Tag Archives: Sony

November 13, 2022 · 01:47

Repetition or confirmation?

I was a little on the fence whether I should write this article. It felt a little repetitive and I hate repetition, hell is all about it. But it was the fortune article that made me go for it. There was a bonus involved. The article (at https://fortune.com/2022/11/04/cloud-video-games-future-stadia-xbox-microsoft-google-sony/) gives us ‘Cloud video games have a rocky history, but could have a bright future’, as such I agree. But apart from Google throwing in the towel (a mistake, but their choice). We get “In May, the company announced its Xbox Cloud Gaming program had attracted over 10 million players spread over 26 countries since opening its beta up a year prior. And the numbers are growing.” This and “You need to have a console solution and you need to have a cloud solution, because as gaming continues to expand, you’re going to need multiple options for each market” made me roar (with laughter). Not directed at the statements. I kinda agree with the second statement, although it is early days for that. It is the first that made me howl. Microsoft the company who ‘evangelised’ the fact that they had the most powerful console in the world was surpassed in lifetime sales by Nintendo within 2 years. Apple made a mess of the  Microsoft tablet, Amazon made a joke of Azure and now we see this, all whilst I am offering a solution to Amazon which could add 50 million subscriptions amounting to $6,000,000,000 a year.  So not only did Microsoft became largely irrelevant in Console gaming (all whilst spending $75,000,000,000 for Blizzard and Bethesda) Amazon does not have to go to anywhere near that that degree and will surpass Microsoft (if they buy the solution) by well over 40 million subscriptions. I reckon that if Amazon accepts the deal, the new years party at Microsoft will end up being more dreary than a funeral. Oh and that is before we consider the market share that Microsoft loses to Adobe. Cloud services, gaming, tablets and office losses. Life could not feel better for me at present and that is off course linked to Amazon (or another third party currently approached) buying my solution. It feels perfect slapping that smug company. I was clear 10 years ago that they were making too many BS mistakes, mistakes that gamers were not accepting (like always online). And Sony took them to the cleaners (OK, Sony had sheer gaming perfection in house, so that helped). 

Cloud gaming is the future that was never in doubt, yet it does rely on national deployed 5G networks. It can work on lesser, but congestion becomes a real issue at that point and there I have a few other ideas for Amazon (but these ideas are a little out in the open at present). 

And I believe it will go further, but that might be overly optimistic, and I hate being overly optimistic, but the numbers are seemingly in my favour at present, still I will hang onto ‘merely’ the 50,000,000 subscriptions.

It feels a little repetitive, but until today I did not have any numbers by Microsoft and they are only at 10 million over 26 countries. Not only can I do better, I would be able to hand the wooden spoon to Mr Spencer, that feeling is better than sex, I shit you not. In addition I would end my career on a massive high and that counts too, as such I do hope that Amazon reacts quickly. I have no problems with the third party, yet these two players are new to me and I am not sure how close they are to Microsoft and I do not want them part of this. Just mutually assured dislike. 

Sunday is turning out to have a nice start. Time to do some snoring (it is 01:44)

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November 11, 2022 · 19:25

First of two issues

I had a rage attack today, it was right after some stupid set of saggy t*** decided to attack Elon Musk in a Presidential briefing. It feels like she is from Forbes. They have been pushing the Musk envelope. It is my personal belief that they are close friends with Jack Dorsey, a person they seemingly never asked any serious questions from and ‘the national security danger that is Saudi Arabia?’ Oh, I got her number and then some. But there is time for that and I have seen that death is not the worst a person can experience. It will be my delight to introduce that terror to her. But there is time for that and certain plays are not completed. But then something happened. 

A tweet brought Me back to my senses. This lady is totally nuts about Elden Ring. I get that drive, that devotion, optionally that obsession. I do not agree with her, but that I her right. I did not play Elden ring. I could never finish BloodBorne. I still have it as it is one of the most beautiful games I have, next to Dark Souls 3, a game I equally never finished. Both utterly sublime, but in my lifetime I doubt I will ever finish that. Yet it was about her feeling. I thought I had the same with Horizons: Forbidden West. But then God of War: Ragnarok came. I am taking me time as every corner, every sight is a feast for the eyes. I lost a few lives, but that is OK. The game delivers again and again and the story is magnificent, as is the music. I do not believe that Guerrilla software has anything to fear. There is space to love control of both Kratos and Aloy. Two amazing pieces of faming IP, this was a good gaming year and I am not forgetting Gotham Knights. Three Amazing journeys. Yet at present I am knee deep in Asgardian folklore and epic myths and Santa Monica Studios deliver in ways you cannot believe (unless you are playing the game) it is good that in the twilight of my life I can still be amazed by games. I started gaming in 1984 and I never stopped. I might not have the drive I once had (like playing 167 levels of Loderunner on the CBM64 in one sitting). I did take a sickie for that event. It was a time when you could pause a game, but you could not save a game. Still, 38 years later and that gam is still part of me. Games evolved from CBM64 we got the CBM Amiga, then PC, then the PlayStation range one through five and gaming never disappointed. I might not like everything, but that is not required. There is space for the yearners of Elden Ring, the obsession with Quake, Halo and Bethesda games. It is an inclusive group, the more the merrier. 

