The Wednesday letters page hopes that FromSoftware’s next game is set during the modern day, as one reader asks for a PlayStation vs. Xbox fighting game.

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Real-world graphics
Interesting to hear that ex-Rockstar developer talk about GTA 6 probably not being much different than GTA 5, which I imagine is probably true, since none of the games are very different to each other. What I don’t really believe though is that anyone is going to be disappointed by it at first, despite what he said.

I’m sure there’ll be a backlash in time, as there is for almost anything, but I really think that the graphics being amazing will be enough for most people. We’ve seen arguments in both directions recently, when it comes to the importance of graphics but, let’s face it, it was all anyone was talking about after the trailer.

It’s especially important for GTA 6 because the whole series is about the realism and the immersion, and even when the gameplay was bad it didn’t matter because it’s always been the closest you can get to a simulation of a real-world city. It seems obvious to me that GTA 6 is going to do that better than ever, so I really can’t see it being a disappointment.
Ansel

Small differences
I see that the Concord beta has been a flop on Steam, which is going to be unfortunate for Sony, given that Helldivers 2 was more popular on PC than PlayStation. As someone that thought Helldivers 2 was not that interesting (it’s fine, I just gave up on it pretty quick) I’d still say that it was a lot more unique than Concord, which really could just be an alternative universe Overwatch for all the difference it made.

If I was Sony, the lesson I would take here is that you don’t have to be that different from the competition to do well but you do have to have at least something that no other game does. To most people being original doesn’t mean a completely new idea, just presenting an existing one in a new light. I don’t feel Concord meets even that relatively modest level.
Collins

Ultimate crossover
Count me as another person that has no real skill at fighting games, and so doesn’t play them often, but does admire both the games themselves and the people that play them. I also find the art and character designs to be very strong and interesting, even in Mortal Kombat.

There is something about a good crossover that makes it extra exciting though, even as games like Fortnite leave me completely cold with their constant cameos. I guess it’s because the game has actually been made with the mash-up in mind, rather than just being the new skin addition of the week, but it’s just a cool thing to see. Plus, if Microsoft goes fully multiformat how long till we can have a PlayStation vs. Xbox game?
Zeiss

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Imperfect timing
Microsoft betting its future on streaming is all well and good but I still don’t understand how they’re going to get round the problem that people’s broadband just isn’t up to it. My sister lives in a major city in the UK and even her broadband isn’t that great, so I don’t like to think what it must be like for rural areas.

Especially as it’s Microsoft, this seems like one of those occasions where the company Is just going to completely ignore the reality of the situation and put something out too early, that is going to sour everyone on the idea for far longer than the period of time they needed to wait in the first place. I expect to be able to say ‘I told you so within the next 12 months.’
Doshin

Fluctuating prices
I follow the sales every week on the Xbox Store. One thing I’ve noticed over the years is that the sale price of a game often fluctuates up and down. I picked up Mortal Kombat XL for £10.50 (years ago) for example, but the last time I saw it was on sale recently it was £15-ish. I’ve noticed this happen with quite a few games.

I’ve often waited for a game to be cheaper in the next sale and it’s actually gone up in price (on sale) so it would’ve often been better to buy the first it was on offer.

It should be easy to assume that each time a game goes on sale that either the price stays similar or gets cheaper each time it’s offered on sale but that’s not always the case with games on the Xbox Store and I wonder why.
Chaosphere
PS: There is a huge summer sale on the Xbox store with hundreds of games on offer. I’ve noticed that GC will usually cover a PlayStation store sale as a news story but not usually an Xbox store sale.

GC: We didn’t know there was one.

Bloodborne 2024 AD
Everyone says that FromSoftware should do a sci-fi game for their next game but how about something set in the modern day, instead? That doesn’t mean it can’t have supernatural elements, given Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice did and that was supposed to be a ninja sim, but I think I’d be more interested in seeing From push the clock forward beyond Bloodborne – which has their most modern settings so far.

