Sacred Symbols: A PlayStation Podcast

Things are quiet recently. It feels like we're waiting for something to pop-off; some new announcements, or tantalizing rumors, or whatever. We have a little of that this week, though -- perhaps as usual -- it's good news mixed-up with a few questionable items. Let's start with PS5 sales, which picked up substantially in the days leading up to the hardware's global price increase. We then move into the surreptitious release of once-hidden Grand Theft Auto Online numbers, which shows a game still making around $10 million a week, with around two-thirds of its playerbase on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4. Then, we get into first and second party fare: More details about the unannounced (but heavily rumored) Faye-driven God of War spinoff, casting and performance capture details for Hideo Kojima's PHYSINT, word of a Bloodborne animated feature in the works, and a Metal Gear Solid film, too, both being steered by Sony Pictures. And did Insomniac's Spider-Man 3 get leaked, too? Inquiries from the audience help us round things out, as always. Why is PlayStation 2 Colin's least-favorite Sony console? Is there room for the point-and-click adventure genre in modern gaming? Will Xbox really go back down the path of exclusivity? Can we act as an effective billboard for a listener's pregnancy announcement?

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Please keep in mind that our timestamps are approximate, and will often be slightly off due to dynamic ad placement.0:00:00 - Intro0:35:29 - Player 30:39:45 - Timothy's weight loss0:44:56 - RIP Juno0:56:18 - Back to PSVR2?0:57:39 - Weird Pragmata discourse1:09:20 - Roblox on PS51:10:14 - PS5 sales boost due to the price increase1:22:13 - GTA Online makes $10 million a week1:36:28 - New Faye God of War details1:47:42 - Physint casting details1:56:27 - Bloodborne animated movie2:12:37 - Metal Gear Solid movie rumors2:21:39 - Mocap for Spider-Man 32:32:29 - New PS+ games2:39:39 - What We’re Playing (Starfield, Marathon, Mouse PI For Hire)3:00:56 - Defending capitalism3:16:27 - "AI-free"3:27:11 - PlayStation in Super Smash Brothers3:38:01 - PS2, the least favorite3:43:06 - Point and Click adventure games3:49:05 - Xbox returning to exclusives?
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In the world of PlayStation, this past week was one of mystery. For instance, the director of Uncharted: The Lost Legacy seems to be rather blatantly teasing a new Uncharted game on Instagram. But is he actually? Meanwhile, the promise of PlayStation on PC seems to have gone totally up in smoke, with the quiet removal of related iconography from the PSN. Could it be a sign of things to come? Plus, Sony's aggressive new position on the PlayStation Store continues to bear fruit, as even more games are deleted and unpublished that never belonged there to begin with. Are we finally getting the storefront we deserve? Other news this week includes intrigue surrounding an interview with Sony CEO Hiroki Totoki, changes incoming for PS5's UI, potential teases for remakes or remasters of Persona 1 and 2, the wet fart that was the Tales series' 30th anniversary, and more. Then: Listener inquiries! Do you have to play the original Resident Evil trilogy on PSone to be a "real" fan, or do the remakes suffice? Why is Square Enix so hesitant to do anything with Chrono Trigger? With Capcom's Pragmata right around the corner, what are our last-minute thoughts? Is Dustin hiding his PlayStation Trophies because he's a fake gamer?

Please keep in mind that our timestamps are approximate, and will often be slightly off due to dynamic ad placement.

