Sacred Symbols+, Episode XLVII: The Reappearing Legacy
Added 2020-06-23 16:01:05 +0000 UTCA not insignificant portion of hardcore PlayStation fans long for the return of the Jak and Daxter series. Yet, the franchise has remained dormant for more than a decade, and Naughty Dog itself hasn't released a Jak game in 15 years. It's ancient history... but should it be? In this week's mailbag-centric episode of +, we consider Jak and Daxter's return, and whether there's a viable path back to relevance for the IP. We also delve into the importance of game engine selection, explain why Take Two keeps its 2K Games and Rockstar verticals separated, wonder when we'll see Playdead's next game, assess the folly of buying used hardware, investigate the acceptable failure rate for PlayStation 5, examine the balance between art and business, and much more. Oh, and we rank the PlayStation consoles from our favorite to least favorite, too, which is bound to cause no consternation whatsoever.
Comments
My seeds... grow with his seeds... marry his seeds... That's how we keep Wu-Tang money all up in the family.
Kevin Cooper
2020-07-08 17:34:16 +0000 UTCAbout PlayDead and their 3rd game. Director was interviewed for a Danish news channel in maybe 2018 or so. He said it’ll be 3rd person, larger than the last to games as well as more being more ‘exploratory’. He also said it’s 3D as he “got tired of limitations of 2D” as well as it’ll be sci-fi, though reminiscent of the first 2 games.
Emil M
2020-07-06 22:59:57 +0000 UTCWe're excited to record it! I'm finishing the game today.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-28 15:47:40 +0000 UTCI really think my general apathy towards PlayStation 2 comes from playing so much GameCube during that era. It's the only generation where PlayStation existed that a Sony console wasn't my favorite.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-28 15:47:31 +0000 UTCReally can't wait for the Last of Us 2 spoilercast...so much to unpack 😅
Jajcen Harris
2020-06-28 01:21:09 +0000 UTCGreat show y'all. Probably never gonna be another Jak, but I had my memories with it. In terms of my favourite PlayStations: PS2, PS4, PS1, PS3. PS2 had so many games I loved, and I genuinely loved using that console. And tbh, it wasn't until PS4 Pro that I was really won over. I am considerably excited for PS5 though.
JusticeSoulTuna
2020-06-27 19:44:11 +0000 UTCThat's certainly potentially true!
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-27 16:58:04 +0000 UTCMaybe an unpopular opinion here. But if Sony were to experience a "Red Ring of Death" type problem with the PS5, people would be mad, but Sony would be okay. People have a high level of nostalgia for PlayStation and are willing to overlook a lot. However, if Xbox Series X has overheating problems, I think it would be the end of Xbox. People are a lot harder on them. In some cases it's earned, some it's not.
Samuel Mills
2020-06-26 13:54:44 +0000 UTCDefinitely!
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-24 20:07:51 +0000 UTCYeah, Brink's cover was bad, too.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-24 20:07:46 +0000 UTCYeah... they've always been hard to find, though. It's weird.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-24 20:07:40 +0000 UTCI probably actually rank mine in that order, too (4, 3, 1, 2).
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-24 20:07:28 +0000 UTCBreh.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-24 20:07:16 +0000 UTCThank you for being here!
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-24 20:07:12 +0000 UTC=\
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-24 20:07:07 +0000 UTCWell, maybe it'll come back. I'd like to see Level-5 revive Dark Cloud, I think that'd be cool.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-24 20:07:02 +0000 UTCI don't recall ever experiencing anything in TLoU like I'm seeing in the sequel, but it's all subjective, of course.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-24 20:06:41 +0000 UTCLOL.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-24 20:06:15 +0000 UTCYeah, we gave the PS3 a pass on its inoperable nature.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-24 20:06:07 +0000 UTCYeah fuse box art is trash lol
lazer_josh
2020-06-24 18:49:47 +0000 UTCThis whole time I was thinking Fuze was Splash Damage’s Brink. That is absolutely the worst cover I’ve ever seen.
Oliver Johnson
2020-06-24 18:49:28 +0000 UTCI just picked up a Pro because I have nothing better to do in quarantine, which has also made them super hard to find right now. I tried buying one used off eBay and local selling apps and they are all scams. Then I bought a refurbished one from GameStop and the thing didn’t turn on, thankfully I could return it with them. Gotta buy new.
Oliver Johnson
2020-06-24 16:35:25 +0000 UTCMy PS ranking correlates with the amount of time I’ve spent with each. PS4>PS2>PS1>PS3.
NeO JD
2020-06-24 13:25:48 +0000 UTC“I just called you bro.” 😂😂😂😂😂
Will Hahn
2020-06-24 03:42:02 +0000 UTCI became a patreon just for the Jak and Daxter discussion. The content is fantastic. Right now, Sacred Symbols is the only podcast worth listening to for me. Keep up the great work!
