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

can't believe the new ps5 controller has a 'honk' button! incredible! pic.twitter.com/3LEUX6jxwl

— Crows Crows Crows (@crowsx3) April 8, 2020

https://www.playstation.com/en-us/explore/ps5/

this is the new controller
http://i.imgur.com/AEfMwvE.png
― let me be your friend on the other end! (Karl Malone), Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:08 PM

The DualSense iterates on its predecessors by introducing a new haptic feedback system, adaptive triggers for the L2 and R2 buttons, a built-in microphone array, and a new ‘Create’ button in place of the ‘Share’ button from the DualShock 4. Details on what exactly this ‘Create’ feature actually entails is still to come.
“In all, we went through several concepts and hundreds of mockups over the last few years before we settled on this final design,” Nishino wrote. “DualSense has been tested by a wide range of gamers with a variety of hand sizes, in order for us to achieve the comfort level we wanted, with great ergonomics. Our goal with DualSense is to give gamers the feeling of being transported into the game world as soon as they open the box. We want gamers to feel like the controller is an extension of themselves when they’re playing – so much so that they forget that it’s even in their hands!”
― let me be your friend on the other end! (Karl Malone), Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:09 PM

a little more xbox-ish, but not too much
looks pretty
― mh, Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:10 PM

dont like how that looks nearly as much as the ds4
― ciderpress, Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:11 PM

i presume you can turn off the microphone. what a nightmare to have voice chat on EVERY GAME
― Fuck the NRA (ulysses), Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:12 PM

every time any of the console makers change their controller i have to worry that they've made something that's not comfortable for my giant hands. the current gen ones are all ideal
― ciderpress, Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:14 PM

"This will be the first controller that is already it's own Overwatch variant"
― Andrew Farrell, Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:23 PM

the new controller looks like it’s wearing a little black spaghetti-strap dress
― force ghost bg (bizarro gazzara), Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:25 PM

The current controllers are great, except they keep breaking down for me. My original one has phantom R2 inputs and generally unresponsive, and on the newer one the down button only works about 1/10th of the time. This makes for a fun challenge in Dark Souls 3, where I never know if I'll be able to change consumable items or not.
Admittedly, this is probably related to the fact that I now mostly play while I'm on the stationary bike, with sweaty hands. :/
― change display name (Jordan), Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:29 PM

xp lol
― change display name (Jordan), Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:30 PM

Maybe that's not a speaker, maybe that's a fan that blows in your face to make you feel like you are outside.
― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:34 PM

The DS4 already has a speaker!
― Triceratops Vowell (Leee), Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:36 PM

oh yeah one of my 2 DS4s has a bad stick. but at least it doesn't cramp my hands up
― ciderpress, Wednesday, April 8, 2020 3:58 PM

Karl Malone's milk post: thanks mate, you really cheered me up!
― doorstep jetski (dog latin), Wednesday, April 8, 2020 6:57 PM

:D hey man, i'm just giving you a glimpse of the future. glad to see the synergy with the thinking behind the new PS5 controller!
"Our goal with DualSense is to give gamers the feeling of being transported into the game world as soon as they open the box. We want gamers to feel like the controller is an extension of themselves when they’re playing – so much so that they forget that it’s even in their hands!"
*hundreds of journalists hands go up*
"WILL WE BE ABLE TO PUSH MILK WITH OUR "HANDS" USING THE PS5 CONTROLLER???"
― let me be your friend on the other end! (Karl Malone), Wednesday, April 8, 2020 7:10 PM

i cannot state strongly enough how much the new controller looks like it’s wearing a little black dress and it’s freaking me out

phew i’m glad i now say that twice itt

next generation baby

i agree that the new controller is wearing a dress and the analog sticks are its honkers

the internet agrees
https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2020-04-09-of-course-people-are-drawing-the-ps5-controller-as-an-anime-girl

the controller is also wearing pauldrons

Sources tell Bloomberg that this year, Sony will be producing a lower number of PlayStation 5 consoles. The cause, reportedly, isn’t due to the novel coronavirus covid-19 pandemic, but rather, the hardware’s high price at launch.

