During the MKM Partners Entertainment, Leisure and Internet Conference, Take-Two Interactive Software Chief Executive Officer Strauss Zelnick elaborated more on a previous statement in which he identified “anomalies” in the reviews system related to the release and reception of Mafia III.
TNS: Expedition 33 was the wake-up call Square Enix needed, telling it turn-based RPGs are still popular, but that shouldn't have been the case.
True, but if it does get it through their thick skulls, then that works.
Although, the Dragon Quest 1 + 2 HD remakes will be turn-based and (the worst kept secret) Final Fantasy IX remake should be turn-based I would imagine. Let's see if any newer games go turn-based too.
While it is true that Sqaure Enix has moved away from turn based games compared to how they were in the past, there is a good reason for it.
Older gamers will know this but during the ps2 era, we were flooded with turned based games from Japanese studios and this created a form of fatigue back then going into the next generation.
When Square released FF13, they received heavy criticism for making the game turned based like every other FF game and not doing enough to innovate. This is why they made FF15, FF7 Remake and FF16 have real time combat. It gave the series a fresh spin and has brought in new fans to the series.
I personally would be happy with either turned based FF or the real-time combat version we see today.
Only need to look at their own game DQ 11 approaching 10 million to show there's a market. And that's not as big of a name as FF
Another article about Expedition 33 and Square Enix and turn-based games? This is starting to sound like propaganda.
The game didn't sell because it's a turn-based game; it sold and is enjoyed because it's a really freaking good game that released completed at a good price without gamer drama attached to it. No Mtx, no wait-until-it's-patched, minimal bloat, a self-contained story, no multiplatform BS. Just a solid original game that absolutely nails what it intended to do.
Maybe try actually listening to the fans who have supported the series for decades. This habit of ignoring your core audience just to chase people who were never interested in Final Fantasy in the first place makes no sense. And when that approach fails, doubling down on it is beyond baffling.
The battle system has never been the main reason non-FF or non-JRPG players stayed away. Gutting the series’ identity to chase a broader market doesn’t attract new players. It just alienates the loyal ones.
Keep going down this road and we’ll end up with Final Fantasy Fortnite abomination or a F2P Battle Royale game.. Oh wait…
Sony kicks off PS Plus' 15th anniversary by chatting with Game File about the past, present and future of its gaming subscription service: Talking price, catalogue tweaks and where the PS3 games are.
Glad, I’m about to downgrade when they raise the price. For me, I don’t really access much or care about the games they have in the library and if I do, it’d be cheaper to just buy them over time rather than stick to some expensive subscription model.
When you're new to the service you've got an avalanche of games to play. After you catch up, I agree, it's not worth it beyond the Essential tier for me.
That being said, the Essential tier is the best deal in console gaming imo, based on the monthly games you get to keep.
Yeah same will be downgrading $214 aud is insane and we don't even get the streaming capabilities in Australia which they said would make the top level subscription cheaper.
If i was to just buy the games I actually play that come to the service id be far better off.
Ill keep the essential tier to retain the games ive collected since the ps3 and for mp but I'm not convinced of the premium tiers value any more
Went back to essential a few months ago. I’m buying more physical and it has helped in finishing more games.
Extra is probably the best value for money right now, Premium doesn't have anything special enough to justify paying the additional imo.
*unless you have a Portal & you catch Premium on discount during Days of Play or Black Friday.
Yea, I really do wish they'd up their effort on Premium titles, but allowing a large catalog of titles that can stream to your Portal without even having to use your PS5 is pretty awesome. We travel about 2 hours to stay with my inlaws from time to time, so it's been pretty killer to only need to take my Portal for that!
Extra has been getting worse and worse each month. I've had it since it's launch and it's been great to play some games I may not have played but the selection has been declining rapidly for a while now. My sub runs out in August and I'll be going back to essential. They actually add games to that which are more appealing.
Nice choice. I agree!
Jeanne D'Arc was my favorite PS+ catalog title from last year & I Platinumed it!
cloud streaming to the portal, without using the ps5, is the selling point of premium to me.
The legendary composer celebrates forty years of game composing with a new collection.
Jesus...he's digging himself into a bigger hole
" But I am observing that it’s unusual to have great reviews from IGN and Forbes, and then some bad reviews that hold the scores down "
So basically you don't give a shit about smaller sites which you or other developers don't hold a lot of influence over.
People go on about "paid reviews" like a guy in a suit turns up to IGN or Gamespots office for example with a large silver briefcase full of money when really it's more to do with long term relations and keeping the peace so the company keeps benefiting as much as they can from them. Will our site still get good interviews from the studios? Will we still get first looks or access? Exclusive reveals? New details on upcoming games? Previews? Hands on? Awesome press kits? Free review copies and so on.
At the end of the day what it's coming across as is bigger sites which are less likely to tell the full truth half of the time are more valuable then smaller sites which are most likely going to be more honest. "Don't listen to those smaller sites guys, listen to the bigger ones we have more of a hold over".
I mean the guy is literally ignoring the real reasons why people didn't like it. He even shows it here by making out the gameplay, the main thing which matters here is the last thing he cares about
"And I think, you know, if we got some criticism from the consumers that had to do with gameplay… But most everyone loved the look, the feel, the setting, the non-traditional protagonist, the 1968 re-imagined version of New Orleans, an African American criminal… This is all different ways to look at the Mafia franchise, and I think that has resonated"
"I think what we’re offering the consumers a very powerful, fun experience"
No you offered people a broken game which doesn't feel like a Mafia game at all with repetitive missions and a world with hardly anything else to do apart from main missions.