It could even be Bloodborne 2, which would be an interesting thought. You could have modern guns but they’re still only to soften up enemies and it’s melee weapons that are used for the heavy work. There’s plenty of Gothic looking cities they could set it in, or just make one up, so the tone wouldn’t even be that different, you’d just be switching it up a bit.

I like the idea of something that’s been going on for centuries too and this is just the latest hunt, to try and keep the eldritch horrors away. I don’t know where vampire castles and the like fit into that but probably skyscraper penthouse suites?

Personally, I always like it when films try and bring classic monster types in the modern world but that’s not something you get much in games. I think it would be a cool idea for at least someone to try.
St1nger

Bad start
I get why Microsoft put Modern Warfare 3 on Game Pass first – it’s the most recent game, with the most number of people playing it – but what a start. Wouldn’t it have been a good idea to at least put Modern Warfare 1 and 2 on at the same time? Then you could say it was the whole trilogy? Even though Modern Warfare 3 is more a spin-off and there’s going to be more.

The multiplayer is fine but anyone thinking about trying it out for the story campaign, just don’t bother.
Gaston

Open mind
Am I the only one looking forward to Star Wars Outlaws? I’ve seen very little talk about it, or adverts or anything, and yet it’s out next month, which seems a bit weird. I know some people have been down on it but everything I’ve seen of it looks pretty good. Multiple open worlds to explore, space combat, no Jedi… what’s not to like?

I’m also optimistic because the same developer’s Avatar game was very good too. Admittedly, I got it on cheap but I was very impressed by the graphics and openness of the game. Sure, it was very similar to Far Cry and other open world games, but I found it to be a very good recreation of the films and a fun open world game in its own right.

Open world games have got quite a bit of criticism in recent years, it seems to me, and there are less of them around in general, but I love the ‘Ubisoft formula’, if you want to call it that, and welcome the idea of playing a new game with great graphics and set in one of my favourite fictional universes.

Not every game needs to be a big new idea or the best thing ever. If Outlaws is fun and epic, with good graphics, I can see myself getting lost in it for many hours and enjoying every minute of it.
Joffery

Inbox also-rans
The new Splatoon 3 amiibos are available to pre-order at the UK Nintendo Store, currently. One is called the Alterna Set with characters Callie and Marie and the other is the Side Order Set with Pearl and Marina.
Andrew J.

That Lego Fortnite Battle Bus is going to be the Tickle Me Emo of Christmas 2024. No wonder it’s not that expensive (for Lego), it’s going to sell by the bucketload.
Inka

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The small print
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A mysterious image has been posted on the Fallout London Patreon page, and fans are now hard at work deciphering it, in case it reveals the release date.

Bethesda is planning to release Fallout 5 at some point, but not until after they’ve launched a Skyrim sequel, which recent reports say is now in an early playable build. Unfortunately, that means fans of the former will have to wait a number of years to play the next chapter in the post-apocalyptic story.

Luckily, there are a number of Fallout fan mods to fill the void, either just released, like the Fallout 2 mod Fallout Yesterday – Van Buren, or about to launch, such as the Fallout London fan project.

The Fallout London lead developer revealed a lot about the upcoming Fallout 4 mod when talking to GameCentral last week, but couldn’t tell us the release date. A cryptic image sent to their Patreon backers, however, has fans theorising about the exact day the mod is coming out.

After getting the green light from publisher GOG last week, Fallout London is now working on the final touches before releasing the download. Despite launch appearing so close, there is no release date, leaving fans to speculate.

That speculation has multiplied now that the Fallout London team has posted an image of an in-game character holding up five fingers.

There is no added message to the post and fans believe the number five says something about when Fallout London is coming out.

‘5th of August?,’ Mr. Pill says on Reddit, where the image has been reuploaded.

‘Maybe five days?,’ says Spiderclone, pointing out that that would mean this Friday.