The console’s technical specs are expected to be reflected in the pricing, Bloomberg added, and there has been speculation that the PS5 will be priced between $499 and $549. Certain components are scarce and expensive, which could cut into the company’s profits on each machine.

Kotaku reached out to Sony but did not receive a reply prior to publication.

Production might be impacted by the pandemic. Sony employees are working from home, and Sony might ditch in-person press events for the console. Earlier this year, the company held a virtual briefing to announce the console’s specs.

The PS5’s assembly is expected to begin in June. While Sony has revealed the console’s controller, only a small handful of insiders have apparently seen what the actual console looks like, for fear of leaks.

Sony was quoted as telling its partners that it will make 5 to 6 million PS5s during the financial year ending on March 31, 2021. In comparison, Sony sold 7.5 million PS3s during that console’s first two quarters. The goal is still for a simultaneous worldwide launch, but the pandemic is impacting game production across the industry, which could impact the debut titles.

At launch, the PlayStation 3 was hard to get, so expect the PlayStation 5 to be even more so.

is anyone here thinking of trying to be an early adopter?

I am going to buy this console. i missed out on the ps4/xbox one generation

when is there a game worth playing for it is the question

i haven't been an early adopter since i somehow managed to convince my dad to buy me a psx right when it came out (crazy knowing that it was like $600+ with memory card + a game, even back then!)

i know it's a bad idea, but honestly if there's some sort of must have launch title (super mario 64 or BOTW-esque) i can see myself doing it

xp

ulysses otm

has playstation ever had a must-have launch title? like one that's a top-ten recommendation for the console, even at the end of the lifecycle?

i don't see a reason to early adopt if you have a 4

the launch titles will be the last of us 2 with better loading times and ghost of tsushima with better loading times

and knack 3

I was kinda tempted to early adopt on both this gen... but who knows. There probably won't be a great system exclusive for at least a year or two anyway

yeah i don't really see anything in the pipe or rumored pipe i care about that isn't going to get a ps4 version, would have to be some left field surprise

plus - with these supply constraints I'm betting they'll rush out the first hardware revision even sooner than usual

and if these launch at $500... hmm.. i dunno

what's the point? wait a couple years and see if sony actually continues to deliver decent exclusives. current gen console quality has never been an indicator of next gen console quality. i've come to expect the inverse lately.

i mean, wow?
https://www.unrealengine.com/en-US/blog/a-first-look-at-unreal-engine-5

Knack 3 will be phenomenal

wow!

i got bored after 10 minutes but it does look nice

UE4 demo for comparison

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dD9CPqSKjTU

I don't have a PS4 but I guess it took a bit for PS4 games to get as good as the demo?

never believe the demo is a good rule of thumb, but that UE4 looks worse than god of war honestly.

never believe the demo is a good rule of thumb, but that UE4 looks worse than god of war honestly.

I can't tell if this is a put-down or not (honestly!). Because I just (barely) started God of War a couple of weeks ago, and not only thought it looked great, but thought that PS5 Unreal 5 demo was maybe technically better quality, down to the little programmer details, but not to my maybe weak eyes radically better, good as it looked.

i got bored after 10 minutes but it does look nice

Um, isn't the video 9 minutes long? No wonder you got bored.

the demo should be reasonably representative for what constrained area/camera games like god of war or whatever will look like, open world games have more technical hurdles obviously

Looks fantastic

https://kotaku.com/playstation-5-game-showcase-happening-next-thursday-1843754372

https://blog.playstation.com/2020/06/08/updated-time-this-thursday-see-the-future-of-gaming-on-ps5/amp/?__twitter_impression=true

will be watching.

give us a fuckin price sony

Not buying until gta6 comes out

well duh

(been my rule for the past two ps machines)

I have a PS4 Slim and I've been very happy with it, so much so that I'm not sure what a PS5 would give me that I don't already have or want in a machine. Besides exclusives, I guess, but that stuff is totally under wraps, given that hyped heavy hitters Last of Us 2, Cyberpunk 2077 and Ghost of Tsushima are coming out for PS4.

there is no point in buying a new console until there are games worth playing on it, idk why people even humor the thought of buying near launch

clout

fanboys + people who didnt have the previous box

I have Gamespot gift cards and GS is near death and my PS4 optical drive is dead. First time I’ll be buying a new system ASAP.

