Sony Burst A Bubble That Hadn't Even Been Blown (The Jimquisition)
Added 2025-01-20 16:03:11 +0000 UTCIt was during the recording of this very video that I realized the "Live Service Bubble" existed only in the heads of game executives, and it made Sony's plan of TEN such services even more ridiculous. It was absurd even before Concord happened, let alone after.
Now, as the company desperately cancels what it desperately greenlit - including an online God of War game - we get to see just how despicably reckless they are... and how grimly correct I've been about the whole thing.
Comments
I'm late to the party on viewing this, as I'm shamefully behind on my Steph Sterling content. I shall, of course, endeavor to atone for my sins in an appropriate manner. One thing that has been percolating in my mind on all this, however. I think Steph is right on to say that these executives are short sighted and stupid, but I suspect there's another current driving their obsessions. The 2008 financial crisis is instructive -- for all that people try to spin it as totally unforeseen and unexpected, there were definite cracks forming in the real estate lending market well before the crash happened. Those who knew how to look for such things (I was a teenager, and so was not one of them) could see it coming. For the most part, they just didn't care -- or, more accurately I suppose, those who were in a position to do anything about it, your bankers, hedge fund managers, politicians, didn't care. They didn't care, because they all thought they'd be the ones left standing at the end of it all, they'd be the ones who would walk away with billions while everyone else was left holding the bag. It was more profitable to let the crisis simmer to the point of exploding than to try to save the global economy. I think, on a smaller scale, that's what has been happening with the live service trainwreck. They know it's not sustainable, for the reasons Steph so accurately points out. They know they can't all monopolize players' time and wallets (though, if any one of them ends up actually being the monopoly, they get the bonus of having a nice little perpetual motion machine that prints money for them). Their stupidity isn't in not seeing the bursting of the bubble, it's in each of them individually thinking they'll be the ones to stick the landing, never mind the havoc wreaked in their wake. From Sony's perspective, you start to see how it makes some business sense to push for upwards of 10 live service titles -- sure, you get some duds, but, hey, one of them might be Helldivers 2. It may have even panned out for them if Concord hadn't been such a legendary, miserable flop.
Colonel Sandurz
2025-01-29 06:10:25 +0000 UTCOnce again the Cassandra of video games is proven correct. Thank God for JSS.
alexander gaitan
2025-01-21 00:52:23 +0000 UTCPrediction: Sony see that Astrobot did good and so will try and make a live-service, online looter-shooter version.
Major Ward
2025-01-20 18:18:59 +0000 UTCAs much as a fan of the so called "video essay" format as I am, just hearing you point to things that are good and going "that's a good thing that I like" is enjoyable too, doesn't always have to be a whole thing. And even though our tastes are different, sometimes it got me to try types of games I wouldn't have otherwise, a good experience even if I decide I only enjoy your enjoyment of it not so much playing them.
Am1vf
2025-01-20 17:02:20 +0000 UTC
