Support NeoGAF

[Doom85]

Death Stranding recently sold 5 million as well. Absolutely insane management by Sony not greenlighting sequels for these two games right away. Had they begun dev on those games right away they wouldve already been in dev for 2+ years with a potential release maybe next year. now, we are looking at 2025 at best from both Kojima and Sony bend.

I remember when they greenlit an Uncharted sequel even though it sold 111k in NA in its first month and topped out at 650k. Now, 5-10 million isnt enough. 100+ goty awards for Death Stranding isnt enough. Absolutely shocking display of incompetency by Sony's upper management. And I am looking right at Herman and Jim here. They both took charge around 2019 and thats when these decisions were made.

I mean, I really want to see more from Kojima, but not Death Stranding 2. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely loved the game, but the ending felt as definitive as you can get IMHO. Would just feel weird to tack on a “but it wasn’t really over!” sequel. And playing a deliverer who isn’t Sam just wouldn’t carry the same weight to me so I also wouldn’t want a prequel or side story.

 

[remember_spinal]

Im pretty sure it didnt sell a lot at full price dude.

It didn’t…he said it himself

Days Gone Director: 'If You Love a Game Buy It At F***ing Full Price'

The creative director and writer of Days Gone, John Garvin, spoke with game designer David Jaffe on Jaffe's [...]

www.vgchartz.com

 

[Hugare]

Jesus fucking christ, they are still so butthurt about this game.

It sold well because Sony market push does wonders. Every new IP from Sony sold tons right away: Days Gone, Horizon, GoT ...

But compare Days Gone Metacritic score to those two.

It was unpolished as fuck when it launched, and even today, its way worse than those other 2 (specially compared to GOT)

How many GOTY have Days Gone won? They are sticking to such a sore loser mentality

They are to this day trying to create this narrative that they were fucked by the press or whatever, when in reality they released an average game when every other Sony studio were releasing bangers.

 

[JaksGhost]

You'll always find someone unhappy with every game but many, many people who actually PLAYED it through to the end really enjoyed it. It has very positive user reviews on Steam. Reviewers likely played a part of it and called it a day. Right after they got fed up with all the zombies being white and Deacon looking at his wife's ass.

Look at this very forum during its announcement and after its release and you’ll see what I mean. It’s just funny seeing people doing an about-face out of fake outrage when even now the response here is it’s still a meh game.

 

[CitizenZ]

100% if Days Gone had a Black lead character none of them would've complained about any of that.

DG is basically like AC in terms of gameplay and just look at the reviews. You are 100% spot on they are basically writing racists reviews and are so mentally ill, they dont even know it.

 

[Lognor]

I feel like there next game will be make or break for the studio

I dunno. How many make or break moments has media molecule had? And yet they're still around!

 

[Ass of Can Whooping]

What I said before

Sales aren't the reason we aren't getting a sequel. It was the critical reception and the two directors leaving

Lol @ people downplaying the sales though. You donkeys

 

[carlosrox]

Cool, but it outselling Ghost of Tsushima is a crime.

Didn't GOT release later?

 

[Bernd Lauert]

The Formula™ works even for mediocre games, although the good games sell quite a bit more still (20m potential). Sony and Ubisoft gonna keep slaying their niche.

 

[remember_spinal]

Look at this very forum during its announcement and after its release and you’ll see what I mean. It’s just funny seeing people doing an about-face out of fake outrage when even now the response here is it’s still a meh game.

Because now it supports a narrative that sony are bad project managers or thirsty for high metacritic ratings. But even years later with everyone saying the game got better and having all this support behind them it still ends up like this…

Even when Death Stranding and Ghost of Tsushima re-released they got way higher metacritic scores. This one is still a sub-par game all around. Ross has to take some accountability

 

[Tiago Rodrigues]

It's not about how many copies it sold. The game did okay but most of those sales are probably after all the discounts it got.
It's not like it set the charts on fire like many other Sony games...

 

[odhiex]

I mean, I really want to see more from Kojima, but not Death Stranding 2. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely loved the game, but the ending felt as definitive as you can get IMHO. Would just feel weird to tack on a “but it wasn’t really over!” sequel. And playing a deliverer who isn’t Sam just wouldn’t carry the same weight to me so I also wouldn’t want a prequel or side story.

Yup, not every game needs a sequel even though you really love it.

