https://www.ioi.dk/hitman-3-pre-launch-guide/
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Welcome to the HITMAN 3 Pre-launch guide. This blog post will be our place to share in-depth details about HITMAN 3, including how to carryover your progression, our new Access Pass system, what to expect on launch day and more.
We are excited to see all of our players embark on Agent 47’s next journey and experience the dramatic conclusion to the World of Assassination trilogy.
Before you start reading, this is how the game begins.

Release Details

HITMAN 3 will be available on 20 January 2021 for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Stadia, Nintendo Switch and PC.
We’re happy to confirm that the Nintendo Switch version of HITMAN 3 will also launch on 20 January. The Switch version of HITMAN 3 is playable via cloud streaming technology. A stable and permanent internet connection is required to play.
Release Time HITMAN 3 will release simultaneously on all platforms at 13:00 UTC on 20 January 2021. To see the exact release time in your timezone, follow this link. This release time will ensure that the IOI teams in Copenhagen and Malmö are best-placed to ensure a smooth launch. At that time, digital copies will be available to play and the games servers will be online.
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Pre-load It will be possible to pre-load HITMAN 3 on PlayStation and Xbox platforms. Make sure that you’ve configured your console to do that and the downloads will begin when they have been prepared and certified. On PC, there won’t be a pre-load option for HITMAN 3 and downloads will begin at the above release time.
(For PS4 and PS5 owners in Asia, please note that HITMAN 3 will not be available for pre-order or pre-load. This is due to recent changes in the age ratings systems in those regions. HITMAN 3 will be available for purchase at the above time.)
Day One Patch HITMAN 3 will require a day one patch for all disc users. The day one patch will be automatically applied to digital players. This patch will include access to the VR mode for PlayStation users and will include the remaining locations that are not included on the disc.
Game Size HITMAN 3 will take up approximately 60-70 GB of storage space on all platforms, with the obvious exceptions of Stadia and Switch. The data that you download will also include all the content required to access HITMAN 1 and HITMAN 2 – but you are still required to own/purchase access to those games. To underline that; purchasing HITMAN 3 does not grant access to the previous two games by default.
Using this method allows us to reduce the file size for all players to 60-70 GB and has the benefit of making the process of redeeming or purchase access to HITMAN 1 and HITMAN 2 as simple as possible. (We talk about that more later). Also, we want to clarify that reducing the file size doesn’t mean that we’ve made any compromises on the visual/audio quality of the game. If you’re curious about the technical aspects that made this possible, we recently talked to PC Gamer about it.

HITMAN 3 - Editions

There are two editions of HITMAN 3; The Standard Edition and the Deluxe Edition.
– The Standard Edition includes the HITMAN 3 base game. Nice and simple. – The Deluxe Edition includes the HITMAN 3 base game and the Deluxe Pack. Again, nice and simple.
The only difference between the two editions is the Deluxe Pack, which includes 6 Deluxe Escalations, in-game suits, items and weapons, a digital soundtrack for each game in the World of Assassination trilogy, an introduction to each HITMAN 3 campaign mission by the Game Director and a digital artbook that highlights the characters, targets and missions included in the trilogy. A free IOI Account is required to download the digital soundtracks and World of HITMAN Art Book.
Here’s a visual look at everything that’s packed into the HITMAN 3 Deluxe Edition:
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Next-gen Upgrade Console players who pre-order or purchase a physical or digital copy of HITMAN 3 (either Standard or Deluxe) on the current generation of consoles (PS4/Xbox One), will receive a free upgrade to the next-gen version of the game for no additional cost. Note that you won’t be able to receive the next-gen upgrade if you purchase HITMAN 3 on disc and you own a disc-free next gen console.
When making a digital purchase, you will automatically be entitled to download the next-gen version when you access the game on that console.
When making a physical disc purchase, you’ll need to insert the current gen disc into your next gen console and you’ll be able to download the next-gen version for no additional cost. Simply keep the disc in your machine whenever you want to play and you’ll be good to go.
Pre-order Bonus The HITMAN 3 pre-order bonus celebrates all three games in the World of Assassination trilogy. Introducing the Trinity Pack. You’ll get it just by pre-ordering the game, no matter what platform or edition.
The Trinity Pack includes a total of 9 items, with 3 distinct sets that represent a different game from the trilogy. Each set includes a suit, briefcase and weapon. From the White of HITMAN 1, the Red of HITMAN 2 or the Black of HITMAN 3, you’ll have all 9 items in your inventory to mix and match as you like. The classic Hitman insignia is etched onto the items in gold to add an elegant flourish.
Note: The Trinity Pack will not be included with either the Standard Edition or Deluxe Edition after January 20.
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At selected retailers, pre-ordering a physical edition of HITMAN 3 will also include an exclusive physical passport. This unique item is filled with details and references from Agent 47’s career and commemorates 20 years of Hitman. See the list of retailers in our previous pre-order blog post.

Progression Carryover

All current HITMAN 2 players will be able to carryover their hard-earned progression into HITMAN 3.
After completing the carryover process, HITMAN 2 players will be able to start HITMAN 3 with their existing player profile, XP rank, location mastery levels, location mastery unlocks, challenge progress, challenge unlocks and Elusive Target suits/unlocks. All of those things are what we call ‘progression’. It’s not possible to pick and choose elements to carryover. It’s all or nothing.
The carryover process requires an IOI Account and can only be done through a web browser, it’s not possible to do it in-game. We will have the website ready to go before launch, but it is not live yet. Once it is ready, we will share the news via ioi.dk and update this post.
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Here’s more about how it will work:
– Progression can only be carried over from HITMAN 2, including progression you have from the Legacy Pack (HITMAN 1 locations within HITMAN 2).
– Progression can only be carried over from within the same platform. There are only three options:
HITMAN 2 (PlayStation) → HITMAN 3 (PlayStation) HITMAN 2 (Xbox) → HITMAN 3 (Xbox) HITMAN 2 (PC/Steam) → HITMAN 3 (PC/Epic)
Note: “PlayStation” = PS4, PS4 Pro and PS5. “Xbox” = Xbox One, Xbox One S, Xbox One X, Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X.
Essentially, it doesn’t matter what specific console you have earned progression on. It only matters that progression can only move forward and within the same console ‘family’.
– Progression carryover is a one-time process, meaning once you have performed a carryover for a particular platform, you will not be able to do so again at a later time.
– If you have played HITMAN 2 on multiple platforms, you CAN perform a carryover for EACH of those profiles, but only within the same platform, as listed above. For example, if you play H2 on Xbox and PlayStation, you can carryover your H2 Xbox progression into H3 Xbox and independently carryover your H2 PlayStation progress into H3 PlayStation.
– When you complete the carryover process, your existing HITMAN 2 progress will remain as it is (i.e it will not be removed/deleted). However, your progression in H2 and H3 will NOT be synchronised.
– If you have already started playing HITMAN 3 and THEN choose to perform the progression carryover process, you will lose all progression earned within HITMAN 3 up to that point. We recommend you carryover progress before starting HITMAN 3.
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What exactly will be carried over?
When you start the process, you will need to select an account that you have linked to your IOI Account. You will then be able to review the HITMAN 2 progress earned on that account and confirm that you want to perform the carryover process into HITMAN 3.
The following progression will be included in the carryover process: player profile, XP rank, location mastery levels, location mastery unlocks, challenge progress, challenge unlocks and Elusive Target suits/unlocks. Savegame files are not carried over.
Note that there are a small amount of items/unlocks that are not carried over through this process, such as the rewards unlocked through the HITMAN 1 GOTY Escalations, becuase they are linked to a purchase. Those items will be available in HITMAN 3 when you redeem access to the associated content. In addition, the ICA Electrocution Phone has been retired and will not be available in HITMAN 3.
HITMAN 3 on Stadia On Stadia, all progression that players have earned in Hitman: World of Assassination (from both H1 and H2) will automatically ‘carryover’ to HITMAN 3. For additional clarity, Stadia and PC are two different platforms and progress cannot be shared or carried over between them.
HITMAN 3 on Nintendo Switch Progression carryover is not possible on Nintendo Switch because HITMAN 2 is not available on that platform as a standalone game.

Access Pass FAQ

HITMAN 3 allows players to access locations from the previous games in the trilogy (H1 and H2) and play them all under one roof. Essentially, we have setup H1 and H2 as DLC for HITMAN 3. You can buy or redeem/download an Access Pass and get access to its content within H3. For example, if you buy the HITMAN 2 Standard Access Pass DLC for HITMAN 3, you’ll get access to the locations and missions included in the HITMAN 2 Standard Edition within HITMAN 3.
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In addition to the option of purchasing an Access Pass, it is also possible to redeem/download an Access Pass for no additional cost, if you have already purchased that content from the same store that you have pre-ordered or purchased HITMAN 3.
To make this happen, we detect what you already have installed for HITMAN 2 and can make the corresponding Access Pass available for no additional cost on the same store. Note: If you only own HITMAN 1, you will need to import that content into HITMAN 2 first, via the instructions in our Legacy Pack FAQ.
This process will work between console generations. For example, if you own HITMAN 2 on PS4, you’ll be able to download the HITMAN 2 Access Pass DLC in HITMAN 3 for both PS4 and PS5. The same applies for the Xbox family of consoles as well.
We know that’s a lot of information, but once you’ve seen all of the Access Pass options, and there are five in total, it will make more sense.
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HITMAN 1 GOTY Access Pass Includes: Locations and missions currently available in the HITMAN 1 GOTY Edition: ICA Facility, Paris, Sapienza, Marrakesh, Bangkok, Colorado, Hokkaido, 3x GOTY Escalations and rewards and 4x Patient Zero campaign missions
How to get it – Consoles: If you have previously downloaded the HITMAN 1 Legacy Pack, HITMAN 1 GOTY Legacy Pack or HITMAN 1 GOTY Upgrade for HITMAN 2, you will be able to download it for no additional cost. (Yes, that’s a free upgrade to the GOTY Edition if you only own the Standard Edition of H1!). The price for this Access Pass will be listed as ‘free’ when you look for it in the store. – Disc: If you own a version of H1 on disc, you must follow the process in the Legacy Pack FAQ to access that content in HITMAN 2 – and then redeem this Access Pass.
– PC (Epic): If you pre-purchase or purchase HITMAN 3 on EGS within the first 10 days of launch, you will be granted the HITMAN 1 GOTY Access Pass for no additional charge. In addition, if you own or redeemed a free copy of HITMAN – The Complete First Season on EGS when it was available for free, you will be able to download this Access Pass at any time after purchasing HITMAN 3.
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HITMAN 2 Standard Access Pass Includes: Locations and missions currently available in the HITMAN 2 Standard Edition: Hawke’s Bay, Miami, Santa Fortuna, Mumbai, Whittleton Creek, Isle of Sgail, plus 1x Sniper Assassin map: Himmelstein
How to get it – Consoles: If you own a digital copy of HITMAN 2 Standard Edition or HITMAN 2 SilveGold, you will be able to download this Access Pass for no additional cost. The price for this Access Pass will be listed as ‘free’ when you look for it in the store.
– Disc: [See below]
– PC (Epic): As HITMAN 2 is not available on EGS, we have set up an 80% discount for this Access Pass for the first 14 days after HITMAN 3’s launch.
HITMAN 2 Standard Access Pass [DISC] Includes: Locations and missions currently available in the HITMAN 2 Standard Edition: Hawke’s Bay, Miami, Santa Fortuna, Mumbai, Whittleton Creek, Isle of Sgail, plus 1x Sniper Assassin map: Himmelstein
How to get it – Consoles: If you own a physical disc copy of HITMAN 2 Standard Edition, you will be able to download this Access Pass for no additional cost through the HITMAN 2 in-game store. (You will see the full listing price if you look for the Access Pass in the PS/Xbox store as a disc owner.) On Xbox, you also need to own a digital copy of either HITMAN 3 or the HITMAN 2 Free Starter Pack before navigating to the in-game store.
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HITMAN 2 Gold Access Pass Includes: Locations and missions currently available in the HITMAN 2 Gold Edition: Hawke’s Bay, Miami, Santa Fortuna, Mumbai, Whittleton Creek, Isle of Sgail, New York, Haven Island, plus 3x Sniper Assassin maps: Himmelstein, Hantu Port, Siberia and 4x Special Assignments.
How to get it – Consoles: If you own a digital copy of HITMAN 2 Gold Edition, you will be able to download this Access Pass for no additional cost. The price for this Access Pass will be listed as ‘free’ when you look for it in the store. – Disc: If you bought HITMAN 2 Gold Edition on Disc, it will have included a download code for the HITMAN 2 Expansion Pass; you need to use that to get access to the content from the Gold Edition. See below. – PC (Epic): As HITMAN 2 is not available on EGS, we have set up an 80% discount for this Access Pass for the first 14 days after HITMAN 3’s launch. It will also grant access to the HITMAN 2 Expansion Access Pass.
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HITMAN 2 Expansion Access Pass Includes: Locations and missions currently available in the HITMAN 2 Expansion Pass: New York, Haven Island, plus 3x Sniper Assassin maps: Himmelstein, Hantu Port, Siberia and 4x Special Assignments.
How to get it – Consoles: If you own a digital copy of HITMAN 2 Gold Edition, you will be able to download this Access Pass for no additional cost. The price for the Access Pass will be listed as ‘free’ when you look for it in the store. – Disc: If you own a physical copy of HITMAN 2 Gold Edition, you will be able to download this Access Pass for no additional cost because a download code for the HITMAN 2 Expansion Pass was included in the box. If you have redeemed that code, the price for this Access Pass will be listed as ‘free’ when you look for it in the store.
HITMAN 3 Access Pass on PC We’ve done everything possible to make this process smooth and player-friendly. However, due to various circumstances out of our control, we want to acknowledge that the process is different to our initial plans for PC players. We also want to share some of the initiatives we’ve set-up to make sure that PC players the chance to keep enjoying the benefits of the World of Assassination.