There is no hindsight, not a new piece of IP (other than the ones I already have). Many forget that gaming is not a business (to some it is), it is the ones that see games as art, those are the games that get the 90%+ reviews and Sony has a basket full of those, no matter how many ‘opponents’ troll rating into the basement. The gamers know what is what and they are driven to success. To achieve the end of the story. Anyone finishing Horizons Zero Dark can tell you about that. There is a need to finish the story and God of War: Ragnarok is no different. Do not worry, no spoilers here. 

Passing that line yourself is so fulfilling it gives value to a game and you will cherish EVERY dollar you spend on it. Today was a great day for gaming. I wonder if that is why I became angry at Forbes with its BS sense towards an owner and a partner who owns a mere 4% of Twitter. Which is interesting as the China hatred in the US does not give rise to the partnership that Microsoft and Tencent have, not even from Forbes, where is their national security interest there?

I am contemplating words I once got from Frank Herbert “He who can destroy a thing, can control a thing”, he published it in 1965, 57 years ago. Words to live by and I am feeling rebellious and frisky, a dangerous combination in someone with my mindset, but Forbes will soon learn that lesson. I’ll give fair warning a day after I have completed the exercise. Only fair, not?

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November 10, 2022 · 14:03

This is the way to London Town

That as the first thought that came to mind. The idea that Microsoft is done for. 

See-saw, sacaradown,
Which is the way to London Town?
One foot up, and one foot down,
That is the way to London Town.

It is 2005, I become the proud owner of the Xbox 360, it is late in the year and I am happy. I saw what Bethesda is about to bring with Oblivion and I am happy. Gaming is at an all time high. I keep it next to me PS2, the PS3 is not there yet and Microsoft has an edge and they play it well, they become a new force to be reckoned with and I am happy. You see, Sony became better with Microsoft nipping at its heels and all gamers prosper because of it. 12 year later and what was once great is diminished to mediocrity. The Xbox One is released in 2013, I get mine in 2015. It is nice to have next to the PS4, but merely that nice. In 12 years Microsoft threw out of the window what it had, stupid people in the board room, stupid people agreeing with everything and getting nowhere. Sony is now the only titan in the sky, there is still Nintendo, but like Apple it has its slightly peculiar journey and that is fine. It is protective of the family as a gaming cluster and it does its part well. In 2017 Microsoft scratches its throat proclaiming it is releasing the most powerful console in the world and some fall for it. The limitations are a joke and moreover the weakest console of them all (Nintendo Switch) surpasses them in a little over a year. 

In the meantime, the Sony fans get the PS5 in November 2020, yes three years later but the impact is visible, it breaks record and the games are beyond anything we have seen. It shows their PS4 (pro) to be limiting but only to the games played. 

Whatever games Microsoft spins does not add up to anything near what Sony brings

Spiderman Miles Morales (2020)
Ratchet and Clank (2021)
Returnal (2021)
Horizon Forbidden West (2022)
God of War Ragnarok (2022)

Five exclusives and Microsoft has nothing to oppose it, it launches another Halo and it gets a mere 80%, it is like watching the spin of Ubisoft. What was once great is now at best mediocre and they feel certain because they bought Bethesda and Blizzard and that is not getting the people round. It is the stage of stale yoghurt with a decent chance of poisoning. There is nothing that gives Microsoft the value it requires. We see “Xbox beats PlayStation when it comes to backwards compatibility, which is a feature that lets you play games from older consoles. Xbox Series X can play games dating back to the Xbox 360, which was released in 2005. PlayStation 5 can play PS4 titles, but gamers can’t play PS3 titles they own with the latest console.” They rely on 15 year old games to safe their hide. The PS3 has 4 titles that would be nice to play again. 4 out of….. (you see my point). God of War 3, Arkham City (both rereleased on PS4), Skyrim (rereleased on PS5) and Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots the only game I can no longer play. And with a 94% rating there is plenty of reason wanting to play it once more. One game and the rest is around the corner, as such Microsoft misses out again. There are of course more games, but I am focussing on exclusives. The fact that most PS4 games be played on PS5 is left in the corner. 

Microsoft got it wrong to this degree and they think that all is good, the marketing spin continues and they have no clue that they are a ship that is taking on water more and more. And do not get me wrong, I am not happy about this. It is because Microsoft was once close to a top position Sony opened up all engines and gave us the PS5 and we rejoiced. But I feel that the PS6 might not be the push forward. In the meantime I focussed on IP that will change the game, I am actually making sure that Microsoft cannot get to it, I am handing it to the Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia at a reduced price giving them billions, I am willing to give up on a dream to prevent Microsoft fouling my IP. If we are not able to do this, then money controls us instead of we controlling money. Microsoft spin has no place here and I do not want them near my IP. 

