Ubisoft Has Its Cake and Eats It, Too - Game Scoop! 471

[@EagleEye6486]

Time Stamps 00:05 Start 02:02 Ubisoft's Earnings Figures 12:38 Listener Feedback - How The Future Will Impact Games As A Service 19:54 Hawaii Addresses Loot Boxes 30:18 Reacting To Sea Of Thieves Having Micro-Transactions 34:54 Listener Feedback - Knowledge Necessary To Get A Foothold In The Games Industry 39:36 Listener Feedback - Does Game Scoop Find It Hard To Live In The Now When It Comes To Video Games? 43:36 Listener Feedback - What Triple A Games Can Hold Their Own Against Rock Star? 46:53 Video Game 20 Questions 1:03:00 DICE Awards Plug 1:03:48 Outro

[@neby_nebs]

I can’t believe Colin Moriarty made an appearance at 22:00 😂😂😂

[@Not_Liquid]

Neby Moges I’m at 21:00 right now. Hypeeee

[@mikekasabion]

Michael Miller LOL sorry he must’ve gotten your hopes up

[@kyle4240]

Exactly what i thought when he said "i sound like somebody else" miss you colin.

[@7PlayingWithFire7]

@@kyle4240 he's kind of a dipshit so whatever lol. Also the clown gave the last of us a 10

[@Brett452]

The bots in Perfect Dark are incredible. That game will live on forever due to that feature. Holds up so well too, at least on XBL.

[@TheRealDevtek]

I'm sorry but loot boxes have never made any game better.

[@sthxdnn1]

I’d argue Injustice is better considering you can’t even put real currency to buy their boxes or a gear advantage. Paid loot boxes though you’re right.

[@PeterDB90]

I play World of Warcraft (Classic) and I love fishing in that game because occasionally you fish out a chest/trunk/box with all kinds of random goodies in it - that to me feels a lot like a lootbox mechanic, I like it because it's a surprise - you never know what you will get, BUT the big difference is that it's part of the game, not something you can pay for (with either in-game currency or real money), you HAVE to fish for them.

[@_PatrickStar]

23:48 loot boxes making games more fun? hmm

[@metfreak101]

I think Justin's analysis of Destiny 2 is missing a big point. Destiny 1 also had an issue with content at the beginning, but introduced enough new ideas and ways to play and upgrade that it didn't matter as much. Destiny 2 dumbed all of that down so that playing the same content over and over gave you no new feelings of achievement. He doesn't even play Destiny 2, that I'm aware of, so I don't feel like he should be harking on the Destiny 2 community. The problem is not that Destiny 2 does not have enough new content, but that the content that it does have is not good, especially when compared to the first game.

[@IceKoldKilla]

Nothing about Lootboxes is artistic, Justin. The government would be establishing rules to a business practice. It is very much so their business to worry and make it better.

[@AidenAlias]

A good 20 questions question would be "Does this have a female protagonist/playable character" or if you want to ask a weird question "does this multiple control methods" such as it can be played with motion controls, controller, peripheral (guitar etc) or some combination of them just as long as its not controller only.

[@dougbrady5807]

Libertarian Scoop!

[@Yankee_Dood]

Justin Moriarty

[@MarijuanaNirvana-lofi]

is there beef between him and justin?

[@BR0STRADAMUS]

Nick Haskell Justin sort of piled on Colin during his tweet controversy last year. I remember Justin and Colin's girlfriend got into it a little bit on Twitter because of that

[@davidsean290]

I may not like Tom's bowtie, but I do think he's quite an excellent guest on the show

[@westleyalfonso5303]

i realize I'm kinda randomly asking but do anybody know a good site to stream new movies online?

[@liandario7450]

@Westley Alfonso i use Flixzone. You can find it on google =)

[@kylerwalter1308]

@Westley Alfonso I use flixzone. Just google for it =)

[@chr1srugby]

It's absolutely the government's business if they're preying on vulnerable people. Showing probabilities will hardly help. A 10% probability doesn't mean you'll get what you want if you buy 10 boxes, but that's exactly what most of the population will think it means. And who's to say they'll even be honest about the drop rates? Ban real-money loot boxes, sell cosmetic items instead and expansions/new content. You can have loot boxes that make games more fun without having to use real money to purchase them. It's just greed from publishers and they add nothing new or exciting to games. The industry would be better off if games as services didn't last forever. Developers would have to keep thinking of new interesting ideas to make new games attractive for gamers to buy, or at least create new content and expansions for existing games. The industry has a cancer and its time to cut out the tumor.