Maybe (this is just my speculation) they had pitched the ideas of Days Gone 2 but it was not really "exciting". Publisher needs to be convinced, before they start putting investments on to a project.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Still have yet to play it, but the narratives around no sales announcements were a hoot.

 

[Hunnybun]

That’s sad that local management made it seem like a disappointment, freaking meta critic and soy boy journos

Basically what it comes down to. Little dipshits complaining about "problematic" language etc.

And Sony fucking listening to them. Depressing.

 

[remember_spinal]

Yup, not every game needs a sequel even though you really love it.

Maybe (this is just my speculation) they had pitched the ideas of Days Gone 2 but it was not really "exciting". Publisher needs to be convinced, before they start putting investments on to a project.

I’m guessing its a combination of the pitch not being very innovative or exciting and sony already trying to push The Last of Us as its big cross media franchise.

If sony were truly unhappy with Bend or their work they wouldn’t have greenlit a new big budget IP for them.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Game sold fine, but would had sold more if it got better reviews. It has a 71 on MC, which is probably among the lowest scores for a Sony exclusive.

The zombie fad seems to be finally weeding down too. I don't think the average gamer sees zombie games as a hit setting like it's 2012. There's been so many zombie games it's overload. Not sure which game made the zombie fad be what it is as RE games have been around forever. Maybe it was World at War zombie mode or L4D.

 

[CitizenZ]

"The zombie fad seems to be finally weeding down too."

 

[Ass of Can Whooping]

I’m guessing its a combination of the pitch not being very innovative or exciting and sony already trying to push The Last of Us as its big cross media franchise.

If sony were truly unhappy with Bend or their work they wouldn’t have greenlit a new big budget IP for them.

Bend's a great studio. The issues ultimately came down to Jeff and John not being able to manage a large scale project with 100+ staff

 

[Dane]

Critics didn't like it, but players since day one loved it, I always heard lots of praises.

I have been saying this many times, on the sea of thieves thread.

Launch sales matters.

You can tell me how many units you sold, I would ask you:
"most of the sales coming from launch"?

Legs also matter, the game sold extremely well for a 71 metacritic score and new IP, even when counting at half price sales, it would have been a lot + PC Sales whose port had a higher price point. TLOU 2 on the other hand was a huge launch success that went missing the console's top 10 monthly by the year's end and was only featured in one month last year when it had a price cut + PS5 patch while GoT is always at the chart.

 

[Gamerguy84]

It's disappointing to me they aren't at work on another one right now. In my top 5 last gen amazing game.

 

[Clear]

Days Gone was/is great and sorely underrated.

A very creditable achievement too for a relatively small team to build an open-world game of its size.

The fact is plenty of people for whatever reason wanted it to fail from the start, so when it launched in relatively rough shape for a Sony first-party title, and its director left Sony under something of a cloud, the expectation was that it was just going to die. So, naturally a sequel wasn't immediately greenlit.

However, Bend stuck with it post launch and continuously worked on and improved the game and over time it found its audience.

 

[bitbydeath]

What I said before

Sales aren't the reason we aren't getting a sequel. It was the critical reception and the two directors leaving

Lol @ people downplaying the sales though. You donkeys

On the contrary, they already admitted to working on the sequel, everyone just took Jason’s BS over the actual developer.

 

[Ass of Can Whooping]

On the contrary, they already admitted to working on the sequel, everyone just took Jason’s BS over the actual developer.

Don't think that's true. They're working on a new IP and I doubt they're capable of multi project dev yet

 

[DeadOblivion78]

I remember everyone clowning on this game ever since it was revealed and ever since it was confirmed that there is no sequel for it, it suddenly became a pariah and shining beacon of a game deserving a sequel. I feel like I'm getting gaslight for everyone saying this game is suddenly a "very good" game now.

 

[thicc_girls_are_teh_best]

Weird that instead of shutting them down they allowed them to make a new IP.

I guess by success Sony meant the critical reception and not the sales?

That's the only thing that I remember that was really negative about this.

TBF isn't their next game more of a mid-tier affair, not AAA? That's what the rumors were a while back. Granted, rumors usually aren't worth much but if that's the case then an argument could potentially be made that's a demotion of sorts....

...though, I don't know how good that argument would hold. By that logic teams like Obsidian could be said to have been "demoted" if they're working on smaller-scale games like Grounded. But that isn't the case, and it's most likely Bend's next game, whatever it is, could be one they're doing through choice rather than some "punishment".