There are two sides to the song and story. The great games live forever and Microsoft forgot that making new games and screwing up franchises. Thinking that a TV series solves it and with the 71% rating it shows how wrong they got that too. Consoles and Tablets two markets they wrecked and they give marketing the responsibility to safe it. Now their office market is starting to dwindle they are getting outmanoeuvred by Google, Apple and Adobe. Players that could not get close to Microsoft 20 years ago and now Microsoft is merely left with a spreadsheet, which they got from Lotus (basically). In 20 years Microsoft went from Titan to Tyrion Lannister, who talks a good talk and is smart, but this merely amounts to Microsoft marketing and they do deserve credit, but it might be their only division that does. And their Azure solution? It lost to an online bookshop (Amazon) and that loss is merely increasing as some sources claim. I honestly do not know enough to make that assessment, but Azure has a Microsoft logo, so I do not trust it right of the bat, the other divisions make sure of that. 

As I personally see it Microsoft is done for, it will merely take a few years for the carcass to start rotting and the first few years that rot will be masked as innovation as Microsoft is adding small to its divisions according to some alleged marketing people. In my lifetime I saw Microsoft grow from a simple company to a behemoth and after that dwindle to irrelevancy in the near future. I wonder what they will try to pull of with their partnership with Tencent. We will know soon enough.

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October 20, 2022 · 14:01

The evolution of gaming

I have spoken on this before, and in that I tended to be specific, almost micro-manageable. It comes when you design IP, it is a path where you want to track every element so that you are not left in a loop, left with too many unknown parts. It is the way things go and especially when you do not have a brain-storm team, you end up designing as much as possible all parts of the equation. This is not new, this is how it is. 

However, In this stage I need to take a helicopter approach, I need to oversee everything (sort of), I need to take a wider stroll over this stage because the next part is not how to create a game, most can do that, most can set that stage. I need to create a stage where close to a dozen games a year can be created, a dozen a year for 3 years at least. So that the people are given new choices, new options. Streaming is a different kettle of fish and it cannot be approached in old ways. Weirdly enough the one I bitched about the longest (Ubisoft) has a clear advantage in streaming games. As such their approach towards GaaS is not the best but it is the most evolved one and they have a truckload of IP that comes with it, as such they are in pole position to get there. They lack elements, but they have a clear group of titles that could become clear winners in a streaming station. There are other elements in play and not all the players are clearly identified and there are other elements, like certain titles (example the Horizon games) that people would want to play again and those are not contenders, they are happy alliances. But it cannot be just about that, any system needs new titles, remastered titles and the less known, the better the chances. It comes as an addition towards the 50 million subscriptions I made a claim towards, but to sit on my laurels is not my way, If I can make the essential steps to make it not 50 million, but up to 75 million from year one onwards, I will have succeeded to a much larger degree and to end up seeing Microsoft executives choke on their Azure yaps, all whilst none of them look blue is a clear win for little moi and I like my wins, especially when it is warranted. And for them? Well the old saying (my old saying) applies. The blowback of sarcasm is merely irony, and I like to serve my irony with a wooden spoon award. It is not enough for them to fail, I want all others to see why they failed, why they should have been regarded as stupid from the get go and that is merely my bonus. So I am vamping up two of the three elements and it should be enough to get the ball rolling, and then I hit a snag. Well not exactly a snag, because I cannot test the snag. It leaves a trail and that I cannot use at present (well not until after the Saudi government paid me). And I have a stage that needs to be repeated a dozen times so that there is a floor-plan to work from and that is going according to plan (for now). There are two elements in play. How to make a worksheet, a plan of attack on the premise of art where we can identify enough elements to make sure that most hurdles are addressed, that most issues are identified. That is the task and that is not simple project management. Some project managers will make claim that they can do that, but outside of less than a dozen, how many +90% games have been released? The Xbox has released 6 games with a 90+ rating since 2020, over two years only 6 make the cut. Sony had 8, a clear win, but still low when you consider the investment of the dozens of games that were created. And it is not merely the 90+ games. One real hit was AC Origins which only got 81%. So there is another pool to work with and I decided to look at another pond altogether. I wrote about that too and when you consider the alternatives the investment per game decreases enormously creating a shifted investment number, one that is ultimately more rewarding. And there we have the station we need to look at, the second branch is close to complete with well over a dozen titles. It will take mere days to get the second dozen and branch two will be close to complete and then branch three starts, but I will not write to much about that. I like my surprises a much as I like to serve my plate of irony.

The evolution of gaming is underway, not because I said so, but because streaming games have advantages over console games, but it comes with additional dangers. A much better testing phase is required, the one elements too many game designers are weak on. Do not take my word on it, you merely have to look at the title AC Valhalla, released two years ago and it was still receiving patches three weeks ago. That side needs to improve, it needs to improve a lot. And there is the rub, any solution consultant that gives you the ‘these things happen’ line is wasting your time. Proper testing takes care of that and this is not done by too many. Streaming can only truly evolve when they have a better handle on it. This is not because it is GaaS, it is because Service will only last when the product is properly made and there Ubisoft left too many issues in the field. So you need an alternative to what they have, and there the second branch is the optional solution to getting traction to more people, and in streaming traction is the game that makes you the winner of the streamers and I have no intentions of losing, that is one definite that I am making clear to one party and optional Tencent too. But Tencent is complicated, they decided to work with Microsoft, making them the optional loser from the start, but that is the stage I am faced with, the question is what are my options next? If the Saudi government buys what I have, I am in the clear and my retirement starts. But if they decide otherwise, I will need an options and this is merely one of three IP bundles, so I am not out of the game yet, but I reckoned that the idea and proof towards $500,000,000 a month would have been enough, but I cannot rely on people making sense at times, as such I need a fallback position (as expressions go). And there I am doing work that is less creative, way too much tedious but essential, I get that. So here I am trying to work things out. On the other hand, in 6 hours 55 minutes and 23 seconds the premiere of Black Adam starts, so off to the city I go and have a bit of fun, I have earned it. 