[@TheMentorKing]

Lootboxes are predatory, scummy, inexcusable, and harmful to the industry, an industry that won't do anything about it no matter what we say or do because there's too much money in it for them. There are no good Lootboxes, they don't make games better, and they aren't artistic freedom, and if it takes the government coming in and putting their foot down to get the industry to do something about it, then good. If the games industry won't do anything about Lootboxes, then I'm happy to see the government step in and put a stop to it. It is the government's business to protect its citizens from unethical business practices.

[@pct87]

It’s fun to get random things. That’s one very simple, easy to understand, logical reason to why some ppl like loot boxes. I get it, u don’t like it. There are other opinions out there, mind blowing right?

[@soupie93]

Liam 27:13

[@YetiCoolBrother]

pct87 Is it also fun to spend upwards of $100 dollars on random things trying to get 1 thing? Asking for a friend.

[@glenbe4026]

People who bring up Trading Card games are morons. They are trying to compare Apples and Oranges, yet think they are the same thing. Trading Card Games - a) have drop rates printed on booster packets b) the contents have intrinsic value because they can be TRADED c) the company who makes a trading card game can NOT suddenly change the droprates/contents of the packet d) the company can not suddenly "turn off" your collection making it not exist anymore.

[@Krytern]

Comparing loot boxes to trading cards is beyond retarded, There are physiological ticks that developers use for loot boxes which trading cards don't. The same physiological tricks gambling uses.

[@mattgrundy27]

Skies of arcadia is so damn good. VERY underrated.

[@chris-hq2hd]

Seriously, whether they’re paid or not (but especially if they are) all loot boxes are bad. If microtransactions are required for profitability, I have no idea how Sony or Nintendo exist, but if they really are, why can’t you just buy the specific thing you want? Why do you have to gamble to get it and why are we in any way accepting of these psychological ploys? It is predatory by definition, not by circumstance. I don’t think anyone has ever wanted the government intervening in any entertainment medium, but there’s nothing we can do if these companies insist on intentionally inflicting harm for the sake of profit.

[@getyourgameon7580]

chris english you could also not buy the loot boxes or not buy the games. I play lots of games on multiple platforms and don't buy loot boxes. Hasn't made a difference at all in my gameplay or enjoyment. I'm happy these companies are profitable so they keep making all these games I love.

[@oliverbrummel2954]

Just spent a weekend visiting friends in Chicago, and on the last day who do I run into on the street?? None other than Omega Cop #1, D-Money himself! Needless to say I was star-struck, but my friends didn't know why... Looks like I gotta show them the way of the SCOOP!

[@joshhansen20]

Haha Trinidad and Tobago is actually one country

[@gamescoop]

Scoop!

[@SotNist]

I just realized the duplicate cards thing isn't comparable to lootboxes, because in almost any card game I can think of, deck flexibility encourages having multiples of some cards. Even without selling or trading them to others, you would benefit from having duplicates of everything by being able to more conveniently have multiple decks on hand.

[@rschauby]

This episode of Game Scoop brought to you by the good guys at EA!

[@bretbret8293]

It'd be nice to have time stamps for the different topics.

[@chris-hq2hd]

In what situations have loot boxes ever added to the fun? This new guy sounds like an addict in denial.

[@JamesGlisson]

I'm calling out Daemon on the realistic graphics answer. Either way, a great episode!

[@spencemossman4027]

i agree. how r those considered realistic graphics? that is what confused me so much.

[@adamaa39]

'It's not the government's business' - unless they scam kids through addictive gambling practices which they do so...

[@InfiniteDarkMass]

Isn't that the parents' business?

[@7PlayingWithFire7]

@@InfiniteDarkMass So there's no need for age limit on being in porn, alcohol, and driving? Cause "its the parent's h job!"

[@RichardHannay]

OMG... did Tom just reference "What's My Line" with the "Is it bigger than a breadbox?" quip??????

[@murph2010]

Justin that's not why Destiny fans are complaining.

