the #backlogbreakdown

Now all the ways to get ahold of us can be found in one convenient place! Josh put this together the other day! Enjoy! linktr.ee/thebacklogbrea…

the last 4 seconds of this video made my mind explode WHAT DO YOU MEAN EVERY FRAME IS HAND SEWN/EMBROIDERED ARE YOU JOKING????

Video games seems like an expensive hobby until you spend a couple weeks fixing up your car and home and dealing with medical bills.

@wesleytypes 100% brother man.

Notice how none of the other big companies or publishers have commented on Sony's announcement to end physical disc production? No gotcha moments from Xbox or Nintendo, no declarations of solidarity with fans from Ubisoft or EA. That's because everyone wants to go digital, and they're more than happy for Sony to take the fall and be the bad guy in their place. However, I think if we're honest, we can't exactly blame anyone for wanting an all digital future. That, in and of itself, is not bad. It is considerably cheaper and it caters to the prevailing interests of most consumers. It's kind of a no-brainer for these companies. So what's the real problem? The current digital infrastructure is unreliable and the concept of ownership versus the purchase of a license hasn't been sufficiently modernized. Simply put, it's just too soon and too easy to manipulate in unfair ways. Besides that, I don't see why fans can't continue to have physical discs in some capacity as long as they're willing to pay for them. That's where the real conversation is.

Perhaps, just perhaps, someone doesn’t ‘suck’ just because they disagree with you on ‘Issue of the Day #17’? Perhaps you can appreciate an artist without demanding their total fealty to your worldview?

I mentioned to one person that I was moving apartments. Six men arrived on Saturday. I had not asked. I had mentioned. In this country mentioning is asking, and asking is answered, and the answer arrives at eight in the morning with a truck. I did not know two of them. One of them, I am now certain, was a friend of a friend who had simply heard that there would be lifting. They carried my life down three flights of stairs. They argued about the couch. They solved the couch. A man named Kev took the heaviest box without discussion, because he was the largest, and because in every country on earth the largest man takes the heaviest box and pretends it weighs nothing. I tried to pay them. This was, I now understand, the most offensive thing I have done in America. They laughed at me. Not cruelly. The way you laugh at a dog that has proudly brought you a stick you did not throw. I asked what was owed. They said pizza. Pizza. I had raised an army of six men and moved an entire household, and the levy for this was pizza. I bought eleven of them. It was far too many. I could not stop. It was the only lever I had. We sat on the floor of an empty apartment and ate off boxes, and Kev fell asleep sitting upright, and no one woke him. I want to say this plainly, with no decoration. Back home, to ask six men for a Saturday, you must have standing. You must have earned it across years, and even then you would hesitate to spend it. Here you need a truck and one friend who talks. They did not come because I was important. They came because it was Saturday, and I needed help, and they were free. That is a more powerful country than mine, and I say so without shame. I have given up four Saturdays since then. I do not know these people well. I go anyway. I have become a man who hears the word "moving" and reaches for his shoes.

