PS.. is it 5? I think we're on 5 now. PS5

Premium is $120, roughly the cost of two games. Seems a good trade off to me

it's 25% off subs for BF atm. the classics selection has been kinda garbo so far tho, the middle tier is probably a better deal

My dualsense has become faulty and making a buzzy rattling noise. Only had it a couple of months, which isn't a good sign. At least I can return it

I've been buying used games from CEX and I'd say it's generally good value

I can totally see how Playstation Plus could be appealing. I suppose the way I look at it, though, is that while $120 a year is about the price of two new games, it's also about the price of six like-new games, and whereas the two new games will disappear if you do not renew, I've got my six games forever, to play when I want, to replay, to sell, to regift, to use as coasters, etc.

the thing is that Playstation plus at $120 gives you access to like 400 games, so it's more like buying a ticket to an all-you-can-eat buffet. doing that for the next 6 or 7 years to the next generation seems like a reasonable gaming budget to me.

Yeah, like I said, I understand its appeal for some people. But I don't want to and wouldn't play most of those 400 games, so it would be a waste, like going to an all-you-can-eat buffet and just getting a PBJ to go or something. Anyway, it would have probably made the most financial sense had I been a subscriber from the beginning, maybe, because at this point I have pretty much all the old games I want/need. Most of which I got for $20 or (much) less, so it's doubtful it would have hit the cost threshold of several years of subscribing.

Fair enough!

Ratchet & Clank currently half price (£29.99) in the Black Friday sales

Just beat Rift Apart. It's like playing a Pixar film. Insane graphics and fun gameplay, but protip - switch to performance mode to get that 60fps

That one's intriguing, because it's one of a handful of PS5 exclusives. I've read a couple of think pieces positing that the popularity and power (both staying and tech) of the PS4 is holding back games that fully take advantage of the PS5, since designers are constantly looking over their shoulder at the previous system and planning how to get their games to run well on both. That could explain why differences between games optimized for the PS5 and their PS4 predecessors have so far been (imo) pretty subtle, often just faster loading times and some ray tracing effects, or, like, number of leaves or blades of grass. I've been playing the PS5 optimized "Uncharted 4," and it looks great, but I've heard the PS4 version looks great, too. "Spider-man" as well looked great on the PS4, so great that it didn't look much better in PS5 form. As I understand it Last of Us 2 looks and plays great on the PS4, and I imagine so does the new God of War. I've heard that Ratchet & Clank (and Returnal) really take advantage of the PS5's speed to do some cool stuff that probably couldn't run well on the PS4. Looking forward to more of that.

cousin is visiting the uk from nz and was talking about buying a ps5. will that even work? I'm imagining different voltages, different TV standards, region locking problems before even thinking about the logistics of a) buying one and b) getting it back

I found this:

https://www.reddit.com/r/playstation/wiki/guides/psn-regions/#wiki_consoles

I *think* the tl;dr is that you might have to buy a cord for the correct outlet shape, but other than that, all good? I'd worry more about it getting lost, stolen or damaged on the way home. It's a big box, and that's an incredibly long flight.

that's surprisingly ok but then i guess they are just PCs under the hood. i still think he's crazy, mind.

(the eventual present was some kind of vr headset, probably the meta one)

Do you folks buy digital or physical copies of discs? I was pretty indiscriminate with the PS4, but I've been trying to lean physical with the PS5, mostly because it lets me buy used and also frees me to sell copies of games when I'm done (though if I'm being honest, I kind of like to hold on to games). Still, one of the biggest selling points of the PS5 is its loading speed, and having a digital collection lets you switch between games on the fly really quickly. Then again, one psychological advantage of physical is having the disc in there encourages me to focus on one game at a time; every time TLOU2 revs up in there is a reminder not to get distracted by the other stuff on the SSD. And dedicating myself to physical stops me from impulsively buying digital games on the PS store (unless there is no physical alternative). I'm kind of torn, because there are advantages to both. Sometimes I feel that PS is pushing digital, but they're reportedly releasing that standalone drive, so maybe they're torn, too.

I seem to be buying a mix. You can usually pick up disc copies of older games really cheaply but sometimes digital versions are on sale (bought TLOU2 for £8 earlier this month)

almost exclusively digital, i think i only wanted the disc version for Blurays etc

i use my wishlist and buy most wanted stuff when it's on offer, price doesn't seem much different to buying used discs, especially for the niche-y JRPGs i'm mostly into

Ok thanks folks, I do wonder if the flaw in my premise is that The Wire itself isn't middlebrow schlock too.

Lol wrong thread.

Lol wrong thread.

Lol wrong thread.