[@jackapplebaum5678]

murph2010 I don’t even play the game and that irked me.

[@G_Rad_Ski]

Another example of IGN pundits talking about things they don't know anything about. He can express his feelings towards Destiny but don't call the community whiny when you don't understand the problems with it. There is a reason D2 is almost dead.

[@bnelleyram]

I’m totally curious about what Justin’s and Colin’s relationship was like while they both worked at ign. It appears that his current beef with Colin extends beyond the tweet incident with the jab against his political conservatism. Considering they were former colleagues, a fireside chat with Justin would be way more interesting to me than one with people he doesn’t know/hasn’t worked with before (like Kallie, Chloe, Danny O’Dwyer - people I’ve seen Colin publicly reach out to)

[@PatchedUpGaming]

I'm happy Hawaii is taking a stand, and I'm pretty surprised to here the dissent from this panel. In the heat of Battlefront 2 these very same people had the pitchforks out - (most of them anyhow), and I'd agree that games crossed a line. Do I want legislation restricting games? No. But have game publishers crossed a line? Yes. So I'm all for what the state of Hawaii has proposed.

[@jaminfuller4618]

I want to chime in with one thing on lootboxes, because no one ever talks about it. Naughty Dog does loot boxes with Uncharted 4. One HUGE difference is the fact that there are no duplicates. That's right. None. Every box you open will always have something you don't have, thereby eventually leading you to getting everything no matter if you spend money or not. Spending money simply makes it faster. Heck, there are gameplay boosters in it, and yes, they did kind of polarize the community, but there are "gameplay lootboxes" as a cateogry, meaning if you purchase under there, you'll only get the gameplay features AND there still no duplicates. So, again, you'll get everything eventually, guaranteed, whether by purchasing with money or with points you get from playing. Just takes longer with points. They don't lump cosmetics and gameplay together and they don't allow duplicates. It also makes purchasing boxes more rewarding, because it's not pure chance. If you know you have 100 items left, you know for a fact your purchase will go towards those 100 items, and as you open the boxes, that pool becomes even smaller. It's really a system that is underappreciated in the lootbox discussion, and ND really should be commended for it even though they added lootboxes to begin with.

[@Brandolph]

The Omega Cops always make my break at GameStop informative and entertaining. ♡ you guys

[@ChristianNava]

Daemon and the rest of the OMEGA COPS, you'll never know how much this show helps me get through my day ever Friday. Awesome stuff. Scoop!

[@rccharger21]

The thing that bugged me about Battlefront 2 was that somebody could theoretically pay extra money for boxes that would give them an advantage in gameplay. It honestly didn't turn out to be like that much at all, and I actually really like the multiplayer in that game, but they definitely messed up the messaging.

[@kaikawasumi]

Sports games are hands down the worst offenders I'm come across when it comes to micro transactions. In Madden's Madden Ultimate Team mode you can only buy most player cards worth having with real world money via buying card packs which often give you players you don't even want. In NBA 2K's most popular game mode you are heavily incentivized to buy in-game currency with real world money to upgrade your character because doing so in-game takes a lot of time and takes even more time if you don't cheese the system and/or aren't great at the game. idk if I've heard any of the IGN people talk about these things, but they're a problem. I've seen so many people at launch end up paying $120+ on Madden or NBA 2k just to be able to compete in certain modes day 1, which is wrong that that is basically forced.

[@PokeRedstone]

There was a Cartoon Network MMO called Fusion Fall that a lot of currently 20-somethings loved as kids. There’s a small group of passionate people currently trying to resurrect it in two forms. One as it was at close. A second with new content based off of other Cartoon Network properties not originally featured in the game. It was supposed to have launched already, but they lost a good amount of their server files. It was delayed by at least half a year for them to data mine those again and get it all set up. Haven’t checked in on it in a few months.

[@Mikes_Vices]

IIRC, when Tomb Raider launched against Fallout 4, it was when they decided to do "one year exclusivity" with XBox One. Would it have been the same story for Lara Croft if it were released for all platforms simultaneously?

[@hoveball]

Wish I could give multiple thumbs up for the Trinidad and Tobago joke, well played sir, well played

[@LifeAfterBreakfast]

Is it bigger than a bread box. He just made a "What's my line" joke!

