Playstation 5 Console Discussion

[drahkon]

On 3/25/2022 at 6:02 PM, drahkon said:

This thread will be great next week.  

Rumour has it it'll start today.
Brace yourselves. 

I'm not expecting an incredible launch of the new service. I'd settle for the potential of it becoming great over time, i.e. having more and more classic games available. But we'll see. It could also be a total disaster  

[Hero-of-Time]

Let's say Spartacus does deliver games from the PS1, PS2, PS3 and PSP generations, what are the top 3 games from each of the consoles that you would want to see on the service? No limits on licensing or copyrights. Anything goes.

PS1- Xenogears, Parasite Eve, Hard Edge

PS2- Final Fantasy: Dirge of Cerebus, Maximo, Under the Skin.

PS3- Resistance 3, Puppeteer, Infamous.

PSP- Final Fantasy: Crisis Core, Daxter, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite.

[drahkon]

PS1 - Vagrant Story, Xenogears, Gunners Heaven (haven't played the first two)

PS2 - Dragon Quest VIII, Burnout 3: Takedown, Twisted Metal: Black (haven't played the latter)

PS3 - MGS4, Killzone 3, Resistance 3 (haven't played the last two)

PSP - no idea...I haven't dabbled with the PSP at all, yet

[Julius]

3 hours ago, drahkon said:

Rumour has it it'll start today.
Brace yourselves. 

3 hours ago, drahkon said:

I'm not expecting an incredible launch of the new service. I'd settle for the potential of it becoming great over time, i.e. having more and more classic games available. But we'll see. It could also be a total disaster

I honestly don't know what I'm expecting at this point from today (or whenever news drops) specifically, but I think they need to send a very clear message with their initial lineup of games and make it crystal clear what the plan is moving forwards. I think NSO for Nintendo has been fine, but the way they've updated us has been very haphazard from the outset; it's tough to be excited with a drip feed of games dropping pretty randomly and, before the N64 Expansion Pack was added, not knowing what to expect. 

If third parties are included in any capacity, I think we need to see some games from them listed out of the gate (i.e. Metal Gear Solid), and say that you're working closely with third parties if that is the case (as in, call them out and show who we can expect games from). If there's going to be trophy support, come out and say it. If the plan is to drop decently sized catalogues for PS1, PS2, and PS3 all at once: say it. If the plan is to go a console at a time: say it. Clearly state the differences between tiers and the pricing structure (don't pull a Nintendo with the Expansion Pack and say "it's X amount annually" then not confirm the fact that there won't be a monthly option available - I get it from a business speak perspective, as you want to avoid any perceived negatives, but it raises more questions than it answers).

It's the really simple things like transparency about their plans which I feel PlayStation has been stumbling over a bit in the last year or two, so if and when we get an update on this - today, tomorrow, Friday, next week, next month, whenever it may be - they really need to nail the messaging. 

I agree in that I think it'll be pretty middling to begin with, and my expectations are very low in that I want to go in just thinking it'll just be what's available on PS Now and maybe what was available on the PS Classic (probably barring Final Fantasy VII, seeing as that's available separately?) too. 

Anyone got any ideas on how they might name the tiers? I imagine PS+ Silver/Gold/Platinum would be a pretty easy and clear way to distinguish, what with how it relates to trophies and the old Platinum line. Only drawback is it does sound a bit Xbox Live-ish...

24 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

Let's say Spartacus does deliver games from the PS1, PS2, PS3 and PSP generations, what are the top 3 games from each of the consoles that you would want to see on the service? No limits on licensing or copyrights. Anything goes.

PS1- Xenogears, Parasite Eve, Hard Edge

PS2- Final Fantasy: Dirge of Cerebus, Maximo, Under the Skin.

PS3- Resistance 3, Puppeteer, Infamous.

PSP- Final Fantasy: Crisis Core, Daxter, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite.

Man, those are some good picks H-o-T! 

For me I'd want a balance between what I'd personally want and what I'd want my friends to check out (for instance, none of them have ever played a Metal Gear Solid game), but I'll be selfish on focus on myself. I'll also do away with lack of localisations too 

PS1 - Xenogears, Suikogaiden Vol. I (Suikoden graphic novel spin-off - by implication, I get Vol. II as well right, as a freebie? What do you mean, "no"? What kind of democracy is this?!), Legend of Dragoon

PS2 - Suikoden V, Dragon Quest VIII (in lieu of a modern HD release because Square Enix continue to be silly), Star Wars Battlefront II

PS3 - Ryu Ga Gotoku Kenzan! (the first samurai Yakuza game), 3D Dot Heroes, Final Fantasy XIII (and, by extension, the rest of the saga...right?! What do you mean "no" again?!)

PSP - Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (which one is the subtitle?!), Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions, The Legend of Heroes: Trails on the Sky

Edited March 29, 2022 by Julius

[Julius]

Here we go, it's coming in June! Not sure if it deserves its own thread, so if someone wants to make it, feel free, because I'll be sorting the formatting on this post  

Quote

Since launching PlayStation Plus in 2010, SIE has been at the forefront of innovation with game subscription services. We were thrilled to be the first console membership service that included a refreshed library of games through PlayStation Plus, and also launched the first console game streaming service with PlayStation Now. 

Today, we are pleased to share with you official news about changes coming to our subscription services. This June, we’re bringing together PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now in an all-new PlayStation Plus subscription service that provides more choice to customers across three membership tiers globally. 

Our focus is on providing high-quality, curated content with a diverse portfolio of games*. Below is an overview of the three membership tiers:

PlayStation Plus Essential
Benefits:

Provides the same benefits that PlayStation Plus members are getting today, such as:

• Two monthly downloadable games
• Exclusive discounts
• Cloud storage for saved games
• Online multiplayer access

There are no changes for existing PlayStation Plus members in this tier.

Price* for PlayStation Plus Essential remains the same as the current price for PlayStation Plus.

• United States: $9.99 monthly / $24.99 quarterly / $59.99 yearly
• Europe: €8.99 monthly / €24.99 quarterly / €59.99 yearly
• United Kingdom: £6.99 monthly / £19.99 quarterly / £49.99 yearly 
• Japan: ¥850 monthly / ¥2,150 quarterly / ¥5,143 yearly

PlayStation Plus Extra
Benefits: 

• Provides all the benefits from the Essential tier
• Adds a catalog of up to 400* of the most enjoyable PS4 and PS5 games – including blockbuster hits from our PlayStation Studios catalog and third-party partners. Games in the Extra tier are downloadable for play.

Price*:

• United States: $14.99 monthly / $39.99 quarterly / $99.99 yearly
• Europe: €13.99 monthly / €39.99 quarterly / €99.99 yearly
• United Kingdom: £10.99 monthly / £31.99 quarterly / £83.99 yearly 
• Japan: ¥1,300 monthly / ¥3,600 quarterly / ¥8,600 yearly

PlayStation Plus Premium** 
Benefits:

• Provides all the benefits from Essential and Extra tiers
• Adds up to 340* additional games, including:
  • PS3 games available via cloud streaming
  • A catalog of beloved classic games available in both streaming and download options from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations 
• Offers cloud streaming access for original PlayStation, PS2, PSP and PS4 games offered in the Extra and Premium tiers in markets** where PlayStation Now is currently available. Customers can stream games using PS4 and PS5 consoles, and PC.*** 

Time-limited game trials will also be offered in this tier, so customers can try select games before they buy.

Price*:

• United States: $17.99 monthly / $49.99 quarterly / $119.99 yearly
• Europe: €16.99 monthly / €49.99 quarterly / €119.99 yearly
• United Kingdom: £13.49 monthly / £39.99 quarterly / £99.99 yearly 
• Japan: ¥1,550 – monthly / ¥4,300 – quarterly / ¥10,250 yearly

PlayStation Plus Deluxe (Select Markets) - For markets without cloud streaming, PlayStation Plus Deluxe will be offered at a lower price compared to Premium, and includes a catalog of beloved classic games from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations to download and play, along with time-limited game trials. Benefits from Essential and Extra tiers are also included. Local pricing will vary by market

The new Extra and Premium tiers represent a major evolution for PlayStation Plus. With these tiers, our key focus is to ensure that the hundreds of games we offer will include the best quality content that sets us apart. At launch, we plan to include titles such as Death Stranding, God of War, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Mortal Kombat 11, and Returnal. We’re working closely with our imaginative developers from PlayStation Studios and third-party partners to include some of the best gaming experiences available with a library that will be regularly refreshed. More details to come on the games we’ll have on our new PlayStation Plus service.  

When the new PlayStation Plus service launches, PlayStation Now will transition into the new PlayStation Plus offering and will no longer be available as a standalone service. PlayStation Now customers will migrate over to PlayStation Plus Premium with no increase to their current subscription fees at launch.

As this is a massive launch effort, we’re rolling out the new PlayStation Plus offering in a phased regional approach. In the June timeframe, we’ll begin with an initial launch in several markets in Asia, followed by North America, Europe and the rest of the world where PlayStation Plus is offered. We aim to have most PlayStation Network territories live with our new PlayStation Plus game subscription service by the end of the first half of 2022. We also plan to expand our cloud streaming benefit to additional markets, and will provide more details at a later date.  

Building upon more than 25 years of expertise in gaming innovation, this change to our subscription services highlights our continued efforts to evolve our network services business to match our customer’s preferences. With the all-new PlayStation Plus, we’re focused on delivering a compelling game subscription service with curated content from our exclusive PlayStation Studios team and our third-party partners. The newly enhanced PlayStation Plus will enable our fans to discover and engage with more content than ever before, and deepen their connection with the PlayStation community through shared experiences. 

We’re providing an early look at our new PlayStation Plus subscription service today, and we’ll plan to share more information with you as we get closer to launch. Stay tuned. 

 

*Local pricing may vary by market. PlayStation Plus catalog titles may also vary by market and tier, and may change over time. PlayStation Plus is an ongoing subscription subject to a recurring subscription fee taken automatically until cancellation. Age restrictions apply.  Terms apply: play.st/psplus-usageterms 

**Current markets where PlayStation Now is available: US, Canada, Japan, UK, France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Norway, Denmark, Finland, and Sweden.

***PC streaming is not available in Japan at launch and will be supported in a future update.

GamesIndustry.biz also have an article up following an interview with Jim Ryan. 

Edited March 29, 2022 by Julius

[Dcubed]

PS1:  Metal Gear Solid, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (Yes I am aware that the PSP version is currently available on PS4/PS5), The Adventures of Little Ralph

PS2:  Silent Hill 2, Gitaroo Man, Breath of Fire V: Dragon Quarter

PS3:  Puppeteer, 3D Dot Game Heroes, Ico/SOTC Collection

PSP:  Half Minute Hero, Tales of Eternia, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite

[Dcubed]

And there it is!

Knew it'd be cloud streaming for PS1, PS2, PSP and PS3... Almost certainly continuing to use the current PS3 streaming racks.  Damn shame

Sigh... guess my PS3 stays hooked up.  Time to buy some replacement controller batteries again I suppose...

Edited March 29, 2022 by Dcubed

[drahkon]

PS3 streaming was expected, but still sad.

Other than that: Sounds good. I'll be able to test PlayStation Plus Premium for a few months since I still have a PS Now sub until October this year.
There will surely be deals to reduce the annual sub a few quid just as it's been for years now. Might actually be a good idea to look out for some cheap PS Now deals  

Now I just need the entire list of games available in each tier.

[Dcubed]

1 minute ago, drahkon said:

PS3 streaming was expected, but still sad.

Other than that: Sounds good. I'll be able to test PlayStation Plus Premium for a few months since I still have a PS Now sub until October this year.
There will surely be deals to reduce the annual sub a few quid just as it's been for years now. Might actually be a good idea to look out for some cheap PS Now deals  

Now I just need the entire list of games available in each tier.

It's not just PS3, ALL of the classic games (PS1, PS2, PSP and PS3) are done via cloud streaming.

[Mandalore]

What are the chances that they'll sell the PS1, PS2 and PSP games separately as well? I wouldn't mind getting a couple of them, not going to fork out £100 subscription for them though.

[Julius]

4 minutes ago, Dcubed said:

It's not just PS3, ALL of the classic games (PS1, PS2, PSP and PS3) are done via cloud streaming.

There's an option for both cloud streaming and downloading for PS1, PS2, and PSP.

Quote

A catalog of beloved classic games available in both streaming and download options from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations 

Shame about PS3 though. 

Edited March 29, 2022 by Julius

[Cube]

So PS Now has effectively doubled in price because you have to buy PS+ in order to have it. 

[Mandalore]

2 minutes ago, Dcubed said:

It's not just PS3, ALL of the classic games (PS1, PS2, PSP and PS3) are done via cloud streaming.

It's not very clear, it says both streaming and download options available?

[drahkon]

11 minutes ago, Mandalore said:

What are the chances that they'll sell the PS1, PS2 and PSP games separately as well? I wouldn't mind getting a couple of them, not going to fork out £100 subscription for them though.

Zero.

[Dcubed]

4 minutes ago, Julius said:

There's an option for both cloud streaming and downloading for PS1, PS2, and PSP.

 

Oh shit!!! I missed that!!

Ok, you now officially have my interest Sony! DON'T fuck this up like you did on PS4!!

Actually, come to think of it... They don't list which console that the classic games will be available for... Could this also be made available for PS4 as well as PS5? If that's the case, I won't need to buy a new console!

Edited March 29, 2022 by Dcubed

[Ronnie]

I wasn't expecting much and it still under-delivered. 100 quid a year for retro gaming? Yeah no thanks. 

[Dcubed]

6 minutes ago, Ronnie said:

I wasn't expecting much and it still under-delivered. 100 quid a year for retro gaming? Yeah no thanks. 

Yeah, it is quite expensive.  Really depends on how big the actual library is (and the quality of the emulation) if it ends up being worth it.

Edit:  There's also a real big jump between PS Plus Essentials and PS Plus Extra! And only a small one from Extra to Premium...

Edited March 29, 2022 by Dcubed

[Hero-of-Time]

I need to see a list of the retro games on offer before I commit. Would love to see trophy support on them as well.

The price is a hefty one but I'm happy to fork out the cash if the content is there. For example, Disney+ went up by £20 this year but it's a service I always use and so i'll pay the price.  The size and quality of the library is going to make or break this service.

[Ronnie]

Just now, Dcubed said:

Yeah, it is quite expensive.  Really depends on how big the actual library is if it ends up being worth it.

It's tying the retro stuff to the most expensive tier that annoys me. Over the course of the PS5 life that's 5, 6 hundred quid, and you don't even get to own them.

Weird way to announce it overall, just some wordy blog-post short on details that matter like the library itself. Meh.

[Cube]

7 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

I need to see a list of the retro games on offer before I commit. Would love to see trophy support on them as well.

It's probably mostly the same games that were part of PS Now. The number of games quoted for each ("over 700" vs "740") is fairly close, so it will likely be PS Now games with a few extras.

[Dcubed]

6 minutes ago, Ronnie said:

It's tying the retro stuff to the most expensive tier that annoys me. Over the course of the PS5 life that's 5, 6 hundred quid, and you don't even get to own them.

Weird way to announce it overall, just some wordy blog-post short on details that matter like the library itself. Meh.

They're probably still negotiating rights at the moment; so they won't be ready to announce that yet.

Also worth noting that this will probably be a rolling and every expanding library, much like NSO and the PSN service before it; so what you get at launch won't be everything you'll ever get.  Quality emulation takes time to produce and perfect.

I just hope that Sony don't get bored and give up quickly like they did with their PS2 games on PS4 initiative.  The PS3's selection of downloadable PS2 games absolutely dwarfs the PS4's selection, which is just pathetic really.

[Hero-of-Time]

3 minutes ago, Cube said:

It's probably mostly the same games that were part of PS Now. The number of games quoted for each ("over 700" vs "740") is fairly close, so it will likely be PS Now games with a few extras.

This is a fair shout. If that is the case then imagine my money will be staying in my pocket. 

[Dcubed]

9 minutes ago, Cube said:

It's probably mostly the same games that were part of PS Now. The number of games quoted for each ("over 700" vs "740") is fairly close, so it will likely be PS Now games with a few extras.

If these PS1, PS2 and PSP games are indeed native releases and not cloud streamed? I wouldn't go assuming that...

There is significant engineering work needed to ensure that these games all work properly when running on PS4/PS5.  PS4/PS5 does not currently have a significant selection of PS1 or PSP games; while the current PS2 selection is well described as anemic at best (also worth noting that a big chunk of those PS2 Classics games that were released on PS4 flat out do not work properly on PS5).

I wouldn't expect a massive list of PS1/PS2/PSP games on day 1; but rather a library that continuously grows over time.

Edited March 29, 2022 by Dcubed

[Julius]

If I'm going to be downloading a bunch of PS1, PS2, and PSP games, they better get a bloomin' shift on with getting folders on the PS5  

I said it in my post just before the news dropped, but the lack of specifying which retro titles are coming doesn't exactly inspire confidence. Yes, we're a bit over 2 months away now from when this will be releasing, but this level of transparency (or lack thereof) is exactly what I don't think they need to be doing. I guess it starts a conversation for them, but it kind of reminds me of how a good chunk of people completely misinterpreted that the PS5 would only have BC for 100 titles, based on PlayStation's own poor wording and messaging. And how about potential for things like Share Play to co-op? A lot of questions, which I'm sure will be answered, but it's a shame they weren't more up front. Now we've got to put up with another two months of rumours and speculation. 

340 is a sizeable number of games across the PS1, PS2, PSP and PS3, going well beyond what I was trying to hope for and confirming that there's definitely going to be a good number of third party games included. But, of course, the question now is, which ones? That's going to be the absolute make-or-break for pretty much everyone, but the sheer quantity means that there's very likely something I can't easily get my hands on now that I'll be able to in June, and that's an exciting prospect. I'm definitely going to be holding fire on purchasing PS3 games now until we get some clarity on what, exactly, is coming. 

Weirdly, no technical details? I know they're not showing the service or games off today, but I'm surprised there's no mention of aspect ratio, resolution, etc., because the quality of emulation is going to be a huge in whether or not this works out. @Hero-of-Time right there with you crossing my fingers for trophy support, I know there was that patent a while back where they seemingly figured out how to retroactively add trophies to emulated games (by basing it on triggers in the games themselves), so yeah, all fingers and toes crossed for that. 

Hopefully we get a dedicated State of Play or something of that ilk in the next 4-6 weeks to provide some clarity on all of this. 

23 minutes ago, Ronnie said:

It's tying the retro stuff to the most expensive tier that annoys me. Over the course of the PS5 life that's 5, 6 hundred quid, and you don't even get to own them.

I mean, depending on the games included in the service, that could be a great deal (obviously, only if you're interested in checking out games that might be selling for an eyewatering premium in the secondhand market these days/weren't released over here in the first place). 

14 minutes ago, Cube said:

It's probably mostly the same games that were part of PS Now. The number of games quoted for each ("over 700" vs "740") is fairly close, so it will likely be PS Now games with a few extras.

If that does turn out to be the case, then yeah, my money would also be staying in my pocket. Guess we'll just have to wait and see, but the quality of the emulation, and of course the fact that some games from the PSP and PS1 libraries are being included (which I don't believe are on PS Now?), could still be huge. 

It's for this exact reason that they should have said as much as they could out of the gates. 

Edited March 29, 2022 by Julius

[Hero-of-Time]

Good point about the second hand market, @Julius. Legend of Dragoon alone goes for around £100. Games like Suikoden, Silent Hill, Rival Schools, Megaman Legends, Strider 2 etc. also command very high prices. If you are interested in just one of those games then the service has paid for itself. Whether or not any of these actually show up on said service is the big question.