Some are also wondering if it means new information is coming out at five o’clock, but there doesn’t seem to be a single favourite theory among fans.

One fan thinks it’s because the Fallout London Discord server was put into five minute slow mode the day before, which means members can only message once every five minutes.

It was lead developer Dean Carter (Prilladog on Discord) who informed fans about the delay, saying it’s because they’re anticipating a big increase in members once Fallout London releases.

There are also a good amount of jokes in the Reddit thread, laying into how long it’s taken for the mod to be released.

Fallout London was planned to launch on April 23, but Bethesda released a next gen update for Fallout 4, which made the mod unplayable.

The Fallout London team had to delay the launch, and when they couldn’t get the mod to work anymore decided to add a downgrader, which will remove the next gen update, so that the mod can be played.

Fans’ lack of patience is understandable, as Fallout London looks very promising but has been in development since 2019.

In the meantime, you can listen to what the UK’s former Speak of the House, John Bercow, will sound like in Fallout London once it finally comes out.

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Xbox has confirmed rumours that the first Call Of Duty game to be added to Game Pass will appear this week, but it’s hardly the best one to start with.

It’s been rumoured for weeks now, but Xbox has confirmed that Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 will be available via Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass, and Xbox Game Pass for Console from Wednesday, July 24.

It’s the first time one of the Call Of Duty games has been available via Games Pass and while it’s logical that it should be the most recent, it’s unfortunate that last year’s game is widely viewed as the worst in recent history.

Rumours suggest that the campaign for Modern Warfare 3 was only ever intended to be DLC and the whole package was slapped together at short notice, which is certainly what it feels like. Thankfully though, while it will be the first entry on the service it won’t be the last.

Since Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard makes it a first party game, this year’s Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6 will be available day one for every tier of Game Pass, except for the cheaper Xbox Game Pass Standard.

The Standard tier doesn’t start until September 12, but Modern Warfare 3 would almost certainly be available through it anyway, because it’s an older title.

It’s assumed that all Call Of Duty games will become available via the service eventually, although Microsoft has given no indication how long that might take to happen.

Rumours of Modern Warfare 3 coming to Game Pass this week has been leaked multiple times but the other rumour that accompanied it was that the beta version of Valorant on consoles would also become available on Friday, July 26.

There’s no sign of that so far but that’s not believed to be exclusive to Xbox or any other console. Since Valorant is free-to-play it doesn’t need Game Pass either, so it should be available for anyone to download, just in time for the weekend.

In theory, Xbox could make any Activision Blizzard game available via Game Pass but as the changes to the subscription tiers imply, they’ve released that that cuts into their full-price sales.

So far, Diablo 4 is the only other major title to appear on the service, since the $69 billion acquisition, and it remains unclear what else can be expected.

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Fortnite leaks show what the new Deadpool and Wolverine skins will look like ahead of the new movie, even though they’re already in the game.

The new Deadpool & Wolverine movie will be out in cinemas on Thursday, July 25, in the UK, and Marvel has already collaborated with Xbox to create controllers shaped like the two characters’ bums.

A leak now suggests that the Merc With A Mouth and Logan are not done promoting their upcoming film within the confines of video games.

The leak claims skins of both Deadpool and Wolverine are coming to Fortnite, based on their appearance in the upcoming film – as opposed to the versions that have already been released.

Regular Fortnite dataminer iFireMonkey posted images showing the skins, suggesting a bundle with the two superheroes will be available soon.

The images also show items that come with the skins, such as their weapons, gliders and back bling, including one that is a poster with Deadpool on it hushing you.

Another Fortnite dataminer, HYPEX, posted an image of the skins too, which included the two character’s emotes.

Wolverine’s emote is him getting his claws out, while Deadpool’s is him acting shocked with his hands on his face, as seen below (or in the top image).

This isn’t the first time Deadpool or Wolverine have been in Fortnite, as they were both added in 2020 – February and August, respectively.