It's more like Apple removing the CD Drive from its laptops starting in 2008. There were definitely a high number of complaints at the time, but not a single person is complaining about it today. You couldn't find many people complaining in the early 2010s either. The first thing to note about Sony's decision is that it would inevitably happen at some point for consoles. If not PS6, then PS7. Full game digital sales on PlayStation have gone from less than 10% prior to the release of the PS4 to around 80% today. On Xbox it's already over 90%, and if anything I'm surprised they weren't the ones to do it first. Yes, these numbers include digital only games, reflecting the current market environment, but they don't include DLC, microtransactions or subscriptions / free games. The truth is that the console ecosystem is nearly entirely digital at this point. - About 50% of the PlayStation 5 userbase is subscribed to PS+ and has built up a library of / has access to numerous digital games. - Sony earns more from digital add on content, microtransactions and other in-game purchases than it does from the sale of physical and digital full game sales combined. - The games with the highest number of players on PS5 in May included Fortnite, GTA V, Minecraft, Call of Duty, Apex Legends, Marvel Rivals, Battlefield 6 and Arc Raiders, half of which don't even ship on disc. - Over 30% of PS5s sold to date do not have a disc drive (Meaning that 70% do, however). More importantly though, the current sell through rate of digital only PS5s is above 50%. Note for the Insomniac data - Not only is it out of date, people are looking at the sell in number rather than the sell through number, and one of the reasons retail is high for certain games is because Sony counts bundles as retail sales, even if it's a digital code with the console. But for as much as this is a market driven decision, it's also a clear platform led push by Sony too. Even with the shift to digital, approximately 70 million PS5 game discs were sold last year representing ~20% of unit sales. It's clear that there is still a chunk of gamers who are buying physical games, even if the number has declined from 120 million in the PS5s launch year. So the question is, why are Sony doing this and will they reverse this decision? First, there's the economic argument. When Sony sells a third party game digitally at $70 via PSN, it earns $21 (30%). When it sells a third party game at retail, it earns around half that amount, even if the player spends the same $70. The difference isn't as stark for third party publishers, but they'd prefer to sell all games digitally if they could for the higher margins. That's why physical game revenue makes up just 5% of Sony's total game software sales revenue (incl. DLC / MTX), despite accounting a higher % share for units sold. When Sony said it would stop publishing games on PC, no one pointed out that it essentially earned the same from PC sales that it earns from physical disc sales, and the former was considered too little. The second reason is the reality of the market going into the launch of the PS6. Sony knows the PS6 is entering a market where consoles will cost over $1,000 and the average console player will think twice about upgrading on day one. While part of it is cutting costs, it's also a realization that consoles are no longer going to be $199 mass market devices and they will need to focus on hardcore gamers who are willing to spend more than ever. So yes, Sony knows a $1k console won't sell as much, it knows it might lose some disc only customers, or even the broader audience that has spotty internet connections or are in developing markets where discs may work better, but to update Don Mattrick's quote, Sony is saying "we already have a device that can play discs, and it's called the PS5". The third reason is about creating a closed ecosystem with high margins. The retreat from PC is partly about this, the end of disc production is also about this, as is the exploration of different form factors. Right now you can resell, gift, or even refund physical games. With digital games, you don't have the same rights currently. As Sony looks to maximize spend per user, it is essentially ending the used market for PS6 software and ensuring all software sold is high margin and they capture a %. In other words, Sony controls the license in its entirety and access is dependent on them. Even physical games have been trending in a direction where they are no longer plug and play, but instead require an install to the SSD, and increasingly require a day one patch or internet connection. Nintendo's Game Key Cards were criticized for not including the game on the cart and requiring a full download, essentially a license in a box, but at the very least they can be resold. But even on Switch 2, die hard physical fans were nowhere to be found when Pokopia came out and had a more than 20% attach rate because people either purchased the key card or went digital. I personally believe Sony's lack of announcement around what happens to PS5/PS4 discs was a mistake. Had they talked about a disc to digital program, or confirmed a disc add on for the PS6, the backlash wouldn't have been as strong. Do I see Sony reversing this decision? I'd say it's unlikely, but I wouldn't be surprised if they do end up clarifying certain aspects. I also personally believe that Sony could support physical games for a few more years, especially through a limited run style model or at a more expensive price point compared to the digital version. I'm also of the belief that even if the PS6 costs $1k, used physical games helps increase overall affordability. Regardless of whether we're talking about bringing physical back, or embracing digital, the conversation needs to shift to consumer rights and what a license should enable. Stop Killing Games was one part of it, but gifting, family sharing, refunds, and other aspects are just as important. Anyway, is this another Apple removing the disc drive from laptops moment? Kinda, but this time a new laptop will cost $5k and my old one with a disc drive works just fine.

