The PS5 shortage is an absolute mess and the problem isn’t solely scalpers. Curse you, scalpers! As much as I don’t like scalpers, I have to take note of the real issue. The only reason scalpers are relentlessly trying to beat out the everyday consumer and make double the money back, is because of the massive shortage of next gen consoles. I don’t feel like there is any company to particularly blame, because this shortage was directly caused by the world pandemic, among other industry factors that have been building up for a while now, but we’ll get to that in a moment. While we all expect initial release days to sell out consoles and make them difficult to find, more than 6 months after release we are used to consoles being a little more available and the scalpers would have normally backed off this point. Since you’re here, you know that’s not the case. There is a global semiconductor shortage and that is the real issue here. It doesn’t only affect Sony and Microsoft, it affects just about every technology company out there. When it comes to consoles, cell phones, pc’s, etc, these companies rely on others to create the parts they need to build a device. They need these chips in order to manufacture PS5 consoles, and all manner of other electronics as well. Well, not only has this chip shortage affected the production of PS5 and yes, Xbox Series X/S, but it is looking like the problem won’t be going away anytime soon. We have seen small bursts of the PS5 becoming available here and there, but these waves are miniscule and some analysts are claiming that the shortage is reaching crisis levels. That is just the opinion of some not necessarily the view of others in that part of the industry. From the sounds, AMD seems pretty confident that the company will be on track this year to ramp production and start getting those chips out there. In the meantime, I am guessing that the shortage will in fact turn around for the holiday season in 2021 and therefore leaving consumers with something that will feel like a first release all over again. I’m just guessing, but people that are seemingly experts in the industry seem to think the shortage will reverse in 2022. I’m not trying to raise the alarms here and discourage anyone’s hopes of grabbing a PS5 or any other device for that matter. I’m just trying to be on the level. If Sony could drop more consoles, they definitely would, but it just isn’t that simple. Not when they are competing for more chips against companies like Microsoft, Apple, Samsung, Ford, Tesla and the list goes on and on. More consoles are definitely on the way, so fingers crossed AMD manages to pull it off. Worst case scenario, the shortage ends in time for the PS6! That’s a bad joke and seemed funnier in my head. How … Read More
New PS5 VR Controllers announced, Sony buys Evo Championships and Dying Light 2 news update inside!
The weekend is here and what better time to catch up on this week’s gaming news highlights than on a Friday? I appreciate you taking a moment to catch up with us and that being said, let’s move onto this week’s highlights! To get us started, Sony has announced a new handset for PlayStation VR and I will tell you what, I would use these even if I wasn’t playing a VR title (is that even possible?). While PSVR owners have been using the traditional PS4 controller (DS4) for their VR game sessions, it seems Sony has finally caught up to the likes of controllers that can be used with the Oculus and the HTC something. Many of us have been quietly jealous of these style of controllers as they really free up your hands can things even more immersive. Keep in mind these were announced as PS5 VR controllers, so we don’t know if they’ll have any backward compatibility with PS4. It seems unlikely as the Dual Sense controller for PS5 doesn’t work with PS4. If it does, you can expect the haptic feedback features that are built in, will probably be disabled. Oh, by the way, these PS5VR controllers have haptic feedback built in. Boom! Excited for some Dying Light 2 updates? Yeah, us too! If only Techland could give us some useful info instead of mocking the internet trolls and letting us know the game is currently being developed… I don’t like bashing on developers. They work hard and their jobs are incredibly stressful (especially when working for large companies like Activision, EA, Ubisoft and yes, Techlamd considering they self publish now). But when it comes to announcing that you have an announcement for a game that has been getting the development treatment for what seems like ages now, you kind of expect more than 13 seconds of gameplay and a bunch of nasty tweets being read off by the developers. Thank you for letting us know the game is still being worked on. You could have tweeted that and probably saved a few dollars in the process, Techland. So, yeah… there’s your Dying Light update. I was pretty disappointed too. Sorry. Speaking of developers and publishers, I’m sorry to say that Activision Blizzard has laid off 50 employees and word has it that the number is actually much higher. No idea how much higher, but so far, 50 have been confirmed. The employees laid off were not developers, but they were part of a team that set up and took care of in-person live events. Because the pandemic has created such regulations as social distancing (at least in the U.S.), most of these venues have turned to digital showings instead. Man, that just goes to show you how bad things have been. I hope the laid personnel manage to hang in there and get back to work when and where possible. It is a jungle out there and it seems like … Read More
New PS5 anti-cheat system, new warzone map and much more inside!