It’s not uncommon for movie characters to be added to Fortnite, for promotional purposes, and the first versions of the characters were based more on their comic book incarnations.

On its own, Marvel has had a catalogue of characters made into skins in Fortnite, including Spider-Man, Miles Morales as Spider-Man, Black Widow, Tony Stark, Captain America, Groot, Venom, and many more.

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The petition to have Assassin’s Creed Shadows cancelled seems to be working, with Ubisoft implying they will make changes to the game before release.

The annoucement that this year’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows will feature black samurai Yasuke as one of its lead characters caused considerable controversy in certain quarters.

Earlier this month, a petition from Japanese fans called for the game to be cancelled, because of vaguely described concerns about historical inaccuracy. Now Ubisoft has offered an equally vague apology, that seems to suggest they will be making changes to the game.

Although the original petition never mentioned him by name, most of the argument in the West has centred around playable character Yasuke, who was a real historical figure and whose samurai status Ubisoft now suggests is ‘a matter of debate and discussion’.

While there’s some question as to his exact role, Yasuke was a real person and, as a Japanese scholar has recently pointed out, there’s no doubt that he was a samurai, which is a social status that can encompass a variety of duties.

If anything, it’s the shinobi Naoe who’s the inauthentic one, since ninjas were primarily spies and their portrayal in Shadows seems to be based purely on the romanticised pop culture view of them, rather than anything from historical sources.

Although Ubisoft often likes to pretend the Assassin’s Creed games are historically accurate, they never really have been and in the lengthy Twitter apology, they admit that’Assassin’s Creed games are works of fiction inspired by real historical events and figures.

‘From its inception, the series has taken creative licence and incorporated fantasy elements to craft engaging and immersive experiences. The representation of Yasuke in our game is an illustration of this.’

The tweet also states that ‘We acknowledge that some elements in our promotional materials have caused concern within the Japanese community. For this, we sincerely apologise.’

It’s not at all clear what this is referring to, unless it’s when someone noticed the game’s concept art had accidently used the logo of a reenactment group – but that hardly seems reason for a four-page Twitter apology.

The tweet adds ‘All game footage presented so far is in development and the game will keep evolving until launch.’

Assassin’s Creed Shadows is due out on November 15, so there’s little time to change anything substantial, although the furore will no doubt change Ubisoft’s DLC plans.

Ubisoft boss Yves Guillemot has already complained at ‘malicious and personal’ attacks against the Shadows development team, with the new tweet also imploring ‘fans’ to leave consultants that worked on the game alone – especially as they had nothing to do with any final decisions.

Making a statement like this, this far out from release, is unusual for any publisher and suggests that Ubisoft is concerned about the game’s reception, and the negativity that increasingly surrounds it.

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The long-rumoured Lego sets based on Fortnite have finally been unveiled and they are not what you’d expect, including in terms of the price.

Even before the dedicated Lego mode was added to Fortnite, there were rumours of a tie-in toy line, featuring the Battle Bus and a range of the game’s original characters.

Lego has been making a lot of video game-related sets in recent years, including everything from Overwatch to Horizon Zero Dawn and the upcoming Legend Of Zelda model.

That’s made a Fortnite line seem inevitable and now that the first four sets have been officially announced they do look very good and, for Lego, are not actually that expensive.

For a licensed set with 954 pieces, and nine minifigures, the Battle Bus is an impressively good deal at £89.99 and certain to end up in a lot of Christmas stockings this year.

It features a removable roof and is filled with Fortnite related equipment, including Slurp Juice, a grappler, pickaxes, and Slap Juice.

You also get nine separate minifigures, in the form of Adventure Peely, Battalion Brawler, Cuddle Team Leader, Brite Bomber, Cube Assassin, Trespasser Elite, Drift, Meowscles, and Raven.

The Battle Bus is an obvious no-brainer and so is the Supply Llama, which has been recreated in Lego as a 691-piece model filled with accessories including Slap Juice, dynamite, a grappler, Slurp Juice, Rough Ruby, a backpack, and good luck charm.