The HITMAN 1 GOTY Access Pass will be available to claim in the first 10 days after launch for anyone who purchases (or has pre-ordered) any edition of HITMAN 3 on Epic Games Store.
Owners of HITMAN 1 on EGS (including all players who claimed it when it was available for free in August) will get a free upgrade to the HITMAN 1 GOTY Access Pass at any time after purchasing HITMAN 3.
The HITMAN 2 Standard Access Pass and HITMAN 2 Gold Access Pass will be 80% off for 14 days after the launch of HITMAN 3 on Epic Games Store and will continue to be discounted regularly.

Our hope is that these initiatives help to ensure all HITMAN 3 PC players can able to enjoy the new game with full access to HITMAN 1 and their progression carried over as a minimum.
HITMAN 3 Access Pass on Stadia Due to the convenient set-up of HITMAN 1-3 on Stadia, the Access Pass system is not required. Players will continue to have access to the locations they already own through Hitman: World of Assassination, or can purchase the games that they don’t own through the Stadia Store.
HITMAN 3 Access Pass on Switch HITMAN 3 is the first game in the trilogy to be available on Switch. As such, each relevant Access Pass is available for purchase through the HITMAN 3 in-game store.

HITMAN VR

At launch, HITMAN 3 will support PS VR and all locations in the World of Assassination trilogy can be experienced in a new first-person perspective. Yes, that means you can traverse the outside of the tallest building in the (Hitman) world in PS VR! If you own the previous games from the trilogy on PS4, you can also access locations from them within HITMAN 3. That’s more than 20 Hitman locations from the World of Assassination trilogy to enjoy in PS VR.
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You can either play HITMAN 3 in PS VR natively on your PS4 or via backward compatibility on PS5. To make sure all PS VR owners can experience the game in VR, we’re including a free digital copy of the PS4 version of HITMAN 3 with all PS5 copies, whether you choose to buy it via disc or digital.
If you are playing on PS5, your progress between the PS4 (VR) and PS5 (non-VR) versions is shared between the two versions. You’ll be able to play the non-VR version of HITMAN 3 on PS5 with the next-gen improvements that we support (including Dual Sense support!) and then switch to the PS4 version for VR and all of your items and unlocks will be right there waiting for you. You will need to have both versions of the game installed on your PS5 to make that happen.
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Whether you play on PS4 or PS5, a DUALSHOCK®4 wireless controller is required to play HITMAN 3 in VR. Playing HITMAN 3 in VR on PS5 also requires a PlayStation Camera adaptor. For full details on the requirements for playing PS VR on your PS5, including how to order a free PlayStation Camera adaptor, see the official PlayStation PS VR site.

More to come

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We have got our sights firmly set on January 20 and our entire team is doing everything in our power to make the launch of HITMAN 3 as successful as possible. It’s an incredibly exciting time for us to be so close to releasing our next game, as well as deliver the dramatic conclusion to the World of Assassination trilogy.
Please keep the conversation going on Twitter, Discord, Reddit and in HitmanForum and be excellent to each other.
The World of Assassination awaits…

I bought a PS4 at the start of 2020 and played video games a bit too much this crazy year! Here are my rankings and brief reviews of the 32 excellent games I finished this year, as well as my thoughts on patient gaming.

Introduction:

It's basically trite at this point to say this year has been challenging, but one positive out of everything is that I've been fortunate enough to have the time and funds to play a huge number of games that I've heard so much about, yet never was able to before now. I grew up on almost exclusively Nintendo games and then branched out to indie games in college I could play on my laptop, so I was more than excited when I bought the base PS4 that came bundled with God of War, Last of Us, and Horizon Zero Dawn for $200 (and I snagged Bloodborne for $15 while I was at it).
What ensued was a year of frenzied gaming-- never in any year of my life have I played games as much as I did this year. I enjoyed it, but there were also some surprising drawbacks to placing such an emphasis on gaming as a primary hobby, and I'll discuss those towards the conclusion. But man, there were some absolutely fantastic games that I played this year and I want to share my thoughts on them! Not every game I played this year was PS4, but most were.
Since literally every game I played this year was a good game, I have stratified my rankings into three overarching tiers: Best, Great, and Good. I was lucky enough to not even need a Meh tier this year. Lots of games within the same tier could probably have their orders switched, but I did my best. And all but two of these games I was patient™ on, which is a fun side note.
Disclaimer*:* These rankings reflect my personal opinions on the experience I had after finishing the game, rather than my thoughts on its overall quality as a product for everyone. There are a few rankings that are sure to ruffle some feathers-- I know that God of War, RDR2, Journey, Undertale, and Nier: Automata for example are great games, but they didn't resonate with me nearly as much as some others. So know that I appreciate them and those who hold these games so dear.
Without further ado, let's get going!

The BEST:

1. Bloodborne (PS4): Quite simply, I'm still chasing the feeling I had after playing this game for the first time. So much so you could say, that I played it 7 times this year. Never has a game enraptured me with its shocking world, brutal combat, and the best DLC I've ever played. I want to talk about Bloodborne (and all the souls games, really) constantly, learn everything about them, and play them forever.

Last of Us Part II (PS4): One of two games I broke being patient™ on, I waited a couple months before diving in just to stop working to avoid spoilers. I enjoyed the first game but this absolutely blew me out of the water. On a gameplay level I couldn't believe how fluid and visceral the combat was, how immense the encounters were with countless approaches to every situation, and how fun it was to play. The narrative was challenging and forced me to grapple with the same emotions as the protagonist initially, then brilliantly the player and character on divergent emotional tracks as you become more shocked and uncomfortable with what happens. I encourage anyone who hasn't yet to play with an open mind and avoid trying to reduce the story to a single theme or message. It may not be your cup of tea, but it was mine.

3. Outer Wilds (PS4): This game feels like it was made just for me. I love space and rocket physics, I love discovery, and I love it when a game makes me feel clever. The level of wonder and curiosity I felt while playing can only be compared to what I experienced with Breath of the Wild. This game is difficult to talk about without spoilers, but if discovery and outer space get you excited, there is nothing like Outer Wilds.

Dark Souls III (PS4): Yeah, I like souls games. While certainly less groundbreaking than DS1 and perhaps less atmospheric than Bloodborne, DS3 is a grand experience with, in my opinion, the best bosses in all the souls games. It's also the best souls game for experimenting with different playstyles without needing to watch 6 hours of VaatiVidya to figure out how to be a pyromancer.
Control (PS4): Objectively speaking, this game might not have the same merits as the others in the "Best" category. But it sucked me in with it's completely unique visual style. It felt like a strange acid trip and I was always excited to see what was next. The powers and combat were fun even if not terribly original (and even though the gunplay wasn't too strong) but I was completely enthralled by the nonchalance of the cast amid mind blowing supernatural activity. Far from a perfect game, but give it a chance if the style seems intriguing to you!

The Great:

The Last of Us Remastered (PS4): One of my most anticipated games when I picked up a PS4, having watched my friends play some of it. Though it didn't blow me away as much in 2020 as it might have in 2013, I thought it had decent gameplay, a great story, and a stunning world. The cities and post-apocalyptic environments were a pleasure to soak in, packed with detail, and well paced. Definitely a deserved classic.
Horizon Zero Dawn (PS4): In a lot of ways, this game isn't good as an open world game. It doesn't do a great job of compelling you to explore and engage with all the cool stuff it has. The sidequests are kind of bad, many characters forgettable and oddly animated. But this game is this high on the list because it's just so much fun taking down machine dinosaurs. They nailed gameplay in a technically beautiful world, and actually surprised me with the quality of the main story line. Not groundbreaking, but solid and a joy to play.
Death Stranding (PS4): For being one of the best games I have ever played, Death Stranding kinda sucks. I absolutely adored the premise and the world Kojima crafted, and delivering packages was really enjoyable. I loved figuring out traversal and just soaking in the graphics. I'm not one that normally cares about technical graphical showcases, but this game has made me reconsider how important graphics can be to an experience. Unfortunately, the dreadful gun mechanics, broken driving, constant NPC interjections, and the game's refusal to just end already kinda bogged it down. There's a lot here though that won me over and is an experience unlike anything I've ever played.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Nintendo Switch): The other game on this list I was not patient™ for, since I bought it for my wife... and then got sucked in. Truth is, as a non-creative type, I just loved this game as an outlet for my creativity and expression. I loved having projects like my zen garden, my Domino's Pizza restaurant, and then getting to share them with my friends. I've heard it said something along the lines of "It wasn't the best game of 2020, but it was the game for 2020".
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (PS4): Once I adjusted my expectations of what this game was and was not, it was great. While it doesn't reward open exploration as much as BoTW and Skyrim did, it simply has the best quests of any open world game I've played. Very rich environments and stories, and I even thought the gameplay was more than serviceable. It did kind of drag on by the end though. Also, disclaimer, I haven't played the DLC (sorry).
Return of the Obra Dinn (Nintendo Switch): I had hoped it would blow me away in a way similar to Outer Wilds, and while it didn't quite reach the same heights for me it was great nonetheless. I loved the nautical setting, the critical thinking and deduction required, and the way it was balanced perfectly between leaving you totally on your own and confirming bits at a time. My only real complaint is that I felt the true ending didn't really reveal anything about the story I didn't already know, I guess I expected some grand reveal.
Doom Eternal (PS4): White-knuckle, heart pounding, insane. The game forces you to engage with every mechanic it throws at you and is brutally challenging, but all in the best way. Though the gameplay was better than DOOM 2016, I actually preferred the latter since Eternal's levels felt more like a silly mario level than a tense demon-infested place. I get what they were going for and they executed well, I just prefer the more serious tone.
Hades (Nintendo Switch): Biggest surprise of the year for me, I didn't actually expect to like it. Hades is perfectly polished and a big step forward for integrating its excellent narrative with its roguelike structure. It's very easy to play without investing too much, making it great for unwinding. It deserves all the praise it's getting.
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (Remastered) (PS4): All the mainline Uncharted games are on this list but I enjoyed 2 the most. The set pieces were the most memorable, and I enjoyed almost every second. These games aren't as high on the list because, no matter how you dress it up, it's a pretty simple affair ultimately in terms of gameplay but it nails the style of game that it is.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (PS4): An amazing game in its own right, but was ultimately disappointing for me as a From Software fan. I found that what I appreciated most about Souls games was the tension of not knowing if you could make it to the next checkpoint, the terror of encountering something surprising and having to deal with it. Sekiro litters checkpoints left and right, which is of course great for its more boss-focused design, but left me far less immersed in the environments personally. I also wished I had more options for playing aggressively rather than just memorizing the parry patterns. In any case, these gripes are my personal preferences coming through and any hardcore gamer owes it to themselves to conquer this behemoth of a challenge.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2 (PS4): Pure, unadulterated fun. I was absolutely addicted to the core gameplay and the levels, especially in the first game, were so cool to explore. For me the core loop started to get stale by the time I finished all the challenges on the levels, but for those that wanted more there is almost an endless amount of bonus challenges to tackle.
Uncharted 4: A Thief's End (PS4): There's definitely a strong argument that this is the ultimate uncharted game to play-- best gunplay and options in encounters, by far the best puzzles, and the delivery of the story is leagues above the rest of the series. I simply think that Uncharted 2 had the highest highs, so 4 is a tad lower. That, and the beautiful story set up was not brought together in a satisfying way; it in no way felt like Drake had earned Elena's forgiveness, but they kind just glossed over it. Still, a must play and Naughty Dog games at their best.
Subnautica (PS4): I wanted to love it more than I did. I was hooked on exploring and discovering the mysteries of the alien underwater, but I think I do better with games with less of a survival focus. I got really far into the game, but didn't actually finish since eventually the slow drip of clues started to get a bit too slow for my tastes, and the survival and basebuilding began to get tedious. Minor PS4 technical issues aside though, This is a dang good survival game, and immense in a terrifying and wonderful way.
Monster Train (PC): Slay the Spire is one of my all-time favorites, so I was pretty excited to be gifted this. It's a blast as a deckbuilder, and I think it was smartly designed in how it throws significant and strong rewards at you at every phase of a run, whereas StS often forces you to make the best of an iffy situation. Had a great time, but I lost interest after 15 or so hours since most runs tend to feel fairly similar. Still would absolutely recommend for StS and deckbuilding fans.
Spelunky (PC): Not the hardest game I've ever played, but definitely the most unforgiving. The controls took a while to get used to but once I was engaged, the game is a tight, slick, and enthralling adventure and test of skills. Full of secrets (I've only scratched the surface) and deeply satisfying to conquer. But boy, is it unforgiving.
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (Remastered) (PS4): Another strong entry in the Uncharted series, just a tad weaker than 2 I think. I will credit it though with having the most memorable environments and locales in any Uncharted though!

