PS Plus members have renewed calls for more notice on games leaving the service. This has been a recurring complaint since the revamp because Sony often gives players as little as one week to wrap up their progress, which isn’t enough when it comes to lengthy games. There have also been occasions where Sony didn’t announce a departure until the very last minute.

When does Sony typically announce the list of games leaving PS Plus?

Sony provides a preliminary list of games leaving the service shortly after a catalog refresh. As an example, September 2024’s departures were announced today after new games were added to the service this morning.

However, as emphasized above, these are preliminary lists. Sony may remove games without a warning — like it has done so in the past — or give as little as a few days notice.

Players refreshed their demand for more notice after they discovered that Sea of Stars and Lost Judgment — both lengthy games — were added to PS Store’s ‘Last Chance to Play’ section with barely two weeks’ notice. Forums like Reddit and ResetEra saw members asking fellow players if there was a way to expedite their progress before the games left the service.

Given that there are hundreds of games in the catalog, Sony should endeavor to provide one-month notice for departures. We don’t see a good reason why this isn’t possible or why this shouldn’t be the case. Random updates with little notice are quite a nuisance.

The post PS Plus Users Continue to Demand More Notice for Games Leaving Service appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

Black Myth: Wukong PS5 performance has been the subject of debate ever since it emerged that Game Science only allowed reviewers to play the PC version before launch. We’re reserving our judgment until we play the full game but have been monitoring livestreams and forum chatter regarding console performance, and surprisingly, it’s a very mixed bag.

Black Myth: Wukong is off to an excellent start but PS5 needs performance improvement patches

The good news is that Black Myth: Wukong isn’t a repeat of Cyberpunk 2077. The game is playable and seems to hold up well… provided you stick to the Balanced Mode.

Those who have been attempting to play on the Performance Mode for some 60 fps goodness have complained of constant stuttering, poor image quality, and texture issues. The Quality Mode offers 30-35 fps whereas the Balanced mode can go up 45 fps. The general consensus is that Performance Mode isn’t the best way to play right now.

Interestingly, Black Myth: Wukong’s console performance has bizarrely polarized players. On one extreme, we’ve seen folks swear that there are absolutely no performance issues whatsoever (spoiler: this isn’t true), and on the other hand, some folks swear that the game is unplayable (spoiler: this also isn’t true).

If you’re not fussy about a lower frame rate and can make compromises in the graphics department, Black Myth: Wukong’s current PS5 performance shouldn’t be an issue for you. However, if you’re in the opposite camp, we suggest waiting for a patch or two.

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Sony has announced the preliminary list of games leaving PS Plus Extra and Premium in September 2024, which includes 12 titles. As we previously speculated, five of the games are Star Ocean titles. Additionally, Guerrilla Games’ Horizon Forbidden West is departing the catalog.

Full list of games leaving PS Plus Extra, Premium in September 2024

The following games are set to leave the catalogs in mid September.

• Horizon Forbidden West
• Star Ocean: First Departure R
• Star Ocean: The Divine Force
• Star Ocean: The Last Hope
• Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
• Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness
• Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2
• NieR: Replicant
• Marvel’s Midnight Suns
• Alien:Isolation
• Cloudpunk
• Spiritfarer

Do note that this list isn’t final because Sony updates the PS Store’s ‘Last Chance to Play’ section randomly during the month. This means that you may have as much as a one-month notice or as little as a one-week notice of departures.

This is particularly bothersome when lengthy games are suddenly added to the list. This month, we saw numerous complaints about the sudden announcement of Sea of Stars and Lost Judgment leaving the catalogs with little notice as both games are pretty chunky.

We’ll update the list above if/when more games are added to ‘Last Chance to Play.’

The post Games Leaving PS Plus in September 2024 Include Big PlayStation Exclusive appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

Calls for a new SOCOM game have been renewed by fans after a screenshot purportedly from former Sony developers’ new shooter leaked. The image in question is from a “AAA shooter” being developed by That’s No Moon — a new studio comprised of former Naughty Dog, Santa Monica Studio, and Call of Duty devs.

Leaked screenshot looks like SOCOM, but it isn’t a new SOCOM game

The screenshot in question was unearthed by MP1st, who is choosing to protect the source. We’re not going to embed it here to avoid a copyright strike, but a brief description is as follows.

That’s No Moon previously said that it’s working on a game based on a “popular IP.” The screenshot — allegedly from a 2022 reel — confirms that the project is a military shooter. A soldier can be seen in what looks like a desert environment, shooting at random pieces of furniture. This is likely to be the game’s training portion.