The Supply Llama is £34.99, while the smallest set is a Durrr Burger – which is only £12.99 and recreates the restaurant mascot that was prominent in the game’s early years.

The biggest set is aimed more at the game’s older fans, with the 1,414 piece Peely Bone statue recreating one of the game’s most popular character variants. He has moveable arms and brick-built accessories such as a Peely Pick Pickaxe, Paint Launcher, and Banana Bag Back Bling.

Because he doesn’t come with any minifigures he’s the same price as the Battle Bus, at £89.99, despite being made up of a lot more Lego pieces.

All four sets are available to pre-order from the Lego website today but they won’t be released until October 1.

Not only are there Lego sets based on video games, but there are also games based on Lego sets. The next one to be released will be Lego Horizon Adventures this autumn, which rather than being themed around a movie is inspired by the PlayStation exclusive Horizon Zero Dawn – even though it’s being released on Switch as well (but not Xbox).

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Fortnite has just added the Cybertruck as a usable vehicle, but fans are divided, with some swearing to go out of their way to punish those who use it.

Fortnite owes much of its success to the fact that it is constantly changing its content, with new character skins, weapons, maps, and vehicles.

That goes for all modes, be it Rocket Racing, Fortnite Festival, or Lego Fortnite, which recently introduced a new cosy mode and a permadeath mode.

The latest update, however, is dividing fans as it adds Tesla’s Cybertruck to the game as a usable vehicle, with a portion of the fanbase uniting to aim their guns specifically at those who use it.

The Cybertruck will be included in the Fortnite v30.30 update, which goes live today, at noon UK time.

Fortnite proudly revealed the Cybertruck in a teaser video on Twitter, but many fans aren’t nearly as impressed.

While some are excited, a rebellion has formed to maliciously target those who use the Cybertruck, although the reasons for doing so are mixed.

‘Can we all collectively make a pact that if you ever see it in-game, everyone within that radius stops fighting and targets it,’ says Binej Yeah on Twitter.

The call for unity against Cybertruck users has caught on, with Kaius saying:

‘There’s an unspoken rule amongst a lot of players that they will drop whatever they’re doing to force a Cybertruck user back to the lobby. It’s your civic duty to uphold this honour code.’

The Cybertruck is made by Tesla, which is owned by Elon Musk, who doesn’t exactly have the best reputation in the gaming community.

Earlier this year Musk downplayed a Twitch streamer’s achievement when he beat the infamously difficult Elden Ring using nothing but Morse code, via a one-button device.

He also claimed that he was one of the best Quake players in the world at one point, before the actual best player responded saying ‘he wasn’t very good’.

Fans’ disapproval of Cybertruck’s inclusion in Fortnite is also because vehicles are a divisive feature in the game in general, with streamer Ninja briefly quitting the game because of them, saying it makes the game less confrontational.

If you are planning on using the Cybertruck, be warned that you could be specifically targeted, although that could work out well if you’re looking for action.

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Microsoft is planning even more new tiers for Xbox Game Pass, according to a new report, with the possible return of the Friends & Family Plan.

Microsoft has made big changes to Game Pass this month – provoking complaints from the FTC about the price rises – but the fundamental problem they face is that for many people the core concept of a gaming subscription service isn’t as appealing as expected, with many not having the time or inclination to play unknown games.

It’s a problem Sony has also found with PlayStation Plus, but Microsoft’s future is much more closely tied to Game Pass and a new report suggests that they are looking to shake up the service even further, with a tier based solely around streaming and the return of the Friends & Family Plan.

A cloud-only version of Game Pass is an easy thing to guess at even without rumours, with the only problem being when it is technically viable. According to the report though Microsoft is ‘working towards’ a new tier for people that have no interest in buying a console.

