Howdy, welcome to 2024!
Let’s address the elephant in the room — I’ve been MIA for a while. In my defense, I’ve written up a bunch of topics but canned them because writing all day and trying to find the energy to rally has been a challenge.
Even though I haven’t been writing much here, I’ve been blazing through my massive backlog. I added a new section to the blog called “Completed Games,” where you can see what I’ve finished this year. Pretty happy with how it’s turned out, and I aim to keep it updated throughout the year with what’s been on my plate.
On topic, there’s been a lot going on this year. We’re three months in, and it’s been a wild ride. Let’s talk, or shall I say, follow along with my ramblings.
The duality of live services
In the span of a week and some change, the live service scene saw the arrival of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League and Helldivers 2. In the time since, Helldivers 2 has become a cultural phenomenon, and Suicide Squad has become a bigger flop than the entirety of the DCU.
Helldivers 2 is a breath of fresh air for the live service industry, so much so that I feel like the developers undersold this product. I couldn’t tell you what the game was about before it arrived, but the power of social media has blown this game into its own league, forcing the devs to revisit their roadmap and work OT so players could even play the game. It helps this game is fun, so fun, and so well put together, it’s insane something like this came out in 2024, when the industry’s pretty much had enough of live service games.
On the other hand, Suicide Squad is atrocious. This is not an attack on the developers because the last few months have been horrendous for devs everywhere (more on this later), but holy smokes. I had no expectations coming into this, and after getting a free copy via my job, I was left in shambles. I’ll be surprised if it makes it past November of this year.
It’s not fun, and it’s not sure what it wants to do since the Arkham Universe connection holds this game back from figuring out what it’s supposed to be. I stopped playing around chapter 5, and I don’t think I could force myself to go back. It’s a pity to see Rocksteady be reduced to this because if this worsens any more than it already has (Steam numbers are horrendous), the studio may be facing a horrid fate.
It hurts, but then again, it feels this could be a wake up call for the industry where they realize what works versus what doesn’t work….
Ahhh who am I kidding?
Also, Palworld??????? What the hell was that explosion?
The industry is in shambles
2024 is picking up exactly how 2023 ended, with devs en masse losing their jobs left and right. I forgot where we stand, but I think we’re up to around 7000 jobs lost in three months (edit: here’s a PC Gamer chart chronicling 16,000 layoffs from Jan 2023- Jan 2024).
What the actual fuck?
Microsoft, Riot Games, PlayStation, EA — the list goes on. What makes it baffling is some of the studios laying folks off hit record numbers, or in the case of Microsoft, came off a massive acquisition many thought would save the staff. It’s brutal, and I pray the workers affected find homes fast.
On the other hand, as more developers are let go, more info comes to light on canned projects. EA’s layoffs seemingly have put Respawn Entertainment’s Mandalorian Star Wars title in the gutter. Embracer Group’s layoffs revealed Eidos Montreal had to can a Deus Ex game, leading to more questions on what the hell is Embracer’s goal.
In hindsight, maybe the phrasing of “in shambles” is a bit strong. This year will certainly deliver plenty of incredible titles and already has done so with Helldivers 2, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Palworld, and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth providing a strong start for the year after last year’s generational run.
However, with the way things are going, there’s a chance many more layoffs could occur. It’s absolutely heartbreaking and definitely putting not encouraging for the next generation of industry titans.
Incoming live service blunders?
Live services have been making waves lately, and while the first section covered two live services going on at the moment, this next segment will talk about what the future holds, starting with Battlefield.
According to Insider Gaming, the next Battlefield title may include a battle royale. You’re probably wondering why that’s a bad thing, and honestly, it’s for multiple reasons this idea is a mess in the making.
- Battlefield 2042 was not good.
- Battlefield already tried the BR mode with BFV Firestorm, and it was a real barn burner indeed.
- Battle royales are like horde modes, the general populace is tired of them unless you can innovate.
Those three points alone put Battlefield in a weird position. After the mess that was 2042 and Firestorm, why would you go back to a trend everyone hates to solve your problems? I get it, this is a report, and this could very well be wrong. But if it’s not, why? Why go this way, years after the craze?
You know that saying “better late than never?” Yeah, that doesn’t apply here.
End rant, let’s switch gears.
Back in 2022, Eurogamer composed an interview with Assassin’s Creed head Marc-Alexis Coté, where Coté revealed the goal behind AC Infinity — the hub for future AC games.
After that interview, details were scarce, that is until Insider Gaming revealed exactly what the transition may look like.
Key points include:
- Infinity is a hub a la Fortnite. Players can boot up Infinity and pick up where they left off in any of their connected titles in seconds. It’s set to launch at the same time as AC Red, the feudal Japan title fans have been begging for.
- The idea for the hub is to be the modern day storytelling point, a la Animus.
- It’ll include an in-game shop and battle passes for each character with “narrative elements” attached to them.
- The goal is for mainline entries to release every two years and smaller titles to fill the gap. There’s at least 5-6 more titles in the works, including a Black Flag remake, a multiplayer title and Hexe, the “darkest” one to date.
In theory, this idea isn’t bad since it literally mirrors the lore of the game. Call of Duty just pulled this stunt off with last year’s MW2, but the execution sucked with the worst UI I’ve ever seen. Given we’re talking about Ubisoft, the potential for them to butcher this is exponentially high, especially when it may come with monetization galore.
Fans have been begging for innovation in Ubisoft titles for years, since they all follow the open-world trope the studio popularized. But, instead of giving us something unique, they turn a predominantly singe-player title in a live service debacle?
What?
I don’t know what these live service projects are thinking or are cooking, but somebody needs to get them out and fast. Not everything has to be a live service mess, and if/when it fails, the fallout is tremendous.
And with that, my ramblings and my first post of the year have concluded. Well wishes to you all, and let me know if anything crazy’s been going on!
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