Sacred Symbols, Episode 39: Shadows Die Constantly
Added 2019-03-26 16:00:03 +0000 UTCWe're barely through the first quarter of the year, but the new releases keep piling up. This week, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice joins the fray (and many others' backlogs), and we have a word or two to say about it. But after catching up on what we've been playing, we take a sharp turn into the news. Sony's new Nintendo Direct-like State of Play initiative debuted, with a few announcements and release dates worth noting, particularly when it comes to PSVR. Persona 5 is also back in the news with a mysterious announcement of an announcement, Konami piles on the classic compilations (Castlevania!), and a new Lord of the Rings game appears to be PlayStation 5-bound (yes, 5). Then, with your encouragement via listener mail, we leave the Sony ecosystem for a bit, diving deep into Google's Stadia announcement, the controversies surrounding Epic's new digital game store, the nature of game pricing, and much more. After all, we may be a PlayStation podcast... but it's good to venture outside every now and again.
Timestamps:
0:00:17 - Intro.
0:02:52 - Colin's Last Stand just turned two. Thank you for your support! <3
0:03:55 - What games are we playing?
0:13:51 - State of Play news roundup and opinions.
0:20:29 - Persona 5: The Royal revealed for PlayStation 4.
0:21:25 - Konami reveals classic game compilations for PS4, including Castlevania and Contra.
0:24:20 - A Stranger Things video game is coming to PS4.
0:25:31 - Yakuza's Judgement spinoff is still on track for western release.
0:26:46 - February, 2019's best-selling games in America were...
0:28:40 - Remedy's Control gets a PS4 release date; first PlayStation release in 16 years.
0:29:41 - The Lord of the Rings: Gollum announced, and it sounds like it's PS5-bound (yes, 5).
0:30:47 - Bandai Namco is publishing Double Fine's RAD, an upcoming action roguelike.
0:32:31 - 2005's Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines is getting a sequel, and it's coming to PS4.
0:33:32 - Life is Strange 2's final three episodes all dated for release in 2019.
0:34:49 - Minor game announcements and release date information.
0:36:04 - This week's new releases for PS4, PS Vita, and PSVR.
0:46:04 - Sony is no longer allowing the third party sale of digital game vouchers. What gives?
0:51:49 - What's the deal with Quantic Dream's PlayStation exclusives coming to PC?
0:55:45 - What do we make of Google Stadia?
1:08:14 - What are our opinions on the Epic Game Store exclusives controversy?
1:17:28 - Could increased game prices reduce the number of overall games consumers
1:23:50 - Outro.
Comments
Well, there you go. It's like we said on the show: There are gonna be some niche financial reasons people do it, and obviously, Sony is putting the kibosh on it.
Colin Moriarty
2019-04-10 10:33:15 +0000 UTCI exclusively bought digital codes from Bestbuy because of the rewards I would get which I could turn into money off from other games. So If I bought a new charger, controller, some games and etc then I have enough to turn in a $5 or $10 certificate towards my next purchase. I spent like 3 grand at Bestbuy with consoles, TVs and etc last year. That was a whole lotta reward points for cheap games.
Trevor Deal
2019-04-04 17:30:00 +0000 UTCI didn't need a guide to get through the game or find everything, no, though some of the collectibles are tough to get, and very skill-based. I DID need a guide for the three Trophies that are reliant on you talking to the shopkeeper at very specific times. I did it quickly during a second playthrough (along with the Trophy for getting through the game for a while without dying).
Colin Moriarty
2019-04-02 21:57:29 +0000 UTCI totally feel you, which is why I only play on PlayStation! LOL.
Colin Moriarty
2019-04-02 21:51:50 +0000 UTCThank you. <3
Colin Moriarty
2019-04-02 21:51:34 +0000 UTCHow tough was the Platinum for the messenger, did you need a guide Colin?