0:00:00 - Intro0:21:17 - Back to the spread0:21:52 - Read the names0:28:09 - How's everyone doing?0:46:11 - Dustin's hidden trophies0:47:51 - Tacos or burritos0:55:03 - Colin was wrong?0:55:33 - Uncharted tease?1:15:52 - PC and Crossbuy icons removed from PS5 OS1:30:43 - Hiroki Totoki interview1:39:00 - new PS5 interface?1:40:33 - PSN delisting continues1:50:16 - The Playerbase1:58:49 - Persona 1 and 2 remakes/remasters?2:05:25 - Bandai Namco doesn't have anything for Tales 30th anniversary2:11:38 - 007: First Light Dualsense2:18:27 - Top PSN downloads for March2:27:42 - What We’re Playing (SuperStation One, Returnal, Starfield)2:51:09 - Games industry guardrails3:11:39 - Remakes vs Originals3:28:01 - PlayStation theme park3:33:47 - Where is Chrono Trigger?3:39:14 - Pragmata worries3:44:42 - PlayStation Experience
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We're in the midst of a promising month of releases on PlayStation 5, and our patience is finally about to be rewarded. For starters, Housemarque's first party third-person shooter Saros has gone gold. So, too, has Capcom's beleaguered (yet incredibly promising) Pragmata, which was first revealed in 2020 for a 2022 release. Starfield's and Hades II's PS5 debuts, Mouse: PI For Hire's launch, the Konami-published Darwin's Paradox, the undoubtedly addictive Vampire Crawlers, and much more have us asking: When are we supposed to find the time to play all of this? It's a good problem to have! Plus: Sony purchases British machine learning firm Cinemersive Labs, Neil Druckmann teases the future of The Last of Us, Stellar Blade developer Shift Up buys Shinji Mikami's new studio outright, Disney executives are apparently interested in acquiring Epic, MindsEye's bizarre drama gets even weirder, and more. Then: Listener inquiries! What's the status of Fairgames? Are there any Life Is Strange fans in the LSM crew? Should gaming be more accessible to the poor? Is it possible that the Artemis II astronauts will listen to this episode of the show while en route to the moon?

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Please keep in mind that our timestamps are approximate, and will often be slightly off due to dynamic ad placement.

0:00:00 - Intro0:31:27 - Never give up Krystal0:33:51 - Ernie Anastos RIP in Peace0:40:52 - First to platinum Saint Slayer0:46:23 - Artemis II0:56:09 - Nate's next career1:01:14 - Sony spins off TV business1:08:05 - Sony acquires cinemersive1:14:05 - Saros goes gold1:22:38 - Pragmata goes gold1:27:36 - The Last of Us 3 tease?1:38:35 - Shift Up purchases Shinji Mikami's studio1:48:31 - Disney rumored to buy Epic1:59:02 - MindsEye gets weirder2:09:43 - New PS Plus games for April2:14:02 - What We’re Playing (Returnal, Saint Slayer: Spear of Sacrilege, Marathon, Resident Evil Requiem, Crimson Desert, Marathon, Raccoin, Croc)2:45:49 - Is gaming really for the rich?2:59:10 - Is this crash worse than 1983?3:12:46 - Are we Life is Strange fans?3:19:32 - The state of Fairgames3:23:40 - PSSR update3:27:27 - PlayStation Direct preorders
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It's another week of bad news for PlayStation, as PlayStation 5 -- as well as PS5 Pro and PlayStation Portal -- are getting another fresh round of global price increases. While every previous gaming generation got progressively cheaper over time, our current gen is becoming substantially more expensive, and things are clearly starting to get to a breaking point. There's much to say. Also, more bad news: Newly-minted first party shooter studio Dark Outlaw Games has been unceremoniously shuttered after only a year. Such a move speaks yet again to the uneven leadership, tastemaking ability, and decision making at the top of PlayStation Studios, and begs the question how much bloodletting we need to see before anyone takes responsibility. If this sort of thing doesn't fall on Hermen Hulst's shoulders (an idea which doesn't really make any sense in and of itself), then who or what is responsible, and when will the poor stewardship of the brand's own games and studios finally cease? Plus: PlayStation cuts down on its years-long mobile gaming investments and initiatives, Sly 4 studio Sanzaru at one time readied a pitch for a Jak & Daxter remake, we nearly got a Breaking Bad game on PSVR, Epic Games lays off 1,000 employees, Pearl Abyss owns its AI mistakes in Crimson Desert, Microsoft Flight Simulator on PS5 gets PSVR2 support, Marathon sells a purported (and somewhat soft) 1.2 million copies, and more. Then: Listener inquiries! With Final Fantasy VII Remake and Rebirth courting older gamers on average, is Final Fantasy officially finished with the younger generations? Are platform holders and publishers intentionally underpublishing physical copies of games to drive customers to digital storefronts? Do we believe the incessant rumors that Witcher 3 will get an expansion more than a decade after it first launched? Could Colin be the undisputed typing champion of Last Stand Media?