The Good:

Read Dead Redemption II (PS4): *Full disclosure, I'm still playing through act 5 at the time of this post.* This one is really tough for me to fully form an opinion on. On the one hand, I think this is the most stunning and immersive open world I've ever seen. Deeply authentic towns, regions, unparalleled attention to detail, and great characters and a decent story. But the way the missions force you to do things explicitly one way with terrible hand-holding just isn't fun to me, and makes Uncharted games feel like open-world sandboxes by comparison. There's a lot of quality here and I've enjoyed many elements, but have been disillusioned by others. NakeyJakey explains what I felt far better than I can (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvJPKOLDSos&t=392s). Still a good time though.
God of War (PS4): Like RDR2, an incredible technical achievement, for me hands down the best looking PS4 game, best voice acting, and for most people this should be towards the top of your must-play list. At its best, the characters are great, the combat is crunchy and satisfying, and the world beautiful. I just felt that for far too often the game was far from its best-- too many combat encounters didn't feel like I was a God of War but rather smacking a giant meat sack of health, so many secrets and puzzles that I just stopped caring about because finding treasure chests isn't fun when the rpg/loot elements feel so tacked on and pointless, endlessly recycled bosses... for me it was just pretty good, nothing like the game of the generation in my eyes. That said, most people don't seem too bothered by the things I found mediocre, so the sheer spectacle (looking at you world serpent!) and great moments make this well worth the price of admission!
Undertale (PC): I did not play this game the way it was meant to be played, let's say that up front. It was a gift, and I played about a half an hour every month for a year and just finally finished it. I loved the music, it was charming, and I see why people love this game so much. I think it just didn't hit those highs for me and I was left with a fairly silly little 8-bit game. Which was good. I'm glad I experienced what it had to offer but didn't leave a huge mark on me.
Superhot (Google Stadia): I had wanted to play this game forever but couldn't justify spending $20 on it, so I was pleased when I got a free Google Stadia kit and got to play it free! Really neat blend of stylized retro computer flavor and a fabulous central time-stop mechanic. A great 2 hour experience but tough to recommend as more than a novelty.
NieR: Automata (PS4): I have made it through 1.5 playthroughs so I know I haven't gotten the full experience, but I wasn't enjoying it enough to continue. I think every game developer though should learn from the brilliance of this game-- constantly keeping the player on its toes by not confining itself by a genre and by focusing on what's fun and cool, rather than convention. Excellent music. I get the hype, and the healthy dose of existential musings was interesting... it just didn't ultimately click for me. I can't unequivocally recommend this game to everyone, but if the premise and style stand out to you, this could be your next all-time favorite game.
Star Wars Battlefront II (PS4): Picked this up for free with PS Plus, and while there's not a lot here that's that special it was honestly super nice comfort food gaming. I just enjoyed shooting stuff in really cool Star Wars settings, a franchise I love. For what it was, I had a blast, minus the fact that I personally feel Jedi/heroes really kinda ruin the game for me. Unfortunately, it also is nothing more than a basic mass multiplayer battlefield game, so don't expect anything crazy.
Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (Remastered) (PS4): Definitely weaker than its successors, but still a really fun romp with trope-y but effective narrative and characters, and totally serviceable gunplay. This would be much higher on the list, and I honestly had a great time with it, but man the final third of the game was really painful to play. The switch to zombies was bad, and just wasn't fun to play through.
Until Dawn (PS4): I did not think I would like this game at all, I don't care for cheesy horror and definitely am not interested in interactive movies. But if you have a significant other or group of friends to play this with, it can be a great time! I played with my wife and we were honestly pretty engaged with the characters and the story was well told and had plenty of nice jump scares. There's not much game here, but for what it is it was a neat experience.
Shadow of the Colossus (Remake) (PS4): There were some incredible highlights to this game like the flying colossus and the sand worm, and the scale of the encounters with the epic music has earned this game a place as a masterpiece and classic to so many gamers. The remake looks stunning and it was exciting to see what type of colossus was up next. Unfortunately, every great moment I had was accompanied by an equally frustrating moment with mediocre controls and a couple of colossus that were so bad (looking at you, little bull/lion Celosia) that made me have to put down the game for a few days. A great game let down by some dated and poor elements.
Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin (PS4): Souls games are my favorites, so it pains me to put this game so low. The best areas in the game (Heide's tower, Drangleic Castle, etc) are up there with the best in the series and most of the excellent combat found in the other games is more or less present here. But I think 2/3 of the game is bogged down by drab areas that feel more like a mario level designed to kill the player more than an area that could really exist. The Iron keep was the worst offender, the area was absolutely nonsensical and like so many other areas, enemies were placed in a way designed to frustrate the player with difficulty rather than engage them with challenge. Bosses were also mostly forgettable, but I did love the Looking Glass knight and the Pursuer!
Journey (PS4): Look, I'm as surprised as you that this game is on the bottom of the list. I honestly expected to love it. An artistic, beautiful marriage of environmental storytelling and unforgettable online interaction? A smooth and cathartic movement system? It has all these things, and no doubt deserves the acclaim and love it has from so many gamers. It just didn't resonate with me. Especially the ending, I felt for sure that there would be some great climax that contrasted with the struggle of the icy segment, but instead it fell a bit flat. Maybe I'll give it another try someday.

Conclusion, Gaming Patiently, and a Warning:

There you have it! I'd love to hear what surprised you in my rankings, where I'm horribly wrong, and what games you recommend I play next! Personally, I'm considering Persona 5 (though I'm not super into JRPGs), Dishonored 2 (am curious about immersive sims), and Jedi Fallen Order.
Gaming patiently is a strategy I absolutely endorse. Not only has it allowed me to form my own opinions of games independent of hype, but has allowed me to play a huge quantity of incredible games for honestly pennies. The average cost per game of everything I played this year was under $20. Now, more than ever, is an amazing time to get a PS4 and be a patient gamer, due to both the relative inexpensiveness and the sheer volume of outstanding games. I still will probably buy the big nintendo titles at launch and occasionally buy into hype, but most of the time it just isn't worth it anymore.
Finally, a friendly warning as a personal story for those of us who deeply love games and devote a lot of time to them. Like many kids, I was pretty limited by my parents growing up on what and how much I was allowed to play. I loved gaming but it was somewhat of a forbidden fruit. In college, I loved gaming and definitely played more, but still was very busy with social activities, studies, and other hobbies. Now, as a working adult with a comfortable job, I suddenly have more time and money than I have ever had in my life, and thus this giant list of games I played was created. For the first few months it was enthralling; all I wanted to do was play. Over the course of the year, however, it has become clear to me that requiring so much of my happiness and fun coming from having a game to be excited about can have some drawbacks. In the middle of a pandemic, if I'm sitting on the couch waiting for video games to make me happy and they just aren't giving me the same enjoyment that Bloodborne did when I played it for the first time, I'm just gonna be stuck there on the couch, slowly getting a bit depressed when my main source of fun isn't cutting it. So what's the point? Well, enjoy your games! Don't let anyone stop you from loving what you love. But if you start to burn out, please take care of yourself and engage in other hobbies, get outside, and keep things balanced. For me, doing so has made gaming all the sweeter.
Thanks for reading and indulging this long post!

Getting a PlayStation under the tree this year? Here's some tips and tricks you should know!

Microsoft fucked up.

Stadia vs xcloud / game pass ultimate vs ps now / remote play vs Luna

Hello Stadians,
First post here. I joined the cult not long ago after extensive research and since my post on red flag deals about Stadia has gained much traction, I decided to post it here for future Stadians or people who might be interested. Information is spread out across many sources, so I am trying to bring all current cloud services together into one giant post. If you want to spread the message to people who are on the fence, please use this post as you like, you are free to share this. Please correct me if I got anything wrong since I am still new to the game. Here goes :
PART #1 :
Stadia is still very new to a lot of people but have gained quite a bit of attention recently due to Google freely handing out hardware. However, it is still largely misunderstood.
Unlike what many people think there it's either one or the other, Stadia is so versatile that it can complement anything (ps5, xbox, pc, mobile gaming). It doesn't have to be one or the other. You can sub, or you can just buy a game and play it whenever and wherever you want as long as you have a stable Internet connection.
The most important thing is to test it out for FREE. Go on your chrome browser, log in with your gmail account, and click on Destiny 2. No downloads, no load times, no patches, no wait times, no hidden fees, no hardware requirements, just play it for free indefinitely on any toaster computer you are running as long as you have a stable connection.
Like it ? Then don't be afraid to buy some games during their sales if they are cheaper on Stadia than other platforms. You will be able to play is as long as you have an stable Internet connection.
Don't listen to people who says Stadia is going away like some of Google's retired products. If anything, it's expanding and the future of gaming is streaming. Say goodbye to overpriced hardwares that expire or games that don't run properly on newer hardwares. Say goodbye to having to buy the same game on xbox, pc, mobile. Say goodbye to load times, storage limits, hardware problems like the ps4 pro making absurb noise.
Don't listen to people wo says Stadia has awful lag - they either have a bad connection or only tested Stadia at launch. With a good reliable connection with at least 35mbps download, there is absolutely no way the input lag will bother you unless you do competitive gaming. Everyone has their own experience with Stadia and best is to try it out yourself and not listen to people - it's free anyway with zero hurdles.
Don't listen to people claiming Stadia has a very limited library. Stadia launched roughly 1 year ago compared to xbox / steam / ps who have been there for ages. Obviously, you won't have the same library. Stadia is about to lock in 400+ games this year alone and more to come. Library size shouldn't matter since you do not have to pay or commit to anything. If you don't like what Stadia has to offer right now, just set it aside - you aren't losing out or anything. Your hardware is not going to expire, you aren't paying a dime to have a Stadia account, you have zero commitment necessary.
I hope this sums up the debate and why everyone should at least give Stadia a chance and try it out on your browser right now and experience the future of gaming. Zero commitment needed.

PART #2 : This is the part where I try to summarize each available streaming service and compare it to Stadia as of today.
PS Remote Play, which has pretty much been given up by Sony because they want to focus on PS5 hardware, is basically a service that allows you to connect to your own hardware to play games you own on your PS4 / PS5. You have the same limitations than your current hardware. Therefore, if your game only runs on 30FPS on PS4, it will only run 30FPS remotely. Your hardware will also eventually expire as new games get developed that require more juice. Last time I checked, remote play on PS4 Pro is capped at 720p. Since the connection has to jump through 2 loops (from your PS to Internet, and from the Internet back to your device), you will definitely feel a latency while streaming your games. Stadia is running off of a dedicated hardware and servers straight to the device you're streaming on, while the PS4/5 remote play has no server and uses your hardware.
PS Now is a service you need to pay either 12.99$ CAD a month or commit to $79.99 CAD for a whole year (20% off during BF sale, good value). It has its own dedicated servers so latency should be better. However, as of now, games are still being streamed at 720p only, and hopefully 1080p soon. A plus side is the access to a bigger library, potentially bigger than what xbox game pass ultimate has to offer. You can also download PS4/5 games to play offline unlike Stadia where a stable connection is required at all times. However, you need an online check every 7 days and the offline service only works on your PS4/5 hardware. if you use this service, some games can leave the platform on a rotation basis (about 10 out of 800 games available) and you don't own any games unless you buy them on the PS store. If your subscription expires, you'll lose access to the downloaded games and any DLC associated with it. As noted by redditors here, you do get plenty of time to finish the game and a notice ahead of time before rotation begins.
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate cost 16.99$ CAD a month and provides the best library of games on a rotation basis, and is now combined with xbox gold meaning you can claim free games every month that you can keep as long as you are subbed, like Stadia Pro. The game selection is arguably better than PS Now, and is much more varied than Stadia. The biggest downside is that Game Pass Ultimate only offers 720p streaming as of now and I have noticed many more players reporting latency issues with Game Pass compared to Stadia. Just like PS now, Game Pass Ultimate is like a rental service where you don't get to keep any games unless you keep paying a fee. The difference with Stadia is that your money is exchanged for games you can keep with regular Stadia. You keep the games you bought and they do offer some free to play games like Destiny 2 and more to come eventually. However, free version of Stadia is capped at 1080p 60fps with stereo sound.
Geforce Now from Nvidia costs 6.49$ CAD a month to play, or offered free but you are limited to 1-hour sessions only, which is quite stressful in my opinion. It basically uses your steam games library and allows you to stream them using their cloud servers. If you have a big library of steam games, I can see a good reason to use Geforce Now. However, their cloud servers are much much smaller than Google (obviously). For new games, you have to wait for them to become available on the service if the game requires different specs, since Nvidia has to make Steam games compatible with their service first. Due to their small servers, 2 years after their launch, they have yet announced support for 4k streaming and yet to have their own exclusives. This is only a good option if you have a huge amount of steam games and want to access those games outside of your PC.
Luna offers game streaming for 7.99$ CAD (note that this is their entry price, and I will guarantee you this price will get a bump once their service is more widely known) . They have a bigger game library than Stadia but a lot of players claim that their games aren't as quality (filled with indie games and less AAA titles). However, Stadia has much better latency because Amazon servers are more tailored towards enterprise usage rather than customer. Another downside to Luna is that it doesn't offer a free service compared to Stadia, but time will tell.
To me, the main selling point for Stadia is this : no commitment required.
With other services, you either have to pay to use their service or buy their hardware, or both. A paywall is the highest obstacle to a new user base and Google knows that. No other services would allow you to create a free account, go on your chrome browser, and play Destiny 2 (other free games will be announced soon) right away without any hardware check. You can play Destiny 2 on a toaster computer, a TV with a Chromecast Ultra dongle and all you need is keyboard + mouse, or any controller you can find. Stadia can accommodate those with little to no interest to build a 1,000 $ CAD PC to keep up with current games (to eventually expire and have to upgrade again) and Stadia doesn't require you to buy consoles, have console hardwares expire, compatibility issues with previous games, update games, run out of storage room.
All you need to ask yourself is : do you want to play this game or not ?
You are not pressured to finish a game before it rotates out.
You are not forced to pay to play - you buy and own.
You don't have to think about compatibility issues nor hardware issues.
If Stadia manages to secure more AAA and exclusive titles, they will be an even more fearful competitor to other game streaming services.
Cloud gaming is still very young but it is the future. We don't know when it will happen, but one day, it will be the Netflix of gaming.

2020-11-26 EDIT : Thank you so much for all the feedback guys, I stand corrected on many points you guys put forward and I appreciate the time you put to read through my wall of text.
EDIT 2 : Updated PS Now to include 10 games out of 800 that gets rotated out and library size potentially bigger than xbox's.
EDIT 3 : correction on stadia servers vs amazon luna's

Next-gen console buying guide - a detailed look at the next generation consoles

Hey /IndianGaming !
A new generation of gaming is nearly upon us, and for those us who aren't PC gamers, that means weighty decisions about which machine to pick as our primary gaming rig for the next six or seven years. Now that we know pretty much everything about the Xbox and PlayStation, let's compare the two to try and discern which console would offer you the best gaming experience and value. I'll do the Xbox first because the difference between the two consoles is larger than with PlayStation.