GTA though? Man, that’s been downhill from 4 on.

It would be be Spider-Man 2 for me. But I don't know, something about the general anxiety of this year might lead to just get this and maybe the MS one too

So just caught the Demon's Souls remake, what else have I missed/

HZD sequel so you better play the first one sooner than later!

Eh, I've got a couple of years before I even consider PS5.

FUGLY

better have good cooling because that's going in a drawer

that is seriously rank

looks like a router

the cousin i mentioned upthread was playing with his over Christmas in an empty room and you could come and go, watch him crawling around, and he wouldn't know a thing. you'd also hear a clunk every now and again where he'd hit his head on the radiator.

Would encourage you not to write it off until you’ve tried it Josh. There is the obvious safety warnings of never wearing it around company so as to protect one’s pride and general social standing. But if you can manoeuvre around that issue, it’s a real trip. I had a go at super hot on a friends meta quest a few years ago and the instant immersion is crazy. GT7 and resident evil are big pulls to try this it for me

I just keep thinking about an ilxor admitting to me that playing Wipeout in the last gen’s vr made him insanely ill (please comment on this, bg!) and my desire to use a very competent vr rig to live in the world of Star Wars, and Horizon, and also maybe vom hard when they release a new wipeout

i have to admit the GT7 version looks crazy fun

Oh look who has a fancy new name!

it's normal and good to change them out every several years!

I’m riding this one into the grave!

same

(until the FBI come)

I've been me more or less since the start (even though I technically don't live in Chicago anymore).

Also, nope, never going to give VR a shot. Zero appeal. I don't even like to wear hats. Besides, I'm already immersed in stuff 24-7. Everywhere I look. Live free of VR or die.

Same goes for deck-building games.

The only VR thing I've tried was a Quest 2 and I do have to say the immediate experience is kinda incredible and transportive.

That said, I got super motion sick and could only hang for about 10-15 minutes at a time. The lenses fogged up really easily. Also could never give myself fully over to it because it seemed a tad too easy to bash into something in the room.

PSVR2 looks impressive though. I might consider it depending on how the library fills out. I'm more inclined to like flying or driving stuff, feels more natural. The FPS games I tried multiplied the motion sickness. A survival horror like Resident Evil would probably put me in the ground for multiple reasons.

There was a VR game I read about where every time you blink the enemies get closer.

Wondering if I should pick up the GOW bundle, since it's basically getting the game, which I'm only mildly curious about, for $10, while I wait for the HFW DLC.

If you don't have a PS5 yet, then sure, why not? Nu GOW 2 is supposed to be good.

Counterpoint: GOW 2018 is supposed to be good too, but it made very little impression on me.

Then buy the system and sell the GOW code to me for $10, lol. (I haven't played the second one yet.)

The haptic feedback is kind of underwhelming? Having really noticed the adaptive triggers either.

I felt that at first - compared to the kick of the PS4 controller it's quite a subtle thing, and I felt like all it was doing was buzzing gently in my hands. I'm a lot more used to it now, and it really has come into its own with games like Returnal and Demon's Souls

yeah, depends on the game.

Having should read haven't there. Playing GOWR BTW (sorry Josh!).

ha, np. my backlog is epic.

The haptic feedback is kind of underwhelming?

Returnal and Astro's Playroom are the best haptics games imo

I just bought Returnal from the sale but I played a little bit of Astro's Playroom and the haptics were still easy for me to overlook.

Yeah I didn't love the haptics in Astro for some reason

Clearly they are considering bringing in Team Cherry to help with the final push:

By Jason Schreier May 26, 2023

Sony Group Corp. has slowed down development on an upcoming multiplayer game in its long-running The Last of Us video game series as the creators reassess its quality and long-term viability, according to four people familiar with the project.

