The Wednesday Inbox thinks Xbox will be unstoppable once streaming is mainstream, as one reader wonders if we’ll ever see a new Silent Hill.
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Battlefield checklist
EA definitely do seem desperate for the new Battlefield to be a hit. After the disaster of Battlefield 5 I can understand why and I wonder if this time the dice are falling in their favour. If the rumour about this year’s Call Of Duty being set in WW2 are true I think that’s going to be a mistake and something that not many people are interested in. So if Battlefield 6 comes out this year and is modern day that’s going to, potentially, be a much bigger deal.
EA has still got to get a lot of things right though. They’ve got to ensure no bugs and it works right at launch, which is easier said than done, and no microtransactions or other nonsense – although they seem to have learned their lesson there.
They’ve also got to get over the fact that Battlefield 6 never has a decent single-player. Personally, I wouldn’t care if it didn’t have one at all but if they must have one it can’t take away from the focus on multiplayer, which needs to have huge maps, huge player counts, and world-beating destruction effects.
Make a battle royale if you want but they should’ve have learnt that that alone is not a magic bullet. Make a large scale, vehicle-based first person shooter in the modern world though and they might finally beat Call Of Duty.
Hammeriron
Stadia Hill
I’m getting confused with all these Silent Hill/Hideo Kojima rumours. So do we think that the episodic game he was meant to be making with Stadia was Silent Hill? It sounds like the sort of thing they’d try to do for kudos and maybe that’s why everyone seemed so certain it was happening but then it never got announced?
I’ve got to say I’m confused as to why anyone would think Silent Hill would come back, since as far as I know it was never that big. I’m not complaining, because I like it, but the way it’s being talked about you’d think it was Zelda or something.
It’s pretty obvious by now that horror games don’t really sell to the mainstream. Resident Evil is the one exception, but that’s very action based and it’s not as if it’s that big. Again, I wish it wasn’t the case but at this point a good horror game is a welcome surprise and not an expectation.
84Colbat
GC: There’s been no suggestion that the Stadia project was Silent Hill related, but it’s impossible to be certain.
Shocked and surprised
I’ll be shocked if Elden Ring is out this year and surprised if it’s even 2022. Although I suppose Christmas next year is possible. This isn’t GTA 6 or something that doesn’t need advertising, this is a spiritual sequel to Dark Souls, which is a cult hit at best. They’re going to need to give this a major marketing push for it to be a mainstream hit, so there’s going to be plenty of trailers and previews and so on.
That’s my theory anyway. I think the reason we haven’t seen it so far is simply that it isn’t far enough long yet. Like the other reader said, Japanese developers are really struggling in the pandemic and it looks like From is well behind schedule.
Even based on a few seconds of potato quality trailer though I reckon it’s going to be worth. Everything I’ve heard about it so far, in terms of the open world and the horseback fighting, sounds great and I love the look of that dragon. I just think it’s going to be a long wait to play it.
Pinky
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This time it’s war, again
Yeah, I’m not convinced by that new Aliens game. It looks cheap. Sometimes the graphics look like they’re okay but, as GC said, the animation is bad and it reminds me of that equally cheap-looking Predator game. I get these films aren’t exactly the cutting edge of pop culture anymore but if you’re going to do them why not do them properly?
I’d say it’s strange not to have ever got a decent Aliens game over the years but there’s so many things like that, where the games that are inspired by the films are always better than the official version. For me Doom was always the best Aliens games and while it’s moved a little way away from that now you can tell that’s exactly what id Software were thinking of back then.
I’ll give the new game a try, or at least keep it on my radar, but I’m not expecting to be blown away. If it’s half decent that will be something at least and, let’s face it, there’ll be another one along sooner or later anyway.
Ishi
Gaming the Oscars
As someone that enjoyed his playthrough of Ghost Of Tsushima I’ve got to say that even I think 10 BAFTA nominations is crazy. I guess last year there wasn’t really that many games coming out but pretty much all the other games with multiple awards are better, in my opinion. Especially Hades.
