Sacred Symbols: A PlayStation Podcast

While we await news of PlayStation 5 from Sony (seriously... what the hell are they doing?), news has emerged from two important -- and very different -- projects. First, Ghost of Tsushima, arguably the last of the big PlayStation 4 first party exclusives, finally has a release date, and it's a lot sooner than any of us expected. Then, a more unexpected nugget: The Last of Us is getting an HBO series! But is that a wise risk to take with arguably the brand's most beloved IP? We discuss. Lots of other news is circulating this week, too. Sony Santa Monica loses its longtime leader, Call of Duty's free-to-play battle royale has arrived, E3's slow death continues, and the existence of a Star Wars game called Project Maverick leaks on PSN. Also, listener questions! Why did Ubisoft make such significant changes to The Division 2? Does stress and worry ever stop us from enjoying gaming? Should Sony buy Arc System Works? Is Chris dying of a deadly virus? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Back in 2007, Platinum Games was founded by some of (at the time) Capcom's heaviest hitters, including Shinji Mikami and Hideki Kamiya. Some 13 years later, the team is one of the most respected independent development studios in the world, and it's finally ready to shed its shackles from publishers like SEGA, Activision, and Nintendo, and strike out on its own. So let's chat about it! Plus: The creator of the famous Konami Code has passed away, GDC gets postponed in fear of the Coronavirus, Supermassive's Dark Pictures Anthology is on track to continue this summer, you'll be able to try Predator: Hunting Grounds for free very soon, and more. Then: Listener inquiries! Could there be an XFL video game? Is Xbox Series X's "Smart Delivery" really that big of a deal? What's with WB Montreal's weird, drawn-out Batman teases? Is the Kool-Aid Man the jar or the liquid inside the jar? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Persona 5 Royal comes to western PS4s soon, but an interesting controversy has overtaken the hype. Buried within the massive JRPG's original release are a couple of scenes that a small group of players found homophobic, and in response, Atlus is making some key edits to lessen the blow. The question is, should the publisher be making these changes? Are the scenes even offensive at all? Let's chat about it, and see how we feel. Then, more news! Sony, Kojima Productions, and others are bailing out of upcoming trade shows in fear of Coronavirus, EA cancels yet another Star Wars game, Call of Duty's upcoming battle royale mode may just surprise you, THQ Nordic just can't stop buying companies, and more! Following that: Listener inquiries! Would we play a game with the American military as the antagonists? How important of a factor should inflation be in the cost of gaming hardware? What happened to Ubisoft's Skull and Bones? Is Chris a communist? Let's go! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The American publication Bloomberg is typically a reliable source of information, and a recent story within its pages tells an interesting tale. It appears Sony is having a hard time keeping production costs of PlayStation 5 down, so much so that it's delaying the Japanese corporation's ability to determine what it should charge for the console, or if it can even turn a profit selling it. There's even reportedly a little civil war going on internally, with some powers-that-be convinced profit should be extracted no matter what, even if it affects demand. Should we be worried? Well, maybe. We discuss. Then again, other news flows this week, too! After four Need For Speeds, EA is taking the series away from Ghost Games and giving it back to Criterion, Quantic Dream leaps forward into the great self-publishing unknown, People Can Fly's Destiny-like Outriders is PS5-bound, Ubisoft wants The Division 2 to live again, and much more. Plus: Listener inquiries! Was the Sonic movie any good? Should Untitled Goose Game really be DICE's Game of the Year? Is E3 in an uncontrollable death spiral? Can we please -- for the love of all that is holy in this world -- stop talking about Kingdom Hearts? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

By now, you've undoubtedly heard of the Coronavirus, a lethal illness originating in mainland China that has so far claimed the lives of more than a thousand people. What you may not have considered, however, is how this might affect PlayStation 5. No: We're not kidding. Game consoles are manufactured in Chinese factories, and it's entirely possible that Coronavirus could delay PS5's launch, a possibility so real that even a mainstream investment firm is warning its clients of such an eventuality. Should we really fear such a delay? Would Sony launch a supply-constrained console instead of being late to market? Do people really need to be eating bats to begin with? We discuss. This episode is chock-full of other news, too! Long-time Rockstar creative lead Dan Houser is leaving the studio he helped create, Sony shut down a first party studio that never so much as released a game, BioWare and EA simply won't stop trying to make Anthem happen, and much more. Also: Let's hear from you, dear listener! Has Chris been unexpectedly teaching Colin a thing or two about video games? How come Ninja Theory stopped working with Sony? Will we ever give Yakuza a chance? Should one listener return his old roommate's forgotten PlayStation 2 games, even if he hated that roommate? Let's go deep. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

