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PlayStation names Hermen Hulst and Hideaki Nishino as its new CEOs

A great quote about 2 headed snake. It might be nice for now, but soon there will be a problem in the future.

It was better to have 1 CEO managing everything. Now these 2 would have different directions that they will go.

Well, the way I see it, it could potentially go awry. I still remember how this dual-lead structure didn't pan out for SEGA back in the '90s, where there was constant infighting between Kalinski and the Japanese side (though Nakayama supported Kalinski for most of Kalinksi's tenure...I guess until they actually got the financial data from SEGA of America and decided to do consolidated accounting).

However since both are still reporting to Totoki, as long as Totoki doesn't start showing unearned favoritism and can keep things going smoothly, 2 CEOs shouldn't cause much issue. What I'm more concerned with personally is if SIE get back to an approach in gaming that clearly prioritizes their console.

This basically says that SIE wants continuity.

Whatever you're happy with or unhappy with, they seem to want to continue it.

That's a potential risk. But, I have confidence it can work out for the best.

Pretty much how I feel about it. Hulst has a chance to kick off his co-tenure with awesome games starting with the rumored showcase. Now that they have this announcement completed, perhaps we will get a date for the show.

Really hope this one is heavy on single player and light on the Gaas. Time will tell if these are good hires or not.

Well Hulst did technically co-present PHYSNT with Kojima. But yeah in terms of internal 1P games, they haven't revealed anything new (especially non-GAAS).

It seems like no one is perfect enough for some PS fans. Considering how expensive AAA game development has become, I like the PC ports as they give their 1st party titles and opportunity to sell even more copies and find a greater audience.

The PC strategy wouldn't be so bad if:

1: The stagger windows were larger (at least 3-4 years at earliest)

2: They always had a new exclusive for console ready for release within 2 years of a PC port

3: They didn't port all of their non-GAAS or even GAAS titles (port more GAAS but keep a couple exclusive to console, port some non-GAAS but keep many of the exclusive to console)

If that were their strategy for PC, it'd be magnitudes better than it currently is, assuming they don't have their own launcher in the works (which IMO it's too soon for a PS launcher anyway). At least it would not risk devaluing the console among a segment of the core userbase (who are generally important to drive install base growth, unit sales, and revenue).
 
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MrRenegade

Banned
So, it seems that Jürgen Prochnow has some similarities with Hermen Hulst. Maybe a cameo in their new game. Remember, the alien mothership is incoming towards Earth.


19305907_902.jpg
Hermen-Hulst.png


Uncanny resemblance.
 
No we are driven by infinite growth which isnt possible which have made alot of companies go crazy and go bankrupt because they weren't able to keep up.
Exactly. And don't being so stuck on consoles makes them a prime candidate to be unable to grow at all, nevermind infinitely, so they are absolutely at risk of drowning.
 

PaintTinJr

Member
The "Disaster":
  • 2020
    • [83MC] Astro's Playroom
    • [92MC] Demon's Souls
    • [85MC] Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
    • [TBD] Marvel's Spider-Man Remastered
    • [79MC] Sackboy: A Big Adventure
  • 2021
    • [85MC] Death Stranding Director's Cut
    • [62MC] Destruction AllStars
    • [87MC] Ghost of Tsushima Director's Cut
    • [88MC] Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
    • [86MC] Returnal
  • 2022
    • [94MC] God of War: Ragnarök
    • [87MC] Gran Turismo 7
    • [88MC] Horizon: Forbidden West
    • [TBD] [DLC] Returnal – Ascension
    • [89MC] The Last Of Us Part I
    • [87MC] Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection
  • 2023
    • [61MC] Firewall Ultra
    • [88MC] [DLC] God of War: Ragnarök – Valhalla
    • [79MC] Horizon: Call of the Mountain
    • [82MC] [DLC] Horizon: Forbidden West – Burning Shores
    • [90MC] Marvel's Spider-Man 2
  • 2024 (so far)
    • [82MC] Helldivers 2
    • [76MC] Rise of the Ronin
    • [90MC] The Last Of Us Part II Remastered
Shut the fuck up.
And how many of those titles align to the PS5 hardware pitch and couldn't have been delivered with scalable downgrades on the previous PlayStaton hardware?

To paraphrase former industry legend Iwata, When we can no longer surprise gamers with new gaming ideas on the current hardware is the time for a new generation.

DF may have brainwashed lots of people into needing a resolution, AA or frame-rate bump to define a generation on PC, but PlayStation used to be significantly more than that - - in the PS3 gen and before - and that list is merely competent with good sequel content IMO, no gamer surprises to justify replacing a PS4 if it had the same games. and certainly nothing that comes close to custom software design for PS5 to yield all the hardware benefits outlined in the Road to PS5.
 