John Lynch
2019-03-31 00:40:28 +0000 UTCMan, the Epic storefront bums me out. While I know that competition forces improvement, I'm sick of PC storefronts. Steam, Uplay, Origin, Battlenet, Bethesda, Microsoft store, bleghghghh! The best thing about steam is that it can also launch non-steam games. It sucks having games in 7 different libraries.
bk200jj
2019-03-30 08:54:19 +0000 UTCI need to get back to the messenger, that shop keeper is awesome haha. Great podcast as always.
Brogan Trull
2019-03-30 07:41:41 +0000 UTCYeah, again, something like that makes sense.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:49:36 +0000 UTCYeah, the latter makes perfect sense, and the former has already been brought up. My question is, is this a really big use case, though? I highly doubt it. Who doesn't have a debit card? I suppose there are people with trust issues with that stuff, but... It seems like this really was just done to control prices.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:49:27 +0000 UTCThat's an interesting point. We really have a bad habit on this show of shortchanging PSNow.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:48:33 +0000 UTCThat would be fun. Capcom got around the licensing with Disney on their cartoon collection, though...
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:48:18 +0000 UTCThat's a very interesting thought. Deeper than I would have expected.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:47:58 +0000 UTCThe PSone version is?
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:47:42 +0000 UTCEh. It's an idea, but then I feel like we're playing favorites. Really, I just want to acknowledge every game coming to the platforms at least once.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:47:32 +0000 UTCI'm gonna take your word for it, but I find it hard to believe that will be the consistent experience for everyone.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:47:11 +0000 UTCCrazier things have happened. Who knew those dancing games would be such big hits?
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:46:34 +0000 UTCYeah, it seems like some folks missed my point, but I'm glad you got it: It's not that From is making similar games. It's that it's doing so for three different publishers.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:46:20 +0000 UTCIt's Plat'd! I loved it. Great game.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:45:59 +0000 UTCThis is what I'm saying, which makes it clear why Sony is squashing it.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:45:49 +0000 UTCGood question! Assuming they remain in the 2D realm, it'd be cool to see Castlevania II: Simon's Quest (NES), Castlevania Bloodlines (Genesis), Dracula X (SNES), and Castlevania: The Adventure (Game Boy).
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-30 00:45:36 +0000 UTCI always bought my PSN codes somewhere where I got %5 back on my card or something. It added up
Kenneth Fegley
2019-03-29 23:38:41 +0000 UTCColin. You seemed confused as to why some people would prefer to buy digital codes. I agree that special store specific sales could be one reason, but there are two other reasons I can think of. First, it makes gifting digital games non trivial when Grandma can buy little Johnny the latest game at WalMart knowing that little Johnny prefers digital games. Second, it gives an easy (though not the only) option to purchase digital games with cash for those without credit or debit cards.
Josh Bailey
2019-03-29 17:56:57 +0000 UTCTechnically Uncharted collection, TLOU etc are already playable on PC through PS now. I might be in the minority here but I would be perfectly fine with it and think it would be wise on Sony's part to make them playable natively and start releasing more games on PC like Detroit. I just think the PC space is vastly different to the console space that the potential monetary gains in sales amd cultivating a new audience that might never buy a PlayStation (They are out there) would far outweigh any potential losses in console sales.
Craig Mcguire
2019-03-29 16:26:39 +0000 UTCI would KILL for a Komani Beat Em Ups Collection! But due to licensing, that'll never happen. I would be happy with a Capcom Beat Em Ups 2 featuring Punisher, Aliens vs. Predator, etc., but again, licensing.
Korey Burns
2019-03-28 19:10:41 +0000 UTCI think one of the reasons for ditching retail codes may have something to do with in-game currency for games like Fortnite. EB Games here in Australia has had several promotions in the last year offering V-Bucks at discounted rates or for free with specific purchases. If people are receiving premium currency from retailers then they're not buying them from the PlayStation Store.
Haydyn
2019-03-28 15:03:32 +0000 UTCChris, Ape Escape is PSNOW
Elias Salcedo
2019-03-28 05:59:30 +0000 UTCColin what if you curate the new releases to read only ones that catch your or chris’ attention?