DG was sitting around 900k. Jumped to close to 1.8 million.

Zombie games are pretty healthy on PC and it's nice to see more of Sony's 1P doing well on the platform.

Death Stranding recently sold 5 million as well. Absolutely insane management by Sony not greenlighting sequels for these two games right away. Had they begun dev on those games right away they wouldve already been in dev for 2+ years with a potential release maybe next year. now, we are looking at 2025 at best from both Kojima and Sony bend.

I remember when they greenlit an Uncharted sequel even though it sold 111k in NA in its first month and topped out at 650k. Now, 5-10 million isnt enough. 100+ goty awards for Death Stranding isnt enough. Absolutely shocking display of incompetency by Sony's upper management. And I am looking right at Herman and Jim here. They both took charge around 2019 and thats when these decisions were made.

I see a lot of reaching, but very little grabbing.

 

[Hunnybun]

Is there actually any evidence that this game sold a hugely disproportionate amount at big discounts? People just repeat it here like it's gospel.

It wasn't like some GT Sport situation where you could get the game for like $20 after a month. Sony ALWAYS discounted their games last gen. I remember buying Spider-Man from the store for like 40% off, about 3 months after launch.

 

[bitbydeath]

Don't think that's true. They're working on a new IP and I doubt they're capable of multi project dev yet

New IP like Days Gone was a new IP, despite being a continuation of Syphon Filter series.

 

[Shifty1897]

If they had delayed it for one month it would have sold another two million. They patched three or four times between review copies going out and a week after release and a lot of complaints about the game were fixed.

 

[kyliethicc]

On the contrary, they already admitted to working on the sequel, everyone just took Jason’s BS over the actual developer.

The sequel was never even close to being greenlit or worked on.

Sony didn't even read the pitch for Days Gone 2.

 

[MasterCornholio]

TBF isn't their next game more of a mid-tier affair, not AAA? That's what the rumors were a while back. Granted, rumors usually aren't worth much but if that's the case then an argument could potentially be made that's a demotion of sorts....

...though, I don't know how good that argument would hold. By that logic teams like Obsidian could be said to have been "demoted" if they're working on smaller-scale games like Grounded. But that isn't the case, and it's most likely Bend's next game, whatever it is, could be one they're doing through choice rather than some "punishment".

Some rumors said it was a AAA IP.

Days Gone Developer Sony Bend Hiring for New AAA IP - PlayStation LifeStyle

Days Gone developer Sony Bend has posted a job listing in which the studio is looking for a Senior Concept Artist for a new AAA IP.

www.playstationlifestyle.net

 

[Ass of Can Whooping]

New IP like Days Gone was a new IP, despite being a continuation of Syphon Filter series.

Syphon Filter and Days Gone are two seperate IPs even if they take place in the same universe. Days Gone 2 wouldn't fall under the new IP that Hermen is promoting

 

[remember_spinal]

Is there actually any evidence that this game sold a hugely disproportionate amount at big discounts? People just repeat it here like it's gospel.

It wasn't like some GT Sport situation where you could get the game for like $20 after a month. Sony ALWAYS discounted their games last gen. I remember buying Spider-Man from the store for like 40% off, about 3 months after launch.

Days Gone Director: 'If You Love a Game Buy It At F***ing Full Price'

The creative director and writer of Days Gone, John Garvin, spoke with game designer David Jaffe on Jaffe's [...]

www.vgchartz.com

 

[Hunnybun]

Days Gone Director: 'If You Love a Game Buy It At F***ing Full Price'

The creative director and writer of Days Gone, John Garvin, spoke with game designer David Jaffe on Jaffe's [...]

www.vgchartz.com

Hardly conclusive. Could just be a personal bugbear of his.

I seem to remember the game doing well in charts etc. I certainly don't remember it being drastically or permanently discounted, although I could be wrong.

 

[Coloress_Kafka]

Not to be shallow but this game looks like it says the N word with a hard R……and in anger not jokingly.

 

[Mercenary09]

Im pretty sure it didnt sell a lot at full price dude.

In the US it was in the top sellers for 2019 in the NPD charts right behind games like Resident Evil 2, Pokemon Sword, and Luigi's Mansion 3 all of which we know sold very well at high prices. Those charts are sorted by revenue not units sold. So evidently it sold quite a bit at a high price that first year.