PS5 vs Xbox - Hardware

Xbox
The Xbox brand has come a long way in the past seven years. The release of the Xbox One was disastrous, plagued by always online, intrusive DRM, high pricing because of Kinect, and a bunch of other silly decisions from clueless execs who were completely out of touch which what gamers wanted. But ever since MS fired Don Mattrick and replaced him with Phil Spencer as the head of the Xbox division, Phil has slowly turned things around, coming up with many new innovations in an effort to get the xbox back up to competing with the big boys.
Their hardware team too went from creating a prohibitively priced but technically weak console, to the most powerful console of this generation. For next gen, they've gone with an even more ambitious vision, creating two consoles at different price points targeting different output resolutions, but hoping to achieve the same level of performance. That's quite the goal! Let's check out the specs.

Component	Xbox Series X	Xbox Series S
CPU	8 Core AMD Zen 2 @3.8Ghz/3.6GhzSMT	8 Core AMD Zen 2 @3.6Ghz/3.4SMT
GPU	AMD RDNA2 GPU 52CU's @1.825 Ghz	AMD RDNA 2 GPU 20 CU's @1.565 Ghz
GPU Power	12.15 Teraflops	4 Teraflops
RAM	10GBGDDR6@560GB's / 6GB@336GB/s	8GBGDDR6@224GB's / 2GB@56GB/s
Storage	1TB PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD w/Velocity	512GB PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD w/Velocity
I/O Throughput	2.4 GB/s Uncompressed / 4.8 GB/s Compressed	2.4 GB/s Uncompressed / 4.8 GB/s Compressed
Performance Target	4k UHD	1440p
Disc Drive	4KUHD Blu-Ray	No Disc Drive
Price	₹49,999	₹34,999

Whoo! These are quite beefy machines. The current generation of consoles were actually quite dated even for their time. Not so this time around, these consoles are high end gaming rigs, with the Series X even beating most PC's that took the Steam hardware survey.
Before we go any further though, let's untangle this alphabet soup of tech specs and try and translate it into something readable(tech geeks bear with me, there's a lot of oversimplification here, I know!)
SMT - Stands for Simultaneous MultiThreading. Simultaneous multithreading allows different processes to utilize the same core, allowing for greater efficiency. Basically, a CPU core that could normally only do one thing at a time now spends less time sitting idle, as it works other things while waiting for instructions to finish processing. Sometimes this means way better performance when code is specifically optimized for it, other times it doesn't really matter because code has to wait on a previous operation to finish before starting a new one.
Teraflops - Short for Trillion Floating Point Operations per Second. A floating point operation is basically a standard arithmetic operation(multiplication, division etc) involving decimal numbers(floating points). So the 4 Teraflop Series S GPU, for instance, can do 4 trillion of these a second. Phew!
PCiE/NVMe - Short for Peripheral Component Interconnect Express, PCIe is just a connector standard that transfers data across components. These connectors have various lanes of traffic, so the more lanes a component utilizes, the faster information will flow, like on a road or highway. NVMe(Nonvolatile Memory Express) drives use more lanes than SATA drives probably used by your computer, which means way faster speeds. It's planning a road layout and choosing to use a highway instead of a normal road to make things faster.
Xbox Velocity Architecture - Fancy marketing term for a collection of technologies that aim to increase rendering and texture streaming efficiency i.e squeeze as much juice out of the hardware as possible. It incudes stuff like Sampler Feedback Streaming(tech that allows the hardware to load only the mipmaps that are necessary, reducing I/O because less data has to be sent to RAM to load a frame), improvements to DX, and of course a fast SSD(although less powerful than the one on the PS5). It also enables stuff like Quick Resume.
So what does this all mean for gaming? Well, the Xbox Series X is a way more powerful machine across the board, aimed at hitting a higher performance target. It needs higher specs because it's outputting 4K images as opposed to a target of 1440p on the Series S. Microsoft says the Series S specs have been neatly scaled so the only difference between the two consoles is resolution. Don't take them at their word though, there are bound to be other small differences , resolution will just be the biggest differentiator. So that means both consoles are equipped with technologies like Raytracing, Variable Rate Shading, Sampler Feedback Streaming, all that good next-gen stuff.
But wait...
What the F is Ray Tracing?!
Arguably the defining feature of Next-Generation graphics, Ray tracing is a radical new way to render realistic graphics on-screen. In order to understand how it works, let's think a bit about how graphics are rendered.
The real world is complicated. Very complicated. Trying to recreate that in a game requires the use of various algorithms to simulate various parts of the real world, like a physics engine to handle various forces and collisions, a shadow and reflection maps to handle shadows and reflections, a light map to handle the lighting of a scene, and of course a virtual camera viewport to simulate your eyes. There are a ton of things game developers do to try and recreate the real world as accurately as possible with the processing power available to them, and you can see them if you've ever opened up a game graphics menu where it allows you to toggle certain settings, or 'tricks' on or off, that were developed to make scenes look more realistic.
So where does ray tracing come in? Well, Raytracing is meant to replace 'fake' methods of rendering stuff like lighting and shadows by attempting to realistically simulate the way lighting and shadows actually work in the real world. If you've ever taken a high school physics class, you'll know that light travels in the form of rays - reflecting, refracting, getting absorbed etc ad infinitum. Ray tracing is the process by which computers attempt to simulate this in an effort to make scenes look more realistic than what can be achieved by artificial tricks.
For instance, check out Raytraced minecraft
Wow! Quite the quantum jump there, right? While minecraft's graphics were never technically very impressive, with raytracing everything looks so much nicer. Water actually looks like water and not blue lines, dark caves actually look dark and not just black, lava actually behaves like lava instead of looking like someone spilled some red paint on a light source, everything just looks that much more realistic.
It's achieved by each pixel, both inside and outside the scene(traditional rendering methods typically only consider pixels inside the scene for lighting and shadows) casting off a ray of light, the path of which is then traced around the scene until it hits a light source or an artificial limit. This eliminates the need for manually providing lightmaps or reflection details, because those can be simulated in real time and look even better. As you can imagine, it's very computationally intensive, which is why we haven't really see it go mainstream in gaming until now. Even with the monsters that are this-gen consoles, they probably won't be able to hit their performance targets with full RT. From what we can see so far, the Xbox Series X will likely run at 4k30 with RT, and the Series S will run at 1080p30 with RT.
Alright that's enough about Raytracing for now, back to the console comparison.
Some quick FAQs

Is there any benefit to getting the Series X if I don't have a 4k TV? - Yes, but probably not a 15k difference. The Series X will still be processing higher resolution textures and might even give you better framerates in games, but the primary reason to get a Series X over the S if you don't have a 4k TV will probably just be to future-proof yourself in case you ever do decide to buy one in the future
Why would I need Quick Resume? - A strange question, but one I have nevertheless seen asked a fair number of times. To clarify, you don't really 'use' quick resume as you benefit from it. Just opening a game will take you right back to the state it was in when you last closed it, so you don't need to sit through loading screens, menus, or studio logos to get in the game. It also persists across cold boots.
What are the PC equivalents to the Xbox Series X specs? - The Series X GPU lies somewhere between the RTX 2080 Super and the RTX 2080 ti as far as raw performance is concerned. As for the CPU, the closest PC equivalent would probably be the AMD Ryzen 7 3700x, or a less than an Intel i7 9700k.

PS5
Arguably the more highly anticipated console, the PS5 succeeds the PS4, which absolutely crushed the Xbox One this generation in terms of sales and games. Fueled by phenomenal exclusives like God of War, Spiderman, Bloodborne, TLOU2 etc, the PS4 juggernaut's got quite a bit of momentum going into this generation. Sadly as we all know, it hit a bit of a legal hiccup coming to India so it'll be delayed. We also don't know as much about it as we do the Xbox because Sony hasn't actually sent out any units to Influencers/Reviewers yet, so all we have to go on are the specs, demos, and teardowns that Sony themselves have provided.
This generation, Sony's offering two variants of the PS5, but in contrast to Microsoft's strategy, both their consoles are equally powerful and offer basically the same gaming experience, the only difference being that one plays discs while the other doesn't. The price difference between the two consoles is also 10k as opposed to 15k with the Xbox.
Because the consoles share identical specs, I won't be comparing them with each other. Instead, let's compare them to the Xboxes. Here's the same table again, except with PS5 in the middle this time.

Component	Xbox Series X	PlayStation 5	Xbox Series S
CPU	8 Core AMD Zen 2 @3.8Ghz/3.6GhzSMT	8 Core AMD Zen 2 CPU varfreq* upto 3.5GhzSMT	8 Core AMD Zen 2 @3.6Ghz/3.4SMT
GPU	AMD RDNA2 GPU 52CU's @1.825 Ghz	AMD RDNA 2 GPU 36CUs varfreq upto 2.23Ghz	AMD RDNA 2 GPU 20 CU's @1.565 Ghz
GPU Power	12.15 Teraflops	10.3 Teraflops	4 Teraflops
RAM	10GBGDDR6@560GB's / 6GB@336GB/s	16GB GDDR6 RAM @ 448GB/s	8GBGDDR6@224GB's / 2GB@56GB/s
Storage	1TB PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD w/Velocity	Custom 825GB SSD	512GB PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD w/Velocity
I/O Throughput	2.4 GB/s Uncompressed / 4.8 GB/s Compressed	5.5GBs Uncompressed / 8-9 GB/s Compressed	2.4 GB/s Uncompressed / 4.8 GB/s Compressed
Performance Target	4k UHD	4k UHD	1440p
Disc Drive	4KUHD Blu-Ray	Optional Disc Drive	No Disc Drive
Price	₹49,999	₹39,999/₹49,999	₹34,999

*varfreq = variable frequency
On paper, the Xbox Series X is the most powerful console, then the PlayStations, with the Series S coming in at a distant third. The Series X has a slightly faster CPU, a significantly faster GPU, and slightly faster RAM than the PS5. Meanwhile, the PS5 has the edge in I/O throughput, which is about twice as fast as that on the Series X when it comes to raw numbers.
What do these numbers actually mean for games? Well, we just don't know yet, because multiplats have yet to be benchmarked on the PS5. Sony seems to be playing their cards close to the vest, and haven't given their hardware to any reviewers to try. It's a safe guess to say that games will probably look slightly better on the Series X with maybe slightly better performance, but the difference is unlikely to be significant and probably won't matter to most casual gamers. Meanwhile, the difference in I/O throughput could mean that the PS5 will possibly load worlds and start up games faster than the Series X. It will probably be most noticeable in exclusive first party titles that are coded to specifically take advantage of the SSD.
Let's discuss hardware value by price. When it comes to price, the best value hardware wise is clearly the PS5 DE. For merely 5k more than the Series S you're getting 3-4x the processing power. If you have a 4k TV at home, it's probably not worth considering the Series S, just the PS5 and the Series X. Maybe when the Series S is more reasonably priced in India according to the $1 = ₹100 rule it could be a contender, but as of now, it's my personal opinion that the Series S is just not good value in India for those who have a 4K TV at home and the budget to afford one.
But of course there's more to a system than just hardware. Now that we've drawn up some specs comparisons, let's get down to the software side.

PS5 vs Xbox- Software

For most gamers, this will be the real meat of the comparison. The power differences between the PS5 and the Xbox Series X are probably not significant enough on their own to decide a purchase, so for most casual gamers, software is what will decide it.
Xbox
By far the biggest difference software side on the Xbox is Xbox Game Pass. Love or hate Xbox, you can't deny that Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is quite simply the best value in gaming right now. Following this guide from the subreddit , you can get 3 years of it for as low as ₹7500. In case you've been living under a rock, here's what you get with Xbox Game Pass.

Xbox Live Gold (Multiplayer and Games with Gold)
Access to a growing and rotating library of ~350 games(as part of PC+Console. Console only - ~250 Games)
Perks - This can sometimes include cool stuff like the presently included 3 months of Discord Nitro, but so far for the most part I've not found it to be of too much use unless you play a lot of free to play games like World of Tanks or Warframe.
xCloud - Not really relevant in India right now, but if you go the 3 years of gamepass route it might be a nice bonus down the line. It's possible to access xCloud right now with a VPN, but it's not a great experience.
EA Play - Game Pass will also soon include access to EA Play, the basic tier of their subscription service, including very popular games like FIFA, Battlefield, Sims, etc. It also includes trials of the latest EA games.
A 20% Discount on buying the games included in Game Pass, if you decide to buy them to keep.

