Sacred Symbols: A PlayStation Podcast

Latest Episodes:

#260 | The Marathon Can Humble You Jun 26, 2023

Show notes

Great intrigue surrounds Bungie's upcoming revival of its long-dormant FPS IP Marathon, first confirmed (but long-rumored beforehand) at the recent PlayStation Showcase. Post-show reporting outlines an ambitious service title, but questions linger about Bungie's current and continued handling of Destiny 2, not to mention if the storied developer finds itself newly-distracted by a demanding parent company. Let's take some time to dissect current-day Bungie and get to the heart of Marathon's promise (or lack thereof). Plus: PlayStation Studios loses its head of mobile gaming before he ever releases a game, Konami's upcoming Metal Gear Solid collection sounds pretty awesome, Electronic Arts' studios split into two separate entities, and more news, rounded out -- as always -- by inquiries from the audience. Have we ever encountered a spiritual or religious issue with a game? Why, exactly, are turn-based games fun? Does voice chat give us anxiety? Did Colin really need to learn about the true wonders of "marinating"?

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#259 | Things Have Changed Like A Decade Jun 19, 2023

Show notes

In another legendary Colin Was Right moment, Embracer Group has officially broadcast an SOS. The mega-publisher is in significant debt and severely overleveraged, with 17,000 mouths to feed over 131 studios making something like 250 games. But few of its products matter, it can't release enough quality fare to draw the requisite income to sustain its Ubisoft-sized headcount, and its products inevitably compete with each other, too. Embracer was always an absurd proposition, one that almost no one made a peep about while its teetering tower was built ever-higher. Let's discuss their future, one markedly different from the one they planned just a few years ago. We also take the time to get deep into this week's other news, as there are a lot of announcements emerging from various showcases. Star Wars: Outlaws, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, Persona 3 Reload, Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, and Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth are just some of the upcoming titles we touch on, as well sharing lots of thoughts about Final Fantasy XVI's well-received demo, and listener inquiries on topics like the arcade ticket economy, the perfect game length, and Last Stand licensing its content to a big media company. Plus: Can we get Boar's Head to sponsor this show? Probably not, as it turns out.

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#258 | I Feel Summer Creepin' In Jun 12, 2023

Show notes

The PlayStation Showcase left many fans disenchanted, but can Geoff Keighley's Summer Game Fest deliver some positive energy? It turns out that yes, it certainly can. Spider-Man 2 now has a release date, Prince of Persia, Sonic, and Like A Dragon are all getting new entries, known titles like Mortal Kombat 1, Witchfire, Remnant 2, Lies of P, and Banishers all look great, and new IP were revealed and elaborated on, too, like Toxic Commando and Sandland. Let's catch up on all of that, plus much more from the week, including Final Fantasy VII Rebirth details, NCAA Football licensing issues, Octopath Traveler 2's solid sales, and more. Then, let's wrap things up with listener inquiries, as we're wont to do here on Sacred. When do we know it's time to abandon a game? Is Spider-Man 2's map too big? Why hasn't anime fully captured Colin? Did a man named Mark really kill the Vita?

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#257 | Negative Vibe Merchants Jun 05, 2023

Show notes

We're more than a week distant from the recent, highly controversial PlayStation Showcase. And because we recorded our last episode directly after it, we did the best we could shooting from the hip. But with time to think, have our opinions on Sony's event evolved? We spend a lot of time talking about the fallout from the showcase, the various games that caught our eye (or otherwise), and where we think everything sits, now that we've pondered. But there's one thing we certainly agree on: A lot of people are overreacting while completely forgetting (or perhaps just being ignorant of) the brand's history. We also take time to delve into recent reporting surrounding PlayStation's crown jewel first party studio, Naughty Dog. News indicates that none other than Bungie has come off the top rope to potentially throw the kibosh on their standalone multiplayer game, indicating that it may not be ready for primetime. Has Sony mismanaged Naughty Dog into a BioWare-like situation, or is this much ado about nothing? Other news rounds out our show, as well as listener inquiries. How do we balance objective and subjective analysis? Is PlayStation focusing too heavily on sci-fi? Will PC players need PlayStation Plus to play Sony's games-as-a-service? Is Colin about to return to his roots as a deli worker?

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#256 | Words Like Violence Break the Silence May 25, 2023

Show notes

We've waited so long for a fresh PlayStation Showcase that it came as a bit of a shock to be sitting there watching a new one. Yet we did just that, and frankly, we were left feeling a little bit underwhelmed. It's not to say that potentially-amazing games weren't shown-off, because they were. Out of the 34 titles seen, many of them looked great. But a lack of a truly meaningful first and second party presence coupled with gameplay scarce makes it's hard to feel too excited about what Haven or Firewalk are toiling away on when we somehow still don't have a release date for Spider-Man 2, when Factions remains as much of a mystery as it was before, when a predictable reliance on new PvP products nonetheless leaves some fans distressed. We take the time to go game-by-game, from Fairgame$ and Helldivers II right on through Marathon and Concord, covering all that the event had to offer. We also do a 'regular show' around that, touching on the other news from the week, with plenty of listener inquiries, too. Are you feeling better than you were pre-Showcase, PlayStation fans? As usual, it's likely just a matter of perspective.