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September 6, 2022 · 22:12

Just to be clear

Yes, that is essential. I am about to throw caution to the wind and do something (optionally extremely stupid) that has never been done before. Yet that is for tomorrow (or the day after). For now we focus on Microsoft. I did not plan this, yet with the article (at https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/uk-watchdog-further-probe-microsofts-687-billion-activision-deal-2022-09-01/) we get ‘Microsoft’s $69 bln Activision deal could harm competition, UK says’ I keep my voice in the middle in this. You see I always applauded exclusives, in any system. It made Nintendo the behemoth it is today and Sony has had its successes as well, as did Microsoft with its Master sergeant in Halo. All systems had this and even as I hated Microsoft buying Bethesda, it was a brilliant tactical ploy. I did counter it by giving away RPG IP to all Amazon Luna and Sony Playstation developers, but it is a valid ploy. Yet Microsoft keeps on buying companies. It is their funeral. Yet the UK only reacts to Activision? So when I see “Microsoft Corp’s $69 billion acquisition of “Call of Duty” maker Activision Blizzard could harm competition in gaming consoles, subscription services and cloud gaming, and it needs to be investigated in depth” this might be fair enough, but it seems that there is a larger issue here and it is not with Microsoft, I have more questions regarding certain ‘investigators’. Now, as stated before, I am no Microsoft fan for a few reasons and those who have read my articles know what I am about. But here is something more and I was happy that some people had (again) not done their homework. This is seen with ““We want people to have more access to games, not less,” Microsoft President and Vice Chair Brad Smith said. “Sony, as the industry leader, says it is worried about ‘Call of Duty’, but we’ve said we are committed to making the same game available on the same day on both Xbox and PlayStation,” he said.” I am hereby calling Brad Smith a LIAR! You see with the purchase of Bethesda they have clearly stated that the new Elder Scrolls is now an Xbox exclusive. As such we see Brad Smith as the liar and Sony gamers as the victim. But there is another side. Microsoft has been pushing its cloud gaming, and that is the path they will take, to host Microsoft cloud games on other systems, so that they can honestly claim that they service all systems, as long as it goes via their cloud capturing data (a speculation, I admit).

And the cloud solution is seen with “the deal would not be anti-competitive if competitors were given access to Microsoft games, as Microsoft has pledged” It is the ‘access to Microsoft games’ part that is the stage and interestingly enough there is no ‘release on other systems’ part. It is a larger capture and I get it, it is decently brilliant. As such I gave the others a new RPG game, parts of the stage, parts of the story (to get them started) and within a week another nice surprise that will cost Microsoft dearly (if all goes well) and on September 30th several parts become public domain, and only the clever sleuths will be able to find it. A new way to push the industry in a new direction. It is a crazy step and it took me months of pondering, but as I was given the afternoon off, I went to a local internet cafe and activated the timer. It is the start of one hell of a ride that might not go anywhere, but it will make the headlines and show the shortcomings of a few tech players (including Microsoft), yet the article bothers me. You see I believe in exclusivity, as such the quote “Microsoft needs to give a greater deal on assurances and put down in writing certain specifics around exclusivity” bothers me. What specifics? An exclusive game is an exclusive game. That is the case for Nintendo, Sony and as such also Microsoft. They are allowed exclusive games and if they buy Activision for 69 billion, they got the company and the exclusives are theirs. I might not like it, but that is the game, I countered by handing a totally new and unique RPG game to Amazon Luna and Sony Playstation free of charge. That was my choice, and over time I do believe the stupidity of Microsoft will be the death of them (I will be happy to help out though). 

And over time we will see shifts, the streamers will make sure of that, but that is the day after tomorrow. For now we focus on today and tomorrow. And here the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) might be an optional enemy. You see, Mario has been a Nintendo exclusive for a long time, for decades but the CMA did nothing there. So what gives now? They did not act on the buy of Bethesda, so what gives now? They are all focussing on “Call of Duty”, there is no mention of Diablo, a franchise no less important. And I get it, they have a case. Microsoft got greedy and now there is an issue. Yet I still feel bothered, because this stage opens the end of exclusives and that is a problem. It is a problem because the games will end up being as good as the weakest system and that is not acceptable. Am I overreacting? Perhaps a little, but there will always be differences in games. And these differences will make a game better on either system A or B, and that is fine. But when a system MUST be there for both one system will lose out more and they will have a game that is less than optimal and that is a larger problem. Gaming must always be at the edge of technology and that makes gaming great. As such not all games will work on all systems. Some games will be better in one location, some will be better in the other place. Exclusives are more than a game on one system. They are the games that uses that system to the maximum of what is possible. It is one reason why we love our exclusives. So I cannot tell if the CMA has a point but from a pure gaming point of view they are on a slippery slope as I personally see it.

