It still doesn't feel like there's been a proper 'next-gen' game yet. There were a lot of cross-gen games that seemed to dampen the feeling of the gen starting. Maybe FFVII Rebirth will change that for me; I dunno.
I think that's because the current gen is just "last gen, but more powerful". Nothing really got innovated this time around, and the architectures for the current platforms are almost identical to the last ones (which is part of the reason cross-gen has been so popular with developers, as it's very easy to implement).
I do feel that catering to cross-gen is creating a situation where a lot of games just aren't taking advantage of the capabilities of the current gen properly, in order to maintain parity with the "weaker" versions of the same titles.
I feel like that has been the case but lately there have been more proper next-gen exclusives that even I, who drags my feet on next gen consoles, am putting aside some cash for PS5. Up until now I didn't feel the need, but between Spiderman and FF7, I think it's time.
I feel like I reached that point much earlier in the last console generations than I did in this one. Maybe that has to do with the speed of development being so much slower nowadays.
I dunno, after playing the opening sequence of Spider-Man 2 I thought “oh there’s no way they could do this on a PS4”. The graphics are just insane. Gameplay? Sure, nothing spectacularly out of range of the previous gen. But that came out late last year so it definitely feels like we’re just starting to get there.
I watched a playthrough and I kinda have to agree. While I think they definitely could have made it work for PS4 (and by extension Xbox and PC) it probably wouldn't have played nearly as well.
It's the cross gen fade. So, ps5 had lots of great games, but half or more also came out on the ps4 as it dragged out past its expiry, and this was intentional because ps4 has a much larger install base than ps5 had for the forst 2-3 years, so it made sense to do that. The second half of the ps5's life should yield better looking games that won't be ported to ps4, and eventually games that will land also on ps6 in a few years. The lines between generations are blurry now.
I think you've really nailed it with this. Some of the best games over the last few years have been remakes and sequels. I can't remember the last new IP that was a big deal. Elden Ring? But that's as close to "sequel" as you can get without strictly being called a sequel.
All the new IPs that have come out haven't been all that good.
I agree. Maybe it’s because all the games can play with lower graphical settings on older PCs. My desktop was mid-tier in Xbox one days, and has about the same performance as a steam deck. I don’t think there are any games I can’t play.
I know what you mean and I think it’s because it had a rocky start. This generation of consoles was plagued by availability issues due to the chip shortage which made the transition period from the ps4 to ps5 a drawn out affair.
It’s going to be weird seeing them introduce next gen stuff at some point. Already my steam deck is like a high end Xbox one and I’m happy with graphics and performance. I can’t imagine seeing any noticeable changes in graphics in the ps6.
They're not getting older faster. You're older, so time feels faster now.
Also, the scarcity of current gen consoles for the first couple years kinda made it seem like the current generation only barely started since most people only barely got their current-gen hardware in the last year or so, but keep in mind we're currently in the 4th year of the 9th gen at this point. This gen started in 2020. We're past the halfway point for most generations by now.
I just missed this gen entirely, and with the exception of the Switch’s successor, I don’t think I’m going to be buying another console for a very long time.
I used to be a dedicated console gamer… I had an NES growing up, then a Genesis, Saturn, and Dreamcast. Picked up a Game Cube somewhere along the way. Then I had the Xbox, Xbox 360, PS3, PS4, WiiU, and finally the XBOne and Switch. I’ve had PCs mixed in there from time to time, but most gaming was done in the living room on console.
Then the Series X/S and PS5 come around… there were the massive supply issues, and everything was moving to 4K and I didn’t have 4K, and none of it seemed worth the upgrade. At this point my laptop was a dinosaur from 2011 and needed to be replaced anyway. So I built a desktop PC, which gets gamed on alongside my Switch, and my XBOne has been gathering dust.
At this point the only console I’d consider is a Nintendo console, but I’m actually thinking about skipping it this time around. Or at least waiting until there are a bunch of games for it.
Usually nintendo consoles get emulated pretty quickly, so maybe I’ll skip it altogether this time. But I guess let’s see what they release with it.
Seems like not many exclusives really released. And it just being a few sequels and remasters as opposed to new IPs makes it feel like the console gen isn't even mid way by past standards.
I think the fact that games (seemed to?) always released on both current and previous gen made that one kind of weird, at the same time with consoles becoming more and more like PCs (same architecture means it's easier to adjust settings and make games work on two gens), it's not surprising...