Welcome back to another issue of PS Weekly. I am admittedly a little late with this week’s article, but I was holding out for some official news on the upcoming Elden Ring, but it is to my understanding that because of a leak that made it to the internet the other day, official announcements have been postponed into April. I am disappointed by it, but hopefully they will manage to get us some new info soon. I really want a new game by FromSoftware in my life. A little disappointment aside, there is plenty of other news to read within this article, so without further ado, let’s get to it! Yesterday was the 1 year anniversary of Call of Duty: WarZone! After a long year of playing on the same map with little changes, we may finally be seeing a completely new map that is dedicated to the Cold War version of CoD, rather than Modern Warfare. I don’t know if today will be that day, but I am sure hoping so. The developers went on social media to thank everyone for the last year and made mention that the map will never be the same again. Some have speculated that on March 16th, we will see the new map and other rumors point to April, when season 3 begins, but I think April is a little far out. It would make sense if later today we see an update with a new map, but can all be pretty confident a new map is going to drop. Speaking of Call of Duty and Warzone, that reminds me, there is a new anti cheat system for the PS5. The company Denuvo, is hailed as one of the best anti-cheat and anti-tamper tech companies in the world. The company has partnered up with Sony and to bring new tools to developers creating games on the PS5. I think it’s great that Sony is finding ways to keep things as fair as possible, but there is one problem I see here and it has nothing to do with Sony. These new anti-cheat systems won’t cross-over to other platforms. I have seen my share of hackers/modders running on consoles, so yes, I am happy that security is beefing up, but man, those PC players in crossplay that do cheat, they do it with ease. Activision really needs to look at their anti-cheat systems and do more for the community. I know it’s complicated, but we’re talking about a billion dollar company here. They have the ways and means. Naughty Dog is hiring! Yes, Naughty Dog is looking for an economy designer for a live service multiplayer game. Some believe this is a game that will take place in The Last Of US universe and some think it will be catered to the Uncharted universe. If I was to pick one, I would lean toward The Last Of US, so I can see them building a sweet open world survival game that … Read More
E3 canceled, EA pushing more support for Battlefield and PS Plus updates!
Hello and thank you for taking a moment to catch up with another PS Weekly Drop. February is behind us and today being the first Tuesday in March, new PS Plus games drop today in the PSN store. Today’s Plus games cater to not only PS4 and PS5, but PSVR is getting Farpoint included for free this month. PSVR gets its own category outside of the consoles to keep things simple. Farpoint aside, PS4 games also include the amazing Final Fantasy VII remake as well as Remnant: From the ashes. PS5 owners will be treated with Maquette and of course, those PS4 games will also be playable on the PS5 console as well. As a reminder, if you do not have a PS5, but plan to get one at some point, you can always get the PS5 games that are available on PS Plus, but going to the PlayStation store using the mobile app or on a pc and add those titles to your collection and download them at a later date. If you didn’t get a chance to grab Destruction Allstars on PS5 last month, there is a little good news. The game will cost $19.99 USD instead of the original price tag of $69.99. Phew! In other gaming news, E3 has canceled the physical in person show this year. While the show was canceled last year and yet again this year, ESA is still looking into having a physical show next year and working with a production company this year to hold a live online event to take its place. Personally, I think they need to consider keeping E3 solely online for the next few events. Attendance at E3 has been dwindling and the event isn’t as successful as it once was. Maybe taking a break and making a comeback in 2023 would be a wiser choice, but what do I know? I just write about these things. If you’re bummed out about the physical cancellation of E3 and were hoping to make up for it by going to the San Diego Comic Con this year, I have yet another blow to deal you. This event too, has been canceled in regards to physical attendance. While the show will be streamed, fans won’t be able to partake in person. This is probably even harder news to hear than E3, as Comic Cons tend to offer much more in person for attendees. If you end up sitting at home watching, maybe create a watch party with some friends and fulfill your cosplay needs that way? I know it’s not the same, but I’m trying here. For those of us that have been desperately waiting on official news for the Elden Ring, well, I have no official news. Sorry. But I will say this much, a video trailer showed up online the other day and while it was a little blurry, it does appear to be an official trailer that hasn’t been rendered to quality … Read More
Opinion: More gaming during the pandemic isn’t the problem here…