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September 1, 2022 · 04:52

Resetting contemplated options

There is a time when a person needs to reevaluate the choices he is considering. I am at that stage. I had hoped that the parts I have shown would have enticed Google or Amazon, but they have not (or so it seems). So I have the option of considering two more options. The first play for the third party is now underway. The third party here is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. You see they are intent on getting out of the oil business, or better stated, they do not want to depend on it too much. Here I am offering a gaming stage with well over 50,000,000 subscriptions. The nice part is that they can now consider Google, Amazon or Tencent. I personally do not care (as long as they can keep it close to Amazon Luna quality. You see, for me it cares as part of the deal is that I get 10% of the IP and sales value (plus a starting fee). 10% of 50,000,000 subscriptions could be anything from $25M to $50M and when this takes off, I have no idea where it will end, but even at a mere 1-2 years I could end with $25M to $50M a month in the second year if its running. I reckon that is a good retirement fee. Even at a maximum of 6 months it will be more money than I ever contemplated (or even dreamt of) having I was never greed driven. 

So consider the graph below.

The main event is the idea I concocted. The Master Choice is a set of old CBM64 and Amiga games now set to the latest in game streaming. Games that you all forgot about (Younger players are exempt from this). The CBM64, Atari ST and Amiga had created so much awesome IP and most are left unattended, left as garbage. Something these master pieces never deserved. I wrote about them in the past. And as I stated this is merely the start. Then there are the remasters. New games now made to fit this platform. There will be interest, the moment this solution surpasses 10,000,000 subscriptions, others come calling like junkies at a free cocaine feast. It is not good News for Bethesda or Blizzard, they decided to become Microsoft solutions. And when this takes off, Microsoft will fall flat. Yes, they will have their mobile options, but the larger stage will be lost to them. I have nothing against Bethesda or Blizzard, I loved their games and I still do, but there is a consequence of choice and if I get this done, they face hard choices. Then there is a part I cannot tell yet. The new IP. This needs to be catered so that independent developers can grow and can facilitate to, because any GAAS solution will need that. I have close to a dozen options for the start, but after that it will be time to hand over the reigns to the next generation, I will have proven I was right, I will be entitled to my retirement and months of skiing every year. Time for the next generation to make a mark and now there would be a new player. A Saudi group of programmers giving us a new stage of gaming, a stage no one ever considered, no one ever contemplated. But if a small nation like the Netherlands can give us Horizon Zero Dawn and Horizon Forbidden West, what can a nations like Saudi Arabia achieve? You forgot about the small parts, did you not? Minecraft was Swedish (as was ABBA), and that is merely when we look at two of the most visible houses at present.
So I want to open the field to others, I want to entice new options and a new era of gaming, because evolution of gaming is important. Nintendo will remain, Sony will remain. They always considered the gamer number one, it is not that I am telling that they remain, the gamers have decided that they remain and some will still side with Microsoft, that is fair. But the Microsoft field will tighten in gaming as it will in two other directions and I will hopefully be there to see it happen (health issues). Yet until recently I never considered Saudi Arabia as the new Mecca for gaming. It was an article in some magazine that dropped the coin. Saud Arabia was always in the back of my mind, but I expected that my IP would have gone to Google or Amazon. Now there is every chance that I will win a lot. A setting that sets the owner on par with Nintendo and Sony is not to be ignored, and even as Microsoft would still be number three for a little while, the humiliation of them getting surpassed by a new player will tong, it will sting a lot. It will show in the first that I was right, it will show in the second that their path was wrong all along. Yes they will make serious money with mobile games. But to lose one niche in technology to this effect will hurt, it will make everyone wonder what Xbox was and why it no longer matters. But for me it is about a new era for gamers, a stage that puts them in the pole position. The front person in a technology that depends on enticing their senses with creativity and inspiring them to become creators. And it has every chance of happening soon. How soon? I have no idea. I am still dependant on the selectors and the choice makers, in this I am a small fish, but a fish dangling 50 million subscriptions in looked at and my blog speaks for itself. Almost 2500 articles on all kinds of matter, many of them games and a lot of them showing ‘evidence’ that I was right long before others knew what was happening. It might be my delusional side and that is a fair observation for others to make, but if the sale happens they will suddenly state “Why did you not come to us?” At which time it will be too late and they don’t need to look at me, their superiors (or shareholders) will look at them asking them why they missed out, these people have no sense of humour. But I do, I will be on the sidelines giggling, enjoying a hot cocoa with rum and watching the snow fall and the slopes prepare for winter fun. And the one thought I will have is that I made ti the end of the rat-race maze, in a way I never contemplated 30, 20, or 10 years ago and I wonder what I will do next, because the creative mind only stops when it is dead, that lesson I learned through many sleepless nights (and three bundles of IP).

73 minutes until breakfast, whatever will I do now?