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According to them, the ones who started the PS Studios expansion to PC were Shawn Layden and Shuhei Yoshida. Hermen just continued their work.

I know it was Layden's push initially. But Layden's push was also specifically with smaller GAAS titles (Predator: Hunting Grounds) and certain 1P games like Horizon, which were 3 years after the PS4 release.

Layden's idea seemed to be, to offer a sampling of SIE games to PC gamers in convincing a portion of them to buy a PlayStation console over time. The current strategy has forfeited all of that because SIE have given PC more or less the full slate in the span of four years.
 

nial

Member
Well 1. Isn't exactly a lot 4 to 5 years in and 2. Most of those didn't have anything to do with hulst but sure he at least didn't cancel those.
500 employees, again? Toyama left by his own will, not the same thing you were talking about.
Aside from arguably Rise of the Ronin (development started in 2015, but probably went full ahead by 2020 after Nioh 2 was released), yes they did. This sounds like massive cope.
 

midnightAI

Member
And how many of those titles align to the PS5 hardware pitch and couldn't have been delivered with scalable downgrades on the previous PlayStaton hardware?
You do realise that within reason you can always scale a game down to the previous generation?

Devs are used to this because of PC development which doesn't really have generations as such and has to work across a variety of hardware.
 
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James Sawyer Ford

Gold Member
I know it was Layden's push initially. But Layden's push was also specifically with smaller GAAS titles (Predator: Hunting Grounds) and certain 1P games like Horizon, which were 3 years after the PS4 release.

Layden's idea seemed to be, to offer a sampling of SIE games to PC gamers in convincing a portion of them to buy a PlayStation console over time. The current strategy has forfeited all of that because SIE have given PC more or less the full slate in the span of four years.

Nope.

Watched a Layden interview recently and he takes credit for it all and wanted everything on pc
 

Shin-Ra

Junior Member
If they don’t remember the absolute basics of running a games console business, PlayStation’s going to continue following Xbox down the path of irrelevance.

Rule number one of running a games console business is game exclusives. Long-term/permanent exclusives that make you want that console and future iterations of that console.

PlayStation’s giving the impression they don’t have confidence in their console (or PSVR2) so why should players have confidence?
 

SHA

Member
Now it's completely upto him to make another Killzone game, otherwise he's just a fiduciary to Sony's headquarters.
 
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Fabieter

Member
500 employees, again? Toyama left by his own will, not the same thing you were talking about.
Aside from arguably Rise of the Ronin (development started in 2015, but probably went full ahead by 2020 after Nioh 2 was released), yes they did. This sounds like massive cope.

Ass of Can Whooping Ass of Can Whooping already said they were smaller, I saw they were right above 200. Yes ofc all the people just left around the same time sony closed the studio :p. Well let's see how playstation went downhil in five years with hulst.
 

Hudo

Member
Now it's completely upto him to make another Killzone game, otherwise he's just a fiduciary to Sony's headquarters.
I'll be pretty pissed if a fucking Killzone game is the thing they're making before a new Resistance, Wipeout or Motorstorm...
 

Perrott

Member
And how many of those titles align to the PS5 hardware pitch and couldn't have been delivered with scalable downgrades on the previous PlayStaton hardware?
How is that even relevant? A good game is a good game, and even without remasters, PS5 does have over a dozen high quality first-party games three and a half years into its lifecycle.

Do you care about good games or just about moving goalposts towards an arbitrary idea of this "next generation" game that, yeah, maybe Sony hasn't yet made but neither has the rest of the industry?
 
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SHA

Member
I'll be pretty pissed if a fucking Killzone game is the thing they're making before a new Resistance, Wipeout or Motorstorm...
I also like these games but over the years I gave up on these.
 
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nial

Member
Yes ofc all the people just left around the same time sony closed the studio :p.
Except that they didn't all leave (NOT even close) and WWS Japan Studio used to do more than actual game development. No worries, I know you don't know how it actually worked all around.
 

Fabieter

Member
Except that they didn't all leave (NOT even close) and WWS Japan Studio used to do more than actual game development. No worries, I know you don't know how it actually worked all around.

Well one thing for sure we get way less japanese games from sony.

Well so do you think hulst is doing a great job and everything is fine at SIE?
 

nial

Member
Well one thing for sure we get way less japanese games from sony.
Which is a criticism I agree on, but has a lot more to do with the 2021 restructuring.
Well so do you think hulst is doing a great job and everything is fine at SIE?
I don't know why I would judge him over the performance of all of SIE, but I think he's been doing a good job with general PS Studios. Expanding PS Studios production through the rest of East Asia is my favorite move so far.
 

PaintTinJr

Member
You do realise that within reason you can always scale a game down to the previous generation?