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#255 | Showcase Showdown May 22, 2023

Show notes

Unbelievably, the moment has finally come: A PlayStation showcase draws near. By the time the hour-plus event concludes, it'll have been more than 600 days since the last showcase in '21. In other words, Sony simply has to bring the heat, and we suspect they will. This week, let's take the time to dissect PlayStation's potential first, second, and third party plans for its mid-gen coming-out, and get into some other news in the ecosystem, too, including the reveal of a Mortal Kombat reboot and strong indications that Grand Theft Auto VI is nearing its end-phase of development. Listener inquiries help us explore other interesting topics as well, including nudity in games, Sony's potential to sell Zelda-like numbers, and how we "earn" our gaming time. Colin also nails himself in the nuts mid-show, much to everyone's delight.

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#254 | I Hear the Magic in Your Sighs May 15, 2023

Show notes

A minor culling is underway at and around PlayStation, with a smaller first party studio going away and an in-production second party FPS seemingly cancelled. But it's unclear why this would necessarily be looked at as a bad thing. If teams and products aren't living up to their promise -- and if they presumably don't reach an ever-increasing quality bar internally -- shouldn't they be cut loose? Still, at a time when consolidation and headcount means anything, that Sony is taking these risks indicates there's more at play, with the potential of a brighter future on the other side. Let's discuss. Other news this week includes massive numbers for the Horizon franchise, now Sony's sixth best-selling series ever, while Pokémon studio GameFreak gets into bed with Take Two and PS+ gets its strongest slate of new additions in months. Finally, we wrap things up -- as always -- with listener inquiries. Was IGN wrong to say that games its staff has never heard of aren't worth your attention to begin with? Have the Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters invoked a new interest in Stranger of Paradise? Can anything be done to halt the death of game rentals? Will we ever recover from how hard The Good Doctor makes us laugh?

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#253 | I'm Gonna Learn You My Philosophy May 08, 2023

Show notes

In a recent interview, Hermen Hulst -- the head of PlayStation's first party studios -- spoke extensively about Sony's plans with its vaunted 10 in-development games-as-a-service. Through his words, we can begin to formulate a vision of a future where PlayStation first and second party games are both of the expected and unexpected variety, a marked change from a brand known first-and-foremost for marquee single player experiences. And in the wake of Xbox's disastrous launch of Redfall and the obviously-plateauing numbers of GamePass, a conversation about the very philosophy of PlayStation seems as timely as ever. We also take the time this week to go over the trailers for the Gran Turismo movie and Twisted Metal TV show, celebrate some recent Square Enix sales successes, discuss the continued destruction of games media, touch on new PS5 Pro rumors, and more. Listener inquiries round things out, per usual, on topics like reviews taking into account the technical performance of a game, Sony's dearth of WRPG heft, players' toxic relationship with publishers, and Colin's increasingly dramatic southern man voice.

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#252 | Don’t Break the Branches off the Family Tree May 01, 2023

Show notes

Naughty Dog and Insomniac are the two studios often looked at as the bulwarks of PlayStation's first party family. But it's clear that -- over in Europe -- a third team is quickly climbing the depth chart: Guerrilla. In recent days, the team revealed a complete shakeup of their executive staff, and for the second time in just a few years, they're losing their leader to PlayStation proper. In other words, many compliments are being paid to a studio not only working on Horizon 3, but a Horizon multiplayer game as well, in addition to shepherding the increasingly-important Decima engine. What's the future look like for Sony with Guerrilla in increasing control? We've much to chat about. Plus: The CMA surprisingly blocks Microsoft's acquisition of Activision, a new Sony patent seemingly confirms a detachable PS5 disc drive is en route, Burning Shores' review bombing convinces Metacritic to clean up their site, and more. Then: Nearly three years out, what are our thoughts on Ghost of Tsushima? Are we ever tempted to try Final Fantasy XIV? How come Colin loves sports so much, but hates competitive gaming? Will Chris' and Colin's portraits hang in an Ohio deli like two communist dictators?

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#251 | The Heat Is On Apr 24, 2023

Show notes

As it comes to grips with the new realities of an ever-consolidating market, Sony has opted to increase its aggressiveness by purchasing Firewalk Studios. Like Haven and Nixxes before it, buying Firewalk is an unusually premature move for a company that typically likes to conduct extensive second party dances before putting a ring on it. But its arch-rival and third party publishers alike have made it clear that the old rules of buying teams no longer apply, and that courtships can no longer span the production of multiple titles. Will this increasing embrace of size benefit PlayStation or hinder it? Only time will tell, but we've obviously much to discuss. Other big news this week includes PlayStation 5's staggering sales figures, the exit of more high-level talent from Media Molecule, and much more, and we round things out -- as always -- with listener inquiries. Is enemy scaling really necessary? Could Ubisoft be readying a low-key banger with XDefiant? Do players rerally 'graduate' from Nintendo to PlayStation? Is Colin developing a hankering for gardening?

Thanks to our sponsors!

This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at https://www.betterhelp.com/symbols and get on your way to being your best self
Get a 1-year supply of Vitamin D and 5 travel packs for free at https://www.athleticgreens.com/sacred

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