Jacek Debowski
2019-03-27 23:35:46 +0000 UTCColin, I just want to say great job on the show. There aren't that many games coming out this year that I'm personally interested in, but I still love listening to stay informed on what's going on. Side note: I played AC:Odyssey during the Project Stream beta in a podunk town in Georgia called Cartersville on the shitty computer at work in a Chrome browser with our super crappy and slow DSL internet connection and it was maybe 1% worse than playing it on my PS4 Pro at home. I'm not interested in the Stadia at all, but it worked surprisingly well.
Jason Stafford
2019-03-27 23:06:48 +0000 UTCSekiro is very much a different experience than any of the Dark Soul games. Game is fantastic!
Ryan Harvey
2019-03-27 23:05:05 +0000 UTCColin thanks for another great episode. I really agree with what you said, about from software, and that they're games seems to be mostly the same. Now I haven't played sekiro, My friends are saying it's awesome but it just still to me looks a lot like the same thing, which is not necessarily a bad thing. I mean there is a reason, why these games are so popular.
Christian Chimera
2019-03-27 15:09:26 +0000 UTCPersona Racing? Now that nobody would see coming. I want Royal to be all new content and not a rerelease but I’m not getting my hopes up. Colin, get on that Stranger Things S2. It’s pretty solid.
NeO JD
2019-03-27 08:55:01 +0000 UTCColin, great episode. It was really interesting when you talked about From Software and the three publishers.... I didn’t even realize that! Sometimes I’m so out of tune haha. Always a pleasure to hear you and Chris! Also, question. My brother and I are deciding what game we should buy right now. We were thinking something story-based.... maybe Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice. Have you played it? If so, would you recommend it?
Will Hahn
2019-03-27 07:47:13 +0000 UTCHey, Col! I’m soooo glad to hear you’re playing The Messenger. If the switch had platinums, I would definitely have gotten it on there cause I did everything possible in that game. So, I was naturally stoked to hear it was coming to PlayStation! I’ve got about 70% of the trophies so far. It’s one of those games that is just pure fun throughout the entire thing.
Alex Gates
2019-03-27 06:21:56 +0000 UTCOff Amazon I've bought digital game codes for games that were cheaper then they were on the digital store. Drake collection for example was like 15 bucks and 30 on the PSN store
Andrew
2019-03-27 05:34:10 +0000 UTCIt's awesome. I'm gonna sit down and wrap it up after I finish my work here.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-27 01:46:57 +0000 UTCYeah, I'd suspect that example is the major one: It provides, in certain circumstances, a discount.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-27 01:46:40 +0000 UTCSo, gifts it is!
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-27 01:46:19 +0000 UTCThat doesn't mean their spyware isn't in the Epic Game Store. =D
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-27 01:46:07 +0000 UTCYeah, Daniel said the same thing above. It's certainly a use case; there's no doubt about it.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-27 01:45:51 +0000 UTCYeah, that's an example.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-27 01:45:30 +0000 UTCHey Colin, what do you think the four unannounced castlevania games are going to be in the collection?
Josh Lucas
2019-03-27 01:04:58 +0000 UTCI meant to write in last week about The Messenger because someone was asking about funny games. Glad you tried it. I've reached the first ending and it was one of those rare moments where a game got me to laugh out loud. Such a good game I need to finish.
Jeremy Craves
2019-03-26 23:38:32 +0000 UTCThe only time I've ever bought PSN codes outside of the actual PSN store was for God of War and Spider Man, which I was able to get for 8% off. Not the end of the world to lose that, but it was enough to cover a take out pizza for the game night.
Neely 4x4
2019-03-26 23:33:49 +0000 UTCWhenever you purchase a title on the platform you get a checkbox that (if you opt in) allows us to share info with the developers. This might be where the confusion stems from.
