PS5 Pro Leaks, Black Myth: Wukong, and Konami Remakes
The PlayStation 5 Pro Horizon
The team discusses the recent PlayStation 5 Pro leaks, which suggest a design evolution rather than a revolution. While the feature set and expected power increase are highly anticipated, the panelists express mixed feelings about a design that largely retains the footprint of the standard model, noting that it may be necessary to maintain compatibility with existing accessories like faceplates and disk drives.
Strategic Marketing and Hardware
- Market Positioning: The consensus is that the Pro is a niche enthusiast product rather than a mass-market necessity.
- Mark Cerny’s Role: The team hopes for a formal presentation from Mark Cerny to justify the hardware’s value, particularly regarding machine learning and PSSR (PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution).
- The Disk Drive Dilemma: Debate continues over whether a diskless SKU will be the default to lower price points, potentially forcing an upsell for the detachable drive.
Black Myth: Wukong Xbox Delay
Following the game's release on PS5 and PC, the team analyzes the factors behind its absence on Xbox Series consoles.
"I hope they can pull this off because I actually find this kind of stuff very fascinating when you take a game that's pretty cutting-edge and try to cram it into a low-end hardware."
- Technical Hurdles: The game is severely demanding, and optimizing for the Series S architecture presents significant memory and performance bottlenecks.
Deep Dive: Konami Remakes
Tom Morgan joins to discuss impressions of Metal Gear Solid Delta and Silent Hill 2.
* Metal Gear Solid Delta: A very conservative, one-to-one remake. The team appreciates the fidelity jump to Unreal Engine 5 but questions if it differentiates enough from the original.
* Silent Hill 2 (Bloober Team): The team praises the environmental atmosphere, particularly the use of volumetric fog and Lumen GI in the quality mode, though they note frustrations with combat animations and facial rendering.
Avowed and 30fps Targets
Discussion concludes with the debate surrounding Avowed targeting 30fps. The team agrees that if a studio builds the game's entire VFX and lighting budget around a 30fps target, it is a valid development choice rather than a sign of incompetence.