The team working on the game was scaled back after a recent evaluation, said the people, who asked not to be named because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly. A small group remains on the project while the company reevaluates the direction. While the game has not been canceled, many of its developers have been moved to other projects.

Following requests for comment from Bloomberg News, Naughty Dog, the Sony subsidiary working on the project, put out a statement on Twitter saying that “we’ve realized what’s best for the game is to give it more time.”

The Last of Us franchise began as a video game in 2013, and the various releases have sold more than 37 million units as of December, according to Sony. It has since grown into a larger cultural phenomenon thanks to HBO's TV adaptation, which became one of this year’s biggest hits. The show, which tells emotional stories about humans surviving in a post-apocalyptic world, posted strong viewership numbers.

Naughty Dog has been developing the multiplayer title for at least four years. It started as a complementary mode to The Last of Us: Part II, the single-player game released in 2020, but the creators grew ambitious and decided to make it into its own game, Naughty Dog said.

Sony has invested heavily in “games as a service,” or video games designed to be monetized beyond their initial sales through ongoing purchases. As part of that push it asked another of its video-game studios, Seattle-based Bungie, to evaluate the games across its portfolio. Bungie raised questions about the The Last of Us multiplayer project’s ability to keep players engaged for a long period of time, which led to the reassessment.

Single and multiplayer games generally require different skillsets to develop. Although Naughty Dog has found some success with multiplayer modes in some of its titles, the company is primarily known for developing single-player hits. Still, fans were excited for the project and raised questions after it was not present at a PlayStation video game showcase this week.

In the statement, Naughty Dog said it will continue to work on this multiplayer project as well as other games “including a brand new single-player experience.”

that’s weird.. i know someone on Another Message Board who has been working on that and like 6 months ago said it was basically ready.. he was very excited about it

This part sticks out:

Sony has invested heavily in “games as a service,” or video games designed to be monetized beyond their initial sales through ongoing purchases. As part of that push it asked another of its video-game studios, Seattle-based Bungie, to evaluate the games across its portfolio. Bungie raised questions about the The Last of Us multiplayer project’s ability to keep players engaged for a long period of time, which led to the reassessment.

So basically it's not that the game isn't close to ready or even any good, it's that Bungie more or less said it's not in a place to be exploited as a live service property. Which is kind of troubling.

Live service property means an ongoing monetary outlay from the studio, meaning you either need to figure out how to get waves of people to purchase a game or add-ons at full price, include monetization strategies inside the game, or both.

More like The More of Us, really

Slightly tempted to grab a year of PS Plus Extra for $75 but I barely have time to play the games I already have...

Whoops, that deal ended a few days ago. Them's the breaks!

Saw that Xbox is not longer making new games for the Xbox One. When do you think PS might start producing more PS5 exclusives? Because right now there are still, like, maybe only two or three. Demon's Souls, Forbidden West DLC ... that's about it. Lots of stuff loosely rumored or vaguely announced, but pretty light in terms of details. I wonder how much covid/supply chain/delays/console availability forced them to change strategies?

https://www.gamesradar.com/ps5-exclusives/

Many of those are available on PC, no?

some PS5-only, some exclusive to PS5 as far as consoles go but available on PC, some next-gen exclusive to the newest consoles

the first/second-party Sony stuff has trickled on to PC but most of their upcoming lineup isn't going to be on PS4, to my knowledge, like Death Stranding 2 and the new Spider-Man. might trickle on to PC a year later at earliest

Yeah, by exclusive I meant "only available on PS5." Spider-Man 2 as far as I can tell is the only big PS5 exclusive (that is, exclusive to the PS5) on the calendar. It comes out in October. Death Stranding 2 has no release date just yet, but rumors are 2024 at the absolute earliest, though just as likely 2025. Like I said, lots of rumors of studios being up to stuff, but no specifics, or even titles, in most cases. Like, there's a Wolverine game coming, but who knows when. Santa Monica, Naughty Dog, Bend, Sucker Punch, etc., they're all up to new stuff and/or sequels, but it's all conjecture, any details have been locked down. I dunno, just seems kind of barren, especially three years into the cycle of a system. Don't get me wrong, I've got plenty of stuff to play, but I like having things to look forward to, too.