MP1st also published a screenshot from the profile of an unnamed motion capture artist, which reveals that they worked as a “stunt soldier” for That’s No Moon. The leak further reveals that the shooter is being developed with Unreal Engine 5.

Although the screenshot reminds fans of SOCOM, it’s unlikely to be a new game in the franchise. That’s No Moon previously said that it’s working on a single-player game so unless Sony commissioned it to work on a single-player SOCOM, this isn’t what franchise fans are hoping for.

The post Fans Want SOCOM Back After Image From Ex Sony Devs’ New Shooter Leaks appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

A new God of War game from Santa Monica Studio is almost a given, but it looks like the studio’s next release will be its new IP. Sony Santa Monica has been a single-project studio for almost the entirety of its existence (not counting external projects), but the developer has been working on its mystery new IP for quite some time.

Why fans think Santa Monica Studio will release a new IP before a new God of War game

Santa Monica Studio has been hiring for its new IP for a while, but over the weekend, a ResetEra user spotted evidence of major recruitment activity. Sony veteran Glauco Longhi, who has previously worked for both Naughty Dog and Santa Monica, returned to work for the God of War developer in April.

On his LinkedIn, Longhi confirms that Santa Monica Studio offered him an opportunity to return, and he’s now overseeing the entire character development pipeline of the new IP. From the sound of things, the studio is firing on all cylinders now and its next release is likely to be this project.

Rumor has it that the mystery game’s development is being led by Cory Barlog, and it will be a sci-fi game possibly with RPG elements.

The post New God of War Might Not Be Santa Monica Studio’s Next Release appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

Over the weekend, PS5 game Phantom Blade Zero made headlines for all the wrong reasons. A Brazilian outlet accused an unnamed S-Game developer of bemoaning Microsoft and saying that “nobody needs an Xbox,” which further fueled rumors that Sony had moneyhatted the game. S-Game has since issued a public clarification on the matter, and — you’ve guessed it — the whole report seems bogus.

Phantom Blade Zero is only confirmed for the PS5 and PC… for now

The Brazilian outlet’s article didn’t contain any source or information that would make its report look even remotely convincing, but it was picked up by some major websites and simply reproduced via Google translate. Meanwhile, Redditors traced the origin of the comments back to Tencent in Chinese.

Some natives have explained that the Chinese comments would roughly translate to, “there isn’t much interest in Xbox in this region,” which changes the context entirely.

In a statement on X, S-Game has reiterated that there’s no PS5 console exclusivity deal for Phantom Blade Zero, and the comments attributed to an unnamed developer does not reflect its position. S-Game has also hinted that it will work on an Xbox Series X|S version in the future, but didn’t outright confirm anything.

The post Phantom Blade Zero PS5 Exclusivity, Anti Xbox Comment Denied by Dev appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

HBO Max has released The Last of Us Season 2 teaser trailer, setting the stage for what’s coming in 2025. The clip is only 24 seconds long, but those who’ve played The Last of Us Part II will note that it packs a lot, starting with a memorable scene of Ellie in Jackson. There’s also a glimpse of Abby that you’ll miss if you blink.

What we’ve learned from The Last of Us Season 2 trailer

The teaser can be viewed below. This article may contain spoilers so proceed beyond the teaser at your own risk.

In the teaser above, Joel claims that he saved Ellie, which forms the basis of the events that unfolded in the second video game. In TLOU 2, Ellie’s relationship with Joel becomes strained when she realizes that he lied to her about the events that took place in the hospital.

The bloodbath at the hospital is also why Abby comes into the picture. She is seeking revenge for her father’s murder, and, well… players know the rest.

It remains to be seen how the show tackles the entirety of TLOU 2 — including that controversial Joel and Abby scene — as it is a pretty narrative-heavy game.

The post HBO’s The Last of Us Season 2 Teaser Flashes Memorable Game Scene appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

Video game publication Game Informer has announced its closure after 33 years of operation. Once one of the most popular and recognizable brands in games media, GI is the property of embattled U.S. retailer GameStop, which itself has been in a downward spiral for eons at this point.

Game Informer magazine made its debut in 1991

GI made its debut in 1991 as a print magazine, and was quick to establish a presence on the internet in the mid 90s. The magazine subscription was only just revamped in March 2024, but GI’s web presence hasn’t been as formidable as it once was.