Welcome to another issue of PS Weekly! This week I am bypassing the regular news I would drop and would like to discuss a specific issue. The pandemic and parenting choices when it comes to video games. 2020 was a hard year for the majority of the world and let’s be honest, 2021 could go either way at this point. While our fingers are crossed in hopes of seeing some relief soon, we still have a long way to go. People are spending more time at home than anywhere else right now and that calls for more ways to pass the time and cope with the stress of it all. In some cases it means more time playing video games and full disclosure, I don’t see a problem here, but thanks to an irresponsibly written and published article in The New York Times, some people are becoming concerned with the uptick in gaming. Can’t we catch a break? The article published by the Times is based on the interviews of several people, including a psychology professor at Harvard. Everyone is entitled to their feelings, but this article is written in a way that tries to represent the world’s opinion. Honestly, The folks interviewed in the article are overreacting and are probably dealing with their own stressful issues related to the pandemic. Either that, or they just don’t know what they’re talking about. This article is grade A fertilizer at its finest and I’m only going to go as far as discussing how stars off. You can read the full article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/16/health/covid-kids-tech-use.html This article kicks off with a man being quoted “I’ve failed you as a father,” Wow! So, this father has a heated argument with his son, according to the article, but if the conversation was heated, it was likely thanks to the way dear old dad was handling things. Anyway, this dad apparently overlooked how much time his kid was playing video games and using his cell phone for social purposes. The dad says his son used to spend most of his leisure time riding a mountain bike and playing basketball, but now he spends most of his extra time playing games on his Xbox or on his phone. Well, the only real concern that I find valid here, is completely overlooked. The child is mentioned to be playing on an Xbox or cell phone. That concerns me. This child desperately needs a PlayStation console in his life. While we’re at it, there should probably be a Nintendo Switch there too, because variety is the spice of life and the pandemic has certainly taken a lot of variety away from us for the moment. Grab a copy of Descenders on PS4 and he’ll be riding a mountain bike again in no time! Pick up NBA 2K21 and what do you know? He’s not just playing basketball again, he’s a top scorer in the NBA! That’ll surely make for some great conversation at the dinner table, … Read More
Sony ending production of most PS4’s in Japan and Microsoft based the Xbox on PS2?
Hi everyone, thanks for dropping by to catch up on some of the latest news in the world of gaming. In light of everything that has been going on in the United States, I’m a few days late on my regular report and I apologize for that, but we’re not here to discuss that. We’re here to discuss video games! So, Nintendo is expected to outsell the PS5 and the Xbox Series X/S in 2021, according to several industry analysts. It won’t just outsell the latest generation of consoles, but it is expected to be the top console all year. Word is, there will be a new “pro” version of the Nintendo Switch and if that is the case, it would only help bolster Nintendo’s sales even further. Let’s be honest here, none of these companies are hurting for money right now and it’s nice to see someone else outselling the PS console at the moment because it will only pressure companies to up the ante and compete for top spot! There is no doubt that Nintendo has created a great little console and in some ways it is in a market of its own, but with the pandemic world wide, Sony and Microsoft alike are having trouble producing enough consoles to meet the demand. 2021 is surely going to be an interesting year for consoles and games. Speaking of producing consoles, Sony has announced the company will stop production of all PS4 models in Japan, except for one slim model. The PS4 has been outselling the PS5 in Japan and some of the reasoning sighted is the issue with low production, so cutting back on the PS4 should increase the number of PS5’s available, right? Of course, there seems to be a decline for Playstation products in Japan, so that could also play a part. If analysts’ predictions are correct, there will be enough consoles for everyone that really wants one by April, so if you have been waiting, it shouldn’t be too much longer. In other console tidbits, here are a bit of some interesting facts about what was going on pre-original Xbox development. Before Microsoft came up with the Xbox console, they shopped around for a few companies that had already been in the industry. MS looked into purchasing companies like Electronic Arts, but EA kindly declined as they the company wasn’t up for sale, even more interesting, Microsoft went onto to ask Nintendo if they would consider being bought out. Ahh, to be a fly on that wall, huh? As it turns out, the execs at Nintendo busted out in laughter and seemingly laughed throughout the meeting. The idea really makes you wonder what things would be like if that transaction actually happened. I think if either Microsoft or Sony did manage to buy Nintendo, that would forever end the console wars and would ultimately create the most powerful game company in history and likely the future. The possibilities for Mario and … Read More
PS5 Online orders are live at Best Buy!