Same, Josh. Secondhand physical is often cheaper than digital too. And yeah, I do buy some games digitally but the hard format definitely makes me stick on track with tougher games. It's a bit like having the vinyl copy of an album rather than listening to it on Spotify.

Anyone know why when I watch DVDs and Blu Rays on my PS5 and PS4 they look so bloody terrible?

Netflix etc is fine, but these appear so grainy and fuzzy, and if I watch an animation like Persepolis there's a noticeable "ghost" line going on. Sound quality is variable too - voices can be very backgrounded and I've tried changing the settings but to no avail.

Looking through forums, I'm told I should expect this, as I've got a 4K telly and DVDs aren't great quality but surely it shouldn't be that bad?
I have also been playing the original PS1 version of FFVII and while I never played it back in the day, all the backgrounds look very fuzzy and blurry (the sprites are crytal sharp though). Why have I spent all this money for things to look and sound worse?

none of this happens for me so best guess is you're set up wrong somehow

I have also been playing the original PS1 version of FFVII and while I never played it back in the day, all the backgrounds look very fuzzy and blurry (the sprites are crytal sharp though). Why have I spent all this money for things to look and sound worse?

apparently they "lost the source files" for the FF7 backgrounds so any remake/remasters are using the same background images upscaled. there are mods for the PC version which use AI upscaling techniques for the backgrounds

ah...

Super weird to me that PS5 is introducing a new premium controller, of all things, seeing as the regular PS5 controller is imo one of the system's undeniable highlights.

It's a great controller but the thing people like with the customizable ones is the ability to adjust triggers, tension on the sticks, etc.

If all those things are great then it's just a product that's not for you

I would prefer a budget PS5 controller that was smaller and lighter...so basically a PS4 controller that works with all PS5 games, lol (I guess just include a really shitty version of the gimmicky functions that those games 'require', like the speaker and haptic stuff).

You can turn off the haptic stuff, right?

Probably, but that by itself doesn't let you use the PS4 controller, although it looks like there are workarounds: https://www.videogamer.com/tech/console/can-you-use-a-ps4-controller-on-ps5/

Yeah, if you just want the smaller size you're kind of stuck

The haptic stuff might be less powerful/sensitive in a smaller version of the Dualsense - thinking like the Switch joycons

Elite controllers are weird to me all round, I thought the same thing about the xbox ones. I spend my life surrounded by people who spend a lot more time gaming than I do, many of them are 15-20 years younger than me, and I still don't know anyone at all who's bought one of those things or shown any interest in buying one. Perhaps they're just snake oil for esports wannabes, like gaming's version of all that audiophile nonsense?

See also: high end gaming keyboards

Check out the battery size difference/ pic.twitter.com/oAOS7yWbiM

— Budd's Controllers (@buddscontroller) January 26, 2023

Apparently -33% battery capacity?

there’s a bit of the audiophile thing

the customized keyboard bug has infected a large number of my coworkers in the 25 - 45 year old range. just some sense that you’re in control of your environment and something to fiddle with

I should probably bump that range up a few years as I just remembered my manager has a clicky keyboard with led lighting

I could imagine buying these things if I had a LOT more disposable income, like the kind that could afford to buy a super nice PC gaming rig

lol my 11 yo son roasted me the other day by saying i have “an npc keyboard” (it is an apple wireless keyboard”

damn, owned

I'm not sure if it's a great one, though, because in the US you can walk into a chain store like Target (not even GameStop!) and there's half an aisle of gaming keyboards, headsets, etc. now

this is the world we've created

You should see the sneaker selection.

sadly I order those directly from the app that gives me exclusive sneaker drops

I am the problem

i have a gaming keyboard in case yr wondering who the rest of the problem is; i even use the optional grey caps for highlighting the W/A/S/D keys lol

not a huge fan of the wacky LEDs thing tho.

(not tactical enough prob)

I do it find it funny that mechanical keyboards came into vogue, aka slightly nicer looking versions of the heavy clunkers every PC had in the '80s and '90s

I have no idea whether there's extended research on whether comfort and actual health concerns (RSI, etc) have been studied but the idea that keyboards with a long throw on keypresses and different levels of resistance seems like something people are definitely evaluating

That's part of the custom controller thing, too. Beyond the fact Microsoft and Sony also have ergonomic or alternative input controllers in various states of release, the "elite" controllers tend to have back buttons that can be mapped to one of the regular ones so you're not moving between actions repetitively in a way that's likely to hurt your hand, and the resistance and distance you're moving the triggers is configurable.

I don't think questioning the need for different control schemes and controller/button types is necessarily ableist, but a number of people are seeking out these things to address what they perceive as a better experience. I think that's just a subset of the market.

i like a nice functional proper keyboard, albeit mostly for work

it was specifically the 120 flashing keys gaming keyboards i was thinking about