BAFTA do always seem biased towards story-based games, and UK companies, so it’s not exactly hard to tell who’s going to win this year, but I’m disappointed at the lack of indie representation (why does everyone seem to hate Spelunker 2?) and far too many games that just seem to be getting nods for flashy graphics and an expensive voice cast.
It’s the same story in most awards ceremonies I guess, but I still don’t feel that gaming really has its equivalent of the Oscars yet. The Game Awards might do it except they barely mentioned the awards on the night and I’m not sure most people pay attention.
Clyde
Left behind
I’m going to choose to believe that theory about Drakengard remakes is going to happen, even if it would be a cheapo effort even if it does happen. Based on what we’ve been told Chorno Trigger doesn’t seem to fit the description but it does beg the question of why Square Enix have never tried to do a remake or sequel themselves in the modern age.
Before anyone argues it’s because they don’t feel they could do a good enough job, given the dream team assembled for the original, I think we all know that’s not true. Square Enix, like any publisher, has milked all their other franchises to hell and back, with wildly different end results. I don’t see why they would treat Chrono Trigger any different.
The problem now is that so many people, particularly in Europe where it was never originally released, have never heard of it and it grows more obscure by the day. Personally I’m not too interested in a remake but I would love a sequel that actually had some kind of proper connection to the original, unlike Chrono Cross.
Arcc
Heir apparent
Every time I read about xCloud I get a reminder that Microsoft are going to be unstoppable once the technology (or rather broadband) is more reliable. I just don’t see how Sony stops them when they have less money and no streaming tech of their own. Google and Amazon do and they already seem irrelevant.
I’m not sure it’s a success Microsoft has really earned and as with any company a monopoly is never good. I just hope our new-rulers-to-be can start putting out some good games at least. It seems so long since that’s been a factor in their plans.
Olliephant
Zack Snyder’s Anthem
I just wanted to say that I share the same pain as R-S-W in regards to Anthem being cancelled. I have been following a YouTuber called Your Anthem who has been going over the changes developers were making to the game and what was shown looked really promising. I also read that it was a team of around 20 people working on the update, with a team that small it’s a shame they didn’t let them just carry on.
For all Anthem got wrong, the core mechanics of flying, shooting, and using powers to combo against enemies was amazing. If this was a TV show fans may have been able to save it, as that worked with The Expanse and to a degree Zack Snyder’s Justice League. But I guess what it really comes down to is money.
If it has taken two years to bring Anthem to a place where it was ready to be seen by executives, how many more years and finance would it have taken for it to be in a place where it delivered on its potential. It would have been great to see EA turn this game around for the fans and although I in no way agree with the decision to halt development, I do understand it.
Hollinho (Twitch)
Inbox also-rans
That C64 Aliens game used to scare the hell out of me as a kid. I never beat it and seeing how lame the ending is I’m not sure whether to be relieved or angry.
Cuppo
Not that I disagree with the reader complaining about EA giving up too easy on some games but you’ve got to hand it to them, they’re pretty stubborn about admitting that nobody cares about Need For Speed anymore.
Justin
This week’s Hot Topic
The subject for this weekend’s Inbox was inspired by reader David, and asks what is your experience with PC gaming and do you think it’s better or worse than consoles?
Do you own a gaming PC and if so how much did you pay for it and how well does it run modern games? What do you see as the pros and cons of PC gaming and do you feel either option has got more or less appealing in the last few years?
If you don’t own a gaming PC what would make you consider it and what has put you off so far? Overall, do you think PC gaming will become more popular in the future or less?
E-mail your comments to: gamecentral@ukmetro.co.uk
The small print
New Inbox updates appear every weekday morning, with special Hot Topic Inboxes at the weekend. Readers’ letters are used on merit and may be edited for length and content.
You can also submit your own 500 to 600-word Reader’s Feature at any time, which if used will be shown in the next available weekend slot.
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MORE : Games Inbox: Elden Ring release date estimate, The Legend of Link, and Drakengard remake
MORE : Games Inbox: Pokémon Diamond/Pearl remake reaction, Dragon Age 4 single-player, and Project Triangle
MORE : Weekend Hot Topic, part 2: the best Legend of Zelda games
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