The Monday letters page highlights the practical problems of video game streaming, as one reader considers buying a PS VR2.(The PlayStation VR2 is a virtual reality headset for the PlayStation 5 home video game console)
The price of power
One thing I am not looking forward to with the Switch 2 is all the complaints about the graphics not being good enough, and somehow blaming Nintendo for being ‘lazy’ or ‘greedy.’ I know not everyone is technical, but you would’ve thought they’d realise that shrinking something down into a portable device comes with serious compromises in terms of power and battery life (and heat).
There’s also the question of price. Imagine there is some magic superchip that could run PlayStation 4 or 5 graphics in a portable, how much do you think that will cost? We don’t know how much the Switch 2 will be priced at yet, but I can guarantee you that it won’t be more than £300.
Nintendo need the Switch 2 to sell to ordinary people and casual gamers, they are not going to price themselves out of that market by making some mega powerful but ridiculously expensive portable. And no, they won’t change the price later once early adopters have bought it – the Switch hasn’t had a price change in its entire six year lifespan.
I’m sure things have progressed well enough since the first Switch to see some major improvements, but in terms of the Switch 2 the most important thing for Nintendo will be price not power.
Onibee
Reality-altering question
As a mid-30s gamer I’m finding it more difficult to keep up with time management concerning my video game hobby. I seem to bounce off of games more than I care to admit, and mostly stick to just a few titles, even with a huge backlog and three current systems.
I’ve been sitting on the fence concerning a PlayStation VR2, mainly because of its price of entry, not to mention a library that is still a work-in-progress. I’m interested in some of the titles available (Grand Theft Auto 7, Synapse, Resident Evil Village, Moss, Star Wars, Walkabout Mini Golf, Horizon: Call Of The Mountain, pretty much any first person shooter), but is now the time to dive in?
Never owned a VR headset and would love to try one first but alas that isn’t really an option. Any recommendations GC community of whether to take the leap, and if so, will it have lasting power moving forwards?
Andrew
GC: It’s impossible to tell. Sony hasn’t announced a single new game for it since it launched almost six months ago. We’d advise waiting until they do.
Pointless number
No game can be given a 10/10 score, in my blunt opinion. A 10 score means nothing whatsoever is wrong with the game. Tell me, does such a thing exist? No. No matter how good a game is, there’s always at least
one little thing that’s off, whether it’s with the gameplay or just simply the graphics or sound.
Therefore the highest a game can get would be a 9. Sorry for my… different perspective. Have a good
one.
Sean Harry
GC: But then it wouldn’t be a mark out of 10, just out of 9.
Christmas viewing
If Nintendo don’t reveal the Switch 2 at this year’s Game Awards, that will be a missed opportunity. 103 million viewers tuned into last year’s Game Awards show. I know Nintendo don’t always do the logical, but it would be a great move if they did. The Xbox Series X being unveiled at the show gained a lot of traction. But if Nintendo revealed Switch 2, it would be so much bigger. Past form suggests Nintendo won’t do it, but they are unpredictable, which gives me some hope.
I don’t watch the Game Awards for the actual awards. I’m only interested in the announcements and trailers. It would be a great showstopper to see Miyamoto pop on stage and maybe pull out the Switch 2 from his jacket pocket, followed by a trailer of Metroid Prime 4 running on Switch 2. Geoff Keighly may as well end the show right there. I do miss the showmanship we got from E3.
Anon
Trust no one
I didn’t write in for the weekend’s Hot Topic ‘cos I thought this game would have been in there. Nobody mentioned it.
A bit of an obvious one, but The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time really is a video game masterpiece. 10.
Paul C.
Currently playing: TT Isle Of Man: Ride On The Edge 3. Excellent.
GC: It’s the same story as ever: everyone assumes everyone else will write in about something, and then nobody does.
Weird Pass
I’m probably coming from a really weird angle to most gamers.
I went from the Xbox 360 to the Wii U and then onto the Switch and the Xbox Series S.
I hear a lot that Game Pass is just putting out games that run just as good as on a tablet.
I subscribe to Game Pass and it’s one of the best things I’ve ever done.
I’m playing games I’ve never played before.
I play games I would have normally turned my nose up at in the past.
All in all, it’s made my gaming experience more fruitful and that’s coming from a Nintendo fan.
So before anybody shuts Game Pass off as some awkward excuse to sell old games with old graphics just remember it really won’t take long now before all games are equal on a graphical scale.
Then it comes down to the experience and gameplay.
It’s taken a bit longer than I thought but I think that’s where Nintendo will dominate, Microsoft are catching onto this.
I can’t speak for Sony because I haven’t bought a system from them since the PS1 era but I’m sure they are aware.
freeway 77
GC: We’re not sure we understand that tablet comment, is that a reference to indie games?
Slow current
So Microsoft are pushing on with xCloud and Sony are joining the party with their streaming service for PlayStation 5.
I tried Antstream on Xbox this week and I can’t even stream a ZX Spectrum game to a level where it’s playable with my internet connection, so good luck with anything else! It’s a good job the Microsoft store do refunds!
Saints Stickman (gamertag)
More: Trending
Paying for it
As embarrassing as many gamers can be I think they actually have a point with Overwatch. The central argument, as far as I understand, is that the first game was a paid-for product. You bought it like any other game and while there were microtransactions they were purely cosmetic and it was generally held up as the best example of that sort of game in the industry.
With Overwatch 2 it’s now free-to-play and constantly begging for your money, with battles passes and all the works. It’s clear that all Blizzard is interested in Is getting people’s money, because they didn’t ask for it up front, and everything else is suffering.
They claimed the reason for there being a sequel is the PvE mode but they’ve canned that and now it’s obvious that wasn’t the reason at all, it was money they wanted, and at any cost.
Overwatch should’ve been handled like Rainbo Six Siege, with no sequel for at least 10 years but Blizzard has jumped the gun and now they’ve killed the game in what, for me, is the worst sequel ever.
Focus
Inbox also-rans
I’ve watched some of the Baldur’s Gate 3 trailers but the top-down Dungeons & Dragons thing is a bit intimidating. I’ve never played any role-playing game with an isometric view or tabletop D&D. How accessible is it likely to be for anyone as unfamiliar with D&D as I am?
Mitchell
GC: The fact that it’s based on Dungeons & Dragons will make no difference to a newcomer, it’s just a set of internal rules, the same as any role-player, and a setting that is well explained (and relatively generic).
I don’t know why but I can’t see Metroid Prime 4 being a Switch 2 launch title either, it just doesn’t seem the right sort of game to lead with, especially as people will mistake it for a first person shooter, which it really isn’t.
Soba
This week’s Hot Topic
The subject for this weekend’s Inbox was suggested by reader Johno, who asks what new gaming hardware are you playing to buy in the future?
Christmas will be here soon enough and with rumours of the Switch 2, the PS5 Slim, the PS5 Pro, and Sony’s Project Q are you starting to save up for new hardware? If you haven’t entered the current generation yet are you planning to get a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X/S this year? And if not, why not?
How much are your spending plans affected by the ongoing cost of living crisis and have you had to abandon plans to buy new hardware (including controllers, VR headsets, and PC components) this year or in the future?
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The Monday letters page highlights the practical problems of video game streaming, as one reader considers buying a PSVR2.