[@rccharger21]

I think Yugioh Duel Links does card packs well. Theres a box of cards and there are only a certain amount of cards in the box that you can also buy through gaining gems through in-game-play. You can also buy gems with money.

[@khorne41]

Blizz changed their lootbox model to make it so dupes are LESS likely. I think there system is fair enough that you don't feel mugged off but random enough to incentivise coming back regularly, which is the whole point. Blizz did what they always do, they release a system they think will work and if it doesn't they pivot and improve

[@vivid_execution7014]

I didn't like Tom's bowtie but he won me over with the Skies of Arcadia pick

[@rccharger21]

Great show! I'll continue to watch every week for as long as you guys go.

[@Danno_omen]

I know there is a fan run version of the sims online being attempted. I always thought EA would just try and shut it down. It's been in the works for years and is technically in a beta now. It's pretty close to what the game was originally too. That's the only fan remade mmo I can think of

[@LaZy.B.]

i wish they did the option of p[ening and making it posable for the comunity run server for nosgoth

[@drukingdom1985]

I watch the Omega Cops every week at work during my lunch break. You guys rock!

[@MarijuanaNirvana-lofi]

so do you dude, I hope you had a great day at work.

[@drukingdom1985]

Nick Haskell thanks Nick and I did

[@lukes9684]

Tom woke up 2 minutes ago.

[@pct87]

He’s wearing a bow tie. It takes more then two minutes to tie a bow tie.

[@TenaciousDDP101]

pct87 it's a clip on

[@HATTORI82]

tom marks! we have officially found the new voice of a new animaniacs cartoon!!

[@TheInsomnatech]

Loot boxes legislation does not have anything to do with these guys because their all of age. But my 13 years old kid can play destiny 2 and become addicted to a slot machine before his mind is fully developed - this is the issue we face. And don't say "watch your kid" when the game box on Destiny 2 says "suitable for ages 13 and up". Also all my video in the description have a link to stop predatory gaming practice in video games.

[@olblueyes7670]

Insomnatech my kids don't have access to my credit card info to make these purchases. Why can't you do the same?

[@TheInsomnatech]

Kristopher Bradney - That's like saying kids don't have money why can't we just allow then to roam around inside of casinos.

[@jakenash7420]

Ha nice Colin Moriarty reference Justin 😂

[@TheCurrykiev]

Ultima Online! I’ve got so many good memories of that game. Two mates with a pc each in one room. That’s my perfectly timed, favourite game of all time. Ahhhh nostalgia. I’ve gone back to that on pirate servers and it’s still good times. Shame about the job and family I have now limiting playing time.

[@Lampboi-jp6dt]

If Red Dead were to release around the same time as The Last of Us 2, that would a clash of the titans. For 2 games with similar mature audiences, I think TLOU is the only thing that could compete narratively with a Rockstar game. Granted, I was never excited for RDR2, so maybe the audiences are more different than I am giving them credit for. It would be interesting to see 2 juggernauts drop. The HZD and BotW conversation last year was probably the closest we've seen for a while I think, though one was a new IP so didn't have the hype that an established franchise like Zelda has, so it didn't quite reach the level that RDR vs. TLOU has.

[@gamescoop]

The fact that The Last of Us 2 is an exclusive means it won't come anywhere near Red Dead 2's sales numbers.

[@thunderwood]

Love the show you guys, thanks for all of the great scoops!

[@legendarybeasts318]

Do all of you know Ubisoft or Activision might get rights for Star Wars. Disney could be terminating their contract with E.A.

[@gamescoop]

You might want to check your spelling and grammar.

[@Awesome_Force]

Disclosing the drop rates and a stamp representing "Pay to Win" or something like that would be good to be required.

[@danielgagnon1344]

Wildlands loot box system is not that bad. You only get items that you do not have. Just wish there was a way to grind for credits.

[@RandomU5erName]

predatory companies vs big government. winner gets the chicken dinner

[@noahmccay6048]

20 questions was a little rough this week

[@alienmonkei]

i like this dude o=in the ucla jumper, I want to see more of him

[@bashful_michael]

Tom was great! Hope we see more of him on Game Scoop. Good show today.