PS4 came out, what, 2013? By 2014 there was Last of Us Remastered, 2015 there was Bloodborne, 2016 there was Uncharted 4 ... but of course, PS4 was not backward compatible, so I suppose games released simultaneously for the PS4 and PS3 were not a thing. I don't know anything about game development, but doesn't developing games that will run on both the PS4 and PS5 in some ways serve as a limitation, or at least a distraction? Knowing that whatever you make also has to run, at least in some form, on a slower, less capable machine? I suppose we'll see with Spider-Man 2 what a proper PS5 exclusive can really do. For sure Demon's Souls looked and played great. Ratchet and Clank as well.

Last I knew maybe Persona 6 will start life as PS5 exclusive but I don't really fret about this stuff

Silent Hill reboot, too, I think?

i can’t remember the last time i played a video game but i will play the hell out of Death Stranding 2 and i will totally buy a PS5 to do it

I keep meaning to play the Directors Cut of Death Stranding

it looks totally wacky!

i still think sometimes about the otherworldly menace of the smugglers

i heavily doubt it will pan out this way but god i would love a “are we the nazis?” moment when reedus realises the smugglers are the good guys

having the hardware mostly compatible means they can do some market segmentation

many ps5 games are already trying to split the difference between a performance and graphical quality tier on the same platform

it’s a new landscape, really. no one’s totally botched it outside of cd projekt red, but a number of people were more than happy to run ps4 titles with the quality levels tweaked on ps5 when the ps5 versions were initially lacking

For sure, and a couple of the reverse cases - PS4 releases tweaked for PS5 - are great. I'm thinking of stuff like Last of Us 2, which doesn't have a native PS5 version but which runs really well on PS5. I do like having the option, when it's available, of performance at 60fps vs fidelity (which almost always means ray tracing) at 30fps.

Speaking of hardware, hats off to PS customer service. I had a controller start to drift (it's always manic games that fucks them up, in this case Hotline Miami), and since it was still covered under warranty I sent it in. Service center is pretty close, in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, but even so the turnaround was nuts: sent it in June 13th, already got a likely new or at the least refurbished controller back today.

it is crazy that getting a part replaced or repaired under warranty in a relatively short amount of time should feel like a miracle but here we are

https://www.polygon.com/deals/2023/6/23/23771177/ps5-pc-ssd-price-drops-samsung-corsair-wd-black

However, I seem to be focusing more on my Deck instead, and I'll be saving the PS5 for exclusives, many of which I'm not going to bother with (Spiderman 2)... so maybe a 1TB SSD will be enough?

yea, I love seeing the price drops. might splurge over the summer

Gotta say, as much as I like having games on the SSD ready to play, I'm also glad I got a PS5 with a disc drive, since it's such a great way to get games cheap. For example, bought the PS4 version of Cyperpunk 2077 for less than $10, got the free upgrade to the PS5 version, got the huge update today, ready to go! Heard good things about Subnautica, got it for less than $10, got the free PS5 upgrade, ready to go! And so on.

Subnautica was straight up free on PS4 during the pandemic, but in any event, it's great, one of the few first-person games I can stomach playing (although it scared the living hell out of me in some parts).

Yeah, I knew it was free, but somehow missed it, alas. People love it, though, so I was happy to pay $10 or whatever.

I assume (hope?) the PS version of Subnautica is in a decent state these days. I absolutely adore it, count it among my favorites, but it was a broken mess on that system a few years ago. Had to start over twice due to corrupted saves.

Testament to the quality of the game that I fought through it and loved it anyway. It’s a special, thrilling thing once it opens up and you get out into the deep. Nothing quite like it.

In fact if there is anything like it, someone let me know. The semi-sequel was a toothless letdown.

Both my Dualsenses have stick drift problems. I only bought the second one as spare when my original one started going funny a year ago and I had to return it. So that's three controllers going drifty in just under a year. One of which I barely used and kept in a drawer most of the time