Today, the publication announced that it’s stopping the presses completely. In an official statement, GI thanked readers and bid them farewell.

“From the early days of pixelated adventures to today’s immersive virtual realms, we’ve been honored to share this incredible journey with you, our loyal readers,” the statement reads. “While our presses may stop, the passion for gaming that we’ve cultivated together will continue to live on. Thank you for being part of our epic quest, and may your own gaming adventures never end.”

Game Informer’s closure takes effect immediately, and its next magazine — featuring Dragon Age: The Veilguard — will be its last.

The post Game Informer Shutting Down After 33 Years appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

A damning new report claims that Bungie mislead Sony about its financial position ahead of its acquisition by PlayStation. The studio’s management has come under scrutiny following a second round of mass layoffs within a year that didn’t even spare long-time senior executives. Now, many former employees are laying the blame solely on CEO Pete Parsons.

Sony spent $3.6 billion acquiring Bungie — was it worth it?

The aforementioned report comes from veteran journalist Stephen Totilo, who spoke to former Bungie employees to get to the bottom of things. At least one of them addressed what many analysts and the gaming community have been left puzzled by: Sony spending $3.6 billion to acquire the studio.

The employee reckons that Sony overpaid for Bungie after the studio misled the PlayStation maker by selling “things they were just not able to deliver.” While Destiny 2: The Final Shape has been widely praised, Totilo has been told that the latest cuts were being planned long before the expansion released.

What’s even more interesting is that it seems Bungie was a bit desperate to strike a deal with Sony. One of Totilo’s sources said that if Bungie hadn’t been acquired, it may have gone bankrupt. “The alternate history is insolvency,” they said.

Bungie had thousands of employees at one point, which have now been reduced to 850 following the latest round of cuts. The studio hasn’t released anything outside of Destiny and its sequel over the last decade, and has gone through high-profile splits with both Microsoft and Activision in the past.

It has also emerged that senior Destiny executives Luke Smith and Mark Noseworthy have been let go. Suffice to say, the common denominator here is Bungie’s management.

The post Bungie Misled Sony About Its Financial Position Ahead of Acquisition – Report appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

Astro’s Playroom August 2024 update has gone live, bringing with it special bot #3. Players have to find a total of four special bots in the lead up to the release of Astro Bot. Doing so will pop five additional trophies in Astro’s Playroom, with players being able to carry the bots over to Astro Bot on September 6.

How to unlock Astro’s Playroom special bot 3 (August 2, 2024 update)

Two of the four special bots in Astro’s Playroom have already been found. The first one is Hunter from Bloodborne, and can be found in GPU Jungle’s first stage, Renderforest (note: players need to complete 1994 Throwback first). The second special bot is Selene from Returnal, who can be found in the Deep Dataspace section of the SSD Speedway.

The third bot, which is out today, is related to Gran Turismo and can be found in Cooling Springs. Rescuing the bot, which is trapped on the beach, will net players the Grand tourist trophy. As for how to find the bot, here’s the solution courtesy of PSNProfiles user Computer_Cat:

Step on the teal stars in this order:

1. Under the pier at the beginning
2. On the beach to the left
3. Under the palm tree to right
4. Then go all the way forwards to the left

Happy hunting!

The post Astro’s Playroom Update Adds Special Bot 3, Here’s How to Unlock It appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

The Last of Us Multiplayer game’s cancellation may have partially been triggered by some ‘helpful’ and honest feedback that Bungie provided Naughty Dog. That’s according to journalist Jason Schreier, who had previously said that Bungie’s internal review of the multiplayer project led Naughty Dog to re-evaluate things.

Bungie didn’t demand the cancellation of The Last of Us multiplayer

Schreier made his comment in response to a follower on X who had misconstrued his original report. The user claimed that Bungie “told” Naughty Dog to cancel TLOU multiplayer, and bemoaned that a studio with few acclaimed games would dictate Naughty Dog, a developer known for making highly-rated games.

In the conversation that followed, Schreier clarified that Bungie provided “helpful” feedback to Naughty Dog, who then made the “smart” decision to cancel TLOU multiplayer.

It’s hard to disagree with Schreier here. Naughty Dog’s expertise certainly isn’t live service, and dedicating resources to the project may have backfired and bled money. Although TLOU fans would have liked an online aspect similar to TLOU 1, that was never supposed to be the series’ main attraction.

Times have changed, and slapping on multiplayer portions to primarily single-player games is mostly a thing of the past.

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