[@sebjz6930]

Big fan from miami here. I’ve played FIFA’s Ultimate Team for an endless amount of time and have spend quite a bit of coin on card packs that reward you with random players, abilities and accessories. I’ve also paid a bunch of money on iPhone games like Boom Beach and Clash of Clans. No one should be able to tell me how much I can and cannot spend on these items. I don’t have an addictive personality, but even if I did, no one should have the right to block me from enjoying the thrill and excitement that comes with paying for micro transactions, especially not the federal government.

[@mikeb6410]

Justin ... the Wii is the 7th gen of consoles.. it came out after the Xbox 360. Wii U would be considered 8th gen as well as the Switch.

[@glenbe4026]

I found the conversation amongst the hosts rather interesting. Americans really do have a phobia of government but a high level of trust for corporate beneficence. Either that or the old adage that there is no left in the US only Right and Extreme Right is a lot more true than people are willing to admit. Corporations do not regulate themselves well. Yet the hosts are much more happy with Corporations regulating themselves than governments regulating. They even bring up what the ESRB thinks as if it will ever thing what it's masters do not want it to. Thankfully I live a country where the government can be relied on to sue AMerican corporations who do follow laws designed to protect citizens. Though strangely Americans seem quite willing to take advantage of Steam/EA refund policies when those policies were enacted because governments were starting to take these companies to court..

[@tomasxfranco]

Anubis looks like a green lantern

[@neby_nebs]

Am I the only one who just heard Daemon say Trinidad and Tobago is two different countries.....

[@canuckjustin7761]

I think they are kind of missing the point on why the they want to make games with loot boxes 21+, aside from the fact it preys on children. Its not simply 'oh well kids wont be able to play them then'. They are not trying to outright get rid of loot boxes, by making those games 21+ they are trying to get rid of enough of the market and people buying those games to really hurt their bottom line which is what these companies care about and force them into regulating themselves and finding better ways on implementing loot boxes that are not so predatory.

[@YetiCoolBrother]

Gotta disagree on the lootbox conversation. You can say it's not the government's business, but I feel like when you say that you're putting far too much faith in these companies to not have predatory business practices and to regulate themselves. Without someone stepping in and creating some checks and balances to this thing it's only going to get worse. Without regulation I wouldn't be surprised if 5 years from now 80% of games replace all in game currency with real money and call it a day, and no one wants that.

[@Draidis]

The fact that games like Rainbow 6 Siege and For Honour are still gaining players and as such fans and further making Ubisoft money actually upsets me. I don't deny that those games are better now then when they started but that is what angers me, it incentivize companies to put out crap and build to something good as opposed to just make it good from the start. It makes me feel taken advantage of and used to test play a game which is something that companies used to pay for before release, not get paid for. Games as a service doesn't bother me as an idea but the way it has been used has been seriously disappointing. I also don't want the vast majority of games going that way, because I can only play one of those at a time where as I would much rather power through a game and then when I'm done I can move on to the new hotness. With too many games as a service I have missed out on a lot of games that I wanted to play but couldn't because I don't have time because games as a service are built to suck up my time.

[@Calmacily]

You may trust Blizzard Justin, but do you trust Activision?

[@gosthunter39]

Scoop, interesting bunch of guys talking videos game, I like it.

[@7thsaga662]

Skies of Arcadia Legends is the spiritual sequel to Panzer Dragoon Saga.

[@PeterAtkinson]

I like Tom! Need to have him on more!

[@STJebus]

I love Fire Emblem Heroes but it is literally the most predatory thing I have every participated in in my life. On the plus side it taught me I have a gambling addiction, and on the other side.... I have a gambling addiction :'(

[@kcsupersonic1]

My guess about 16 Questions into 20 questions is Lolipop Chainsaw. I will edit later once I find out if I'm right or not lol! (Edit) YES!!! Once they got me thinking Hack and Slash games in a realistic-ish setting that didn't use a sword and No More Heroes was mentioned, my mind settled on Lolipop Chainsaw and it turned out to be the right answer. Awesome episode as usual GameScoop! Always a pleasure!

[@vonbleak101]

Its not loot boxes in themselves that are the real problem, its the micro-transactions / paywall of getting the thing in the first place... Randomised loot is fine if its free and earned in game...I dont mind a random chest in Diablo 3, but if i had to pay 99 cents to open it, that would be insane...