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August 10, 2022 · 00:06

Peek a boo

I have no idea what drove it. I was watching an advertisement, I was thinking of non-repudiation and for some reason the cogs in my skull started spinning. Before I knew it I had an entirely new set of IP. OK, a set is a little bit of an exaggeration but it is definitely more than one IP. The implementation is something else. I would need to confer with whomever buys my IP. Whether it is Amazon, Google, Netflix or Tencent. The IP is meant for streamers. The idea could apply to consoles as well, but they would not benefit as much, although, when I think of it. Yes, it could apply there too. So it is a larger field. 

I am not being secretive, but it is a less complex idea, so I would give too much away, as such I will put it in a safe place (not 4 Chan though). The idea is growing as I type. I am considering more sides and more options. There are a few practical sides too and it could drive other elements to a larger extent. But it is too soon for that, for now I have a new piece of IP that I can add to IP bundle 1. Will there be more? I honestly do not know. I never banked on this side, but here it is and more might follow, but I do not know. This idea came quite literally out of the blue. I have been brooding on the Line (Neom), certain solution would fit nicely there, yet too much of that place is still in the planning phase, so as more comes out into the open, it is likely that more will come to mind, but there is no way to tell. There is still the gaming side to consider. After the ideas of zombie survival, the citadel conundrum and a few other games, I seem to be digging into one direction. There is nothing wrong with that, but it comes with the danger that I design too similar themes and gamers are not appreciative of that, and neither am I. There is the setting of a new stealth game, based on Tenchu Z, set in a city but not in Japan. This is not a Ninja game, but a stealth game based on an individual and vengeance. Too many elements are not set yet. I was thinking of a place no one tends to use. A place like Stockholm, Rotterdam or even Washington DC. Just an idea, the place is less important than the fact that there is a water element. I am using Amsterdam for a very different game (a game that I wrote about 3-5 years ago). An idea that I had before, a setting that suits the streamers well. You see we seem to create maps again and again, but what happens when we reuse them? Streamers would benefit and not the same map. Not the identical map, well identical yes. But the ability to respawn the game and every building based on the era the game plays in. We seem to forget that the city we live in is the same city we play in, but what happens when that game is set in 1950? 1926? It is not always clear how that map ends, but it is time we explored a different way of creating and enjoying games. It started when I was considering the RPG Generations. You see evolution goes in 2 directions, we merely forget the one direction, but that does not mean it is not there and as such my mind went places. I reckon that there is a lot more to look at, but for now? I have new pieces of IP and I am celebrating that with a cold beer, I believe I deserved it today. 

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July 24, 2022 · 23:08

The reality teaser

That is my name for them, it was today that I was recollecting something I thought would make a good game. Yet it is not a mainstream game, it is a niche, but it will appeal to some and from there I would hope that it would catch on. I wrote about it on July 12th 2021, the article ‘New and reinforced’ (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2021/07/12/new-and-reinforced/) was the start of the idea. A game that was for the streamers, not that the consoles could not get there, but the sheer size of the game and the intricacies that would need several patches over time made it not feasible on consoles, but streamers are a different matter. There it was possible. The Zombie survival game came from that setting. And here the issue starts. You see, several games on Android and Apple have ads, they show something that is not in the game, but adding it would be a good idea. There has been some complaints on that and Apple and Google seemingly do not care, the advertisement money is coming in. Yet the idea that the Last Fortress uses as a teaser is actually a good idea. It is not implicated in the Zombie survival game I had in mind, but the addition of a room creator is not a bad idea. Especially in a safe zone. You see, I have mentally added a whole range of artisans that add to the game and to the gameplay, but in today’s world they are often forgotten. 

  1. The Seamstress

The seamstress adds to the creation of armour, now her speciality is not better armour, but more comfortable armour. I remain a devoted follower of checks and balances. So metal armour would be +5 protection, but they have a comfort level of -2, as such weapons and movement are degraded by 2 points. So it is not the greatest solution. But here comes the seamstress. Her ability starts by adding comfort levels to EVERY piece of armour, and as she does more alteration her plus one will become plus 2. As such metal armour has no longer any setbacks. A stage games forget about, the checks and balances.

2. The watchmaker
Yes that is someone you would ignore, but the watchmaker would add the setting of clockwork traps. Together with a tinkerer they could create traps that have a longer usefulness, and also they would use less power or none at all, a corridor with traps that can reset themselves. 

These are but two of a whole range of people that are optionally in the game to be saved and added to the community. But what happens when it is not in a place you know like Los Angeles or New York? What if you had to create a safe space in a place like Palermo, or perhaps Messina? 

An island where you need to eradicate well over 93% of 5 million people? Now the idea of a watchmaker and a tinkerer does not sound so weird does it? There is no way that you will find the 5 million bullets and not everyone is turned yet, so you will need weapons, you will need to find food and you need a safe space to optionally grow food and create drinks. So even as the reality teasers give you something you cannot play, that does not mean it cannot be made and next to the survival game on the Citadel and that might still be an option later down the track, but you need to start somewhere and a zombie survival game is as good a place as any. And be honest, who considered Sicily as a starting place? 