It's also worth noting that all future Xbox Games Studios games will land on Xbox Game Pass Day 1, which is a really good value considering that Xbox now has 23 studios making games. While most of them are a ways off, it looks like a good lineup, especially if you're into RPG's.
Game Pass is pretty much the USP of the Xbox right now. For gamers on limited budgets, it's just tremendous value. For ₹700 per month(It's regionally priced too!), you get to play way more games and have much more fun with your console than you could have had without the service. For many, this could possibly be the decider.
The second big difference, of course, is in the exclusives. Here's what the upcoming Xbox exclusive lineup looks like -

Halo Infinite
Microsoft Flight Simulator
Senua's Saga - Hellblade 2
Avowed
Fable
Everwild
Forza Motorsport
Starfield
The Elder Scrolls VI

It's also worth noting that all these games will still go on PC Game Pass Day 1. If you have a PC capable of running these games when they come out, then missing out on Xbox games shouldn't really be an issue or a deciding factor.
The third big difference is in backwards compatibility. The Series X and S will be compatible with every single Xbox One game, a lot of the most popular Xbox 360 games, and some of the most popular OG Xbox games. Here's the full list of 607 supported titles. It's great if you're already invested in the platform or are nostalgic for old titles like Burnout Revenge, Red Dead Redemption, Black Ops 2, Fallout New Vegas, etc. Probably won't be a big thing for most people, but for those it will help, it can make a purchase.
there's also a bunch of conveniences like quick resume and play anywhere. Quick Resume works like a save state where the console just loads back to where you last were when you quit the game instead of starting the game afresh. It works with multiple games at a time and persists even if you pull the plug on the Xbox. Play Anywhere works with some titles where your saves carry over from Xbox to PC. Nice to have, but not anything major.
Finally, an important note - unlike the PS5, even Free to Play games need a subscription to play online. So yeah, you can't play stuff like Fortnite or Warzone without a live gold or game pass ultimate subscription. If you spend a lot of time playing F2P games and can't afford game pass, this is a significant downside that might even be a dealbreaker, depending on how much time you spend playing F2P and how broke you are.
Quick FAQ's
Will future Bethesda Games be Xbox exclusive? - We still don't have definitive confirmation on whether future Bethesda titles will be exclusive, but it's highly likely that they will be, considering that Minecraft excluded, no other Microsoft first party studio currently develops games for other platforms. Phil Spencer also recently went on record to say that they're not worried about losing out on PS sales. Keep in mind that games like DOOM, Fallout, Elder Scrolls, will sell many Xboxes if they go exclusive. So while we can't claim anything definitively either way, don't buy a PS5 expecting to play these games for sure.
What's the best deal on Game Pass? - Currently it's the 3 year gold conversion deal. It probably won't last forever, so don't pass up the opportunity. Follow the guide linked above.
Are PC and Console Game Pass the same? - No. They are similar services but have different libraries. While all Xbox Games Studios games will release Day 1 on both platforms, major third party titles like Red Dead Redemption 2 are not likely to hit PC game pass.
PS5
Software wise, the biggest reason to buy the PS5 are for its exclusives. So far, PS4 exclusives blow Microsoft's out of the water. God of War, Ghost of Tsushima, Spider-Man, The Last of Us, Horizon Zero Dawn, Bloodborne, time and again Sony has proven that they have some of the best studios out there. The PS5 will certainly have some spectacular games. Here's what the upcoming PS5 exclusive lineup looks like -

Spider-Man : Miles Morales(Launch)
Demon's Souls (Launch)
God of War - Ragnarok
Ratchet and Clank : A Rift Apart
Gran Turismo 7
Sackboy - A Big Adventure
Godfall
Final Fantasy 16 (timed)
Deathloop, Ghostwire(timed)

The majority of these games will most likely only be playable on PlayStation i.e they won't be coming to PC, so that's another thing to keep in mind when deciding which system to buy. They'll all mostly be phenomenal games, Sony titles usually are, especially first party ones.
On the downside, great games can be quite expensive. As you've heard, Sony has confirmed that all PS5 first party exclusives will be 4999 going forward(no regional pricing). So if you care about playing Ratchet and Clank/God of WaGran Turismo at launch, be ready to shell out the cash. Personally I don't believe 5k for a single player game is worth it in India, but of course it depends on your personal finances.
To alleviate this somewhat we have PS Now and the PS Plus collection, Sony's answer to Game Pass. The PS Plus collection includes a lot of popular PS4 exclusives and some third party titles like Arkham Knight and Fallout 4. It's a really good deal if you're jumping into the PS ecosystem for the first time, but those who already own PS5's will probably already have played most of the games on there and will only benefit once they grow the service.
Sony also a bunch of conveniences in the UI like activites, which let you jump right into a certain part of the game. It's also rumored to have some sort of quick resume, but nothing's been confirmed in that regard yet.
As for Backwards Compatibility, Sony has confirmed that the PS5 will be BC with nearly all PS4 titles, but PS1,2,and 3 games will be left to history. Regrettable, but probably not a dealbreaker for most people.
So on the Sony side, we have some killer exclusives but not as much value with highly priced games and no game pass.

Verdict

So, for the most important question, which one do you get? Well, even after 21,000 words I won't really pretend to have an answer. There are too many variables to consider. How invested you are in a particular ecosystem, your personal financial situation, the type of games you like, etc. That said, I have some broad recommendations -

If you have already have a 4k TV and have/plan to buy online - The PS5 DE is the way to go. The asinine pricing of the Series S in India makes this particular situation an easy call in my opinion. Yeah games will be expensive, but if you have the budget to buy a 4k TV maybe you can afford it. If not, you could always wait and pick up the games later when they go on sale. Kind of a bummer, but you'd still be playing on better hardware and actually putting your 4k TV to good use, instead of wasting its potential on the Series S. Maybe this will change if the Series S ever comes down in price, but for now this is the easiest reco to make.
If you don't own a 4k TV and are strapped for cash(maybe you lost your job during rona), get the Series S. The Series S gets a lot of flak from hardcore gamers but IMO it is still a great gaming machine. for those upgrading from the Xbox One/One S/PS4/PS4 Slim it will still be a huge upgrade. Don't get carried away by 4k Marketing. 1440p gaming still looks great, and if the Series S can keep its promises of 1440p 60fps or even 1080p w/ Raytracing, games will look gorgeous and play great. Game Pass is also phenomenal value, and you get to play way more games for cheaper than on the PS4.
If neither of these statements are close to your use case, don't consider the Series S or the PS5 DE. The PS5 DE might be a tempting buy for those who own discless collections and want to save money, but that would be a mistake. You're probably going to be playing on this console for at least 5-6 years, and are going to buy many games in that time. With PS5 games priced as highly as they are, you're almost certainly going to make up the difference and more buying expensive non-regionally priced games. The PS5 might cost more, but buying physical will save you a ton of money over digital purchases.
XSX vs PS5 is kind of a toss-up. XSX is compact and more powerful and is overall better value with Game Pass, but doesn't have many next-gen games to play at launch(most Xbox heavy hitters are landing much later). Meanwhile the PS5 has Demon's Souls and Miles Morales which comes with Spider Man Remastered. Personally I would go with an XSX in this situation because it's better value and will probably have more exclusives down the line(I don't mind waiting), but if you're eager to get on the next-gen hype train as soon as possible or are already invested in the PS ecosystem/you just love PS games that much, the PS5 is also a pretty good purchase. Definitely the hardest call to make.
If you are much into WRPGS, go with Xbox. Microsoft has a solid lock on western RPG's this generation, with titles like Fable, Avowed, Fallout, Elder Scrolls, and Starfield. Given that Sony doesn't really make these sorts of games themselves and there aren't that many big WRPG devs left(CDPR and BioWare are pretty much the only ones I think?), you're better off going with Xbox if you're a fan of these sorts of games.

Closing Thoughts

Phew! This write-up turned out to be a lot longer than I had initially expected. It was quite a bit of work writing it, and I did quite a bit of research to ensure that it's as accurate as possible. I'm still human so I've probably made some mistakes still, so please feel free to correct me if you spot an error.
And of course, these are ultimately just my thoughts on the matter as someone who owns and plays on both consoles right now, as well as PC, and will probably end up getting both new consoles down the line. I've tried to keep this as unbiased as possible, but if you feel I've misrepresented something or left something out, do weigh in in the comments and help other people out.
Tl;Dr - Consoles good, console war bad.

My 2020 review! - beat 37 games in total!

Hello all – and welcome to a (slightly overdue) review of my year in gaming!
As always, I first want to thank the sub. I maintained motivation to continue to work through a significant chunk of my backlog throughout the year, and even found the chance to play a few newer releases as well. I did make a list of 12 specific games I wanted to play back in January last year, but abandoned as it just felt a bit restrictive, which is totally at odds with the fun that gaming is supposed to be about! I then just focused on playing what I felt like, making sure to consider all the games I owned already before spending on something new.
A combination of increased motivation and more spare time due to - well, you know what - I managed to maintain steady progress throughout the year and beat 37 games in total, just shy of the 40 I beat last year. This did, however, include a fair few longer titles which I've typically been averse to in previous years where I tended to stick more to 10-15 hour campaigns. In broad terms, there were three general highlights to my year:

Discovering my love of a challenge - specifically in beating all the Dark Souls games, Bloodborne and Sekiro, but also in finding I often have more fun when I bump regular games up to harder difficulties - which I did in The Last of Us (1+2), Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and Ghost of Tsushima
Discovering the 'immersive sim' genre - Deus Ex: Human Revolution was an incredible find for me this year, having previously pretty much ignored the series, and it sparked an interest in immersive sims which led to me discovering several new games to try
Catching up on my 'missed generation', i.e. the PS3/360 era. Back then I only had a Wii, and many quality titles completely passed me by, so it was great to catch up on some of them. Highlights include the above mentioned Dark Souls and Deus Ex:HR, as well as the Bioshock series, Sleeping Dogs, Dishonored, Arkham City and Dead Space