Welcome back to another issue of PS Weekly! To kick this off, Best Buy is currently stocking online supplies for the PS5, right now! The website has been struggling with crashes since the item went live three hours ago, but the stores haven’t actually sold out yet. It looks like many people have given up on trying, but with some patience and determination, you still score one online. I have a friend that just finished his online purchase after nearly 4 hours of trying. I have two other friends that currently have the ps5’s in their carts at the time of this writing (!:00 pm est) and they are dealing with the whole error at checkout, but they will hopefully be able to finalize the purchase. Good luck if you are trying to grab one. Speaking of PS5 orders, it looks as though eBay has already reached over 33,000 PS5’s sold by scalpers during the month of just November! That being said, these consoles are being sold at different price ranges, but according to Michael Driscoll (a Data Engineer, mind you) the math tallies up and over 19 million dollars in profit between them. That’s profit, it isn’t including the initial price of buying the PS5 before selling it. What a world we live in. Furthermore, those sales were recorded in the US, who knows how many have actually been scalped across the globe? Hopefully this will be under control sooner than later and people that want one won’t have to be hassled anymore. In Game news, Cyberpunk 2077 is taking some critical heat right now. As you have likely heard, the game released last week on PC and console, followed by the truth. Before the game was released, CD Projekt Red didn’t let anyone see how the game was running on last gen consoles. We saw it run on PS5 and PC, but it was simply noted that the game ran surprisingly well on last gen. While I believe the game seems to run worse on the original PS4 and Xbox One consoles, the game is plagued with bugs, crashes and poor graphics on last gen. While the game doesn’t have an actual PS5 version, the power the PS5 has is actually giving you what the PS4 experience should have been like. CD Projekt Red has issued an apology and is offering refunds for the game, although Sony has been reportedly denying those refunds, but that is likely because of players going hitting a high number of hours played and Sony tried to keep that limited to 2 hours of play if its a digital copy. We will see how all of this plays out overtime, but things are definitely going to be shaken up sooner than later. And to finish things up, the game awards happened a few days ago and to no one’s surprise, The Last Of Us Part II won game of the year. Some feel it is undeserving to give the award … Read More
PS5 – The UK Heist
Welcome back to another drop from PS Weekly! You know, with how difficult it has been for many people to purchase a PS5, you hear a lot about scalpers. These folks are relentless when it comes to making an extra buck, but there are some people out in the UK that are willing to take steps that go far beyond using bots online. There are apparently gangs in the UK that are more than willing to risk their lives to steal a PS5 right off a delivery truck, while driving at high rates of speed. A tactic referred to as “the rollover,” is where vehicles approach a delivery truck and box it in while forcing it to maintain speeds of around 50 mph. While boxed in, they use rope to secure themselves to the truck and cut the truck’s latches off and open the doors. Once inside, they start tossing the goods out of the truck and to the other vehicles that box the truck in. The gangs target all kinds of valuables and the ever elusive PS5 has managed to make their list. Speculation for industry employees believes that there are insiders feeding these gangs information to let them know when there is a large number of valuable goods in one specific truck. Anything from jewelry to the PS5 console, these gangs are clearly not to be trifled. Imagine you’re waiting for a PS5 to be delivered and you find it isn’t coming because a gang went all fast n furious on the delivery truck? Crazy! So many PS5’s have been stolen in the UK, that companies are giving customers that had their PS5’s stolen before they received them, priority to purchase before others as they restock. I know they expect the shortage to come to an end sometime this coming Spring, but we’re a few more months pure crapiness for those that really want a PS5 and have to keep dealing with scalpers, gangs and liars. Speaking of the UK, the PS5 was the UK’s largest console launch of all time. It isn’t a real surprise here, but it is certainly notable. In Europe as a whole, the PS4 sold 706, 948 consoles in week one, but the PS5 sold around 723,341 consoles in week one. PS5 has dominated the Xbox Series X and S since launch in the UK and the rest of Europe and will likely own this console generation just like the PS4 owned its respective generation in regard to sales and popularity. The Xbox Series X is a cool console, so don’t think I’m not knocking it. I’m just pointing a few things out is all. In straight up gaming news, highly anticipated Cyberpunk 2077 is set to release on December 10th, for real this time. Unfortunately, the PS5 upgrade won’t be happening on release, so you’ll have to play the PS4 version, but it will be PS4 Pro enhanced and have a little extra boost from the PS5 … Read More
PS5 releases in 9 days – PS Weekly #5
