This is the same conversation we had throughout the entire rumorwave about this project: Who is going to buy this and which developers will actually anything worthwhile with the new hardware? Because all signs points to an expensive console (at least $600) with the only upgrades being a slight graphical bump and higher resolution. There are no new gameplay features.
I think people would be much more happy with a smaller, more power efficient version of the PS5 instead.
There’s also questions around the game industry as a whole. I think the recent layoffs at major companies aren’t just another cycle, but systemic. The market no longer bears production of giant games with crazy graphics that cost $70 and have a bunch of DLC and gambling mechanics attached.
Games won’t go away, but they’ll play fine on something like the Steam Deck, Switch 2, or modest gaming PC. What would high end console hardware bring to the table anymore?
Graphics are no longer a major selling point in most cases. Most people would be fine with a good game that works and isn’t saddle with microtransactions, even if it means it will look somewhat worse.
Consoles themselves are a source of microtransactions. Just look at how much money you have to spend to have online play.
Guess how much it costs on Steam. Come on… guess!
Yeah, besides the PSSR feature, I’m struggling to see the point in upgrading to this if you already have a PS5. It feels like Sony and Microsoft are just going with plans they made at the start of the generation when they assumed they would need a mid-gen refresh. But with the massive shortages it doesn’t really feel like we’re at the kind of midpoint that calls for a console refresh.
Seems like company decision makers continue to be out of touch with what people want. People seem much more excited about products like the steam deck which play most of your whole library on Linux at very reasonable quality.
I think the console exclusivity game is nearing the end, there’s going to have to be some actual innovation for people to come out of their pockets.
Most people don’t seem to care about the Steam Deck running Linux (I do), but they’ve been wanting a good handheld gaming experience, and nobody is offering it. Nintendo is stuck with decade+ old hardware, the PS Portal doesn’t work w/o network, and the Windows handhelds kind of suck.
Steam Deck works well with minimal effort, and people love it.
I don’t know about the rest of the world but my country is in a recession. There are no jobs and no houses. Rent is huge.
The number of people who can buy expensive toys is going down. People want good value for money, and good value for money is winning the market.
As a lifelong lover of video games, this generation is pretty underwhelming, bar a few exceptions like Gran Turismo 7. I don’t even buy Switch games anymore because the value proposition is so bad. I’d love that Mario RPG remake but instead, I just play the original on an emulator.
