kylelabriola

Kyle Labriola

@kylelabriola

blogging (ashamedly)

Hello! I'm an artist, writer, and game developer. I work for @7thBeatGames on "A Dance of Fire and Ice" and "Rhythm Doctor."

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I run @IndieGamesofCohost where I share screenshots and spotlights of indie games. I also interview devs here on Cohost.

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kylelabriola
@kylelabriola

I don't intend for this to sound like I'm defending Sony, but...

...I'm fascinated and confused by people who will make fun (or complain) that "the PS5 has no games!" but then also make fun (or complain) when a game actually is released as an exclusive.

Like, which is it? Is it "this generation barely feels like it's started because it has no exclusives" or is it "i think it's anti-consumer to release games that play on PS5 but not on PS4"?

Because I feel like it...can't really be both? And I hear both sentiments from the same people often. I'll concede that some people would be satisfied if the PS5 exclusives launched on Xbox and Steam at the same time but like...I don't know if that's super realistic.

Making a game exclusive is one of the main tools the companies have in their toolbelt to make a console worth shelling out for. If anything, if we want to be more pro-consumer and fair for everyone, I would drop the "PS5 has no exclusives lmfaoooo where's all the exclusives at?" jokes. The fact that companies released their games for PS4-compatibility is kind of a win-win for the dev and the player.

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lotus
@lotus

I think people dumb it down to next-gen exclusives but it feels more like the release for built-up frustration for there being no next generation at all. games play the same, look the same, and talk about the same things they've been talking about for 10+ years. so like... not only are they not exclusive, but also the fidelity upgrade is negligible, they don't hold themselves to a higher standard, and there are no console-specific features or design. there's nothing. I can't imagine how insulting this feels for console fans and players, especially after the endless hype trains and line-drawing between Sony and Xbox — especially Sony, who sold consoles on the strength of their exclusives. also I think the "PS3 has no games" meme has just continued on cause it's funney honestly LMAO

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kylelabriola
@kylelabriola

i will fully admit the revival of "PS3 has no games" energy is extremely funny

Yeah maybe I'm trying to attach too much hypocrisy/logic to it. I think you're right to call it a "built-up frustration." Pretty sure everybody, across the board, is pretty neutral or pessimistic at this point. I can only imagine the jump from PS5 Pro to PS6 is gonna be even more negligible. I think there's a lot of denial that maybe consoles are in full "iPhone iterations" territory at this point.

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JINORU
@JINORU

yeah its a pretty tired take/joke. For me at least, I'd want to get the most out of a PS5 and that would require a bigger living room for a new bigger TV, a new AV receiver for that TV and then the PlayStation 5 for probably almost exclusively Gran Turismo 7 and my 4K Bluray movies and Plex, maybe occasionally The Last Guardian non updated so it will run unlocked framerate. Mark C. sold me on Pro with GT7 ray traced reflections during races. All I needed to know. But, all that value/cost compared to the value of other things I'd like to buy (pc cpu upgrade) puts it so far down the wish list.

On the topic of steam, Playstation bosses seems to think Steam players will be enticed to buy a PS5 for exclusives if they bring things to PC, not really understanding the steam user culture. https://fxtwitter.com/tomwarren/status/1795966798942158935
They generally won't even jump to another PC store front knowing those games make it to steam eventually with a bigger package, patches and a discount.

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kylelabriola
@kylelabriola

The only way I can see the jump working is that you get hooked on a franchise (Horizon, Spider-Man) and then, when the sequel comes out next time and it's exclusive for a year, you're dying to play it so badly that you buy the whole console just to find out what happens next and get your hands on it.

I doubt that'll be most people. But I guess it's...possible?

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JINORU
@JINORU

I did buy a Wii U for the promise of Breath of the Wild (LOL) and PS4 just for Bloodborne so yeah its definitely a thing even for me but for most folks they're fine to wait or never.

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spinning-valiant
@spinning-valiant

yeah i think about this too, i’ve seen it as a criticism of xbox too, that their games are also on pc, and like… i’m definitely not complaining about that, personally, yknow?

i wonder if maybe like. when a system has a LOT of exclusives, it’s a reason to buy a system, but when there’s only a few, it’s just annoying because it’s NOT enough of a reason to buy the system, but also you can’t play the game(s). i can’t really think of a good way you could move from the latter to the former, it almost feels like you have to launch or have a really strong roadmap. but like, i’d still rather they be multiplatform…

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kylelabriola
@kylelabriola

Yeah. Like, it goes without saying that Nintendo is built on exclusives. And while I do see some people be like "I wish Nintendo games were on Steam/Xbox/etc" I feel like it's a niche position and it doesn't really affect Nintendo's bottom line at all.

But Sony and Xbox feel like they already missed the boat by not going AS HARD on exclusives as Nintendo did. So now they're in an in-between state where every exclusive just ticks some people off.

The shared launches between Xbox and PC are 100% a good thing for the devs and the players...but I also think it's a bad thing for Xbox as a brand. They're probably wise to transition away from fixating on the console box and just focus on being a store and an online ecosystem.

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