[@jackapplebaum5678]

I loved Destiny 1, but I saw the writing on the wall and washed my hands of Activision and Bungie. It’s easy to say to Destiny players to stop whining about the game and go play something else, but Justin fails to realize this is exactly how Destiny 1 and ironically 2 were marketed. Always online worlds full of content with the promise of years of support. People who play just one game often do so because they don’t have the luxury of multiple purchases. The state of Bungie right now, employing insidious monetization traps and even obfuscating system data, is more than enough to warrant a ‘whiny’ fanbase. With all due respect, get a clue.

[@Sunshine-eo2sp]

BEST PODCAST EVER

[@AndreSantos-xy6kc]

games are like desserts, try some new flavor if u had ur fill, u might get surprised or just hate that new flavor, although u might like that same flavor in time to come. Either way try to diversify ur taste... It's all about choices, some u will like others not so much...

[@Not_Liquid]

Ubisoft is probably the best of the “AAA” publishers

[@RichardHannay]

Tom's bowtie is badass... but he says "like" a whole lot. XD

[@slovs12]

Bowties are for boys. Men wear dusters.

[@tommarks2776]

It's a bad habit I've tried to stamp out, but I haven't podcasted in a while! Gotta shake off the dust ;)

[@drj7899]

Tom, you the man now

[@alanbillingsley8375]

HFS my post got read, i lol when not Jonathan Dornbush mocked me , it was originally a bigger question about different games but hey it's twitter

[@ShaneJoshua1980]

The government are not mandating you, the are mandating the publishers and their predatory practices. Publishers either provide the content in game to the player through hard work, have the content as payable dlc where you are guaranteed to get it and stop just taking advantage of people.

[@jamesalvarez607]

there's an emulator for the matrix online

[@Squall2020]

Lollipop chainsaw most definitely does not have realistic graphics.

[@alexandredoiron2124]

Sea of Thieves is Rare's Fortnite and I'm turned off by both. Why is Microsoft so proud of the Xbox X power and their exclusives are all stylised games like Crackdown 3?? Ridiculous

[@Not_Liquid]

Alex Loqué yeah, if Crackdown 3 still looks like what it did at E3 by the time it launches, that’ll be a bummer.

[@ChrisMartin-tk4dh]

"like" x500

[@stevem4306]

its like so like incredibly like annoying

[@catchupplay2598]

What happend with Colin Moriarty and ign ??

[@mikekasabion]

Nothing. Colin left IGN to start Kinda Funny, he just famously (or infamously) political which is why Justin may have been referencing him about at 21:55

[@scottkoppinger2595]

Is it me or are they getting worse and worse each 20 questions...That "does it have combat" question might be the dumbest question yet

[@scottkoppinger2595]

Too damn broad...They knew it was a post 2010 game already...Is there shooting of some kind would have given you some more detail as to what it is or isn't

[@barcafanboi01]

tobago is pronounced 2 -bay- go

[@BiggTonyStyle]

Scoop!

[@juda_5163]

Tom is such a phenomenal guest!

[@tommarks2776]

Thanks! Excited to be on the show :D

[@somberson]

This new guy, I like him.

[@aaronjones6798]

I've never had cake and not eaten, so that whole saying makes no sense. I had the opposite experience growing up, I rarely got a new game so I replayed the same games over & over. Ubiquitous Software, that's where the name Ubisoft come from.

[@zara9127]

Justin overexplains and extends his comments WAY to long in fear of being corrected or told wrong.

[@Ichsukatanuka]

Ubisoft Cake.

[@vitorguara2753]

That... bowtie...

[@aanonymouscowardsays]

I'm for micro transactions but not like CoD, give me the option to buy what i want not some random "chance" to win it. I'm boycotting every game that does this from now on.

[@mmd3585]

People are so concerned by what Tom is or isn't wearing, wtf. He was one of the best guests of the show so far, and has very nice arguments.

[@antmoney151]

right?

[@AndreSantos-xy6kc]

give me the lotus card!!!!

[@kaptinkhan5862]

Please do League of Legends

[@effincasuals8877]

If Loot boxes go away,things will change for the worse. They have already tasted the large amount of money they can make from it. It may not kill gaming,but it will change it.

[@brendanjackson9870]

First one I actually got