Please keep in mind that our timestamps are approximate, and will often be slightly off due to dynamic ad placement.

0:00:00 - Intro0:31:24 - Shoutout to Tyrell0:33:44 - New York authentic experience0:46:37 - Nitrotype0:55:08 - PlayStation price increases1:29:28  Dark Outlaw Games closed2:12:51 - PlayStation moving away from mobile2:38:52 - Sanzaru pitched Jak & Daxter remake2:49:14 - Firesprite was working on Breaking Bad VR2:57:33 - Epic layoffs3:17:54 - Pearl Abyss apologizes for AI art in Crimson Desert3:20:20 - Flight Simulator is getting PSVR 2 support3:24:38 - Minecraft Dungeons 2 announced3:28:22 - Marathon predicted sales at 1.2 million3:43:29 - February sales data3:49:07 - What We’ve Been Playing (Chronicles of the Wolf, Returnal, Resident Evil Requiem, Marathon, Crimson Desert)4:21:16  Is Final Fantasy doomed?4:35:49 - Is Dragon Quest like Pokemon?4:42:48 - AI flooding indie games4:55:09 - Physical games low stock5:01:27 - Witcher 3 DLC
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The drama around DLSS 5 has overtaken the gaming industry during the last week. Nvidia's image upscaling tech has been present in our space for years, but its newest iteration (set for a proper fall release) has many people scratching their heads. Have we gone from frame generation to art reinterpretation? Why is this technology being deployed so aggressively, anyway? And how come so many companies were so excited about it until they saw the overwhelmingly negative audience response? Let's delve headfirst into the mystery of the Yassified Grace, and all of the fallout therein. Plus: A fresh rumor indicates PlayStation Network branding will disappear later this year, Sony has apparently automatically refunded people for any spending in the now-cancelled Highguard, PSVR2 second party FPS Firewall Ultra has silently been delisted, PlayStation 3 received its random annual firmware update, legendary Tom Clancy developer Red Storm has been gutted, and more. Then: Listener inquiries! Have any of us messed around with a PS3 emulator? What's going on with Street Fighter 6's creepy new storyline? With Bravely Default skipping PS4 and PS5, is it safe to assume Square Enix isn't actually done with exclusives? Did two Sacred Symbols fans miss each other by mere seconds in a Dollar Tree parking lot?

Please keep in mind that our timestamps are approximate, and will often be slightly off due to dynamic ad placement.

0:00:00 - Intro0:17:29 - Sacred Symbols missed connection0:18:46 - The Oscars Vs The Game Awards0:27:32 - New Titans logo0:32:29 - This is life huh?0:35:29 - DLSS 51:14:13 - Sony is dropping the PlayStation Network branding1:27:46 - Sony refunding Highguard purchases1:34:14 - Starfield is officially coming to PS51:41:19 - Portal update1:48:15 - Firewall Ultra delisted2:02:31 - New PS3 Firmware2:07:15 - Layoffs at Red Storm2:13:26 - Exodus gameplay2:18:24 - Saudi Arabia buys 5% of Capcom2:19:50 - What We’ve Been Playing (Minishoot Adventures, Chronicles of the Wolf, Resident Evil Requiem, Marathon)2:59:57 - PSNProfile leaderboards change3:05:44 - Giving up on gaming3:12:18 - PS3 emulation3:21:05 - Bravely Default only on Xbox3:23:33 - Flopathon website3:29:19 - Street Fighter 6 controversy
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