I thought I may as well copy in my brief thoughts on all the games I played this year. Mostly these are just copied from when I originally posted them in my monthly updates, but in some cases I’ve altered the review if I felt that my opinion had changed significantly since I’d played the game. In some cases I've just posted an abbreviated version... if for some reason you do give a shit about what I think you can dig through my post history on the sub! Here are my mini-reviews for everything I beat in 2020:
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (PS4) – absolutely incredible experience. Played it through 5 times pretty much back to back and it gets an extra special place in my heart for opening my eyes to the wonders of FromSoftware and challenging games in general – ★★★★★
Bloodborne (PS4) – played this straight after Sekiro and loved the combat, world design and atmosphere. Bosses were a bit hit and miss but overall a great experience - ★★★★
Yakuza 0 (PC) - this was terrific... I probably started back in October last year, and very slowly made my way through until eventually reaching the end after ~60 hours of play. At one point I went about 15 hours without progressing the story because I was so engrossed with some of the mini-games. The gameplay is pretty basic, although the combat was very satisfying. The story itself could get a little confusing at times, but for the most part it was quite character driven which kept me invested even when I wasn't totally sure about all of the political intricacies going on in the background - ★★★★
Dark Souls Remastered (PC) – finally hopped on the Dark Souls train nearly a decade late, but still it’s probably one of the greatest gaming experiences I’ve ever had. So many vivid memories of my journey through such an intricately designed, haunting world. Stumbling across the great hollow – and subsequently ash lake - in my desperation to find a bonfire (apparently I missed one at the bottom of blighttown) might be one of my most incredible gaming memories ever. The game lived up to the ‘tough but fair’ reputation I’d heard of and I never felt like giving up. Only hiccup was the archers in Anor Londo which made me so angry I kicked a hole in the wall, resulting in some awkward email exchanges with the landlord, but all’s well that end’s well - we got the hole patched up, didn't get kicked out, and I beat the game a few days later – ★★★★★
A Plague Tale: Innocence (PS4) - This was an okay game, especially considering it came from a small studio. The gameplay switches between some straightforward stealth, and puzzles that involve manipulating massive swarms of rats with light sources. Both were fine, but I thought there was some missed potential with the puzzles. The game in general is quite easy, and in the middle it was almost boring, but towards the end it became a bit more challenging and actually really fun
In any case, it's actually quite a narrative focused game, which perhaps explains the lack of complexity in the gameplay, and it does at least deliver on that front with a creative, well written story that ensured I kept playing, even when the game itself was quite slow - ★★
Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled (PS4) - got this to play with my friends whilst we're all on lockdown, and managed to get 100% in the story mode. The story mode is alright, but mainly just a way to learn some of the tracks and unlock a few customisable options. It's a fun game - I think it's ridiculously high skill ceiling, meaning that even after 50 or so hours of play you're still getting obliterated online, which with limited features and support is probably not worth the effort, but it was a fun diversion at the time - ★★★
Dark Souls II (PC) – a strange, but ultimately very enjoyable experience. I went into this knowing nothing other that it’s considered the ‘black sheep’ of the franchise, but it wasn’t until after I beat it I really got why that is. My sense for the first half of the game was how overwhelming it was – so many different directions to go and so much to keep track of – and the volume of enemies in certain areas produced some huge difficulty spikes throughout. I felt this lost the ‘tough but fair’ mantra on a few occasions, with some rooms or areas taking several hours for me to progress through. The bosses as well were definitely a case of quantity over quality.
Still, I did really enjoy most of the time with the game, and I was well and truly hooked for the 60 hours it took to beat it - ★★★★
Final Fantasy VII Remake (PS4) – This was the first Final Fantasy game I ever finished, and one of the few RPGs I’ve played that I actually enjoyed all the way through. I had played the beginning of the original, so I was familiar with the events of this game without necessarily having any kind of nostalgia or expectations. Visually I thought they did a great job of bringing those PS1 era pre rendered backgrounds into the HD era. The highlight for me though was the combat. It was super satisfying, with a perfect balance of broader strategy/preparation and making decisions on the fly in the heat of battle.
A few chapters in the middle portion of the game the game felt really slow and stretched out - I did like that they’d clearly gone above and beyond in developing the world, but adding in long empty corridors, tedious puzzles and “platforming” really did not help the experience. Overall though, great game and hopefully the next instalment can live up to the potential shown here - ★★★
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night (PC) – picked this up on a whim since it’d been a while since I’d had my Metroidvania fix. The first half of the game is great, a steady stream of new abilities and great enemy variety pulled me through. I slowly grew tired of it though, as all the small issues I’d noticed at the beginning became more and more irritating. Still though, I did get a few fun hours out of this, and some of the songs were stuck in my head for a while, so it wasn’t all bad – ★★
Horizon Zero Dawn (PS4) – I held off on this game for a while as I’d kind of dismissed it as yet another open world action RPG in a new coat of paint. For the most part, that’s what it is, but I’m still really glad I played it. The combat is really fun and gets better as you unlock new weapons, and uncovering the mysteries of the “post-post-apocalyptic” world was really compelling. Visually it's one of the most impressive games I think I've ever seen.
I thought the crafting, levelling system and skill tree were a bit tacked on, but that’s something of a nitpick, and somewhat undermined by the fact that I did find every collectible to get the platinum anyway. I really liked the game overall, from the exciting combat, to the stunning visuals, to the intriguing lore, and I’m interested to see where they take the story in the sequel - ★★★
Final Fantasy XV (PS4) – had a pretty fun time with this game. It felt like a proper road trip which was helped by the characters feeling genuinely likeable, and some impressive visuals. The game itself is pretty weird though. Nothing you do really matters, since if you just buy 99 potions you basically can’t die, so experimenting with all the different weapons and strategies never felt worth it. It also removes any motivation to do side quests, but they weren’t especially interesting anyway.
Still, it was a good ride and aside from a late game chapter which I can only describe as an indefensible piece of trash, an enjoyable if disjointed experience - ★★
Control (PS4) – I was initially attracted to this game by a few Metroid comparisons I’d seen, and in that regard it fell short, but it’s still a good game in its own right. The combat was super satisfying and the setting and the story did not hold back on the weirdness. I had a few serious framerate drops when there were a lot of enemies on screen, which ultimately did detract from my enjoyment a bit, but your mileage may vary (for reference I played on a 3.5-year old PS4 slim).
The most fun I had was actually after I beat the main story. The side quests had some really good boss fights in there and helped add context to the world, and I ended up getting the platinum trophy - ★★★
Batman: Arkham City (PS4) – I don’t really know why it’s taken me so long to play this, but I have now and it was absolutely superb, one of the best I’ve played this year. I played Arkham Asylum last year and loved it, but I had worries that the switch to open world would sacrifice some of what made that game so good in favour of just having more content, but I needn’t have been concerned.
The main story was one of the most compelling I’ve experienced in a game recently, and the combat, stealth rooms and Zelda-dungeon-like item based puzzles all alternate wonderfully to ensure I was basically never bored. Even the side missions were interesting and introduced their own unique gameplay twists. The riddler trophies were as addicting as always to pick up and ensured there was always something fun to do when travelling between mission locations - ★★★★
Batman: Arkham Knight (PS4) – a great game and a satisfying way to round out a superb series. It carries over everything that makes the previous games great – simple but satisfying combat, exciting stealth encounters and plenty of Zelda-like environmental puzzles – but the new additions in this game improve all of that. The combat is more fluid with a whole bunch of new abilities and animations, the stealth sections are made infinitely more dynamic by the multi-fear takedown, and the puzzles are as good as ever. The riddler trophies in particular are much improved – pretty much all of them require some level of thought to get compared to previous games where they were often extremely basic to figure out.
Plotwise, it was engaging throughout, although I never found it reached the heights of Arkham City. The Joker’s inclusion as a memory(?) felt a bit forced - like they regretted killing him off in the last game - but that’s understandable since he is such a great character - ★★★★
The Last of Us Remastered (PS4) [REPLAY] – Decided to replay this in preparation for Part II. Previously I had played it on the Normal difficulty and found it way too easy, so I stuck it on hard and found it much more enjoyable. I’d actually forgotten how much shit happens in this game, the pacing is so good it never feels like a drag. The scenarios are tense throughout, although never truly mindblowing
On the surface it’s a relatively simple story, but the development of the relationship between Joel and Ellie is the driving force and is compelling right up to the end. It’s close to perfect, although I’m still not a huge fan of the winter section from a story perspective. In terms of gameplay, it’s probably the most fun area – controlling Ellie with her reduced abilities really ramps up the tension, the section where you crawl through a blizzard is great, and I found the boss fight at the end fun. However, it feels a bit jarring to have an outright villain given the morally ambiguity of the actions from the rest of the characters
Still, it’s a classic – a bit limited on the gameplay front but more than made up for with a simple story with emotional depth - ★★★
Wreckfest (PS4) – been playing this with a friend online. The single player is actually really good, but primarily functions as a method of unlocking the vehicles you need to compete online. It’s probably the most fun I’ve ever had in an online racing game. Being aggressive and booting other players off the track is a genuinely viable strategy, and there’s a glorious satisfaction in nailing someone into the wall on the final corner.
It also solves an issue with many racing games whereby, if you fuckup early on you have to just slog it out until the next race for a chance to win. This is still true to an extent, but now you have the perfectly legitimate option of just going backwards round the track trying to destroy the leaders, which can be just as fun as fighting for victory - ★★★
Uncharted: The Lost Legacy (PS4) – I know it’s the same engine as Uncharted 4, but a lot of the time it felt a little off. Aiming didn’t feel as snappy, and the platforming wasn’t quite as reliable as I’d hoped. It’s still a worthy addition to the series - Nadine and Chloe are both likeable in their on way, and there’s a few great set pieces in there. The plot is generic Uncharted fare, but you do get to ride an elephant - ★★
The Last of Us Part II (PS4) – check my post history if you want my longer thoughts on this game but the short version is that I thought it was great. Ellie is so much more dynamic than Joel was in TLOU1, with several new tricks up her sleeve. She can go prone, lay trap mines and actually dodge melee attacks, all of which added a real sense of improvisation to the tougher encounters in the game.
Whilst the scenarios that required these new moves were exciting, they were also quite sparse, particularly in the first half of the game. There was a lot of walking around and light puzzling, and a bunch of less exciting mini-encounters before you get to the really good stuff. Not that this stuff was bad, but the ratio of super open exciting stealth-combat arena to slow-paced walking and talking meant that the game felt like it wasn’t playing to its strength a lot of the time.
There’s a lot to go into with the story, but the ultimately I enjoyed it and found it engaging through to the end – it wasn’t a mindblowing masterpiece and I thought they tried a bit too hard to “subvert expectations” at times, but it was a good ride - ★★★
Until Dawn (PS4) – I was surprised by how much fun this was. The story was a pretty good twist on the standard cabin in the woods type drama, the quality of the voice acting helped me to feel invested in the characters, and whilst the gameplay was simple, the QTEs were fun and added a lot of tension to the experience. Also, all the choices felt meaningful and, unlike certain similar games (looking at you Detroit: Become Human), it was genuinely fun to see the consequences of your actions. Unfortunately it looks like the developers’ more recent efforts have fallen flat but this was definitely a worthwhile experience - ★★★
Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Director’s Cut (PC) – This game was a revelation for me. Within the first few hours I was completely hooked, a feeling that lasted for the full 30 or so hours it took to beat the game. The game is just amazing. The mission structure, level design, upgrade system and weapon/item variety all come together to create an experience greater than its already substantial parts. Even the dialog wheels were fun!
I could go on… the world, the visuals, the music was great and it was one of the few games where I actually bothered to read all the little notes you find. The narrative was pretty good as well, although sometimes a bit difficult to follow and with some dodgy voice acting along the way. All in all I was absolutely delighted with this game, I’d honestly rate it amongst the best games I’ve ever played
Similarly to Sekiro, it will always be a special game for me for opening my eyes to a new ‘genre’ – in this case the immersive sim, which I have subsequently begun to dig into – ★★★★★
Sleeping Dogs (PS4) – Another surprisingly great game. The game very closely follows the GTA structure, and while it doesn’t do anything major to differentiate itself from Rockstar’s bigger budget hits, it does do a lot of little things that made it, in some ways at least, better than the GTA series. The melee combat is actually fun, the narrative is really engaging and, because of its shorter length, seems to have a lot more focus.
Most appreciated was that all the tedium of GTA games has just been entirely removed here. If a mission requires you to drive somewhere you’ll actually start the mission in a car. Collectibles actually appear on the map (once you do certain side activites). Setting a waypoint for your next mission just requires clicking the analog stick. The game always gives you the weapons you need for each mission. So many nice little touches like this mean that the whole experience felt so much more seamless compared to GTA, which I’ve always thought had a tendency to sacrifice a smooth gameplay experience in the name of ‘realism’.
It's certainly not as big and bombastic as the best GTA games, and there’s a lot less to do on the side, but the content it does have is, in my opinion, better than the equivalent in any GTA game - ★★★
Bioshock (PS4) – I did try this a few years back but dropped it fairly early on. In the intervening time I spoiled myself on the story and the big twist as I’d kind of written off the idea that I’d actually play it myself, but having the trilogy for free on PS Plus recently I thought I‘d give it another go. Turns out that one of the most critically acclaimed games of all time is, in fact, really good.
Knowing the big plot twist obviously took away from one dramatic moment but there was a lot more to the story that I wasn’t aware of previously, and uncovering all the mysteries of Rapture was compelling right to the end. It’s possibly one of the best and most creative settings I’ve ever seen in a game. I played the Remastered version, and visually it was stunning. I was really immersed in the world, and the various different areas were each impressive their own right.
On the gameplay side, it’s a lot of fun once you get past the first few hours. At the start, you have very few abilities and there were some weird design choices that made the game incredibly frustrating until you’ve got some good upgrades, but once you’re past that it really is an incredible game - ★★★★
Bioshock 2 (PS4) – Thought I would jump straight into this after beating the first. The first half of this game is a bit frustrating – to my horror they kept the health system exactly the same as the first which made the opening couple of hours a little rough, but the game is mercifully a bit more forthcoming with cash and health packs this time. Also, nothing really happens from a story perspective for a good 5-6 hours.
It does eventually pick up though, both in terms of story and gameplay. The story itself actually turns out to be just as good as the first, taking some pretty weird turns I didn’t expect and wrapping up in a very satisfying way. The gameplay builds well on the foundations of the first game, with newer weapons, improved plasmids, and a much better hacking minigame. All in all a very fun time
I also went on to beat the Minerva’s Den DLC the next day too which was fantastic - ★★★
Bioshock Infinite (PS4) – went into this one without too much being spoiled for me… all I really knew was that the setting had changed to a city in the sky and the gameplay was much closer to a traditional shooter. Similar to when I played all the MGS games last year I had an idea that there was some crazy shit going on in this game but it still managed to surprise me – although I did figure out the final twist a good few hours before the end
I won’t go into the story too much more but I really enjoyed it. It touched on a lot of interesting themes and wrapped them up in the kind of weird mystery sci-fi I tend to love in other forms of media but rarely see done well in games. Columbia was a beautiful place to explore and the bright colours were wonderful, especially coming out of 2 games + a DLC of dark, dingy underwater corridors.
The gameplay itself was okay, obviously being more of a straight shooter there wasn’t as much scope for creativity, but there was a good range of abilities to keep things interesting. It was much, much easier than the other two games as well - Ordinarily this might have disappointed me but it was actually nice to be able to kick back and just enjoy the ride - ★★★
Dishonored (PC) – I played this on the back of having enjoyed Deus Ex: Human Revolution so much, as it seemed to have a similar approach in terms of freedom in how you approach things.
It was definitely a worthwhile experience – the variety of the levels was great and succeeding was always satisfying no matter how you pulled it off. The House of Pleasure and Last Party missions were both particularly memorable.
I did think the abilities you could unlock felt a bit limited, and the way the game was broken up into separate missions meant it lacked the addictiveness you might get in an open-world or metroidvania structure, but it was good fun and I’m definitely going to check out the second at some point - ★★★
Disco Elysium (PC) – I bought this on a whim, having pretty much no experience whatsoever in this type of game, or indeed most kinds of RPG, but ended up really enjoying it. The slow-paced nature of the game took some getting used to, and after the first 8 hours I actually stopped playing for a good couple of months until I eventually picked it back up again, but when I did resume it really sucked me in.
The world and the characters were all pretty interesting, and at times it was genuinely hilarious but I mostly enjoyed how the levelling system worked with your attributes all being different parts of your psyche, and they’d talk to you and give you advice throughout the game. The game itself was quite satisfying to work through as well, it felt a bit like the classic point-and-click but without the frustratingly obscure puzzle solutions – instead you can just explore elsewhere and return when you’ve upgraded an ability or found a key item.
I did feel like towards the end of the game you were just going through the motions, and opportunities to express yourself through the dialogue became less frequent, but this wasn’t a major drawback and it was somewhat offset by the fact you were then dealing with the consequences of the choices you’d made earlier.
All in all an interesting game, one I’m glad I took a chance on, but I doubt I’ll be digging any deeper into the ‘CRPG’ genre - ★★★
What Remains of Edith Finch (PC) – an interesting way to spend my bank holiday afternoon. A 2 hour ‘walking simulator’, another genre that I’ve not really explored, but it was a really nice game. I didn’t blow my mind or anything, but I was really impressed with how much variety – both visually, thematically, and in terms of gameplay – they managed to cram in to the experience whilst still feeling totally organic.
As with Disco Elysium, I don’t really feel compelled to check out any similar games, but still felt it was a worthwhile experience and one I’m glad I had - ★★★
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2 (PS4) - this is probably my game of the year. I still rank the original THPS2 as one of my all time favourites, and when this was announced I was almost overwhelmed with excitement - particularly as it previously seemed like the series was pretty much dead. The game itself is incredible - effectively bringing a refined, streamlined version of the gameplay from the later games to beautifully reconstructed levels from the first two. All the gaps and goals were still there, and it can't be understated how massive it was for them to get most of the old soundtrack on there as well. The introduction of a ton of new challenges, high scores and, of course, online play means I'll likely be playing this for a long long time, especially if they do what the people want and bring in THPS3 levels as DLC – ★★★★★
Metro 2033 Redux (PC) - A pretty fun game, although without too much depth in gameplay terms. The atmosphere here was genuinely oppressive, and I really liked the slow paced nature of the levels, especially when contrasted with the dopamine overload of other modern shooters. Have heard positive things about the sequels so will hopefully have a chance to give them a go in the coming year - ★★★
Ghost of Tsushima (PS4) - Essentially another one of these open world checklist type games, but the combat, story and side activities were all slightly better than you usually see. The 'following the wind' was interesting at first, but functionally not much different from following a way point so the novelty wore off after a few hours. I kind of wish the game had been a bit more linear and focused as the main story is actually quite good, but I kind of ruined the pacing for myself due to my completionist tendencies. Not really a complaint against the game itself I suppose, and I did overall enjoy my time, even if I did bog myself down running around chasing foxes for hours - ★★★
Dark Souls III (PC) - A superb end to an incredible series. The gameplay was at its most refined, the enemy variety was the best it's been and some of the bosses were absolutely incredible - a welcome change from the quantity over quality approach DS2 had. The difficulty I think was tougher but fairer than the previous games - Essentially the bosses were harder and there fewer bullshit traps and ambushes in between, which I quite liked
I felt like progression could be a bit linear at times, for the first 25-30 hours there was only really one direction I had to go, whereas in the older titles I usually had two or three different routes to prod at. It opened up a bit towards the end as I discovered a few secret areas and tried the DLC, and ultimately I loved my time with this game. It's also another to tick off from the wider Soulsborne series which I've played all of this year (except Demon's Souls, waiting to get a PS5!). Difficult to say how I'd rank them, the first Dark Souls is probably my favourite, it felt most like a genuine adventure, but they're all absolutely incredible games – ★★★★
Yakuza Kiwami (PC) - A bit of a weird one. It looks and plays just like Yakuza 0, which I loved, but I occasionally notice the very '2005' DNA of the game coming through, with the odd tedious fetch sequence, and some pretty underwhelming side stories. I started out trying to do quite a lot of stuff on the side, but quickly realised most of it was just a rehash of what was in Yakuza 0, which I didn't really fancy doing again. I was also wary of getting bogged down in the world like I did for Ghost of Tsushima, especially given that the main story here was actually very, very good.
A slow start and a weird midgame chapter aside, the story here was a really tight, focused experience and I was always genuinely excited to see what happened next. The last couple of chapters were absolutely gripping and I'm definitely going to check out Yakuza Kiwami 2 some time to see where it goes next - ★★★
Dead Space (PC) – honestly found this a bit of a slog. It was a nice twist on the survival horror, and the atmosphere and story were good, but the levels and missions got pretty repetitive and the moment to moment gameplay was a bit dull. Running out of ammo was frequent which – I get it, it’s a survival horror - for whatever reason it just irritated me in this game. The story was good though, and the payoff at the end made me glad I stuck with it, but any possible interest I had in the sequels was extinguished long before that point - ★★
GRIS (PC) – absolutely stunning, if brief, experience. Visually this game is one of the most beautiful I’ve played, and there was actually a bit of depth in some of the puzzles, which kept me engaged throughout its runtime. I’ve heard people say that the story made them cry, but honestly I found it too abstract to even guess what was happening, let alone have it elicit a strong emotional response. Still though, a nice way to spend 4 hours - ★★★
Final Fantasy VII (Switch) – decided to go back an experience the original as I couldn’t wait for the remake sequels to see what was gonna happen (plus I realised that they were gonna shake things up in terms of the story anyway). I really loved this game, a really good mix of high concept fantasy sci-fi and more emotional personal stories. The gameplay modifiers (turning off random encounters/speeding up the game) were really helpful in getting me through what I think is the first non-Pokemon JRPG I’ve ever beaten - ★★★
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (PS4) – this was a pleasant surprise… the level design and exploration were really enjoyable, and the combat was fun and strategic, if a bit unwieldly at times. I’m not a massive Star Wars fan outside of the films themselves, so didn’t have any particular hopes or expectations with regards to the story, but found this to be a worthy addition to the Star Wars canon that I know- ★★★
Super Mario Galaxy (Switch) [REPLAY] – I rate this as my favourite game of all time and replaying it on Switch has done nothing to change that. It’s not quite as massive as I remember it being over a decade ago, but this time round I appreciated more the sheer variety and creativity in the levels, backed by one of the greatest soundtracks in video game history. It was also amazing to play it in full HD for the first time and, despite a few minor issues with the pointer controls, I think this is now the definitive version of the game – ★★★★★
And that's it. As for what's next, I'll make a post soon outlining my challenge for 2021 - haven't decided on what it will be but I'm hoping to keep my gaming varied so potentially something around beating games from different genres. In the meantime I'll also make a 'bonus' post of all the other games I played this year but didn't beat - either because I dropped them, put them on hold or just they're not the type of game that can be 'beaten'.
In gaming terms, I've got a couple currrently on the go, both of which I'm really enjoying and will share my thoughts here once I'm done:

Paper Mario: Origami King (Switch)
Prey (PC)

And that's it, thanks for reading, and happy gaming!

Recap of the games I got the Platinum trophy this 2020 (& some other completed games)

Hello everyone, I've read almost every post of people doing recaps of their year in gaming and i've enjoyed a lots of them! I've been wanting to do a list myself but couldn't put myself together to do it, but at last I'm here, however to keep things "Fresh" (or different to some degree) I will review the games I got the platinum trophy for, and not just games I played this year (I will however put some honorable mentions for games i played outside the playstation ecosystem that i completed to 100% or games that im 1-2 trophies close to get the plat). Having said this, the list is going to be weird (and a long read):

Goat Simulator : I believe this game was given away for PS Plus members, so thats the reason I picked it up and since I noticed it was a fairly simple platinum i gave it a go (according to psnprofiles, i got it in the lapse of 2 days 18 hours). The game is funny, its obviously glitchy, buggy, an overall mess but i got a couple of laughs here and there. There were frustrating stuff such as the flappy goat one, but overall a "funny" experience. I wouldn't recommend the game of other reason than just messing around and not taking things seriously. The fun factor however and the novelty fades away somehow quickly, so for a "freebie" (not entirely free since im paying for the subscription) it was okay. 5/10 (mediocre game, for really cheap or free its okayish)

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019): Got the game because most of my friends from high-school love to play the MP (and specially, the search and destroy mode), kinda broke the patientgaming rule because I got it like 4-5 months later, but I stroke a got deal from a used copy so yeah, couldn't go wrong. The campaign is really good, very enjoyable, the gunplay in this CoD is really smooth and feels better than previous installments, the graphics are superb and voice acting its really good, misions doesn't feel repetitive and the story is not the most engaging but enjoyable. Also, as a side note i prefer the "normal" MP rather than "Warzone" mode, since my favorite battle royale is apex legends I felt Warzone to be gigantic and slow-paced. Overall the platinum was okay, nothing too hard, just the last trophy I got "We Own the night" was kinda glitchy and Couldn't make it pop for a couple of tries. 8/10

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order: Got it as a present from my gf, I'm a big Star Wars fan and metroidvania fan, so this was just my cup of tea. Dragged it for a couple of months because being an adult sucks, but the game its very very good. Combat is good, nothing outstanding but shines whenever you face "humanoid" enemies, and plain sucks when fighting monsters and animals, story is great for Star Wars fans, personally I liked the map designs and overall exploration. However it has a big issue, if you are intolerant to some degree to technical issues... well, you wont enjoy this game, even on the ps4 Pro this baby got buggy at times, a couple of T-Poses, some freezes when loading areas, and without being to spoilerish there was this big scene when i was supposed to get up in a elevator and presence a big fight... I instead got a scene where the good guys and bad guys where just hanging around and chilling, without a single shot being fired or anything, had to reload the save point (only after laughing for a couple of minutes) and it went like it was supposed to in the first place lol. the trophy was straightforward and easy, just the backtracking as a little bit tedious sometimes...Also, the last boss fight and cutscene were top notch. 8.5/10 for me, since i can handle the technical issues.

Uncharted: Drakes Fortune (remastered): First game of the trilogy, and is the one that has aged the worst. Its clear that this game was not designed to be played on the highest difficulties, because enemy placement was beyond stupid. In contrast, Modern warfare's Veteran difficulty felt FAIR, and if you die it because you made a mistake, here you can die for stupid and frustrating reasons. The game, however, in more "standard" difficulties is a fun game, although it shows its age but you can get some charm out of it, but since im reviewing games i got the platinum from, and this game was a pain in the ass to plat, well, thats why i ranted a little. All next consequent games are far better than this, but if you have the collection I suggest to play this game on normal and continue with the rest ASAP. 6.5/10

God of War: Chains of Olympus (PS3): I was in the mood for some hack and slash action and decided to start striking down my ps3 backlog, I really like this console so I started with the GoW Origins Collection and gave chains of olympus a go since I started the game about 1-2 years prior this attempt. Playing next to my girl while she was grinding her animal crossing: new horizon island made it better, since i could just turn my brain off and enjoy the action. Decent game, not the best GoW but for a Vita port it was good. Plat was not hard either, but i missed a couple of, well, miss-able trophies and that is always an annoying thing. 7/10

Transistor: Supergiant games became one of my favorite game developers after this. Since the very first moment I booted up the game I got charmed by it. The setting, the soundtrack, the soothing voice of the Transistor, the mysterious beauty of Red, the combat system which was kinda unique for me so it was a nice change of pace, overall, those experiences and games that are just very suited for you. I cannot recommend this game enough to even at least give it a try the fact that the last boss has the same abilities that you have felt unique This game also made me try Bastion, but I played it on my phone and didn't complete it 100%. Transistor trophy can put on a challenge in some of its trophies, but if the game "clicks" on you just like it did with me, well, you will appreciate it artificially lengths the game. Loved the game, I still listen to "The Spine" on spotify from time to time. 9/10

The Order 1886: Got this game for very cheap, and after listening that it was a quick campaign and easy plat and overall good experience so i said why not. Its the definition of "Good" game, a 7.5-8 game, that doesn't set anything new on the table, or fantastic or out of this world, but delivers just fine. The setting is the most "original" thing and I really hope they make a sequel some day that further explores this "alternate era/time" London, also the lycans were underused in my opinion . The platinum is pretty straightforward, with chapter select available. 7.5/10

Tomb Raider Definitive Edition (2013, ps4): I have had already played Rise of the Tomb Raider before this one, and loved it, wanted to have all platinums from the trilogy, however this one a special one... the online requirements were a pain in the ass, I have to look for a group in psn profiles (i think, don't quiet remember if it was there on here on reddit) and had to boost all online MP trophies, and then the grind of the level 60 while i was watching some Hbomberguy videos (fantastic channel), the main campaign is very good, and i quite enjoyed it even with the collectibles since it wasn't that hard. Preferred this than Uncharted tbh, Lara is a fantastic protagonist, combat was decent, exploration good, voice acting and story were pretty good... but having MP trophies for a mostly single player game... yeah, thats a no no for me. The game is a solid 8/10, however the trophy list is a 3/10, fuck MP trophies in mostly single-player games.

Hotline Miami (ps4): Fun. This is what this game is all about, having a good time and forget a little bit about everything. The 1HKO nature for both you and your enemies makes every encounter thrilling and exciting, the different weapons and masks (which grants you with different abilities) are not out of this world but engaging enough. Going for the plat was not as hard as I thought it was going to be, only a level or two were completely frustrating but only for small segments, with enough patience and practice you can make it through... and the soundtrack sticks with you for hours after playing. 8/10 solid game, quite short but im excited to try out the second one.

Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Eyes of Heaven (ps4): During this quarantine, I decided to finally watch stuff I had on my "watch list", one of those stuff was getting past the fourth chapter in Jojo's, im not much of an anime guy (only watched like 5-6, but the ones I've watched left me with a good impression such as FMA: Brotherhood which i consider to be one of the best tv series ever) but after looking at so many memes and references I decided to give it a go, finally, binged the whole five seasons and loved it to bits. I immediately searched up for games about the franchise and found this and a PS3 one, which was supposed to be better, however this was on sale so... yeah, I grabbed this one. The game is "Okayish", I think you will only fully enjoy it if you consider yourself to be a fan of the franchise and you would like to see "what if" scenarios, the gameplay is mediocre, but the characters and story (which is not a masterpiece, but is full of references to the different parts and the interaction of the characters is really good if you watched the anime/read the manga) are what made me stay to the end. The trophy list was not difficult, just the one that asked you to have a "S" rank in all missions was time consuming, but nothing too harsh. As a game 7/10 but you are going to love it if you are a fan of the franchise.

Now I'm going to quickly list some honorable mentions that are 1-2 trophies away for the platinum, but I sold my ps4 for financial reasons, maybe when i can get a PS5...

Hellblade: Senua's sacrifice: Only a couple of trophies away, the game is fantastic, I was close to get it but my girlfriend underwent surgery (not medical-emergency related, but still surgery)
Rocket League: I actually achieved all conditions to have all the trophies for the platinum... but it hasn't popped out, the "car collector" trophy is glitched for me, maybe a PS5 log in will fix things?

And some games I've completed 100% but are not on PS3/4 so they are not platinums:
Apex legends on Xbox One, my favorite battle royale and MP game to play 8/10 (I have lots of critiques so is not a 9)
FIFA 20 on Xbox One, I despised this game and haven't bought the 21 edition, fuck FIFA. 1/10 (I still got all achievements because I hate myself)
Shantae Risky's Revenge on 3DS. Love Shantae and Metroidvanias, lots of fun 8/10
Super Metroid on 3DS. One of the best games ever and metroidvanias, wonderful still to this day 9.5/10

Thanks if you gave this a read, or if only you read games that got your attention, still, thanks for your time, it was a good year, since 9 platinums in a year for me is a ton, i like to trophy hunt but only for games I truly enjoy or are fast/easy or part of a series I want to track down.
Happy new year everybody! Hope you have a fantastic 2021, remember to take care of yourself and wear a mask, I'm a physician so I'm asking in behalf of the health care staff! Cheers