Devs are used to this because of PC development which doesn't really have generations as such and has to work across a variety of hardware.
I'm meaning scaled down as in really just simple stuff, like resolution, AA, frame-rate. because every other gen, except for 4 and 5, PlayStation has produced titles that weren't feasible on the previous gen, while keeping the soul of the game, and they could have easily built games around the PS5 hardware strengths making them impossible to port backwards, and yet 3.5years on and the main reason to have dropped hundreds of pounds on a new console is for a set of control pad features that could have been backported too.

IMO, the creative bankrupt part of PlayStation game design, today is because they no longer design around the hardware features, and instead are already looking at porting to PC.
 

midnightAI

Member
I'm meaning scaled down as in really just simple stuff, like resolution, AA, frame-rate. because every other gen, except for 4 and 5, PlayStation has produced titles that weren't feasible on the previous gen, while keeping the soul of the game, and they could have easily built games around the PS5 hardware strengths making them impossible to port backwards, and yet 3.5years on and the main reason to have dropped hundreds of pounds on a new console is for a set of control pad features that could have been backported too.

IMO, the creative bankrupt part of PlayStation game design, today is because they no longer design around the hardware features, and instead are already looking at porting to PC.
But is that Sony's fault or the perceived lack of hardware innovation/power increase between generations?

PS1, 2 and 3 all had major custom hardware components which while delivering advances also destroyed backwards compatibility. But these days the hardware is essentially the same between gens but more and more powerful (there is the addition or ray tracing but that doesn't seem enough for some (see Spider Man))
 

PaintTinJr

Member
But is that Sony's fault or the perceived lack of hardware innovation/power increase between generations?

PS1, 2 and 3 all had major custom hardware components which while delivering advances also destroyed backwards compatibility. But these days the hardware is essentially the same between gens but more and more powerful (there is the addition or ray tracing but that doesn't seem enough for some (see Spider Man))
The Road to PS5 is the sales pitch for multidecade gamers like myself, and three and half years on, we've had nothing from PlayStation's first parties that justifies the great hardware design to support a REYES paradigm shift that Cerny described.

It isn't that the games couldn't paradigm shifting and tailored to the hardware, but a business strategy from suits like Hulst that really just want PS5 games to be easy PC games they can port for more sales. The creativity is being stifled by the generic solutions, and that is why those three generations have noteworthy catalogues that weren't the uncurrated "ps5" games that include mobile to ps4 cross-platform fodder that fills the million rows of PSN IMO.
 

Fabieter

Member
The Road to PS5 is the sales pitch for multidecade gamers like myself, and three and half years on, we've had nothing from PlayStation's first parties that justifies the great hardware design to support a REYES paradigm shift that Cerny described.

It isn't that the games couldn't paradigm shifting and tailored to the hardware, but a business strategy from suits like Hulst that really just want PS5 games to be easy PC games they can port for more sales. The creativity is being stifled by the generic solutions, and that is why those three generations have noteworthy catalogues that weren't the uncurrated "ps5" games that include mobile to ps4 cross-platform fodder that fills the million rows of PSN IMO.

Yes the big budgets like spiderman 2 we saw probably had alot of work done for the PC port already so they could sell it with higher profitability later on.

But he will see the next year few years that pc and switch will steal his lunch. Just will be the new spencer for sure.
 

midnightAI

Member
The Road to PS5 is the sales pitch for multidecade gamers like myself, and three and half years on, we've had nothing from PlayStation's first parties that justifies the great hardware design to support a REYES paradigm shift that Cerny described.

It isn't that the games couldn't paradigm shifting and tailored to the hardware, but a business strategy from suits like Hulst that really just want PS5 games to be easy PC games they can port for more sales. The creativity is being stifled by the generic solutions, and that is why those three generations have noteworthy catalogues that weren't the uncurrated "ps5" games that include mobile to ps4 cross-platform fodder that fills the million rows of PSN IMO.
I don't get your easy port to PC stance, games have been easily portable to PC due to the hardware essentially being the same as in PC's. The games themselves are developed on PC's so of course they are easy to port. I'm pretty certain that the first party game design is what it is because PlayStation gamers like those types of games not because they would make good port games. Is it safe? Of course it is, they are spending hundreds of millions making these fantastic narrative single player focused action games, it's a formula that works for them.
 
Hulst can do it, he had Phil Spencer-esque path up to the top :goog_rofl:



Phil was a suit since day one as far as i know. What does he know about creating a studio and managing it? Hulst co-created a studio that created 2 successul IPs. He knows the way around a studio, how they operate, etc. He was "rased" inside Guerrila and has a relationship with most of these studios already. The fact Sony didn't look for anyone outside the company is the best thing they could do.

Speaking of Hideaki Nishino:



Sounds like a good choice from these words alone.
 