PlayStation Plus' free game offerings have always been a little hit or miss, but this month, an essential compilation comes to the service: The BioShock Collection. BioShock, BioShock Infinite, and even BioShock 2 are some of the best games last-gen has to offer, and the original title in particular is an absolute must-play. If you haven't enjoyed these gems yet, you should, and we tell you why now's the time, since they're free-of-charge and all. But how about some news, too?! Sony is sending out random surveys asking some mighty interesting questions about Remote Play, Platinum Games is bringing Wii U-exclusive The Wonderful 101 to PS4 via Kickstarter, Respawn's Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order exceeds EA's sales expectations, Cyberpunk 2077's delay might not be so dire after all, and much more. Plus: Listener questions! Is the PS3 a retro console? How many AAA exclusives should come to PlayStation 5 each calendar year? Why aren't there more games with destructible environments? Is it time we accept that you can't capture a human being in a Pokéball? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When money flows from companies that call communist dictatorships home, those funds typically come with strings attached. Activision-Blizzard learned this the hard way just months ago, but it hasn't stopped western teams from accepting this cash with reckless abandon. The next business about to get gobbled up by Chinese conglomerate Tencent is the Norwegian MMO dev-slash-pub Funcom, and Tencent is even willing to pay a staggering 30% over market value for the honor. The big question is: Why? When bizarre corporate cultures and diverging governments collide, it can make for some choppy waters. So let's chat about this recent acquisition-to-be, and what it might mean. Also: Housemarque makes another sharp left turn, the Uncharted movie no one wants gets delayed again, Daybreak is splitting into three separate teams, and much more. Plus: Could Xbox ever win Colin over? Should Sony purchase Kojima Productions? Is our new cross-gen reality about to create some unexpected problems? Can you capture a person in a Pokéball? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The year started out quietly enough... that is until all of the delays began and started ruining our lives. Final Fantasy VII Remake. Cyberpunk 2077. Dying Light 2. The Avengers. Even that completely random Iron Man VR game wasn't immune! But should we be concerned about the reworked schedule? Or has the shifting calendar serendipitously bought us precious time to catch up on our backlogs? We discuss. Plus: It looks like Horizon is coming to PC, Call of Duty absolutely dominated last decade's sales charts, Monster Hunter: World continues to crush it for Capcom, and much more. Then, listener questions! Does E3's decline signal the end of The ESA? What's with all of the tiny text in games? Could DualShock 5 have a small screen on it? Was Chris riding a bicycle through the streets of London last week? All of that (and much more) right after you press the play button. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For nearly a decade, WB Montreal has existed in the shadow of its better-known and more-beloved sister studio Rocksteady. But finally, it appears the Quebecois dev is poised to break out. Yet again, the team has teased a vague image on its social media channels that almost certainly points towards a new Batman game, something WB Montreal has dabbled in in the past with 2013's Arkham Origins. But with Rocksteady's Arkham Trilogy getting all of the respect and Origins getting precious little, is WB Montreal walking into a trap? We talk it through. Then: Media Molecule's Dreams finally goes gold, Platinum Games confusingly accepts substantial Chinese investment, Capcom is emphasizing the Remake in Resident Evil 3 Remake, and Nioh 2 is so friggin' hard that Team Ninja is toning it down. Plus: Will Beyond Good & Evil 2 ever come out? How do we define "hardcore" gaming? Is Tetris Effect dropping the ball when it comes to DLC? Should a man be murdered for thinking Friends is better than Seinfeld? There's much to discuss! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Most of you know EA-owned DICE as the Scandinavian creators of the Battlefield series (and the resuscitators of Star Wars Battlefront, too), but tucked quietly away in Los Angeles is a DICE support studio aptly called DICE LA. DICE LA is essentially the remnants of the old Medal of Honor team Danger Close that's since been relegated to secondary status, but it appears all of that's about to change. Electronic Arts has opted to dispatch the creative might of Respawn co-founder Vince Zampella to revitalize and rebrand the dev, with a new game promised for the coming years. Is this a wise move, or is EA getting distracted by shiny objects to the detriment of perhaps its most reliable talent? Let's chat about it. Then: Sony talks PlayStation 5 at CES (kinda), Dragon Quest XII is officially in development, Final Fantasy VII Remake is getting a demo, and much more. Plus: Listener questions galore, and Colin tells Chris he's getting drafted and going to Iran to fight on our behalf. How unfortunate for him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