It is merely a thought but it opens up all kinds of venues for the game, you see when the mechanics are in place, the same game could be launched in a place like Malta (525,000), Gotland (57,000) but here we can now add a dimension, Gotland will allow us to add Hyperthermia as an element, as such the seamstress suddenly becomes close to essential. Each with their own challenges and as we become more and more adept we will see places where the population is increasingly hostile (Cuba), we could add Nassau, Crete, Falklands and so on. A game that evolves and has an increasing amount of places where you need to find your way around and learn to survive and no cheating these special people will not be in the same place every time, perhaps in some games they are not even there. As such I had decided to Create 15 special people. Each with a special skill that by itself is merely useful, but combined with another special person becomes a real game changer for the game. It is my way to have checks and balances and still keep the game interesting down the track. 

And credit where credit is due, it was the reality teasers that put me on this track and if you wonder where I get my ideas from and why game makers are not on this track you would be right. Some game makers are on the right track and give us new places to dream of (Guerrilla software) and the older ones like Insomniac are also on the right track, but the larger players like Ubisoft are losing the plot. We see news like ‘Ubisoft’s Bad Luck Streak Continues With Delays, Cancelations, Cost-Cutting’ where we get to see “Guillemot reiterated that despite these issues, the company is still aiming for over $US400 ($555) million in operating profits this year”, yes because gamers are really interested in how much profit you are making, even though a game like Valhalla was released on November 10th 2020 it still shows crashing bugs almost two years later. And when we see that the game is now in shops at 1/3rd of the original price. You think gamers are interested in their profits? They want a good game and there the plot falls for too many game makers and that is a shame because good games are worth their weight in gold. Still good games are coming, but from other directions and soon that changes too, because more and more are seeing the benefit and the larger profit margins of streamers. If I can find the hidden cache of 50 million people all willing to pay $10 a month, how long until others are figuring out that small thinking only gets you so far. It is the larger dream cut in manageable pieces could bring the game everyone has been waiting for. And it is not that far ahead, some of my ideas are already possible and could be ready early 2024. And when you consider that people are gawking at games that will not appear until late 2023, I think I have set the proper foundation of larger games and where they could go. Too bad some others are not ready for that yet, but I reckon that Tencent will give them a cruel wake up call, if they get where I expect them to go. The people at Google, Amazon, Netflix and Microsoft will be either adjusting their faulty vision or they will all become inferior to Tencent, a setting we would never have believed less than a year ago. Sony is still safe for now, but they too will see the realisation that there is a much larger player in town than they bargained for. 

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June 23, 2022 · 06:24

A pussyfooted warning

Yes, we all like to give out warnings, I am not different. Yet is my warning valid? It seems so, especially when I see what is out. It is addressed to Amazon and Google (mostly Amazon). You see in 2022 we get the generic information “This list will expand over time, and you can gain access to more games by subscribing to more channels. For example,  you can also access nearly the entire Ubisoft catalog via the Ubisoft Plus channel” but it is the wrong information. What will be released in 2022? Why would people get happy on a Ubisoft release list? It is now a mediocre software house with less than stellar achievements. Do you really want to rely on that player? And we are also given “The second title, an MMO called New World, managed to gain a lot of traction in the November 2021 early access period, but it’s not yet available on Amazon Luna. It is, however, included in GeForce Now.” Really? You rely on two titles? I have given you both a list allowing you for a dozen titles in 2022 alone. You can hide in high water, but you do not even have a submarine simulator, so you will drown there. The people are making up their mind at this stage and this is not a time to desert your system. Even as I boasted an option of 50,000,000 consoles. Do you think they would consider it if you are asleep at the helm? They will leave you for dead and Google Stadia is not developing anything, so all they seemingly have is Ubisoft. Amazon needs to wake up and add manpower to the kettles and get the coal into these furnaces, because the currents will overtake them and beach their solution like a bad habit. Mother Nature has no sense of humour and casually put you to death. Forbes is even worse. It gives us “A remake of the first Dead Space will arrive in early 2023, while a brand new Monkey Island game is slated for release later this year.” And in addition we see “Those are part of iconic franchises that are being revived over the next year or so” ‘being revived’? How lame is that? Is this the message your gamers are waiting for? Yes, if it is part of something bigger, but if this is it, Amazon will leave the race of the streamers pretty quickly. They had half a dozen options including bolstering a true gamers social network, but they seemingly folded leaving it all to Microsoft, meaning gamers can only rely on Sony and Nintendo to fill their gaming needs. They are good, they are great! But they are two and more is always better for the gamer and now seemingly these large houses feel more more comfortable leaving it in the hands of Microsoft, which in my eyes is not a solution at all. 