Here's another falsehood - Sony isn't even ending #PlayStation disc production in 2028. Sony has openly stated, and all developers I've spoken with attest, that if a game launches before 2028 - more copies can be ordered in 2029. Sony isn't "shutting down" it's Blu-Ray production entirely in Thalgau - they are simply retooling MOST of the plant for other purposes. MOST, not "all". In the event this backlash forces Sony to reverse course, they have to do literally nothing to keep making 10s of thousands of discs a day in that same plant. Would that be enough to meet demand? Well, it should be if Sony is correct that digital will naturally replace more of physical soon... ...and if they are wrong? They can still save their special ROM-Mark tooling in a warehouse at first, and then scale those up again somewhere else IF they need to. Nothing is set in stone AT ALL at this stage.

IMO there's only one "petition" that can make PlayStation reverse course on discless - and that's if the PS6 does not sell. I do not see how anything else would work.

(‘Always has been’ meme) But also, not sure IGN really wants to explore the contours of this ethos.

2/2 We will not be able to freely access the movies, books, and music that we have loved. I would be a have-not. That's what I'm afraid of. This is not greed.

@TheTheoLogan @SoundoftheRaign

@SoundoftheRaign Okay, Unc. Back to the retirement home. 😂

I saw it at the movies… Hand me my cane and bifocals lol

@DustinCanFly Congrats you guys! This is so rad!

Welcome to the world Leon! Everything is perfect. Thank you for your prayers and support.

@wesleytypes @Atlus_West Imo, P3 has the best characters and story beats. The Reloaded version has a lot of great QoL adds too. That’d be my recommendation. - Nate

I've been interested in playing Persona for a few years now but I still haven't fully committed to it. Which is the best game to start with? I know it's an anthology series similar to Final Fantasy, so I'd be happy with any of these choices.

This is a legitimately great take.

I was laid off last week. So, I'm officially looking for my next thing! I've worked in indie game PR, produced for Last Stand Media, managed platform submissions at Lillymo, ran a gaming press outlet, and most recently was a marketing and project manager at IIO where I was part of a team that published 75+ games in 18 months and spent a lot of time building tools and workflows to make the operation run better. If any of that sounds useful to your team, I'd love to hear from you. I'm open to roles in publishing, developer relations, marketing ops, product and project management, and my skillset extends to plenty more. DMs are open. Happy to send out my resume upon request. And I would really appreciate you resharing this post or making connections if you have them!

@HoegLaw @GameOverThirty Him joining XBOX is legitimately one of the most interesting things I’ve seen happening in the industry in a minute. And I’m really curious to see if he can execute on all that analytic expertise as well.

@GameOverThirty I really do love Matthew Ball's analysis. (Have for a long time.) Now we get to see if he can execute on it.

XBOX leaders / execs want the general public to (eventually) understand their framework for what is "exclusive" versus broad platform. The first two games announced are their signal that there will be some sort of standard when it comes to how they determine where a game will be available. They need to honor previous partners / commitments on previously announced games, but moving forward they are pushing for a standard framework (so people aren't guessing if something is exclusive, or otherwise). Call of Duty is the obvious example of something that won't be exclusive to the platform.

@PaulTassi How is Lightfall not in this convo? That story was REAL BAD. Edge of Fate had some interesting moments. Even if that level design was absolute dog water.

Whoa whoa whoa *nothing* was worse than Shadowkeep. The entire campaign was about assembling an armor set. The Pyramid moment doesn’t save it

@wesleytypes @XBOX I mean Uncle Phil was pretty charming too… and that didn’t really work out. That being said, I’m cautiously optimistic on Asha. To paraphrase @HoegLaw “I’m giving her the opportunity to disappoint me.”

Say what you want about Xbox, but PlayStation does not have a winning personality like Asha Sharma right now. This woman makes me a believer.

@HoegLaw Is this something that a clause in a EULA could sidestep?

I caution even lawyers and lawmakers from saying what passage of a bill *will* do. People in the world are dynamic. What a law intends to do often differs greatly from what it, in fact, does. That said, I’m not betting on this becoming law.