Jonah
2020-06-24 01:01:56 +0000 UTCHey Colin, If you built your house on a bunch of spiders, does that make you the Spider-Man of the house? ;)
Joey Rawlings
2020-06-23 23:33:29 +0000 UTCI miss the days of games like jak and daxter. Not a ton of games in the Vain of banjoo and kazooie or jax, dark cloud etc. Ps2 has some of the greatest games of all time
Wayde
2020-06-23 21:47:46 +0000 UTCI've been playing TLOU 2, about 15 hours in now, I'm past the halfway point. While it's very good overall, I am having some mixed thoughts about it, eager to finish it and then also listen to the spoilercast next week. I do have a slight issue with something Colin said in this episode though, which is it not having the usual Naughty Dog level of polish. The only other Naughty Dog game I have spent a lot of time with is TLOU 1 on PS4, and that game is glitchy as hell, haha... SOME TLOU PART 1 SPOILERS AHEAD. But playing through it I have heard soldiers and the thugs in Boston yell out dialogue belonging to Pittsburgh hunters. In the Winter section, at the start of the David fight, he never just spawns in for me, there will just be a floating gun outside, I have to restart encounter. I have also found several places where restarting encounter will give you back a whole bunch of your inventory after a fight; like you get everything back you had at the start but everyone is still dead. Granted, I've played through the game like 8 to 10 times now, so I've spent some time messing around with it and noticing the details. I actually really like the combat in TLOU, particularly on grounded mode, that is absolutely the way to play. Anyway, it's actually a very glitchy game. If I end up liking Part 2 enough to play it that much, I wonder how much of that kind of stuff will show up.
Matthew Cooper
2020-06-23 21:45:56 +0000 UTCFunny you mentioned games that Sony could revitalize to their multiplayer focus. I don't know, maybe they can use all of their great characters and let them battle eachother in a massive fighting game that can live for the whole generation? Just a thought ;)
Real Radec
2020-06-23 21:41:38 +0000 UTCThe PS3 is the only console that make me mad while playing it. The PS4 basically showed me how good the PS3 games where that’s how bad the PS3 was for me. I won’t there here is your hate mail quota :)
Adamthm
2020-06-23 20:49:49 +0000 UTCThis is what Chris says in the episode. =)
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 20:03:58 +0000 UTCMost certainly. Not even close.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 20:03:45 +0000 UTCThat would be cool. I think if they do revisit it, they should reboot it.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 20:03:34 +0000 UTCSmart Delivery is really just a marketing gimmick. It's nothing new or revolutionary. Doesn't mean it isn't smart (pardon the pun) to position it as something new!
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 20:03:21 +0000 UTCThat would be very cool.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 20:02:53 +0000 UTCIt's a risk!
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 20:02:45 +0000 UTCre: Smart Delivery. It could be thought of as a patch, but patches typically are for bug fixes and balancing issues. This is more akin to what some titles did that launched cross generations from PS3 to PS4 like AC Black Flag. They offered a free upgrade code that would let you get the PS4 version if you purchased a PS4 in the first year. Smart Delivery is basically this. When you buy a Series X, you'll download the specific Series X SKU (i.e. better models, texture, performace, etc...) rather than just playing essentially an emulated version of the Xbox One version.
Andrew Hoculik
2020-06-23 19:25:33 +0000 UTCAlso, Colin is right that Ratchet and Clank is a far superior game series to Jak and Daxter.
Jake Z
2020-06-23 19:04:53 +0000 UTCI miss J&D, but if they were to revisit the series I wish someone would reimagine the series in some alternate timeline (since it deals with time anyway) and take most of its cues from the first game when it was pure platforming and vehicular. The mix of those two was much more compelling and solid than the gunplay (That was always Ratchet and Clanks thing anyway). I think going dark and more serious was great for Naughty Dog moving forward, but never really matched the tone of everything else so much.
Henry Maxwell
2020-06-23 19:04:50 +0000 UTCI completely agree with you, Colin, about Microsoft's Smart Delivery. And apropos of the groupthink question, I feel like I've been gaslighted with all the gaming podcast personalities I listen to praising Microsoft for Smart Delivery and chastising Sony for being less clear about backwards compatibility for PS5. To me, the companies are both equally unclear on what their proprietary backwards compatibility solutions mean technically and what third-party games will support it. Xbox just added a dumb brand name for it and everyone bought it hook, line, and sinker. I feel like so much of this praise for Microsoft comes from this "root for the underdog" narrative along with the desire to not appear as a Sony pony and overcompensate with praise for the few things Xbox is doing right.
