The Wednesday letters page has nightlife recommendations for gamers in Birmingham, as one reader looks forward to the chaos of GTA 6.
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Pro tip
So I’ve just been reading some tech breakdowns of the PS5 Pro and it seems that it’s not that much of a jump forward at all. That won’t be any kind of shock to those that bought a PS4 Pro, but as usual all the 50% more powerful nonsense, that always gets trotted out with tech specs, was bought hook, line, and sinker by some.
If the console is disappointing even on paper, I can’t imagine how bad it’s going to be in reality, where it’s going to be a game of spot the difference to tell what the improvements are meant to be. If you haven’t got a PlayStation 5 already then fine, it’s still obviously the model to go for, but for those upgrading, well… I won’t be one of them.
Companies are supposedly worried that the age of consoles is drawing to an end and what is their answer to this problem? To release a completely pointless upgrade that costs a huge amount of money for very little gain, especially compared to the much cheaper price of upgrading your PC.
The PS5 Pro is absolutely the opposite of what is needed right now and is going to make more people think twice about their format choices. I literally don’t know who’s in charge of PlayStation at the moment, because they don’t seem to have announced anyone, but whoever it is needs to have a word with themselves.
Focus
The triple
I think it’s madness that we could have had new consoles from all three companies this Christmas, if it wasn’t for the Switch 2 being delayed. Nintendo can’t be blamed for planning a new console, because they’re now out of synch with the other two companies, but I can only agree that the PS5 Pro is completely unnecessary. The new Xbox Series X too, although it sounds like it’s basically just an Xbox Series X Slim (man, the way Microsoft names things is just terrible).
Stop making new hardware and make some new games! What is wrong with these companies? I thought it was software that made the most profit, not hardware, which is often sold at a loss? Even if that’s not true at the moment it’s not the main money maker so why is that the obsession right now? I just don’t get it. And what games are we supposed to be playing on the PS5 Pro? Spider-Man 2 works fine as it is, so I don’t even get what benefit we’re even supposed to see.
Mags
Unbalanced wares
So, in the space of 20 months we will have had the PlayStation VR2, the PlayStation Portal, and (potentially, but likely) the PS5 Pro. This is particularly impressive, from a hardware perspective, and I’d argue the PlayStation engineers are clearly at the top of their game, which makes it so perplexing that the software side of their business is at, arguably, its lowest ebb.
The two sides are clearly not communicating effectively and it all just seems like such a waste of time. Surely, you delay the PS5 Pro until there’s a significant title to launch alongside it? Also, the whole 8K thing is nonsense.
Matt
GC: You neglected to mention the PS5 Slim. And it's very clear that the PS5 Pro is real.
Activities for gamers in Birmingham
RE: DMR and Tony 1975. As mentioned by Tony yesterday, the Birmingham Gaming Market takes place in Digbeth, Birmingham on April 6th. I've been once before, and it's definitely worth a visit, although it's quite challenging to see the stands because the place is so crowded!
There were no arcade machines, but the venue is right next to a retro arcade/bar called NQ64, which features a few machines including Donkey Kong, Track & Field, Pac-Man, OutRun 2, and Time Crisis.
Additionally, if you take a stroll into the city center, there's a pinball bar called Tilt, which has about 20 new and classic tables. And there's also a new bar called F1 Arcade, which has around 20 F1 simulators. I hope you have a wonderful time!
Tim Keeling
Stealthy Bigfoot
It is indeed Sneaky Sasquatch and it's available on Apple Arcade, not sure if it's available elsewhere. It's set in a woodland town. You play as a Sasquatch trying to evade park rangers by blending in. The game begins with you needing to steal clothing, find food, and simply strive to survive but eventually evolves into running for mayor, stealing cars, racing go-karts, and undertaking tasks to prevent bad things from happening in the forest. I've only dabbled, but the kids (8 and 11) absolutely adore it.
It receives frequent large updates, which leads to a flurry of activity as new tasks (such as trying to become a consultant in a hospital) become available. Visually, it's top-down, with lovely cartoon-style graphics. Touch controls work well too. Kids would likely say it's a 10/10 game, but realistically it's probably an 8/10, still worth trying out for all ages!
Catcave
You are intelligent
Just learned that Monday marks the 20th anniversary of Katamari Damacy, and that truly makes me feel old. It's a fantastic game though, with relatively recent remasters for it and its first (and only good) sequel, that anyone should be able to obtain.
I adore the game because it's so strange and surreal yet perfectly executed. It's slightly janky but even that seems to fit with the mood and the message it's trying to convey.
A relatively late-era PlayStation 2 game (not released in Europe, so I had to import it at the time) it signifies a period when major publishers were still creating what are essentially indie games, apparently without expecting to make a lot of money.
I even appreciated having to import it. It made it feel even more special, like I was purposefully seeking out something I'd heard about through the grapevine (from GC, actually) and not just what was advertised the most on TikTok.
Time must move on, but I believe we're all starting to miss that period when mainstream publishers were happy to release unconventional stuff just because it didn't cost that much to make and, who knows, it might be a hit. Those days are long gone and now everything has to be a huge smash hit or the entire developer goes under.
As far as I know, the only thing Bandai Namco is doing to celebrate Katamari Damacy is a remastered soundtrack on Spotify named Katamari Fortissimo Damacy. It's not available online as I write this, so I'm not sure when it will be on there.
Lentil
Happy birthday Samus
I think Nintendo will likely ignore this Super Metroid anniversary, just like they did with the original Metroid's 30th anniversary. Super Metroid is now 30 years old and it's widely considered as one of the best video games in history.
It's still completely playable today and is a big icon for Metroidvania games and video games in general. It's also available on the Nintendo Switch Online SNES app, if you want to give it a try. You can get a free seven day trial and easily complete it in that time.
Onibee
Reasons not to move
I own an Xbox Series X and really enjoy it, as it has plenty of games to play. However, there are some games on the PlayStation 5 that I'd like to try – such as Helldivers 2.
The PS5 Pro version does seem appealing in some ways, but there are three main barriers that would stop me from getting it:
Now that Microsoft is going to sell some Xbox games on PlayStation, I wonder what's the point of having separate consoles. Can't we move more towards a system like Android, where we have one OS that works on various devices?
Sounds a bit like a PC, doesn’t it…?!
Tom
GC: There are several reasons why Microsoft and Sony don't want to do that, but one of the most important reasons is that everyone releasing games on consoles has to pay a licensing fee. That’s where the profit comes from, not the selling of the hardware.
Inbox also-rans
The idea of GTA 6 coming out in February sounds great to me. It seems like gaming will change forever after that and I'm excited to see the chaos it creates (and play the game, obviously).
Bowie
It's disappointing about Alone In The Dark, it seems like they tried their best, and I like the idea of it not all taking place in the mansion. However, at this point, trying to do Resident Evil without the fun won't work unless either the story’s good or it’s really scary. It doesn't seem like this game was either.
Louies
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