The recent collaborations with Samsung TVs and Amazon Fire sticks are already a step towards a cloud-only future for Xbox, but the new subscription is apparently intended to be ‘cheaper and more approachable’ than Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.

That suggests that Microsoft realises that many casual gamers are actually put off by the choice provided by Game Pass, rather than being attracted by it.

At the same time, the report on Windows Central also suggests that subscribers will be able to buy and own games digitally, and play existing digital games, that they already own, via the streaming service (if the various publishers involved allow it).

The report also claims to have heard ‘very tentative’ rumours of Microsoft bringing back the Friends & Family Plan for Game Pass, as another means to cut costs for customers.

The Friends & Family Plan was trialled for a year in some countries, beginning in September 2022, and allowed five people to share the cost of a Game Pass Ultimate subscription. Microsoft never went through with it fully though and stopped the trial last year.

However, it’s suggested that at the moment Microsoft is not planning an ad-based tier, even though that would’ve allowed them to reduce the price of a subscription too. Microsoft has previously hinted at such a thing but apparently they’ve decided against it for now.

Despite these rumours there’s no indication that there’ll be any new tier announced in the near future, with Microsoft no doubting wanting to make sure the new Standard tier is a success first.

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A developer with more than 20 years’ experience at Rockstar Games suggests ‘people might be a little disappointed’ with Grand Theft Auto 6 at first.

There’s no question that GTA 6 is the most anticipated video game of all time. Its predecessor is certainly the best-selling, in terms of traditional games, but it’s 11 years old now and despite all the updates and remasters it’s starting to show its age.

Nevertheless, according to a veteran Rockstar developer, the new game won’t necessarily be that much different from GTA 5 and so is at risk of disappointing some players.

‘I don’t think it’s going to be wildly different from GTA 5,’ said former technical director Obbe Vermeij in a new interview. ‘I think maybe people might be a little disappointed on the first day but it’s still going to be the best game out there.’

Although he’s left now, Vermejj worked at Rockstar North when it was still called DMA Design and his first game with them was Space Station Silicon Valley on the N64. He worked on GTA 3 as a technical director, as well as Vice City, San Andreas, and GTA 4.

He was still at the company in 2021 for GTA: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition but doesn’t have any credits on GTA 5.

Despite still being at Rockstar while GTA 6 was in development he doesn’t claim to have any ‘inside information’ on the game and seems to be basing his comments on the trailer and his general experience of the company.

‘It’s going to be a good game for sure,’ Vermejj told YouTube channel SanInPlay, before speculating about technical advances in terms of AI driven animation – implying that’s how the beach scene in the trailer has been enabled.

He’s also positive about the setting of Vice City and suggests that the ‘Miami man’ theme of the trailer is a good fit for GTA as a whole.

Vermejj isn’t specific about what he thinks will remain the same, compared to GTA 5, but presumably he’s referring to the general gameplay, mission design, and level of interaction.

GTA 5 was originally released at the end of the Xbox 360 era and was later updated for both the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 generation of consoles.

That means the game design is still firmly rooted in the 2010s and while it changed a lot mechanically, compared to GTA 4 – in terms of things like movement, gunplay, and vehicle handling – the underlying gameplay was still largely the same as GTA 3.

Vermejj is implying that still won’t change much for GTA 6, but then most fans probably wouldn’t want or expect anything else.

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The Monday letters page thinks the fighting game community is the least toxic in gaming, as one reader looks forward to KoROBO.

To join in with the discussions yourself email gamecentral@metro.co.uk

Generational increase
There’s been a lot of talk about the Nintendo Switch 2 lately but not of the most important factor: how much is it going to cost? Obviously, that depends on its power and whatever gimmicks it might have but the original Switch was £280 at launch, while the more recent PlayStation 5 was £450.

Every rumour I’ve heard says that Switch will be more expensive. I sincerely doubt it’ll be as much as the PlayStation 5, but I’d be surprised if it was any less than £350. Nintendo likes to keep their hardware cheap but they’re not immune to getting carried away with success and right now they’re probably thinking they can charge top dollar for a more powerful, upgraded Switch.