Jake Z
2020-06-23 18:49:52 +0000 UTCIt would be cool if the ps5 had it in the setting to pick the boot animation and sounds from ps1-ps5
Angelo Ponte
2020-06-23 18:25:58 +0000 UTCShould mention that when you buy something second hand in a store they have to have a look at it first. Like when I sold my Vita I had to wait over 30 for them to make sure nothing is broken. A lot of the downsides you assume buying it second hand are not there
John Apocalypse
2020-06-23 18:24:23 +0000 UTCYou're very welcome. Thanks for listening!
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 18:01:49 +0000 UTCWell that's very good to hear! I still think it needs to be remade. =)
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 18:01:41 +0000 UTCYeah, I think I'm gonna do that. I don't know that it's a problem, so much... just an observation.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 18:01:28 +0000 UTCThat would be nice. =)
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 18:01:12 +0000 UTCI would like to see them resolve the series. 4 ended on a cliffhanger.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 18:00:33 +0000 UTCWe shall see. A lot of people thought that after TLoU...
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 18:00:15 +0000 UTCGood!
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 18:00:03 +0000 UTCI'm glad to hear that. Thank you for listening!
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 17:59:46 +0000 UTCIt could happen...
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 17:59:42 +0000 UTC*counts you*
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 17:59:29 +0000 UTCThank you for your kind words. <3
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 17:59:23 +0000 UTCYeah, the ports aren't the best.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 17:58:52 +0000 UTCGood day, Senator.
Colin Moriarty
2020-06-23 17:58:43 +0000 UTCHope all is well guys thanks for the shows make my day better :)
Jack Doheny
2020-06-23 17:44:00 +0000 UTCFWIW I played Metal Gear Solid for the first time a few years ago and actually found it totally playable and engaging. I think it’s due to the camera perspective, the game does a good job of relying on the strengths of the PS1 without trying to push too hard into full 3D gameplay, something that makes a lot of other games of the era very rough to go back to.
Travis Johnson
2020-06-23 17:39:28 +0000 UTCColin my sister just moved to a new neighborhood down in texas and they had a scorpion problem. They sprayed the area and the problem was fixed. So maybe consider getting a company to come out and spray. I know it costs a pretty penny but just food for thought.
FoxHopSmash
2020-06-23 17:37:41 +0000 UTCI long for Sly to comeback personally. It was the precursor to me loving stealth games
Isaiah Sommers
2020-06-23 17:27:47 +0000 UTCWe need Sly Cooper way before we get another Jak and Daxter
Zack Forney
2020-06-23 16:37:16 +0000 UTCI think it is pretty obvious playing through The Last of Us Part II that their next game is going to be a sci-fi space based game. I would honestly never forgive Sony if they made Naughty Dog go back to Jak. In my opinion games have moved past what Jak was and it wouldn’t really be that good in the current environment.
Cameron O'Neill
2020-06-23 16:35:31 +0000 UTCThe jak and daxter talk has my hyped to listen to this
KomakiKhaos
2020-06-23 16:18:22 +0000 UTCI love mailbag episodes! Thank you for doing these.
Anthony J Sanchez
2020-06-23 16:18:08 +0000 UTCI must listen to this ASAP jak games were by far my fave series on the ps2. A new game would be a dream come true but I won't hold my breathe on that one. It would only be good made by naughty dog and nobody else after the disaster that was the lost frontier.
Kelly Perkins
2020-06-23 16:18:06 +0000 UTCYes!!! Count me in the group that has longed for a Jak & Daxter revival for many years. It's near the top of my wishlist for series that I wish would get a new modern entry.
AaronElWhite
2020-06-23 16:15:27 +0000 UTCI think Colin has talked on a podcast or twitch stream about giving Greg a code. Greg spoke about it on PS I Love You and was very complimentary! Excited to listen to this!
Daniel Boyer
2020-06-23 16:12:50 +0000 UTCJust wanted to say thank you guys for great content and being great dudes in the garbage fire that is "games journalism". I also hadn't heard of Chris and his content prior to Sacred Symbols, and I was skeptical in the beginning as I am with all new things; but I have to say, Chris is awesome and greatly complements Colin's gaming preferences. Glad to hear some Destiny talk on here, as I've played since The Dark Below.
Stefan Catinella
2020-06-23 16:12:23 +0000 UTCIm in the Jak and Daxter camp, I would kill for a new game or even a remastered trilogy. The ports on PS3 and PS4 don't run the greatest, still tons of light hearted fun to be had though.
Bryan
2020-06-23 16:05:24 +0000 UTCCompletely forgot today was Tuesday! A surprise to be sure but a welcome one.
JD
2020-06-23 16:03:37 +0000 UTC