They had 2 years to pull ahead (and I am not talking about my 50M console solution) I gave some warnings in October 2020 and that is as early as I saw that Amazon had the option of being the winner here (Google decided too early to not be a developer) hence there was only Amazon and its Luna, but over two years we have seen the repeated lack of games, the reliance on Ubisoft and games that were already on other systems. Now, this is part of the start, but the start also implies you set out the strengthen the dikes of competition counters. Yet is seems to me that Amazon has given up, it is not doing anything until it is too late. Like giving the bull a doze of valium so that the rider will be ‘safe’ but is that what the audience expects? A place that has (seemingly) a 2021 revenue of $470 billion, and here we see that 1% of 1% is $47,000,000 a setting that could give them 3 new AAA titles, or a dozen of revamped titles. One percent of one percent and it also approaches my solution for 50,000,000 to 75,000,000 additional console sales. But that is much more strong and realistic if there are better and more unique games on that system. So two percent of one percent of what they got last year puts them on the map and heading toward the sunset of winners. You tell me why these places do not take the gaming community serious, because relying on Ubisoft is not the way to go. I will let you wonder how serious Amazon and Google are about being a player in the gaming market, because at present it will still rely on Sony and Nintendo and I am happy with these two consoles, I would be more happy if these two woke the fuck up and consider that gaming is out evolution and they have an advantage for now, yet when Netflix gets ahead of them they might as well pull out and start crying in a corner, because they did this to themselves.

Have a great day!

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June 19, 2022 · 21:55

The cool kidz

We all heard it, we all are aware of it, yet what makes a kid a ‘cool kid’, what makes a game a ‘cool game’ one would state that this is by public demand, by public indication. Yet what is true indication? What is indication that is not badgered by trolls, by marketing department and their minions? Do you? I certainly don’t. Social media and public opinion are so far apart you can park China between the two views. The views on public request (demand sounded too harsh) and public indication are factors of transparency and as we know social media is many things, transparent is not one of them. And thus we get to the question at the start, what is a ‘cool kid’? You might want to think that this is about kids, but it is not. 

This all started months ago and I was reminded of it today. You see, sometimes we just want to relax and play a game, a mindless game, a simple game and that is how my mind wandered back to 1991 and Sierra-on-Line’s ‘Jones in the fast lane’. I will grant you that the game could use an upgrade, a new view, new names perhaps 1-2 additions, but granted the game was close to perfect. The idea that you can just spend some time chilling playing a simple game is to a lot overwhelming. I thought I was alone, but over time I have seen a whole range of people seemingly desiring a game like this. You see, there is nothing wrong with a lot of games, but it is about the chase, about the achievement, about the hunt. I reckon the only exception was Ubisoft when they gave you the tour of AC Origin with the expansion and all the places to visit (like a beer maker). It was not about running, it as about seeing how much there was in that game and it was awesome. But time have shown us a whole range of games that a players like Google (or Amazon) could add to their systems, but they are all so hung up on replicating what the PS4 and Xbox One already have, why?

In this Nintendo is equally a contender, but they have their own setting of these games and they are doing great. Is that not the larger setting? How come Nintendo blew away Microsoft? Because their games were cooler? Higher resolution? No, the games were what the people wanted and that banked them an annual revenue for 2021 of $16.534B, a 37.34% increase from 2020. Did anyone consider that this is due to more than a really good console? And the additional news is that Nintendo generated approximately 42.6 percent of its gaming software revenue via digital unit sales. You still think I am kidding? Streamers have options, but if everyone looks in the same direction, they all miss out. The idea was that one of my IP could secure  well over 50 million consoles. One source now stated (one I actually trust) is that I was 50% too low with my estimation, and it was not some version of Jones in the fast lane, but it would be unique to streamers and Amazon has the lead as Google decided not to develop its system with software solutions. I am willing to debate this as a mistake of 50% is rather large, but in my favour, it works in my favour, so screw it.

In all this there is the setting of what do the Cool Kids want, but no one is digging on what decides what a cool kid is, and with the Nintendo revenue they all (Sony included) are looking in the wrong direction. They are all mesmerised by public opinion, all whilst no one verifies the transparency of that danger, especially whilst there is no clarity on what public indicators are. Where those indicators are and how they can be tested on the actual population? These are questions, I have no answers here, merely the fact that it needs to happen before Microsoft does something stupid again and pushes everyone in the wrong direction, like lemmings to an abyss. Which would be a shame and in this I sided with Amazon Luna (for the obvious Google reason) If they alter and expand on what they have they could have it all and as soon as the first evidence comes out proving me right everyone will adjust course to get some of the crumbs of that revenue pie, but if I am correct the one taking the lead will remain in the lead and merely cluster more gamers to their side and I expect that this is merely the beginning. 

So lets start again, when did we accept that we needed to have Game X on platform Y because that is what the cool kids want? Consider the definition “Trendsetters, often in reference to hipsters; those worthy of emulation.” How is emulation of a trendsetter based on a 5 year old game a cool kids exercise? Resident Evil 7 (2017), Aragami (2016)? Yes they were good games, but emulation 6 years later? Amazon is as guilty as Google is here and they need to up their game, or change entirely. It is up to them what they do, because Microsoft is casually taking up people hiding behind their Game Pass and when people are in one camp churning them is a lot harder than you think in gaming. Oh, and when you considered to follow some virtual Cool Kid and you learn you are duped, what defence will you rely on? I reckon none at all.

So no matter where you game, as long as it makes you happy that is fine, but I personally believe that gamers are missing out in a few ways and in part it is the lack of broader substance, they all run after another Far Cry, an Elden Ring, or whatever is shouted as ‘the cool game’ and there are plenty that are actually cool, but do you really think that a $109 game is sold less than a year later for $29, because it was supercool, or because it was too buggy for its own good? I let you be the judge of that. 

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