I’m not saying they’re wrong but only as far as dedicated gamers go. If they can’t keep costs down then I would advise them to release the Switch 2 Lite as soon as possible, if not at launch. Everyone loves Nintendo but everybody loves feeding their family too, and I feel a lot of the Switch’s success is due to it being the cheapest option.
Focus

Hardware churn
All this technobabble nonsense about the PS5 Pro and I will eat my hat if any normal person can tell the difference about anything it does without using a side-by-side comparison from Digital Foundry. I guess I understand why Sony is doing it, given it’ll be a premium product made at little extra effort, but I really do not understand why anyone would upgrade to it if they already own a PlayStation 5.

If you’re rich then good for you but one PS5 Pro could buy you nine or so games at £70, let alone how many cheaper ones you could get. Whatever floats your boat, but I’ll be glad when the leaks and speculation are over and Sony will finally be able to concentrate on games and not hardware. Although what’s the betting they come up with some useless peripheral afterwards? They’ve been obsessed this generation.
Paulie

Forgotten birthday
A minor anniversary for many I’m sure, but this week is the 20th anniversary of Gradius 5. The last attempt to make a big budget entry in the series and one of the best games from Treasure. I’m sure it won’t be acknowledged by Konami but the reader on Monday saying that they didn’t understand why they didn’t revamp Castlevania… well, I feel the same about Gradius.

Sure, the name doesn’t mean much nowadays but that’s only because it’s been neglected. These games were a big deal back in the day and it’s very easy to imagine lots of different ways to make a modern version, with everything from Star Fox to No Man’s Sky (which has clearly taken some influence from the ship designs) offering a possibility. I’m not holding my breath though.
Gannet

Email your comments to: gamecentral@metro.co.uk

Mindful fighter
I’ve never been very good at fighting games – I haven’t really got the patience for them – but I do admire the community around them. They seem a lot friendlier and less toxic than for most other games and they really seem to punch above their weight, given fighters never really sell that much and yet Evo must be the best known tournament around. Or at least it’s the only one I’ve heard of.

I’m not sure I’d attend a European version, but I’d probably watch the highlights or something like that. I’m also in favour of more crossover fighters from Capcom and whoever. They’ve always seemed the most accessible and fun of these types of games and if it was for something I’m interested in, like Marvel or Sega, then I’d definitely give it a go.

Sometimes it’s not just about raw numbers but mindshare and I think most people probably know a lot more about Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat than they do League Of Legends, even though that’s much more popular.
The Gonch

Chibi legacy
KoROBO is a spiritual successor to the Chibi-Robo games from the GameCube and other Nintendo consoles, live on KickStarter now. KoROBO is being made by the creators of Chibi-Robo, I’ve just backed it for a physical copy with other options available for a digital version, soundtrack CD, and art book. The campaign closes on August 23rd at 4pm BST.
Andrew J.
PS: Don’t forget to get your Xbox 360 up to date before the 31st July 2024 and buy any games that will be lost when the Xbox 360 Digital Store closes at the end of this month. Just plugged mine in to do the system
update and to download Hydro Thunder Hurricane, which I bought for £2 on sale.

GC: That’s great and all but were any of the Chibi-Robo games really that good? We can’t say we have a burning desire to play any of them again.

Own goal
If it hadn’t been the marketing boss himself talking I would never have believed that stuff about Microsoft having a much smaller budget in Europe than PlayStation. How is this possible? The way Microsoft waste money surely it must be pocket change for them to outspend Sony?

I do not see any situation where spending that $69 billion on marketing wouldn’t have done more to help Xbox then wasting it on Activision Blizzard. That hasn’t done anything but give them control of a profitable company. Consoles have gone down, still no one’s interested in Game Pass, and there’s no clue what they do next.