Luke Farinella
2019-03-26 22:55:08 +0000 UTCI recently bought a digital code (albeit for Playstation Plus) to send it as a birthday gift for a friend who lives across the country. Seeing as PSN currently doesn't have a gifting option for games, I could see the digital code thing being useful in niche cases.
Prince Borutski
2019-03-26 22:54:52 +0000 UTCAnd hell no we don't just hand over data to anyone without consent.
Luke Farinella
2019-03-26 22:53:20 +0000 UTCPoint of Correction. Epic is not owned by Tencent. They have a MINORITY share in Epic's privatly traded stock.
Luke Farinella
2019-03-26 22:40:12 +0000 UTCGift cards is what comes to mind as to why you’d buy a code from a retailer. Someone gives you an amazon/Walmart/target etc and you don’t want the physical edition you want a digital code cus you’ve gone digital... your grandma gives you a gift card to gamestop because she’s grandma and doesn’t know any better. — only reason I can think of you’d buy a digital code from a retailer. In addition to getting like some sort of membership points like cash back on your amazon prime credit card or something.
Owen
2019-03-26 22:37:31 +0000 UTCI thought of a reason for people to buy codes for games from a retailer: Someone could have a gift card and rather than buy something from that company they can use it on a PS4 game digital code. (rare case)
Daniel Boyer
2019-03-26 21:42:32 +0000 UTCConsidering the game we're talking about this week, it should be on the tips of many tongues. =)
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-26 21:20:22 +0000 UTCHey Andres! I want to be clear and unequivocal: I'm going to play whatever I want. The "notable release" from the week was played by my co-host, and to indicate that no one cares about The Messenger is, well, a little silly. Anyway, enjoy the show!
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-26 21:19:51 +0000 UTCBattle Network would be a fun series to return to. I wish they focused more on that in the mid-aughts instead of going to Star Force, which was lame.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-26 21:18:49 +0000 UTCI said it in hopes that it wasn't something horrifying.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-26 21:18:25 +0000 UTCI'm stoked that you're enjoying it. That's what this is all about! =)
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-26 21:14:32 +0000 UTCHey Joey. Can you be more specific about what you're hearing and where, etc.? Maybe it's something in the base file (though I doubt it, or someone else would have inevitably complained, LOL).
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-26 21:14:11 +0000 UTCFair point, but again, not what I was saying.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-26 21:13:31 +0000 UTCLOL. =D
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-26 21:13:13 +0000 UTCIt's superb.
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-26 21:12:40 +0000 UTCThey're there!
Colin Moriarty
2019-03-26 21:12:09 +0000 UTCAny guesses as to what the second party game is Colin is talking about that hasn’t been announced?
Tyler
2019-03-26 20:41:12 +0000 UTCAh yes! Another week of Colin skipping notable releases from the week to play 2d side scrollers no one cares about!
Andres
2019-03-26 20:04:48 +0000 UTCWholeheartedly agreed. This is almost week 4 in a row of Colin completely missing the big games of the week and having no substantive opinion to provide. The claim that this "genre" is getting tired out after 5 games (where Sekiro is VERY different but he wouldn't know since he didn't play) is laughable coming from a Metroidvania nerd.
Andres
2019-03-26 19:56:25 +0000 UTCMegaman Battle Network Collection, FF1-6 collection with the remakes and original versions, FF7-9 collection, Mass Effect trilogy. Dead Space trilogy, Fallout 1-New Vegas, CoD1-3, Max Payne trilogy, Wolfenstein 3D and it’s expansion bundled with Doom1-2 along with their expansions, Half-Life collection, Portal Collection, so many collections I want ugh This isn’t a collection we don’t have as much as it is an incomplete collection, the Arkham Collection is missing Arkham Origins and I really wish it had it.
Tyson Williams
2019-03-26 19:06:31 +0000 UTCFor those who missed the joke, Chulo Chris basically translates to Pimp Daddy Chris
Tyson Williams
2019-03-26 18:42:39 +0000 UTCThere's gonna be DLC?! How did I miss that!