What We Do & Do Not Know About The Playstation 5

8BitDo Wireless USB Adapter / Retro Receiver - PSA

This is still a work in progress, but I'm hoping I can put this here for others to reference before and after buying/using the 8BitDo USB receiver.
Strengths and use cases: - Using 3rd party or non-supported controllers directly on the Nintendo Switch, PS-Classic, Sega Genesis/Mega Drive Mini. - Using various controllers within Windows/Mac/Linux for applications that may not have native support for the controller. (Or missing drivers) - Using various controllers without the need for 'mappers' or controller emulators, as the Adapter supports multiple operational modes (See below) and the ability to remap the buttons with the latest v2.00 firmware. (Various bugs reported with v2.00)
Alternative solutions suggested for: - Using Bluetooth controllers in Steam. The wide controller support usually results in more features being supported when using a standard Bluetooth connection (built-in or dongle). Examples: PlayStation and Nintendo Switch Pro controllers offer the ability to use the 'Gyro' within Steam. ** Note that not all bluetooth is the same. Some drivers, and/or chipsets may cause input lag, frequent disconnects, or inability to pair the controller(s).
Limitations: - Joystick calibration/sensitivity may be lacking compared to 'native' support of a specific controller. - Can only pair a single controller at a time. (Yes, this means only one Joy-Con at a time) - Poor official support - Frequent Firmware related issues.
Common Fixes: - Generic problems. Try the latest firmware and do a 'factory reset' by holding sync for 5s. - Generic continued. Try to downgrade to a previously well known firmware like v1.30 or v1.33. - Nintendo Switch does not detect the controller. Make sure 'Wired Pro Controller Communications' is enabled. (Read the Manual) You may also need to do a 'factory reset'. - PC/MAC/Linux game does not detect the 'controller'. After pairing, attempt to switch the 'mode' with the table below. You may need to reconnect the controller to the receiver after changing the mode. (XInput and DInput are the most commonly used)
Mode Select: Hold 'Select' (or '-') and the listed key for 3 seconds - DPAD_Up : X-Input (Xbox Controller ID . VID_045E&PID_028E) V1.11+ - DPAD_Left : Direct Input (8BitDo Controller . VID_2DC8&PID_3100) V1.11+ - DPAD_Down : PS1_Classic [Digital] (VID_054C&PID_0CDA) V1.21+ - DPAD_Right : "Mac Mode" DualShock4 (VID_054C&PID_05C4) V1.11+ - DPAD_Up+DPAD_Left : "Sega" Generic Digital Gamepad (VID_0079&PID_0011) V1.28+ - L1 : Switch Pro (VID_057E&PID_2009) ** ** Does not stay in this mode. Not documented. in update notes

Firmware Release History

Firmware v2.00 missing release notes Community additions: 1. Added support for 'Ultimate Software' for button remapping and Macro. 2. Press L3+R3 to toggle 'Profiles', (non optional feature) ** ** Non optional key-combo, not required to 'hold', may interfere with standard input for games... (eg, crouch and zoom are often bound to L3 and R3)
2020-09-29 Firmware v1.33 1. Added support for SN30 Pro for Android gamepad. 2. Press and hold the pair button about 5 seconds until the LED was off for retore factory settings. 3. Added support for 8BitDo Arcade Stick (3th generation). ** Firmware issues reported by various members, try the 'restore factory settings' first. I suggest downgrading to V1.30 if you face continued problems.
2020-06-05 Firmware v1.32 1. Enhanced the automatic recognition on Switch console.
2019-12-10 Firmware v1.30 1. Added support for Xbox One Elite 2 and 8BitDo Zero 2. 2. Fixed the button mapping issue for A/B and X/Y for Xbox One & Xbox One Elite 2 on D-input mode. 3. Fixed the connectivity issue with 8BitDo Bluetooth controllers. 4. Fixed the compatibility issue with Xbox One after its firmware update. 5. Fixed the HOME button issue on PS4 / Xbox One / Switch Pro on D-input mode. 6. Fixed the issue of mouse/keyboard getting stuck randomly on Mac mode running on macOS Catalina. 7. Fixed the button issues on WiiU Pro and 8BitDo M30 bluetooth controller. \* Initially appears to be the most stable firmware based on personal experience and observations within* 8bitdo
2019-10-18 Firmware V1.28 1. Added support for SEGA Genesis Mini & Mega Drive Mini.(Enter hotkey: DPAD_LEFT+DPAD_UP+SELECT) 2. Fixed the abnormal vibration problem of the game "Fixed Fire Emblem: ThreeHouses" on switch console.
2019-08-12 Firmware V1.27 1. Fixed the Wii/Wii Mote controller abnormal button problem when vibration happens. 2. Added L3 and R3 for JoyCons. 3. Fixed the abnormal vibration problem of the game "Fire Emblem: ThreeHouses" on switch console. 4. Changed vibration levels adjust hot key from L1+R1+SELECT(PS4:SHARE) to L2+R2+SELECT(PS4:SHARE), it would avoid conflicts with the game reset hot key.
2019-06-29 Firmware V1.26 1. Fixed the abnormal vibration problem of "Crash Bandicoot N.Sane Trilogy" and "Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled" on switch console.
2019-04-28 Firmware V1.25 1. Fixed the abnormal vibration problem of Resident Evil Revelations 2 and Splatoon 2 on switch console.
2019-03-14 Firmware V1.24 1. Support NS NES JoyCons.
2019-01-18 Firmware V1.22 1. Added vibration for Switch Pro, Switch JoyCons, WiiU Pro and Wii controllers.(Only for Xinput/Switch mode of USB adapter) 2. Added mode light: Dinput: blink once per cycle Xinput: blink twice per cycle Mac: blink three times per cycle Switch: blink four times per cycle PSC: blink five times per cycle 3. Added the function of calibrate joysticks for Xbox one bluetooth controller: Hot key - L1+R1+L2+R2 (NOTE: Don't touch the joysticks when calibrating) 4. Added the function of hide cursor on PSC mode: Hot key - SELECT+A+B+X+Y. 5. Fixed the bug that some WiiU Pro controller's buttons can't be recognized after bluetooth connection. 6. Fixed the abnormal vibration problem of Crash Bandicoot on switch console. 7. The dpad of wii controller map to left joystick. 8. Enhanced bluetooth connection stability.
2019-01-07 Firmware V1.21 1. Support PS Classic (PSC mode: Hold down SELECT+DOWN for 3 seconds) 2. Add the hot key for PS Classic: Reset: HOME / SELECT+DPAD_DOWN In game menu: L/L1+R1+START (PS4:L1+R1+OPTIONS)
2018-11-07 Firmware V1.18 1. Fixed the connection interruption or the console exception after a period of connection on NS.
2018-10-26 Firmware V1.17 1. Fixed SwitchPro controller lost connection issue. 2. Fixed the issue that PC can't enumerate the receiver correctly when Steam was opened.
2018-05-29 Firmware V1.16 1. Fixed the auto button issue for connection with Xbox one S/X Bluetooth controller.
2018-04-28 Firmware V1.15 1. Added multiple connection on DINPUT、XINPUT、MAC and SWITCH for 8Bitdo Bluetooth Controllers. 2. Enhanced the re-connection ability for WiiU Pro、Wii Mote and Wii Mote Plus. 3. Fixed the POWER button issue for WiiU Pro、Wii Mote and Wii Mote Plus. 4. Added vibration function for PS3 when used with the USB adapter on XINPUT and SWITCH mode.
2018-03-24 Firmware V1.14 1. Fixed the bug that the Receiver can't connect to Switch Pro and Switch Joy-Con controllers. 2. Enhanced the Vibration, and adjust to three levels ¨C strong/weak/no vibration. 3. Enhanced the compatibility of Mac mode. 4. Adjust Xbox one S/X Bluetooth controller's key mapping of A-B and X-Y on Dinput mode.
2018-03-06 Firmware V1.13 1. Added the support for Xbox One S/X Bluetooth controller. *Vibration is supported on Switch and X-input mode. 2. Vibration on PS4 controller can be modified to two levels ¨C strong/weak. *Key command for switching between two levels: L+R+SELECT
2018-02-10 Firmware V1.12 1. Fixed PS4 controller lost connection issue. 2. Added function that hold down PS4 controller's HOME button 3 seconds can power off the controller.
2018-01-31 Firmware V1.11 1. Fixed the WiiU Pro controller's right joystick mapping issue. 2. Enhanced the Bluetooth auto-reconnection and reduced its auto-reconnect timing. 3. Adjusted the hot keys for switching the USB mode. XINPUT: SELECT+DPAD_UP MacOS: SELECT+DPAD_RIGHT DINPUT: SELECT+DPAD_LEFT
2018-01-29 Firmware V1.10 1. Fixed the Wii mote connected but buttons no respond issue. 2. Add PS3 controller HOME button back to Switch menu.
Online Manual: http://download.8bitdo.com/Manual/Receiveusb_adapte8Bitdo_USB_RR_Manual.pdf

ps4 online games that don't require ps plus video

Just got a new PS4 and you're looking for free-to-play games that don't require the monthly PS+ subscription? Don't worry, we've got you covered. Check out these nine titles and say goodbye to that monthly fee. Problem is though I can't afford both PS Plus and Xbox Live so I'd have to use my PS4 offline. I was wondering what some great single player/offline games are available on the PS4 that aren't on XB1 so I can get the most out of this console. Thanks! Some games don't require PS Plus. "When a wise man points at the moon the imbecile examines the finger. - Confucius" User Info : Blackfyre. Blackfyre 4 years ago #9. Congrats. You have another primary account on your pa4. User Info: AnimeInvestigat. AnimeInvestigat (Topic Creator) 4 years ago #10. I only have one ps4 account. All the ps4 games I have require PS plus. Boards; PlayStation 4; I'm All PS4 games will require it if you want to play online. The only one I know that does not require it is DC Online. But I can tell you that $60 dollars for the year is well worth it for PSN Plus,... Ya all the f2p games don't require ps plus, but usually have some sort of bonus if you do. level 1-2 points · 3 years ago. Paladins. It's better than Overwatch. It looks like a clone but they actually started making the game before Blizzard. level 2. 2 points · 3 years ago. Hah. Continue this thread level 1. 0 points · 3 years ago. Everything in the "free to play" section of the PS store is Well, Sony has confirmed that free-to-play games on the PS4 are genuinely free-to-play and won't require PlayStation Plus. This means that if you want to play PS4 launch titles like Warframe, DC... Fortnite Battle Royale Fortnite may be one of the most popular games ever — certainly one of the most popular this year — and best of all, it doesn't require a PS Plus membership to play. You can... List of games with online trophies that don't require PS plus on ps4 Sign in to follow this . Followers 1. List of games with online trophies that don't require PS plus on ps4. Started by PooPooBlast, September 22, 2016. 29 posts in this topic . Prev; 1; 2; Next; Page 1 of 2 . PooPooBlast 12,845 Munancho! Premium Member; 12,845 1,782 posts; Location: Canada; Posted September 22, 2016 (edited PS Plus required to play PS4 games online Sony confirms players must hold PlayStation Plus subscription to take advantage of online features for next-gen games. Best Online Multiplayer PS4 Games 1. Elder Scrolls Online: Greymoor. Elder Scrolls Online is the game you’re going to want to go to if you want an abundance of content. Not only is the base game

ps4 online games that don't require ps plus top

How To Play Multiplayer On PS4 For FREE (NO PS PLUS NEEDED ...

Looking to save a few bucks on PlayStation 4 games? We've got you with some free-to-play games worth the bandwidth. Subscribe for more: http://youtube.com/ga... "Be heard! Review games at whatoplay now! Register at https://bit.ly/2yZFomF."Here's a list of the best free-to-play video games on the PlayStation 4. These ... Watch more PlayStation 4 FAQs videos: http://www.howcast.com/videos/515534-Free-Services-That-Dont-Need-PS-Plus-PS4-FAQs So what network services don't requi... Learn how easy it is to download digital PS4 games. This includes content purchased from the PlayStation Store and content obtained through code redemption. ... Quick video tutorial on how to find free to play in the Japanese PSN Store on Playstation 4. This how to shows how to find Phantasy Star Online 2 on Playstation 4. - For help creating a Japanese ... Paypal Donations: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_donations&business=JU75VAG3DQQYC&lc=US&item_name=Sir%20James%20%2f%20Donations%20for%20Equipment... Both games are free in the PlayStation store thanks for watching has saved me a lot of money In this video, I show you how to play multiplayer freeon PS4 without the need of PS PLUS.Twitterhttps://twitter.com/PancakenGamenKHCentralhttps://www.youtube... Looking for something to play on PS4 in 2020? We've got you covered with this comprehensive list of our most anticipated titles.Subscribe for more: http://yo...

9 online games that don't require PlayStation+ | GameFans

ps4 online games that don't require ps plus

ps4 online games that don't require ps plus - win

PlayStation 4 - News • Discussion • Community

Video game RPG news, reviews, discussions, and updates

HITMAN 3 PRE-LAUNCH GUIDE (PROGRESSION CARRYOVER)

Release Details

HITMAN 3 - Editions

Progression Carryover

Access Pass FAQ

HITMAN VR

More to come

I bought a PS4 at the start of 2020 and played video games a bit too much this crazy year! Here are my rankings and brief reviews of the 32 excellent games I finished this year, as well as my thoughts on patient gaming.

Introduction:

The BEST:

The Great:

The Good:

Conclusion, Gaming Patiently, and a Warning:

Getting a PlayStation under the tree this year? Here's some tips and tricks you should know!

Tip #1: Enable 2-factor authentication

Tip #2: Enable password at checkout

Tip #3: Grab PlayStation Plus monthly games

Tip #4: Rest Mode

Tip #5: For PS4 Pro: enable boost mode!

Tip #6: A few useful shortcuts

Tip #7: Create folders

Tip #8: Get some extra storage space

Tip #9: Download the PS App

Tip #10: Clean your console regularly

Microsoft fucked up.

Microsoft fucked up.

Stadia vs xcloud / game pass ultimate vs ps now / remote play vs Luna

Next-gen console buying guide - a detailed look at the next generation consoles

PS5 vs Xbox - Hardware

PS5 vs Xbox- Software

Verdict

Closing Thoughts

My 2020 review! - beat 37 games in total!

Recap of the games I got the Platinum trophy this 2020 (& some other completed games)

What We Do & Do Not Know About The Playstation 5

Things We Do Know

How Will Backwards Compatibility Work?

Which PS4 Games Will Have Available Upgrades For The PS5?

And What About Controller Backwards Compatibility

Will PS VR Work With PS5?

Things We Still Do Not Know

Video Output: 1080/1440/4k

Will We Be Able To Suspend Games?

How will Playstation Plus work?

How will PS4 save games carry over?

Will PS Now see any changes?

Will You Be Able To Activate A PS4 And PS5 Simultaneously?

8BitDo Wireless USB Adapter / Retro Receiver - PSA

Firmware Release History

ps4 online games that don't require ps plus video

ps4 online games that don't require ps plus top

How To Play Multiplayer On PS4 For FREE (NO PS PLUS NEEDED ...