Now did it sell the majority at full price? No. Probably around 2-3 million which for a new IP is pretty darn good. Sony just cares more about what some journalists think.

 

[Mercenary09]

Look at this very forum during its announcement and after its release and you’ll see what I mean. It’s just funny seeing people doing an about-face out of fake outrage when even now the response here is it’s still a meh game.

Good thing there is a much bigger world out there than NeoGaf. Look at the user feedback on Steam and other places. It's mostly positive.

 

[RavageX]

Im playing the game now, and bits of it feel...not in sync story-wise. I like the gameplay for the most part, graphics look good too. There are some buggy parts, but its been enjoyable thus far.

Its not something I would pay full price for, but honestly not many games get that from me.

I like it better than Cyberpunk, im still struggling to play. Its just not good.

 

[Oddvintagechap]

I got the game heavily discounted digitally from the PSN store.

I want to say 20 bucks.

Ghost of Tsushima (which I didnt get at launch, and I think is equal in quality) I bought for 70$. I normally buy my games full price, day one.

 

[Ass of Can Whooping]

Hardly conclusive. Could just be a personal bugbear of his.

I seem to remember the game doing well in charts etc. I certainly don't remember it being drastically or permanently discounted, although I could be wrong.

Even then do people really need to be so hung up on discounts?

10 million + sales in 3 years is fantastic, especially for a new IP to boot. Sales clearly weren't the issue.

 

[Dream-Knife]

What's the breakdown of console and PC?

 

[remember_spinal]

This guy comes off as such a bitter bitch

I can’t wait to see his tweets once Bends new game comes out and its the studios equivalent of sucker punches Tsushima or Guerrillas Horizon.

 

[SlimySnake]

The sequel was never even close to being greenlit or worked on.

Sony didn't even read the pitch for Days Gone 2.

 

[Deerock71]

 

[Dthomp]

I loved Days Gone, maybe my favorite game on the PS4 (Keep in mind, I played it on the PS5 after the updates), I thought almost ALL of the characters were well written and grew as the story moved along. Press did 75% of the hurt to this game.

I have no proof whatsoever, but the way Sony has jerked off Druckmann and ND about TLoU, I fully believe they just didn't want another zombie game that some would consider a better overall experience competing with their chosen game to push to the moon in TLoU.

 

[Bernd Lauert]

This guy comes off as such a bitter bitch

I'd be bitter too if I made a game that sold almost ten million copies and then my corporate daddy treated me as if I made a worthless piece of shit. Try empathy for once.

 

[remember_spinal]

I'd be bitter too if I made a game that sold almost ten million copies and then my corporate daddy treated me as if I made a worthless piece of shit. Try empathy for once.

He said it was local management. And yeah he put out a bad buggy game that most people agreed was underwhelming. Hold the L

 

[Relique]

You'll always find someone unhappy with every game but many, many people who actually PLAYED it through to the end really enjoyed it. It has very positive user reviews on Steam. Reviewers likely played a part of it and called it a day. Right after they got fed up with all the zombies being white and Deacon looking at his wife's ass.

You are right. The poor game was doomed before it even came out. With every trailer all the media outlets and some of the edgier forum dwellers were shitting on Days Gone for generic white protag and other perceived "issues," followed by confirmation bias when the game finally came out.
Yeah if you compare the metacritic score (71) to the user score (84) they aren't even in the same league. Some may argue it's PS4 fanboys but PC users rated it even higher. The game had a few performance issues at the start and did get a little repetitive but it was much better than the reviewers gave it credit for.

 

[Bernd Lauert]

And yeah he put out a bad buggy game that most people agreed was underwhelming. Hold the L

Wrong. The fake news media agreed on something, but the general player base liked the game. Source: 9m copies sold, Steam reviews, Metacritic user reviews.

 

[Concern]

Soy boy journalists crying about a white protagonist and other stupid shit ruined it for us.

Days Gone was great imo and I didn't experience such a buggy experience like some say on launch besides some frame drops on the bike.

Much better game than Death Stranding or Horizon imo.

 

[remember_spinal]

Wrong. The fake news media agreed on something, but the general player base liked the game. Source: 9m copies sold, Steam reviews, Metacritic user reviews.

Naw, i remember launch people on the internet were tearing this game apart