The Wednesday letters page is unconvinced about the need for a Fable reboot, as readers are frustrated with Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 downloads.
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Soulsborne Station
Even as a PlayStation 5 owner I don’t like the idea of Sony buying FromSoftware. I don’t like the idea of every game company being owned by only four or five giant corporations, that sack hundreds of people at the drop of a hat, just to keep their exec bonuses topped up.
I also don’t really see the benefit from Sony’s point of view. Elden Ring is the only game that’s been a big success and yet I’m not sure it’s really a system seller. Bloodborne wasn’t and that’s arguably a better game.
I suppose you could argue that Sony is only trying to keep it out of Microsoft’s grasp, because I’m sure they’d like to buy them too but is this where we are now for gaming? I’m just waiting for the news that Ubisoft are being bought by someone, since we’ve already had hints about it.
If Sony buys FromSoftware I bet they’re going to have them just churn out Soulslike game while stopping them from doing smaller projects like Armored Core and Déraciné. I also bet they straight-up shut down the smaller developer like Spike Chunsoft. Maybe they won’t but considering Sony closed its own Japanese studio would you bet against it?
Jono
Negative vibes
I’m really not sure I have much of a good vibe about the Fable reboot. Why would you hire ex-CD Project Red people for the combat? That’s the one thing you wouldn’t hire them for! But I guess I’m just generally dubious about the need for a new Fable at all. It’s not like any of the previous ones were all that great so what are you really continuing here?
Fable 2 was the best one but even then what most stuck out to me in how it wasted all these amazing British actors and comedians in a game that was never actually funny. The third one had John Cleese as your permanent butler type character and yet they never gave him a single decent line. I really hope Richard Ayoade and others aren’t going to be wasted just the same, but I see nothing to make me think otherwise so far.
I’d say the game needs a good trailer and showcase but Starfield got that and we all know how that ended up. Instead, I’ll hope that the developer knows what it’s doing, and the game will be nothing like the previous ones.
Ragnar
EA box
The thing I think that’s silly about the ‘This is an Xbox’ adverts is that they’re missing out the two most obvious formats: PlayStation 5 and Switch. Obviously, Microsoft would get sued to hell and back if they had a picture of a PlayStation with ‘This is an Xbox’ above it but surely that is the point they’re trying to get across? That it doesn’t matter what hardware you’re using, it’s the experience that matters.
But they can’t say that or even properly explain it in public and that’s a bit of a problem for them. Do you say ‘This is an Xbox’ about your PlayStation when you play Call Of Duty? I bet nobody does but that’s really all Microsoft are getting at. By that logic you might as well say ‘This is an EA box’ when you’re playing EA Sports FC. Considering how many people play only that it’d probably make more sense.
The idea that Xbox is anything other than a publishing label is rapidly disappearing and I’m not sure Microsoft is really transitioning out of it very successfully.
Tremor
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Alternative decks
I was looking to get my son a Steam Deck for Christmas but I don’t really know much about them. On doing some research I’ve seen many articles saying the Asus ROG Ally is actually a better option in many ways.
Obviously, at this point, I came straight to GameCentral looking for a review, which you don’t seem to have done. However, it was mentioned multiple times in the Inbox positively. Have you any thoughts on which one might be best? Would love to hear the thoughts of others in the GameCentral community as to the merits of each.
Thanks to everyone in advance!
Chris
GC: That kind of tech review isn’t really our are of expertise but we’re sure a reader can advise.
Clouded vision
So, Microsoft want us all to believe that cloud gaming is the future. Yet they release Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 today and all you get is a message saying, ‘too many users are trying to connect at the same time’.
That’s the software installed locally on an Xbox Series X just trying to connect to the servers. If the infrastructure cannot handle that, then how are they ever going to handle streaming the game down too! The only cloud they are in is Cloud Cuckoo Land!
Saints Stickman
GC: In case anyone was wondering where the reviews are, Microsoft didn’t send out review copies until Tuesday. According to them, that’s ‘Due to the availability of online services and scope of the planned Day One patch update.’
Delayed landing
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is finally out on the Xbox with only a 330MB pre-load!
Been sitting at 97% for the last hour. Looks pretty from the looping video.
In a world where people buy digital and never actually own it, the top version is £199.99. That’s a lot of money.
Glad I waited and hoped for Alan Wake 2 to come out on disc, my dreams have come true.
Cassius2K
Never forget
What an outrage. The nominees for Game Of The Year at The Game Awards have officially been announced and a glaring emission has soured my day. I have a bone to pick with the jury. Because they have insidiously omitted one of the most groundbreaking titles of 2024 and a title that revolutionised the concept of value for money. A game that will be remembered, for generations to come.
The jury have left out Concord and I am furious. It transformed the concept of live service titles, with its memorable narrative and the revolutionary gameplay. It has even created a record of becoming Sony’s greatest loss, at $400 million. Which is unheard of and truly baffling. As is why the jury has completely failed us gamers. It sets such a record and we see Astro Bot nominated instead.
We deserve a recount and to see Concord bestowed with the honour that it rightfully deserves. That is to be forgotten and dumped out of our hearts, because this is a joke post. Hope I’ve made some readers laugh and made GC’s night. Because Concord is the greatest joke.
Shahzaib Sadiq
Only the best
I thought I would have an attempt to help Shahzaib Sadiq in his quest for a gaming PC next year by answering a few of his questions
1) is the RTX4090 the best GPU right now?
Yes, it is. It also costs about £2,000 just for the card. There is also the 4080, 4070, and 4060 with various Ti and super models to make things confusing. If you want to enable ray-tracing and use DLSS you will really need an Nvidia card, otherwise you can look at AMD’s offerings.
Key thing here is the Nvidia 5000 series cards are due to launch next year and should be well underway by August; production of the 4000 series is reported to have already stopped.
2) is 32GB of RAM the best for gaming?
Yes, but I don’t think we are yet at a point it’s needed, unless you are streaming or running other things in the background. Still, if you’re paying the money for a top-end graphics card, no point in scrimping, eh? I would suggest DDR5 memory if you’re going all in.
Your next thing to consider is which CPU you want. It looks like you are talking high-end, in which case, be aware Intel have had stability issues with the high end 13 and 14 series i7s and i9s. This coupled with the fact AMD keep their sockets going longer means right now I would think of going AMD for a CPU over Intel.
You also need to consider your peripherals: mouse, keyboard, speakers/headphones, and, of course, monitor.
There is no point spending loads on a 4090/5090 if you have a poorly backlit 1080p monitor.
Personally, if you really want to push the boat out I would suggest a curved super ultrawide monitor, preferably 1440p. The daddy of these at the moment is the Samsung Odyssey G9. Consoles are firmly stuck at 16:9 ratio displays but having switched to a 32:9 display I just can’t go back. Coupled with HDR it’s beautiful (I don’t have a G9, I have the much older CRG9, it’s still great though).
Now everything I have suggested here is top-end stuff, based on Shazaib referencing the RTX4090. If that isn’t the case, there are options for a variety of budgets. I suppose the question is what are you planning on playing on it and, therefore, what do you need?
Anyway, I hope that helps!
Have fun gaming y’all!
The Dude Abides
Inbox also-rans
I’m fascinated to know what Sega’s lore manager for Sonic the Hedgehog actually does all day. I can’t work out whether it’s a plum job that everyone else is really jealous of or some kind of punishment.
Renton
I see Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League is dirt cheap for Black Friday. I kind of have a temptation to buy it. I have a fascination with bad or failed game and it’s got me curious. I’m going to regret it though, aren’t I?
Golem
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The small print
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