow.
On the latter, I suppose this is the issue with visual wow content. To make content that looks THAT good, if it even NEEDS to look that good, takes time. And that takes money.
We see these new games take mega budget, but we saw games with similar artwork creativity, story and gameplay scope that were just as good, a decade or even two ago.
So mostly that visual wow is what is adding the cost to games... and it's the least important part really.
You could argue we're headed for a game-crunch again where people are just churning out profitable nice looking crap more and more and it'll reach a head where someone releases such a turd that it's buried for 30 years. Then dug up again in the future and sold for a fortune
Part of me is glad to see stuff like UDK, Unity, etc, though. People can make their own games and build on them forever. They can be free and open and interesting and push boundaries.
Better than re-selling the same shooty crap year on year with slightly nicer lens flares or reflections off puddles... at £50 a time!
Dave
Mr Whippy said:
Consoles are quite cheap for what you get.
But then they make their money back on games to a certain extent.
For example, a decent ish PC for playing games would set you back £600 I'd say, playing at 1080p on a TV.
I agree though they seemed to be a bit slow with releasing these ones and as such they've gone out a generation behind the last ones relative to PC stuff at the time.
BUT, generally developers get really nice results from them, for their power. It just takes time. The good think is those developments lead back UP to PC gamers, so we get nicer content at our end too.
In the end I'm happy with the way stuff goes and think consoles serve a purpose and fit a market.
I think the big issue right now is that game developers are not offering the variety of games that they could, and so why bother upgrading to a PS4 if the satisfaction you may get is the same on a PS3 or XBox360.
Yes it looks nicer, but if the games are just the same with flashier graphics, you can only push that so far to casual sofa game players.
What they need is more game developers really pushing some new ideas imo.
It's all just multi-player shooty st, and very little in terms of story (what stories there are seem very canned), and even free-roam games are clearly not really free-roam, they're just less free-roam than you'd expect.
Not like going for a walk in IGI and walking for 10hrs away from the mission area as I once tried haha
I'd buy a console if there were some genuinely good games I could play at my sofa that were not just complete junk.
For instance, I'd really enjoy a game like Freespace 2 on a console I think. A great single player game with tens or even hundreds of final outcomes so you can play it again and again.
I'm not sure if you've ever played EV Nova, but it's got three or four big final outcomes and a few quite nice story arcs. It's far from perfect but the game-play and storyline mixing are great.
Just no developers seem to want to take risks and that is why what you see for next gen are mostly all a bit poo.
It's just FPS re-hash crap again and again and again for the most part.
Dave
The last game I played where I thought "this is genuinely different" was Heavy Rain by Quantic Dream. To be able to interact with the world around you to the minute detail could be mind-numbing for some but I found it fascinating, and it put Rockstar games to shame. Multiple endings based on player actions gave the game longevity.But then they make their money back on games to a certain extent.
For example, a decent ish PC for playing games would set you back £600 I'd say, playing at 1080p on a TV.
I agree though they seemed to be a bit slow with releasing these ones and as such they've gone out a generation behind the last ones relative to PC stuff at the time.
BUT, generally developers get really nice results from them, for their power. It just takes time. The good think is those developments lead back UP to PC gamers, so we get nicer content at our end too.
In the end I'm happy with the way stuff goes and think consoles serve a purpose and fit a market.
I think the big issue right now is that game developers are not offering the variety of games that they could, and so why bother upgrading to a PS4 if the satisfaction you may get is the same on a PS3 or XBox360.
Yes it looks nicer, but if the games are just the same with flashier graphics, you can only push that so far to casual sofa game players.
What they need is more game developers really pushing some new ideas imo.
It's all just multi-player shooty s
t, and very little in terms of story (what stories there are seem very canned), and even free-roam games are clearly not really free-roam, they're just less free-roam than you'd expect.Not like going for a walk in IGI and walking for 10hrs away from the mission area as I once tried haha
I'd buy a console if there were some genuinely good games I could play at my sofa that were not just complete junk.
For instance, I'd really enjoy a game like Freespace 2 on a console I think. A great single player game with tens or even hundreds of final outcomes so you can play it again and again.
I'm not sure if you've ever played EV Nova, but it's got three or four big final outcomes and a few quite nice story arcs. It's far from perfect but the game-play and storyline mixing are great.
Just no developers seem to want to take risks and that is why what you see for next gen are mostly all a bit poo.
It's just FPS re-hash crap again and again and again for the most part.
Dave
Fahrenheit was also good and I understand Beyond Two Souls was well received.
I continue to monitor any developments by that gaming house.
Mr Whippy said:
I've never even heard of it, but I'll have to take a look
Thanks for the recommendation!
Imagine playing a dark and atmospheric David Fincher serial killer film from four different perspectives, with the ability to take a shower and towel dry your hair, and you are about there.Thanks for the recommendation!
Great game if you like that sort of thing.
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