To kick this off, I just have to ask… Can you believe the initial release of PS5 is just 9 days away? This is going to be an amazing day for fans that pre-ordered a PS5 and possibly even more amazing for those that manage to snag one in store if they weren’t able to get a pre-order in. Best of luck to everyone involved! Speaking of the highly anticipated PS5 console, PlayStation 5 preorders managed to surpass PS4 pre-orders in the United States within 12 hours versus the first 12 weeks the PlayStation 4 was up for pre-order. During an interview with Reuters, PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan said that not everybody that wants to buy a PS5 on launch day will be able to get one, but he also says the company is working very hard to supply the demand. The PS5 is easily going to break records in regards to sales and will be a super hot product during the holiday season. Moving on, the first game drop for PS Plus subscribers monthly for PS5 owners has been revealed. The game Bugsnax will be available for free on November 12th, the day of the console’s release. This is a PS5 exclusive and while not everyone seems to be satisfied with the drop, I personally think it’s a decent start. PS4 owners that subscribe to the Plus service will get their hands on Middle-earth: Shadow of War and Hollow Knight: Voidheart. Those games will also be available for PS5 owners, respectively. In other game news, Days Gone got a hefty update recently that will prepare the game for backwards compatibility on PS5. Owners of the PS5 console will also be able to play the game in up to 60 FPS and in dynamic 4k. Days Gone released with mixed reviews from critics and consumers alike. Friday the 13th the game got some big news. The dedicated servers for FF13 the game are shutting down. The game will be receiving its last update later this month that will include a host of fixes that will include the dedicated server shutoff. Owners of the game will be able to continue playing private matches as well as peer to peer, but the days of playing randoms will come to an end. It was a good run. Seriously, there was a lot of running… Cyberpunk 2077 has been delayed into December. While it was merely delayed for a month to ensure they could produce enough physical copies, some have speculated that the title is actually being held back because of next consoles. With the delay, some of the developers at CD Projekt red have been receiving death threats over the pushback and lets be honest here, not cool. Anyone making threats (whether they mean it or not) to developers over a game is ridiculous and unacceptable at best. Upcoming game Resident Evil Village is getting the next gen treatment on PS5. The game will support Ray … Read More
PlayStation Weekly Issue #4
Welcome back to another issue of PlayStation Weekly! The best place to get caught up with PlayStation news! Out the gate, I’m going to tell you that it was kind of a slow news week in the gaming sector. I mean, there are lots of little tidbits here and there, but not really note worthy info to be read here. That being said, there was one major news break that has caught a lot of attention since yesterday. That news break is the delay of Destruction Allstars! One of the few PS5 exclusive launch lineups. Not to worry, though. This is actually pretty good news for future PS5 owners. Destruction Allstars is getting a delayed release into February, 2021, but not due to the game needing more work. It would seem that Destruction Allstars is getting delayed because of low preorder numbers. But that’s not all. Destruction Allstars will also be released as a free PS Plus title in February! It will be available for free for 2 months for Plus subscribers and then it will go back to stores for whatever price tags Sony hands it. While this news might not seem to go much deeper, it does. With the news of Destruction Allstars being delayed, many gamers that had preordered PS5’s with the game bundled in, had concerns about what would happen with their preorders? Now, it seems like the solution should be simple. Get the cost of the game taken off the overall price or swap it for another title, but GameStop sent out some alarming emails that could have been better explained and will hopefully be updated and sent again with clearer terms. While I haven’t heard about how other companies are handling the situation with their bundles, I can say that GameStop sent out emails to customers to let them know that their orders have been delayed. Dun, dun, duuuunnnnnn!!!! The problem here is that email doesn’t specify exactly what happened or how things will move forward. A lot of folks got in touch with GameStop customer service to inquire about said email and things aren’t 100% concrete as of yet because GameStop hasn’t released a statement yet, but many gamers are claiming that GameStop told them they would cancel only the game and the rest of the console bundle would ship on time. I haven’t heard any news of preorders being cables over this, but I have a feeling that people are going to make the mistake of canceling their preorder online as they might assume the console bundle won’t ship until sometime in February, 2021. Do not cancel your preorders people! GameStop is a little slow to the punch when it comes to clearing things up and the email was likely an automated message to give you a heads up that more details are on the way. If GameStop ever does make a public comment on the issue, I’ll be sure to let you know, but I’m in … Read More