For me this all goes back to Phil Spencer. If things have been this bad for so long, in terms of bad translations and a lack of advertising on the mainland why wasn’t this the first thing he changed? I mean, the translations… how much effort does that take? One bilingual guy for a couple of days would’ve sorted that out and yet they’re relying on Google Translate instead? That’s just surreal.

I’ve got no axe to grind with Xbox but the people in charge of it are very hard to take seriously. These aren’t tactical mistakes or being outmanoeuvred by Sony, this is just self-sabotage.
Ragu

Rest of the world
So, my jaw hit floor reading your article yesterday, where Microsoft say they don’t have as big a budget as Sony to advertise.

So, buy multiple studios, then Activision Blizzard – spending billions, then won’t advertise the console those games are going to be on. Couldn’t make it up.
TWO MACKS

GC: It’s madness.

Sign of the times
I think this weekend’s article sums up today’s gaming perfectly. Bring a 26-year-old game back to life to promote the newest console. Not getting at the writer at all, hopefully you realise that, however it sums up gaming today perfectly in my opinion.

I know this site and most readers still love gaming but for me it’s mostly gone wrong. Overpowered and overpriced hardware and software rule. Machines you cannot really fully utilise and develop for, too powerful. You know the overpriced bit is true when the most popular games are free to own (note, I said own). You know overpowered is true as no machine now gets developed to the max anymore. Remember development teams pushing every last bit out of a computer or console, recently? Remember when that happened?

I still game but rarely on today’s big games. The recent Spider-Man and God of War being the exceptions, along with many bits of Nintendo fun. And God Of War was a bit of a push, thinking back. However, something like Inside or Limbo… happy days. Fantastic and fun. And this is crucial, not 100 hour epics with infinite paths and possibilities. Note, can be played on a phone or a top-end machine too, graphics fantastic as they perfectly fit the game.

The capability of the hardware has exceeded the capability of developers to fully use such, I think. I cannot see how they possibly can now? And in constantly making new hardware every five years it gets worse each generation. It was mainly graphics we saw get the development/improvement, the size and possibilities of games too, but it was the graphics that showed development. But now?

I’m ancient. Late 50s. I was there when home game machines first launched. Grandstand TV, handhelds that were basically dots on a screen. The arrival of the much-loved Spectrum. It changed everything. The innovation that inspired is impossible to imagine today. The way programmers pushed those machines is something we won’t see again.

The best of those games are testament to the fact developers made games fun. Remember fun? It’s been missing for a good while in 90% of games. I can’t imagine today two teenagers hunched over a 14 inch Amstrad plotting how to conquer a single screen on Jet Set Willy (hello Garry, if you’re still with us!).

Circling back I think the wish for an old Zelda game made prettier says it all. Indeed, how much of today’s gaming is old games (or ideas) made prettier and how long can you keep doing that?

I think games need to be cut back. Made fun again. Made by people. Not development teams of hundreds of folk who don’t know each other. Would music ever be made like that? Made to be played and finished. Like, completed by the player. Then get another one.

Anyway, this is too long and could have been longer. I love games but I think it’s not great just now and will get worse before getting better. Off to sunny Edinburgh now to have two hours of fun retro gaming in the museum. Galaxian and co. now a museum exhibition, but I will have fun.
Neil

Inbox also-rans
Why does Microsoft keep making all these cool console mods and controllers and then not selling them? Just using them as competition prizes. I think people might be onto something when they say they’re not very good at marketing.
Lossy

Hang on. We have a Reader’s Feature about Capcom Vs. games at the weekend and the very next day one of the old ones gets re-released out of the blue? Inbox Magic is powerful stuff.
Granville

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The small print
New Inbox updates appear every weekday morning, with special Hot Topic Inboxes at the weekend. Readers’ letters are used on merit and may be edited for length and content.

You can also submit your own 500 to 600-word Reader’s Feature at any time via email or our Submit Stuff page, which if used will be shown in the next available weekend slot.

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