2019 was an interesting year for games. While we eagerly await The Next Generation (no, not the Star Trek show, you godforsaken nerds), a litany of good, great, and even fantastic games hit our precious PlayStation 4 in recent months, and now that the last year is in the books, it's time to look back on some of the best titles '19 had to offer. Without further ado, here are our favorite games of the past 365 days or so, with a special Sacred Symbols twist: A bunch of completely made-up awards, some of which no developer would actually want to win. Alas! We simply couldn't help ourselves. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It wasn't even a year ago that prolific Polish developer CD Projekt and The Witcher's creator Andrzej Sapkowski found themselves in a legal battle over the beloved fantasy IP. But times certainly do change. Both sides of the dispute have announced that, in the wake of their dispute, they'll now be working more closely together than ever. Go figure. But what does it all mean?! We discuss. Plus: What's with this new DualShock 4 peripheral? Should we be excited about these fresh Capcom trademarks coming out of Japan? Who will buy the Nintendo PlayStation prototype going up for auction next year? Plus, listener questions! Does Sony San Diego have Xbox Series X dev kits? Will Colin get Twin Breaker's Platinum Trophies before anyone else? Why do PlayStation gamers love PornHub so much? How does "Peggy" come from "Margaret"? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As PlayStation 5 lumbers toward us like an AT-AT stomping across Hoth (but in a good way), the calendar has left us with precious few PS4 exclusives of consequence. The Last of Us: Part II is obviously the King of the Unreleased, and Dreams is a commercial long-shot, but Ghost of Tsushima might just be the most intriguing of the bunch. One part third-person action game and another part historical fiction, Sucker Punch's eagerly-anticipated PlayStation 4 swan song finally has a release date. Well, window. So let's chat about it. Oh, and have we mentioned we're making a PS4/Vita game of our own? It's true! It's called Twin Breaker, and we're super excited to tell you more. Along with other announcements out of The Game Awards and news from parts elsewhere, we fit in some of your inquiries, too. Does Final Fantasy VII Remake's lack of PS4 exclusivity matter? Does Capcom risk going overboard with the remakes? Is Death Stranding getting critically short-changed? Why is Dick a nickname for Richard? Mysteries abound! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Since 1997, Sony has published an annual baseball game -- once eponymously called MLB and more recently dubbed The Show -- that has lived exclusively in its ecosystem. Indeed, for the last 15 years or so, PlayStation has dedicated a first party studio to essentially (and obsessively) focusing on America's pastime. So recent news that MLB: The Show would begin publishing outside of PlayStation platforms beginning in 2021 came as a bit of a shock. It's a first for Sony, and it's a story that requires some study and analysis. So let's dance. Of course, other news occurred since we last met, too, particularly surrounding 2019's final State of Play stream. Dreams is ready to emerge, Resident Evil 3 is real (and spectacular), and Ghost of Tsushima is quietly creeping up. Naturally, dear listener, we could never forget about you. Ever! So let's take some of your questions, comments, concerns, thoughts, and ideas as we do each week, on topics ranging from political ads in games and the return of Resistance to the future of SOCOM and the power of Jesus Christ. In gaming form, anyway. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In December of 1994, the original PlayStation launched in Japan, and the rest (as they say) is history. Fast-forward 25 years, and the PlayStation brand is an absolute powerhouse. PSone, PS2, and PS4 have all surpassed 100 million sold (only one other home video game console has ever done the same), and even those that fell short -- PS3, PSP, and even Vita -- have all left an indelible mark on our industry. So let's celebrate, shall we? Then, let's get into some news! Hideo Kojima's longtime producer has officially left his side after nearly two decades, more PS5 dev kits have popped up in the wild, Codemasters made a new studio purchase, and Titanfall 2 dramatically returns as a free PS+ game. Also, listener inquiries! What does the increasing prevalence of digital marketplaces mean for game sharing? Is PS4 Remote Play on iOS and Android viable? How do games with broken Trophies make it through certification? Does anyone in this world like Long John Silver's? Let's talk it through. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices