DF Direct Weekly

[@nateschumacher4553]

My favorite part was John responding to Richard with his fantasy about Phil announcing a renewed focus on physical media 😂

[@hdhdhhehe6709]

Xbox only survival BEGGING PlayStation to release on PS Nation.

[@GordonGordon]

Thumbs up for bat nuts

[@DGFTardin]

Na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na BAT NUTS!

[@ReachTea]

Bat poop crazy!

[@GameChronicles]

That’s what Robin said🤣

[@terogamer345]

I appreciate Richard pushing back during the Xbox 3rd party discussion, he brought up points that i haven't seen discussed on most podcasts that i've watched. Most seem to have only a superficial take on the matter.

[@formulaic78]

He also most strongly suggested that DLSS3 frame gen was limited to 4000 series for marketing reasons, which seems clearly the case to me having tried the FSR3 MOD on a 3080 playing cyberpunk and AW2 and found it to be very high quality apart from the per game implementation e.g. HUD elements.

[@djsuth7727]

Agreed. Many of the conversations I've seen haven't appreciated all the possibilities that could unfold, which include consumers losing access to their digital libraries. A lot of the superficial debate focuses on "console wars" or "brand loyalty" - which actually isn't the real problem. If the Xbox rumours are 100% true, or worse, this is going to have massive repercussions for all gamers irrespective of platform.

[@chrisc_1012]

Xbox will announce Hi-Fi Rush and sea of Thieves as going multi-platform, they will also make a business case for multi-platform to happen on a case-by-case basis in future I fully expect them to go fully multi-platform in the long-term but they won't announce Halo and Forza just yet while temperatures are still running too hot I also believe they won't pull out of the hardware market instead, they may share some future plans for the 10th generation, especially as the cat is already out of the bag because of the court case

[@offspringfan89]

​​@@chrisc_1012Yep, Phil will push the "case-by-case basis" Kool-Aid, but I don't think Xbox owners will drink it. Everyone knows that further games will also go to competing platforms, they're just waiting for the heat to come down. .

[@DaRkLoRd-rc5yu]

Remember when resident evil 4 was a GameCube exclusive

[@corey2232]

Also, the often forgotten Resident Evil 0 and RE1 Remake. GC got some great support from Capcom.

[@malaki7123]

I remember a lot of people being pissed about that, and paired with the word on the street that "it was a different style of Resident Evil" made it seem less legitimate, and so it didn't have the impact on GameCube that everyone hoped. It wasn't until the PS2 release that it really exploded. That said, the GameCube was 🔥, and to John's point, the big 3 console fabs really were firing on all cylinders and had loads of personality. Gaming feels very stale, expensive, and focus-tested now.

[@TruTrae]

​@@malaki7123it didn't sell that much more on PS2 than GameCube. The GameCube version sold around 1.6 million copies, while the PS2 version sold around 2 million copies in 2007.

[@Feanaro5503]

That was the reason I bought a GC. It was only $100 in January 2005.

[@theinsfrijonds]

@@djtomoy Fun fact: the GameCube sold about as much as the Xbox original.

[@djsuth7727]

I think Rich is the only one who understands the complexity of the Xbox situation. If MS get the messaging wrong in the upcoming statement, millions could potentially abandon Xbox in favour of more "secure" platforms where their digital libraries aren't at risk.

[@AtomicTreeDude]

Sony has delisted games and removed them from those who bought them before. Also the whole Funimation debacle…

[@rickgear2579]

@@AtomicTreeDudeso? what does that have to do with Xbox?

[@eol6632]

Xbox is the same as it's always been. If you support it that cool, just know what your getting with them. Xbox is a Microsoft vanity project. Sega with a rich daddy. Xbox, Sony, Nintendo are all guilty of doing scummy things in the industry so don't put too much faith in any company.

[@tom_123]

Yeah, agreed. Kinda strange that Rich is the only one who sees how insane the (hypothetical) situation is, from a business/market POV.

[@AtomicTreeDude]

@@rickgear2579 The post is implying Xbox is not a secure platform if MS abandons hardware. I’m saying Sony isnt really secure either, just for a different reason. Steam is the only platform I know of that would qualify as a secure platform for the immediate future.

[@akshithnair578]

Richard Leadgood, Richard Leadbetter, Richard Leadbest

[@Doc_Valparaiso]

Richard Leadbeast, Richard Ledzeppelin, Richard Yellow Leadbetter, Richard Never Leadmedown

[@slickrat]

Richard Leadership Richard Leaderboards Richard LeadMeToBelieve

[@GreggyAck]

Alex Battaglia, Alex Batnuts

[@slickrat]

John Linneman John Linneboy John Linnegirl John Linnewoman John LinnThemAll

[@JackWse]

@@slickratJohn linnens&things

[@gamergod9182]

the irony of framegen is that it works best with either high framerates or very slow movements, both situations where it provides the least benefit.

[@PurushNahiMahaPurush]

I mean it’s pretty good if you want to reach 120fps but your hardware can only hit 70-90fps.

[@ifstatementifstatement2704]

Watch devs abuse of that

[@GordonGordon]

@@PurushNahiMahaPurush totally agree. I tried using it to salvage low fps.... felt like a laggy, inconsistent mess. but when fps is high enough, it feels slightly floating at first, but I got used to it immediately.

[@paul1979uk2000]

@@ifstatementifstatement2704 Yep, if devs have their way and going on how they are abusing FSR with such low resolutions, they would end up using frame gen at 15fps and bumping that up to 30 or 60fps lol. It would be great if frame gen could work really effectively at 30fps and bump that to 60fps, that would be the holy grail for many gamers, but with current tech, there just isn't enough data for it to work well.

[@arnham]

you're not wrong, but as a 4090 owner...them high framerates ain't a problem in vast majority of games, so works real well for me personally.

[@mkb144p6]

Game pass is great but it makes no sense for a lot of us who play an hour or two at most 5 days a week and can't even complete one game in a month. edit- I don't preorder games and rarely pay full price. My recent full price purchases were elden ring and ac6 games that i was 100% sure I'd like.

[@Mako2401]

Exactly

[@randydonovan7844]

If you pay for game pass for a whole year and play 3 games you are still saving money

[@fabolousjada5070]

Yup

[@nxbad9706]

@@randydonovan7844 depends on the game

[@randydonovan7844]

@@nxbad9706 for sure. I was just generalizing. But 3 70 dollar games is more than top tier of game pass yearly

[@oddf3llow]

Rich needs a larger coffee mug

[@timmygilbert4102]

He also need a silver and red cybernetic visor with three slits

[@bryanedds8922]

maybe blackrock can print microsoft more money? why even worry about consumers?

[@Mr.PoPo56]

23 seconds, it took 23 seconds for this incredible reaction, usually reserved for shaming bad game design or tech utilization. 0:23

[@mkiller1001]

The "deal with it" guy is really the destroyer of worlds, he single handedly brought down the Xbox brand

[@pixeljauntvr7774]

I dunno. Mattrick left Xbox 10 years ago. They've had plenty of time to turn things around. The situation they're in now is because of Gamepass and the culture they've fostered their users to not purchase games.

[@mkiller1001]

@@pixeljauntvr7774 I'd say it's a combination of all these but Mattrick definitely started one hellva domino effect. Xbox One launch couldn't be any worse and it casted a long shadow that they could never get from under

[@yomamasohot6411]

​@@pixeljauntvr7774it's too early for the truth bombs. These people will consider you a heretic for saying this stuff.

[@hudson3539]

John is so cool over the rumours even tho there's a fire outside his window

[@chriscollins3225]

Please do a full video on Helldrivers 2 want to understand what's going on behind the scenes

[@ekoreko9795]

Their servers are overloaded

[@AdnanAhmed]

1:20:00 Optical flow accelerator

[@connectingupthedots]

Alex is such an Nvidia shill ..

[@TomBombFR]

Xbox burning hard behind John.

[@RegularEverydayNormalGuy]

😂

[@zaidabraham7310]

Xbox shouldn't be burning though. It's a profitable brand with a respectable market share. The issue is Microsoft (at the behest of their shareholders) is exerting a lot of pressure because Xbox isn't as profitable as its other divisions. What I'm concerned about is that Microsoft might fold the Xbox division if things don't improve. That would be really bad for the industry.

[@burreld]

The choice of platform is not a reflection of you. I have both consoles. I want both to succeed. I also love competition and remember Sony PlayStation near monopoly and the ps3 cost was 500 in early 2000’s.

[@techsamurai11]

@@zaidabraham7310 It doesn't have to be profitable - its purpose has never been to be a profit center. It's a marketing halo for Microsoft and their products and makes people want to buy new computers and hardware.

[@zaidabraham7310]

@techsamurai11 People are speculating that Microsoft is exerting pressure on the Xbox division because Xbox averages a profit margin of ~8%, compared to the much higher company average of ~35% A lot of this speculation is based on the leaked FTC documents, not sure on the exact details.

[@paprikastaude]

Gaming discourse would improve so much if people dedicated to a single platform holder above the age of 18 were muted on the internet. These Xbox meltdowns were insane. But let's not pretend the same thing didn't happen when Nintendo announced their mobile games or Playstation its PC ports. Or when something on PC doesn't come to Steam.

[@Foetoid2k6]

You’re comparing very different levels of outrage. This MS situation is as big as those other examples combined

[@Crackalacking_Z]

Bringing up Milo killed me, straight for the throat XD

[@alexanderlavoie5461]

I just cancelled my subscription. I had used it in months so just buying the games on steam/whatever else makes more sense for me

[@asdfrozen]

Re: AMD innovating, there was Mantle, which became Vulkan and DX12

[@notsyzagts7967]

True, but their impact still hasn't had the same ripple effect that ray and path tracing, dlss, etc. have had. Vulkan and DX12 are more passive in that regard; they are important and useful but they aren't in the same "game-changing" league. AMD still needs to pioneer a major graphics innovation that forces everyone to build on a new standard.

[@cube2fox]

Maybe they will introduce fixed-function support for micropolygon rendering. That would motivate other engine developers (apart from Epic) to finally implement virtual geometry, i.e. continuous LOD. Though missing console support would mean it only becomes mainstream after the PS6 launch.

[@mrweasel]

I mean announcing games like Hi Fi are going multiplatform...hardly requires a a stop the clock business meeting

[@Sheen334]

This DF weekly is "old news" in a very rapidly changing medium. Phil has pretty much confirmed now that big AAA XB games won't be going on PS. It's a storm in a tea cup. As usual.

[@notlekrut]

@@Sheen334 You don't announce a "business update" (from Phil himself - update being the keyword) meeting for just a handful of games. A business update means a business change, a change in direction. Does that mean all games will be going to PS on day one? No. Does that mean all games will be on PS? No. But it clearly indicates a change is coming Reminder that Phil Spencer himself said that Xbox could be out of the gaming business by 2027 if Game Pass doesn't grow enough (which it clearly hasn't) and they've been spending money like crazy (Bethesda + Activision acquisitions). After all that, and still not growing enough. They need revenue and fast

[@Doge10YT]

​@@Sheen334Well, you told a blatant lie. The last thing that happened is Phil and Xbox not denying a single rumor, and instead saying, "We hear you, and we have a business update scheduled for soon."

[@RubyRose23328]

​@@Doge10YTOver the weekend it was announced that Spencer said they won't be leaving the console market and everyone started walking their rumors back.

[@RubyRose23328]

​@@notlekrutThat comment was made before the Series X even launched dude. Cope harder.

[@TerraExcessum]

Noooooo. Please don't start using that 'quadruple A' title.

[@ghost085]

It was used in a sarcastic way, I think.

[@candycabngfl]

At this point all AAA means is wait for reviews. LOL Adding a few more A's will just be more of the same. Gaming has become a bad joke as a whole it seems.

[@R17759]

@@candycabngfl”new game bad” is the most brain dead uninformed take you can possibly have at this point

[@candycabngfl]

None of us are interested in playing because its not what we are looking for in a game. That's really all there is to it. Do you play games with mechanics you have no interest in ? @@R17759

[@candycabngfl]

So waiting for reviews on AAA games is a bad thing ? OK.@@R17759

[@tonygeddes9558]

I used to be a big fan of Phil Spencer, but I’m finding it more and more difficult to defend him. He’s had almost infinite resources and has been able to buy many excellent studios. Enormous sums of money. By now they should be looking at releasing at least 3 AAA titles a year. If I was Bill Gates I’d be mightily pissed off with how Xbox has fared. Sony have had far less resources and have dominated. Kudos to them.

[@Lord_ofcinder]

Sony has dominated because everything that they put out are highly renowned. And they know how to market their games properly. They don’t need to acquire publishers to be the best. It’s like that one Asian kid in class that’s really good at studies and then the rich kids trying to compete by paying others to do their homework and tests.

[@kosmosyche]

That's the thing with multiple huge acquisitions, esp. in a relatively short period of time, it's a management nightmare on a colossal level probably. I don't think XBOX even remotely have the level of control of the new assets to make everything work as smooth and efficient as needed and basically make the right decisions and properly execute them. At some point everything should settle down and somewhat stabilize and come to norm, but it may take a couple of years of hard work from them and until then it won't be a smooth ride at all. Well, they wanted it, they paid for it, now they have it, too late to turn back... Guess we'll see how it turns out in the end. 😅

[@techsamurai11]

He has achieved so little with so much and destroyed Xbox. On the other hand Sony has achieved so much with so little.

[@DFTNSHEXGRM]

Because Xbox is like that trust fund kid that gets accepted into Harvard because their daddy pulled some strings but can’t pass a single class because they’re too busy partying every night. It doesn’t matter how much money you have if you don’t have the right creative skills, talent, vision etc. Xbox thinks they can just skip all of that with money. They don’t have the secret sauce that PlayStation has, it’s as simple as that. Xbox is doing the same thing Warner Bros did with DC, trying to rush out a cinematic universe and complete with Marvel. Kind of a similar situation has happened with Xbox vs PlayStation..

[@CaptainKenway]

It's always surprised me how many people are taken in by Phil's BS. He has that Todd Howard gift of being able to lie constantly and fail to deliver on his promises, yet remain relatively well-liked. I guess that's a great skill for a corporate PR bot to have, but it's still surprising that it's taken this long for people to catch on that he's not your best buddy and isn't actually ever going to come over for that brewski and Halo session.

[@Owlero]

I can safely say this is the hardest I've ever seen Rich laugh 1:34:20

[@MarkWSutton]

Looking for something to watch while doing my kids’ dishes and a nominally instant notification for a new DF Direct pops up. Thanks for making my Saturday morning chores more enjoyable every week!

[@martin_the_artist_]

Can we have 'John's Sonic corner' every week please

[@MrFasta12]

Would enjoy a Helldivers 2 deep dive, there is a lot to cover for both PC and PS5

[@CassidyListon]

Jon Linneman looks like he's been pulling all-nighters in the thumbnail.

[@bryanedds8922]

with ur mom

[@JackWse]

@@bryanedds8922and your dad.. who was watching from the closet... But this time dressed as Batman, cuz he was going to try to get involved this time but.. sigh.. maybe one day.. we're all rooting for him!

[@nimbulan2020]

I would argue that the differing reactions between Helldivers 2 and Suicide Squad are about much more than just expectations. You can't forget about the price - it feels MUCH worse for a $70 game to have issues compared to a $40 game, and that $70 game has microtransactions on top too. The general quality feel of the game and how fun or repetitive the missions are factor in pretty heavily as well. Plus the whole Starship Troopers style is a big bonus for Helldivers.

[@fredsorre6605]

Microsoft did make a deal with IBM which saw IBM backporting their Hyper threading equivalent back down to an older architecture and that made it ready for mass production earlier than the Cell processor which was financed by Sony so in a funny ironic way Sony paid for tech that was then incorporated to a competitor's product which allowed said competitor to beat them to Market.

[@TempleofShaolin]

Helldivers 2 is some of the best co op I’ve played in awhile

[@ivanleon6164]

and the way they downplay it is not cool.

[@CaptToilet]

If you play the PC version you get a rootkit for free. How about that.

[@RubyRose23328]

The game is a blast and I enjoy playing it when the servers work.

[@hostileenvironment6107]

Not 55-60 $ worth it, no thanks. I'll stick with Vermintide 2 with friends til Dark-tide goes on 15-18 dollars / below.

[@rubenthehuman]

@@hostileenvironment6107 It's $40

[@unkommentiertesgameplay]

The thing about the Indiana Jones game is that it was already in development when Microsoft acquired Bethesda and the licenser is Lucas Arts/Disney. It never occurred to me that it could be an Xbox exclusive because Disney is certainly interested in getting it to as many buyers as possible.

[@yomamasohot6411]

The deal was revised after MS' acquisition. I'm pretty sure Disney got paid for making it an exclusive. The funny thing is, they paid Disney and still eventually went multi-platform. No one would happier at this than disney.

[@-PVL93-]

Give the sonic mania dev team a bigger budget, these guys clearly understand what makes a platformer click and work

[@marrow94]

I know people that willingly refused to buy and play Mania because "it's not made by the original Sonic Team"

[@steel5897]

@@marrow94 that's unbelievable, they deserve all the bad Sonic games if that's what they legitimately think.

[@LateNightHalo]

I think what’s also worth mentioning about a strength of the 360 was that it was simply more responsive and had more features than the ps3 did at a UI level.

[@ZeroB4NG]

45:00 Helldivers 1 was not a live service game, no battlepass, no MTX store, just a bit of DLC AFAIK, but i didn't play it so don't quote me on that, either way the point is that Helldivers 2 totally made a change towards Live Service. Why we accept Helldiver 2's Live Service model is because first of all, it isn't FOMO based, the Battlepasses never expire, you can play as much or little as you want and progress at your own pace and time, without the game forcing you to get this done in this amount of time or you lose access to the unlocks you already paid money for but didn't have time to grind through it all. This game respects my TIME! Next: this is a multiplayer game from the ground up, like if somebody made Gears of War Horde mode into stand alone game. There is no story campaign, no cutscenes... every match adds up to an invasion on a planet / sector until the galaxy wide war is eventually won, you can not accomplish this sort of meta game offline or in singleplayer. That Suicide Squad game... is one of those that wants to be a Storybased Singleplayer game but also the boss says to be live service with Battlepasses and MTX and all that crap... it is your usual AAA bastardization of a franchise that works better without. When Helldivers 2 Servers get shut off, i see no point in an offline mode. Suicide Squad, could be just like Guardians of the Galaxy, maybe with the ability to control all 4 characters or jump between them etc. there is no need to have this be a game that dies when the Server gets shut off.... and judging by the player numbers, which was half of the failed Avengers game on launch and now has dipped below even the Batman Arkham games ....i'll give it 2 years tops before they turn OFF those servers and rob their customers of the product they've paid for.... product, not service.

[@candycabngfl]

Yeah 2 is an entirely different experience. As someone who played the original a lot with a regular group of friends none of us are interested in the new games format or the monetization that comes with it. We enjoyed how the original was a change up from your standard co-op twin stick shooter, now it just comes off as another 3rd person Starship Troopers clone.

[@lipsontajgordongrunk4328]

The premium cosmetics in the store are FOMO. There’s a timer before they get rotated out with no guarantee when they come back. Suicide Squad confirmed their battle passes also don’t expire. Helldivers 2 not offering an offline mode is bad for legacy.

[@ooperblownup]

​@@candycabngflwell that's an opinion... I played Helldivers 1 a lot too and I think Helldivers 2 knocked it out of the park. Extremely well designed game and I know I will be playing it for years, I'm very glad they switched to third person while maintaining the unique gameplay.

[@candycabngfl]

Right on. Glad you are enjoying it. 🤙@@ooperblownup

[@robertlawrence9000]

Dude! Helldivers 2 is LIT!!!!!

[@jackaydostan]

The flavour missing out of the current gen consoles is that most game releases are digital downloads, unlike xbox360, PS3 and PS2 where you had a full physical disc release to go with the digital game download.

[@Blietzflame845]

People forget that Sony and Xbox’s business isn’t box sales it’s the 30% cut from each purchase on said box. So a box is still important for that reason. Also the fact that most purchases happen on consoles. Pc players just don’t buy full priced games statistically even well optimized ones like RE 4 Remake

[@mjc0961]

[citation needed] I buy plenty of full priced games for PC. I'm just a sample size of one, but that's still one more than your sample size of zero. Do you have a source on your claim or did you just make it the f*** up?

[@AaronLDeWolf]

​@@mjc0961just look it up. PC gamers are always bragging about getting discounts and pirating games. PC mag reported in December 2023 that only 36% of gamers play full price and 32 percent only play free games, which correlates with earlier studies about PC piracy which has found almost 25% of PC gamers have pirated 50 or more games and nearly 90% of PC gamers have pirated at least one game.

[@Not_Lewis]

John with the weird takes as always. Playstation has outperformed xbox solely because they have a much better line of exclusives. The biggest exclusive Xbox has released in the last few years was Starfield and it still was a mid tier game at best. The Forza Motorsport reboot thoroughly under-performed expectations largely because their 7 year dev cycle still managed to push out a broken buggy mess of a game, and don't get me started on Redfall. Xbox is rumored to be going multiplatform because they can't compete otherwise. They have zero first party titles that could compete with COD so they just buy out Activision anyway. They can't compete with any single player offerings that Sony has so they just want to flood the Sony market with xbox titles so maybe Playstation buyers (like myself) will pick up a game.

[@BleedandRise]

That beard is looking good John, keep it growing!

[@walter_the_wobot2349]

John’s beard is growing better than the Xbox install base.

[@trostfoxy]

I want to see John (and maybe the entirety of DF) have a long beard, as long or even longer than Gaben LOL.

[@Jackelope84]

Looking good in the beard.

[@sneakygurl]

agreed, anything but the soul patch! John misses the 90's so bad lol

[@offspringfan89]

​@@sneakygurl😂

[@arcverson4963]

I'm confused, John basically said something like "Sony haven't been doing anything special this gen, it's the worst they ever been" like have you seen GOW Ragnarok, GT7, HFW, Returnal, R&C Rift Apart, Astro Playroom, Helldivers 2? I'd say it's the best they ever were in terms of 1st party output...

[@cchhen21]

Yea. When the topic is Xbox, John can’t help it but to throw in some PlayStation slander in there. He hates it that Sony is doing so well.

[@arcverson4963]

@@cchhen21 Well I don't think he hates Sony, but Xbox fanboys have been harassing him non stop on twitter and accusing him of being a Sony fanboy simply for speaking the truth, so maybe he unconsciously tries to be overly harsh on Sony to avoid being accused of such thing

[@cchhen21]

@@arcverson4963 That may be true, but that doesn’t mean he should be saying false stuff about Sony. Modern PlayStation games might not be for him, that doesn’t mean they’re not high quality games that millions of gamers love.

[@olaf3140]

A lot of those games are further iterations of existing IPs. John is not wrong when he says today's Sony is different from PS1/PS2 Sony. Maybe the times have just changed, and yes there are obviously great games on PS5, but considering how long it's been out, there really aren't many groundbreaking titles.

[@sillymikey]

It has nothing to do with brand loyalty. For me it’s essentially one reason, if they go 3rd party then the console eventually dies. It will start selling less, gamepass subs will go down on console and eventually they’ll wonder why they’re even still making them. It’s a pretty clear cut path for me and it’s concerning imo.

[@generalcjg]

Don't forget that if the Xbox dies, then the PlayStation will no longer have any direct Next Gen competition against them (Switch is indirect competition since Nintendo stopped going after their competitors head on since the Wii days), and once the PlayStation no longer has direct Next Gen competition, just imagine how ultra complacient Sony will get with the PlayStation (PS5 will increase in price again, $80-100 dollar PS5 games, PS Plus increases price, Spider-Man 3 split into 2 parts, and more). There's a reason why Madden has been 💩, cause they've had no competition at all since 2005.

[@Mako2401]

Sony monopoly coming withing two years.

[@fabolousjada5070]

@@generalcjgyes they will PC will become the competition cause the ps6 will be about 500-600 bucks maybe the latter. Still PC is expensive.

[@generalcjg]

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​@@fabolousjada5070PC is never gonna be the direct competition to console hardware, ever. The way both platforms interact with video games (particularly with hardware and software required to even get the game running) have different levels of entry. PC requires way more manual input and procedures to get the game running (even if the game is fully updated and compatible with your PC rig); while on console, even with needing to at first download the game (and later update it once awhile), it still is as easy as just pressing one or a few buttons, booting up the game and start playing. Their two very different ecosystems and handling of games caused them to get two very different fanbases, with consoles in particular being more people that don't usually dedicate a lot of time to play games and all they want is to just play a game in a quick and effortless way; while on PC the playerbase are those that are more willing to stick with Gaming for longer periods of time so they got the time and energy to deal with all the manual procedures and inputs to get the game running on PC. Also pricing on Next Gen PC desktop hardware goes into the four digits (over a $1000 dollars), so even if the PS6 costs $600 dollars, it will still be significantly cheaper and easier to setup compared to a fully powered and capable PC desktop. Not to mention the console playerbase is bigger than PC's, so much so that even AAA publishers like EA are prioritizing more the console versions of their games over the PC versions, which is why more AAA games as of late are getting bad PC ports while on consoles they launch with less issues.

[@offspringfan89]

​​@@generalcjgConsoles are only cheaper to mantain than PC in the short run. In the long run, the cheaper/free PC games and free multiplayer make it cheaper. And I won't even talk about emulators and unlimited backwards compatibility. And also warez, if I may. I can work and play games on my PC, which is one of the reasons I built one, because I can't afford to buy both a console and a fast desktop/laptop. I've redeemed so many free games on Prime Gaming, GOG and Epic Store that summed would cost over half of what I've spent on my PC. And you can build a PC with console-class graphics for less than $1000, that will last you years without a need for upgrade.

[@ARIXANDRE]

Damn Carnaval Holiday in Brazil made me forget today is Monday!

[@Nero_PR]

More time for me to play Helldivers 2. It is the only game that took me out of Granblue Fantasy Relink since I haven't played a shooter that grabbed me by the balls like this since the original Destiny.

[@nathanjones1008]

Since that Stellar Blade DF content went viral it's really soured my enjoyment of certain members of DF's content.

[@PintsofGuinness]

what

[@fabolousjada5070]

@@PintsofGuinnessits obvious xbox runs them the shots John throws at ps5 weekly is becoming sickening thats why their views are down. They was so unbias during covid. Not so much now

[@speedracer2please]

The Stellar Blade discourse in general has been wild, and made me realize how conservative Western countries have gotten in a relatively short period of time. If South Korea is the one pushing boundaries, we're in trouble.

[@ghost085]

​@@fabolousjada5070 Could it be that you are just too sensitive about it because you are biased in PS5 favor?

[@nathanjones1008]

Ugh!..yawn.

[@GrimJackal]

Does John understand that 'Super Earth' is a totalitarian nightmare? It's not a united humanity so much as one forced into a single existence.

[@windyearle]

I wonder if the Switch has such a great library partly because it's effectively a gen behind tech-wise, which has a very positive effect on budgets and development time. Gen 9 games almost demand a multiplatform audience to be viable, and they still take 5+ years and hundreds of millions of dollars to make. There was always going to be upper limits in budget and manpower and these are now capping everyone's output, apart from Nintendo who are a gen behind.

[@ifstatementifstatement2704]

Excellent point!

[@Moecean]

Good point never thought of it that way.

[@malaki7123]

Given a lot of the discussion around the Internet on gaming hardware, most people don't seem to either know or care about what better specs mean for games as a whole, and judging by the Switch's success, are perfectly happy (myself included) with visuals from the PS360 era of hardware. When looking at it from those angles as well as art asset creation being one of the most costly parts of development in terms of time, it definitely does seem like Nintendo hit the sweet spot. I mean, with how long it takes for modern AAA games to come out now, people are aging out of target demographics ranges too fast for games to really hit their mark!

[@Mako2401]

Microsoft has the resources to solve these issues, the problem isnt the budget it's the quality of the games. If Starfield was good, it would have sold like Skyrim and be the system seller.

[@MrCarpediem6]

started w/ the Wii, that was basically a gamecube with waggle ware.

[@DyeHard79]

News just went up Phil Spencer, Sarah Bond AND Matt Booty will speak on Xbox Podcast (Xbox KZbin) Thursday Feb 15 at 3pm est

[@DyeHard79]

@Packin-Heat yeah people on Twitter were saying oh putting on Xbox Wire would be a mistake...yeah that's what I expected a blog post

[@MonsterXero423]

Meltdown is the right word. Krakatoa level😂

[@theinsfrijonds]

East of Java?

[@bryanedds8922]

maybe blackrock can print microsoft more money? why even worry about consumers?

[@theinsfrijonds]

@@bryanedds8922 maybe Black Rock could help Microsoft go woke. Maybe that will help them to make money 💰

[@KhromTX]

John consistently has the worst takes out of DF, it's impressive. Rich should call him out more often.

[@D0d_]

Regarding VII Rebirth, that's exactly what I was thinking about, I doubt it's only a texture streaming issue but more like a usage of assets designed to be small and scaled up to an unreasonable size where the texture itself gets stretched and blurry. Some of the quixel assets they're using are designed to be huge in some cases but not all of them are. If they took a small boulder and made a mountain out of it you're definitely going to see how low res it gets unless they add back some micro normals into the texture.

[@Keytotruth]

One thing to note about the FF7 Rebirth demo is that it's actually quite an old build of the game as it's literally the same demo as what people at TGS played. Many of those issues might be solved by the final release.

[@Shantara11]

This is the first time I’ve heard anyone saying that they like modern Windows OS. I can understand accepting Windows as the best option for your use case, but with the number of anti-consumer changes pushed over last years, I cannot imagine genuinely liking it.

[@mjc0961]

The thing is Windows works fine most of the time. It's annoying during install if you want a local account, it's annoying after install to remove the pre installed bloat, and it's annoying after updates and the random times when it brings in a bunch of pre-start screens trying to get you to enable a bunch of features you already decided you don't want. Most of the time, you turn on your computer, it loads right to your desktop as it should, and generally stays out of the way. There's nothing to dislike most of the time. People tend to exaggerate the negative and say nothing when everything is just fine. 🤷🏼‍♂️

[@chairforceoneYT]

I like windows 10 if that's considered a modern OS. 11 is a downgrade imo

[@lobstrosity7163]

An operating system that doesn't let the use operate the system.

[@AndyGilleand]

For someone who cares about "the brand" let me explain it to you: It's not just about the brand. It's about how that if a gaming brand is successful, then the studios that brand represents will have their games funded better. The worse Xbox or Sony performs, the worse their studios will perform. Expanding to other platforms means more customers for YOUR games, but it means dramatically less revenue overall because you devalue your console, which means less and less people buy third party games on your platform. Sony and MS get a significant cut of every third party game sold. Sony and MS get MORE money from third party games sold on their platform than they do from their own games. You devalue the platform by giving people less reason to need your platform, and you dramatically lower that third party commission revenue. For example, Sony and Microsoft would need something like at least 70% of PC sales go to people who would would NEVER buy a console in order to break even. Considerably more for it to generate enough profit to be worth the devaluing of the brand. The majority of PC gamers own a console, so that's unrealistic. That statistic gets higher if you sell your games on other consoles, since other consoles are much more in direct competition than PC is. If I'm a Sony fan, and I want Sony studios to be funded properly, then I want to support decisions that mean Sony gets more revenue overall, so that they can fund their studios better. Better revenue for them means better games for us. Same thing goes for Microsoft, and we already see the negative impacts the day-and-date releases on PC has caused for Xbox sales and therefore game revenue (gamepass reducing game revenue further)

[@polskastylezz187]

hearing richs voice and the df theme ❤ feels amazing pure nostalgia

[@af4396]

Also, the implication that anyone cared about experimental games on 360 is ridiculous. Halo, Gears and Mass Effect sold that platform. In fact, Mass Effect going to PS was one of the first major losses to Xbox brand. Its ALL about AAA exclusives. That's what drives console sales. Not indie, not some creative weird games. Cold, hard, cash infused AAAs tied to a brand.

[@Tiyrant]

I think it would be interesting if the next console could dual boot Windows or Steam OS. Imagine an Xbox that could theoretically run PC games. It would open a massive audience up at the right price.

[@greatwhiteevox1008]

I think you nailed it with the idea of an open system but have Xbox be a Steamdeck type thing that maybe you dock like switch for even more power, have a baseline 1080p 120, and then docked solutions for way more power have unlocked resolution and frames, but set a standard and stick too it like the Dreamcast did with 60fps, and switch does with style and substance within its boundaries, then they will have something consistent to count on which right now they don't have. Elite dock 8k 60 4k 240, Pro Dock 4k 120, and Base dock scalable, but just a damn standard.

[@борисрябушкин-з9н]

@@robf It will be portable console not pc. Last rumors it will have usual console and portable system in one api. Also competitor is switch not portable pcs.

[@gameindustryinsider6450]

If MS wants to sell games at 70$ on ps5 with the intent of incentivizing games pass purchases, they need to release all the heavy hitters.

[@JDwall9192]

I’d disagree with ALL, but yeah some will need to go to PS if their strategy is indeed to boost subs. They have 30+ studios now, they can afford to be selective about what goes and stays

[@paul1979uk2000]

Maybe they should make a deal with Sony in that if Sony release all their exclusive games on PC and Xbox, Microsoft will release all theirs on PC and PS, which I think most are already on the PC anyway. Other than that, it might not be a good idea for Microsoft to release it's big hitters on PS unless Sony is willing to return the favour.

[@jtaggtheone4430]

@@paul1979uk2000 what you said makes absolutely no sense why would Sony give up there exclusives they are making money and doing good. The reason why Xbox is having to put there game on PlayStation and Xbox is gamepass it doesn’t make them money they admitted it so it makes sense to sell your games on ps5 and switch do recoup the losses from game pass. This would just be a smart decision get out of the console game and focus on studios let Sony focus on spending the money on hardware this will be good for everyone.

[@pixeljauntvr7774]

​@@paul1979uk2000The Xbox user base is too small to make it worth while. Sony really doesn't need the Xbox user base. Not the same the other way around as Xbox has fostered a culture of gamers not purchasing games.

[@Doggo-frencton]

@@pixeljauntvr7774PC userbase is bigger than both combined. Xbox already released their games on pc

[@AstaIsAMonster]

We need HellDivers 2 and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth videos.🙏🏽

[@hdhdhhehe6709]

No we don’t

[@drd2093]

AMD pioneered vulkan, which descends from AMD Mantle. ATI pioneered the modern programmable graphics pipeline in the x360. Both are enormous changes they should get credit for

[@drd2093]

Oh, don’t forget low-power APUs, which they’ve pursued for years that have lead to the Steam Deck and competitors.

[@imo098765]

ok so over a decade ago and something that has less than 5% of the switch sales The company was nearly shut down between Mantle and now

[@alexkuznetsov8928]

About Helldivers on PS5: Even on performance mode you easily can see fps drop, but it's a case for higher difficulty (like Extreme/sixth) and obviously much higher enemy counts. So it'll be great, if you might adrress this problem and perhaps offer a solution to developers in the form of basic dynamic resolution.

[@1wayroad935]

Xbox being mad for their failures and poor management will never not be fun to see

[@RubyRose23328]

Grow up

[@1wayroad935]

@@RubyRose23328 I dunno man, you're the one who immediately resorted to personal attacks. Maybe look in a mirror first?

[@RubyRose23328]

​@@1wayroad935Children these days. They are always the first to cry when their feelings get hurt.

[@1wayroad935]

@@RubyRose23328 Grow up

[@RubyRose23328]

@@1wayroad935 Aww I hurt the poor kids feelings.

[@MrPhyxsyus]

Jesus christ, did Alex just said nvidia doesn't have a reason to lie about features and specs? Ppl really don't remember the 4080 12gb? No one saw the 3050 6gb? Digital foundry really lost it.

[@KimBoKastekniv47]

Wouldn't want to upset their overlords.

[@spenny2cents]

If it wasn’t obvious that Alex bends over backwards for Nvidia I’ve got a story to tell ya… it involves a leather jacket and private jet

[@cronodoug]

Completely on John's side. For me, the Playstation was good until the end of the PS2 and Xbox until the 360. Nowadays I practically live on Nintendo and PC, but my PS1 and PS2 are always ready to be played.

[@CoffeeStainer]

My first ever DF podcast and I’ve gotta say…NOPE. All this nitpicking will suck the fun out of any game I intend to play. It’s a good thing I love Final Fantasy and I’m looking forward to this sequel. You guys would have turned me off. Jeez!

[@klipseracer]

If Xbox could bring the Ability to resell digital games and trade/sell your digital entitlements in a secondary market of some kind that would be big.

[@spenny2cents]

That would be HUGE and get me to finally buy an Xbox since the 360

[@mjc0961]

My favorite part about the 3D Sonic discussion is that nobody even mentioned Forces. Sonic Labyrinth got mentioned! But not Forces.

[@mjc0961]

Honestly that sounds right on. Sonic Forces is incredibly forgettable. If you're thinking of playing it, just (re)play Generations instead.

[@fahadmalik8862]

@@mjc0961 haha not forces. It was low class.

[@dante19890]

Forces is among the worst 3d sonic games. Dont even touch any 3D sonic game Just play Spark the electric Jester games, This is how you do a 3D sonic game

[@grcigar9911]

RRoD and all, to me, Bungie/Halo defined the 360 and not Microsoft. I personally cannot even fathom our current hindsight views of the 360 had we not had all the Halo games that launched on this console, especially Halo 3.

[@Etheral101]

Spyro and Crash Bandicoot defined Sony at one point. Now their both on Xbox

[@af4396]

Excep​t the developer still defines Sony lol. Uncharted, Last of Us

[@alonsonuno7944]

Every weekly show I see less and less pads on John's Sennheiser. It gives me the ick, please get this man a new pair of pads.

[@decus478]

The flashback sequence for FF7 Rebirth was also just slightly de-saturated in general compared to when they flash forward again to them talking about the flashback. So kind of an odd sequence at least in terms of getting a feel for the game's visuals since you've only got the purposefully de-saturated segment and then cutscenes. Once Junon is out should be a better look at things.

[@gasparguruoftime5475]

Hopefully the open world demo next week will give us a better feel for the standard visuals of the game. It’ll take place in Junon so it’ll be kinda orange and brown, but at least it won’t be de-saturated like the flashback was. For the record I like the de-saturation; it works both for a flashback as well as for setting Nibelheim’s atmosphere, but it’s just not really representative of the overall visuals of the game.

[@bloomerb4162]

I didn't notice a desaturated look. Not sure what your talking about.

[@omensoffate]

@@bloomerb4162people just making shit up to make excuses for square lol

[@imposible2beat]

Alex is so smart and knowledgeable about technical minutiae, but completely ignorant about the console business model and what it entails. I don’t use the term ignorant in a derogatory way at all, it’s just very fascinating.

[@gasparguruoftime5475]

As regards FF7 Rebirth, you guys might be interested in checking out this video by PlayStation Access that shows a most likely newer build of the game; I don’t think I can post links, but it’s titled: “Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Open World Gameplay - We’ve Played It!” They got to play Chapters 1 & 2 at a special SE event, and though the video mostly shows the open world, it also shows some parts of the flashback and it has some clear visual differences from the demo like lighting in the Materia Guardian boss fight. Curious if you can spot any specific improvements considering this is almost assuredly a newer build of the game than what the demo is.

[@nlikeflynn8837]

They are definitely using Graphics mode in that video. That would explain why it looks cleaner.

[@omensoffate]

Cope

[@gasparguruoftime5475]

@@nlikeflynn8837 I’m not talking about it looking cleaner; the lighting is literally completely different in the boss fight, and Cloud and Sephiroth’s Synergy Ability doesn’t do the awkward close-up of their faces at the end either, indicating it’s not the same build.

[@awsomeboy360]

@@gasparguruoftime5475 That's exactly what I think it is. This demo was the same one that came out 5 months ago. The newer build it much better. However one must ask, why deliver us such an old build?

[@dante19890]

usually things never change from the demo to the retail game. If FF16 is anything to go by, I dont think they will fix the technical issues in patches either

[@CaptToilet]

Surprising Rich or Alex didn't mention anything about Helldivers 2 rootkit being installed in the PC version. I would imagine this is being saved for the proper video? People must not overly care about that considering the steam numbers were up to 135k over the weekend.

[@band0lero]

Most games have kernel level anti-cheat. What is exactly the issue this time around? Valorant Anti-Cheat, Warzone Anti-Cheat, Easy Anti-Cheat, BattleEye even...

[@spenny2cents]

Probably because nobody cares.

[@captbrick1589]

Zelda extraction shooter got me 🤣 Good one John!

[@TOMfULLERy3011]

Genuinely hilarious answer from John when Rich asked what Microsoft would say in the business update.

[@Phil_529]

I thought FSR1 looked ok at 4K quality or ultra quality mode but at that point pretty much all upscalers look good.

[@GoufinAround_]

I don't take anyone who cares about a brand over all else seriously. I have a PC, a PS5 and a Switch because that makes the most sense. Having a PC, and being able to afford to have a fairly good one, makes the Series X worthless. The PS5 fills the gap for multi-plat games that I want on a disc and am unwilling to buy on Steam, and the Switch is just the Switch. It's for Nintendo games and games that I want to be able to play on the go if I want.

[@garethsmith6611]

Helldivers 2 is amazing. 9/10 from me. my favourite game in years. And by the way, this isnt fully live service as you can upgrade everything without having to pay a penny. but suicide squad is terrible not fun gameplay and its just cosmetics. Helldivers 2 is amazing in terms of gameplay and addictive gameplay loop. Suicide squad doesnt have that so its not that confusing at all is it really

[@Kamen101]

All platforms release their exclusives on other platforms after 1 year. Easy win for everyone 😂

[@Kamen101]

@genderlessundeity like the old reaper stuff 🔥 bad luck goes hard

[@PicksterTG]

I agree. Don Mattrick really screwed Xbox, the Hardware and the brand.... and frankly I am and always have been mad about that whole scenario.

[@CrAzYpOtHeAd420time]

John notes about Helldivers 2 but the 1st game wasn't live service, and part of the appeal to me was the local play in the 1st game along with having magicka sort of elements with the commands

[@Gimpy17]

As long as the Switch still provides physical copies that cannot be stolen away from us years later, I will support it.

[@TheL1arL1ar]

In the end Nintendo will be the only company pretty much offering physical….can you imagine those prices from limited run games later 😂.

[@godbelow]

Your physical copies can 100% be stolen away from you.

[@bilditup1]

Re FSR1, turning a pixel into a perfect sphere is a thing that used to be done on crappier digital cameras and smartphones, too. It’s kind of strange to encounter a similar kind of processing still in use in a very different context so many years later

[@anonony9081]

The AI NPC thing is definitely going to become mainstream very quickly. Right now it's already better than a badly written game where most NPCs repeat one or two lines over and over. Just the ability to give their lines a bit of context will be a game changer and in a few years when the AI written dialog is indistinguishable from the main questline dialogue it will take over. It's inevitable

[@steel5897]

I think it has potential only in certain types of games and even then they'd need highly specialized, focused models that are trained to do one very specific thing, so that you can get infinite variance in responses but always within the purpose of that NPC in the design of the game. Hard to explain really, I just think that with this kind of thing limitations will be key in making it work.

[@SeifSoudani]

Another major aspect inherent to exclusivity in gaming that hasn't been addressed in this video can be summarized in one word: optimisation. Having "in-house" first party studios mean that teams become more knowledgeable and used to develop for that one unique platform, which generally allows for much higher quality.

[@chhem]

I always look forward to these shows every Saturday morning

[@thorocomments]

Me too! I wake my 6 month old up, throw in my headphones and get the day going.

[@awsomeboy360]

The pop-in for Rebirth will always be a thing, however I do think a lot of the texture issues will be resolve with the newer build since I believe this demo is using a older build. I say this because the previews of FF7 Rebirth by various KZbin Channels honestly look so much better than the demo, even Nihemheim section that they show off. I guess we'll have to wait.

[@Drew_Koch]

Man I totally agree with the FSR take. It makes everything look worse. I feel like it is a crutch to developers now. Just slap FSR on it and we will hit our FPS targets! But man, just lower res or asset quality a bit. Checkerboarding of PS4 did look better.

[@steel5897]

FSR2 is only good up to a point, it falls apart exponentially when you push it beyond a certain res factor. Pretty much only Quality mode is usable, and only at 1440p and above, there it kinda competes with native TAA, KINDA with some faults. Anything below Quality is unusable. On consoles I think developers are asking too much of it, pushing it too far, and the results are disgusting.

[@dm1i]

AMD pioneered Mantle. And Vulcan as a resut opening former for everyone. Looks like quite a sensible innovation.

[@brei.z]

I don't get fan boys at all lol. All companies just want ya money, I buy what ever is best for me, at the time. This line made me laugh lots. "When we say, one version is slightly better than another version, they don't see it as an observation, they see it as an attack on their identity"

[@nO_d3N1AL]

One thing that's always missing from these discussions is the legacy of achievements. You all drastically underestimate how much achievements and preserving one's profile matters to millions. It's hard to care about achievements if you're migrating to a new platform. The key thing they need to keep is the digital library and Xbox profile savegames / stats / achievements.

[@SHGames97]

ALEX @ 1:20:40 You were looking for motion vectors!

[@iurigrang]

I think it's optical flow

[@archetype6351]

I think he meant optical flow.

[@JackWse]

We're all looking for motion vectors.. Just stumbling around in the dark trying to find the motion vectors.. and some people will never know that they're depth sensors inverted.. and so we're one to see beyond the curtain they would only see an infinite void of blackness... Along with their soul.. and all you can do is just hope one day they flip it around and see the world for what it is.. but it's harder to do once you get older.

[@cosmosofinfinity]

Penny's Big Breakaway having the enemies chase you reminds me of Jet Set Radio cop pursuits where they all pounce and grab onto you to drain your life down. It has a pretty striking look to its shading and coloration too

[@8K240hz]

Just googled it, the Series S made up 75% of Xbox console sales.

[@eeeeyuke]

25 minutes in and John has already raised his voice speculatively 3 times.

[@anarchychef2216]

Didnt xbox say that they've never profited from the xbox console?

[@kyledodson2992]

Most consoles (hardware) are sold at a loss, software sales, subscriptions etc are the profit. Usually. Over time, I think hardware does become cheaper to manufacture

[@TheMa5cmpb]

Yes they did

[@Anviification]

FF7 Rebirth demo update should be releasing today. Hopefully John has time to quickly revisit the FF7R blurryness issue before actual game review and confirm if there's improvements to AA solution or post-processing.

[@dodgykebaab]

Chad Warden: “Sony always wins, you can’t beat Sony” Chad Daddy foretold this day.

[@ChampagneDewayne]

Thank you for the rebirth feedback! Looking forward to the dedicated breakdown

[@lenina17]

Damn, John on fire this episode. I agree with basically everything he said here

[@dark1x]

Hell yeah!

[@fabolousjada5070]

I disagree he came like he was sour lol talking about the playstation havent been good since the ps2? Mennn gtfoh lmao he a hater

[@faultier1158]

@@fabolousjada5070 He didn't say that PS3 and PS4 weren't good. He said that Playstation had a stronger brand identity during the PS1 & PS2 era - and he said the same about Xbox.

[@funkywonky94]

I agree with John. They need to come up with an opened form of both hardware and software in order to differentiate themselves from the closed platforms like the PS and Switch

[@cdlelondon]

The fact that XBox own so many studios and still seem to balls up their own first party games is why they're in this position, just look how Halo 🙈 they actually shot themselves in the foot

[@TheBean87]

Halos doing fantastic

[@RubyRose23328]

Halo has more people playing it than ever before. What are you even talking about?

[@alumlovescake]

People still hate Infinte and it doesn't change the fact the launch was mediocre it was insane it actually launched like like and it is still in the same state it still feels like a demo

[@G360LIVE]

The Halo brand is just weak now. 343i ran it into the ground. And the terrible Halo TV series isn't helping; it's only continuing to hurt the brand. I wouldn't be surprised to see Halo: Infinite free-to-play multiplayer on PS5, if only to try to get the player base up.

[@RubyRose23328]

​@@alumlovescakeYeah keep telling yourself that. You console warriors are sad.

[@DawnApon]

I saw the scaling option defaulting around quality, and the name combined with my expectations meant I thought it would be DLSS. But I turned it to native as soon as I could tell it wasn't as good. I really, REALLY wish DLSS was added, but I expect that wont happen as Arrowhead seems like a small team. That's really good for the game's lifespan in terms of patches already, but I cant help but think that they're gonna focus on other things, and DLSS just wont happen. After your video, maybe DLSS will happen. I run just around 60fps med/high-ish settings native 1080p w/both OC'd MSI RTX 3050 & Ryzen 5600.