PaintTinJr

Member
I don't get your easy port to PC stance, games have been easily portable to PC due to the hardware essentially being the same as in PC's. The games themselves are developed on PC's so of course they are easy to port. I'm pretty certain that the first party game design is what it is because PlayStation gamers like those types of games not because they would make good port games. Is it safe? Of course it is, they are spending hundreds of millions making these fantastic narrative single player focused action games, it's a formula that works for them.
Independent of genre of the games being made the unique PS5 features when used for a REYES type renderer as Cerny described is no more generic PC than a PS3/PS2 was. The problem comes directly from the strategy of people like Hulst and Ryan that aren't hardware and software engineers, and then have no loyalty to Sony's hardware strengths in the consoles space, even though they work for a company that's DNA and brand has always been in pioneering hardware.
 

midnightAI

Member
Independent of genre of the games being made the unique PS5 features when used for a REYES type renderer as Cerny described is no more generic PC than a PS3/PS2 was. The problem comes directly from the strategy of people like Hulst and Ryan that aren't hardware and software engineers, and then have no loyalty to Sony's hardware strengths in the consoles space, even though they work for a company that's DNA and brand has always been in pioneering hardware.
But that's up to the individual teams to go to the strengths of the hardware, we haven't even seen what the majority first party teams are even up to (besides Insomniac), do you honestly believe that Ryan and now Hulst are telling the studios to not utilise any specific PS5 hardware because they want to port it later? I find that VERY hard to believe
 
So a two headed snake then eh? This should be very interesting when they have a difference of opinion. Hulst is a walking shitshow imho. I never would have put in that position. He is just like his buddy Jim Ryan. Nishino,on the other hand, was a solid choice. His love for single player games like Bloodborne gives me hope that Playstation gets back on the path that served them so well for so long. Single player games over GAAS online only rubbish. Time will tell.
 
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Phil was a suit since day one as far as i know. What does he know about creating a studio and managing it? Hulst co-created a studio that created 2 successul IPs. He knows the way around a studio, how they operate, etc. He was "rased" inside Guerrila and has a relationship with most of these studios already. The fact Sony didn't look for anyone outside the company is the best thing they could do.

Speaking of Hideaki Nishino:



Sounds like a good choice from these words alone.

There is hope for more SP offline games it seems.
 

Fabieter

Member
But that's up to the individual teams to go to the strengths of the hardware, we haven't even seen what the majority first party teams are even up to (besides Insomniac), do you honestly believe that Ryan and now Hulst are telling the studios to not utilise any specific PS5 hardware because they want to port it later? I find that VERY hard to believe

You found it hard to believe that a suit telling devs make the game so that it can get ported without much hassle?
 
Not just a drought IMO, but a famine of games exploiting specific PS5 hardware to tailor games to the hardware, rather than made to be PC ported. That along with a continuation of Jim's forced dev info blackout, with no interesting hardware analysis from our man Cerny., against a farcical mantra of "let the games do the talking" (on PS5/PC)tm.
Yeah, games not taking advantage of the PS5 hardware is a travesty. So much wasted potential. Instead we get the PS5 pro, more brute-force, more cross-gen and more cross-platform games.
 

midnightAI

Member
You found it hard to believe that a suit telling devs make the game so that it can get ported without much hassle?
I find it hard to believe they'd say don't use PS5 specific features, yes. In fact I find it hard to believe what suits even know or understand what those features even are (Ryan and Spencer in particular, Hulst has worked around game development for a long time so will have some understanding)
 
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PaintTinJr

Member
But that's up to the individual teams to go to the strengths of the hardware, we haven't even seen what the majority first party teams are even up to (besides Insomniac), do you honestly believe that Ryan and now Hulst are telling the studios to not utilise any specific PS5 hardware because they want to port it later? I find that VERY hard to believe
The job of PlayStation is to sell hardware and to create games that exploit the hardware - even if at a loss- to encourage third parties to make money on the platform for them and PlayStation. First party studios that can't or won't exploit the hardware to showcase its greatness to consumers and encourage third parties either are failing or being mismanaged. In 3.5years under Jim and Hulst none of the games have done what Cerny explained the system could facilitate.
 

midnightAI

Member
The job of PlayStation is to sell hardware and to create games that exploit the hardware - even if at a loss- to encourage third parties to make money on the platform for them and PlayStation. First party studios that can't or won't exploit the hardware to showcase its greatness to consumers and encourage third parties either are failing or being mismanaged. In 3.5years under Jim and Hulst none of the games have done what Cerny explained the system could facilitate.
Well you don't know that for certain as none of us are Devs at those studios to know the workings of the engines, in fact Insomniac are certainly using the IO to massively speed up traversal, and allow for quick scene transitions , they have now made a game that you cannot turn off ray tracing. And beyond that we haven't really seen PS5 exclusive stuff from the other studios to know either way.

To say that they aren't using any PS5 specific functions because Ryan and Hulst are telling them not to so they can be ported easily us quite the leap
 
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