Joe Bellotta
2019-03-26 18:28:59 +0000 UTCI don't know man I don't think this podcast is up my alley. I like listening to Chris and as for Colin maybe half the time but he makes these pretty obnoxious statements that seems way off base...for example Colin hasn't played Sekiro yet goes off about how it is exactly the same as all of From's souls games. I don't even know where to start with that. Dark Souls is a series...the games shares similarities that all game series have....since when is that an issue? Each of the games is pretty damn unique anyway. Besides why interrupt Chris with that? And then Clin changes the subject to the Messenger? Where's the rant about metroidvanias or side-scrolling pixel Ninja games? It's pretty annoying to listen to man
AEKR
2019-03-26 18:27:15 +0000 UTCGreat episode as always, guys! I'm really into Soulsborne games and I'm absolutely loving Sekiro. It keeps the basic framework of From's other games, but shakes things up a bit by adding in stealth mechanics, jumping and a simplified leveling system. Because of that, the gameplay loop feels new again and I'm loving every second of it!
Jimmy Champane
2019-03-26 18:20:43 +0000 UTCAnother else getting a lot of volume dropouts? I'm using Pocket Casts on Android and the audio is going really quiet and sometimes silent and then coming back
Joey B
2019-03-26 18:19:36 +0000 UTCJust starting the podcast, so glad you're playing The Messenger and enjoying it! I really liked playing that on Switch last year and highly recommend it. Looking forward to the free dlc
Joey B
2019-03-26 18:01:49 +0000 UTCInteresting point about Sekiro being the same thing again Colin - that’s exactly how I feel about the thousands of FPSs.
Dan Parsons
2019-03-26 17:50:28 +0000 UTCTo be honest I’ve always hated the hidden lore. I’d be more ok with it if the games made an attempt at story telling and the lore just fleshed it out. Idk I’ll buy sekiro but I’ve got to get through Division DMC5 and days gone first
John Lynch
2019-03-26 17:09:30 +0000 UTCNo it’s not because the souls like games are all extremely similar. It’s one company making the same thing with slight variations. I think the worst thing is the fact it was going to be a tenchu game until it turned souls like
John Lynch
2019-03-26 17:07:20 +0000 UTCI’m over here crying because Chris mentioned ‘39 which is my favorite Queen song written and performed by one of the most beautiful men to ever exist, Brian May. YOU GUYS ARE KILLING ME!!!!
Martha Silla
2019-03-26 16:53:25 +0000 UTCLOL @ Chris thinking Sekiro is easier than the previous soulsborne games. Also Colin so you think the souls genre is getting over used? That's as ridiculous as saying Jrpg's, platformers or shooters are played out.
Joe Bellotta
2019-03-26 16:39:18 +0000 UTCIM SO FUCKING HAPPY YOUVE FINALLY PLAYED THE MESSENGER IVE BEEN BUGGING YOU FOR MONTHS TO PLAY IT *end caps lock*
Craig Carter
2019-03-26 16:30:23 +0000 UTCI love Sekiro, i'm a huge fan of every souls game and bloodborne. I've always enjoyed the hidden lore elements, the secrets, and just how much the games simply teach you to have patience. That's truly the only difficult thing about these games. If you have patience, and just A/B test the boss' and monsters move sets, you feel really skilled. There's something very satisfying/rewarding about overcoming the difficult challenges. The series make me feel like a skilled gamer which is ciche i know, but thats why I think the series will never get old.
Kenneth Oms
2019-03-26 16:21:20 +0000 UTCExcited to hear your thoughts on State of Play
Michael Candelaria
2019-03-26 16:14:33 +0000 UTCSounds like you need the revival variant of the hive
Kale Ng
2019-03-26 16:11:52 +0000 UTCI'm still dying plenty in The Division 2, so no need or time to get murdered by Sekiro just yet.
Harley Carlson
2019-03-26 16:06:50 +0000 UTC
