I don't have a "current gen" system right now , but PlayStation has done a good job getting me the most interested and excited in the short term. I also have Gamefly so I can rent whatever retail games come out on PS5.

Shorter term (I already played Miles Morales and Sackboy)

• Megaton-Tier - God of War Ragnarok , Horizon Forbidden West
• 1st-Tier - Spider-Man 2
• 2nd-Tier - Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart , Returnal , Demon's Souls
• 3rd-Tier -
• 4th-Tier - Astro's Playroom
• 5th-Tier -
• Not interested-Tier - GT 7 , Destruction AllStars

The combination of Horizon Forbidden West coming so soon and having 4 other games I want to play make me want a PS5 now. I also want to play Iki Island on PS5 at some point. I haven't played that yet. Ragnarok is coming too!

Longer term -

• Wolverine - I would expect a 2nd-Tier game at least from the great Insomniac.
• Ghost of Tsushima 2 - I expect a sequel and another 2nd-Tier game at least from the great Sucker Punch. I also love me some inFAMOUS. So if they go that direction , that's cool too.

I have a good amount of confidence in PlayStation Studios developing/publishing if history is anything to go by. There should be enough other things to play - killer , filler , and stuff in the middle ranges of those.

Microsoft has Hellblade 2 possibly around the 2nd-Tier range in the short term and it doesn't seem that is close to release yet (Maybe 2023?) , but what they showed recently didn't get me excited yet. Everything else out now or soonish are more lower-tier filler , lower interest , or no interest stuff.

I'm not a fan of Bugthesda wrpgs and when I see possible Bethesda clones I get turned off a bit too. I'm trying to keep an open mind , but so many wrpgs I either skip or are overrated when do I try them. Not a big fan of the genre I guess. Shooters are fine , but are typically more filler than killer. I really don't have a good feel on what some of their farther out games are going to be like in my mind - Perfect Dark , Fable , etc. Only time will tell.

Apparently , a Game Director from Lucid Games has joined Firesprite as Game Director. Looks like Firesprite will get to do the Twisted Metal game.

Firesprite's announced game and some potential prospects for the future -

• Horizon Call of the Mountain
• a multiplayer shooter
• a dark narrative adventure
• Twisted Metal

It appears they are setting up threats to the world and humanity , and given the revelations of the first game ... Aloy seems to realize how important she can be and is more accepting of greater responsibilities. She found purpose in life. It will be interesting to see what Sylens wants to do. That dude is very mysterious and real wildcard. And how will Aloy's friends and companions play a role and how they affect her.

God of War Ragnarok is going to have the same sorts of challenges. The way we learned about the world , Atreus , Kratos , Freya , Tyr , etc ... was just so interesting and compelling. How do you follow that up?

The Last of Us had the same challenges , but they were able to expand the world - scars , wolves , rattlers , new characters , different states , etc. And the emotional impacts , the way the sequel tied to the first game , and all of the different themes they touched really made you think.

It can be done. It's just a matter of will they? I can't wait to find out.

I don't put to much stock into these kinds or rumors or guesses , people have misled before.

But it will be interesting to see how Sony handles everything for the first half of the year. Square apparently wants to show FF XVI in the spring and it's probably close for a Naughty Dog game reveal (possibly multiple). And Helldivers 2 leaked , so there's that too .And PSVR 2 needs a blowout.

• Horizon and GT 7 State of Plays? They probably don't need them given all of the videos/info drops. It's hard to say.
• At least one State of Play for Indies and some Japanese games like always? Seems likely.
• A PSVR 2 blowout? Seems extremely likely , but how and when?
• A Showcase event? - Might be possible. Final Fantasy XVI , God of War Ragnarok + release date , 3rd party games , some new 1st party game reveals

Should they just wait until spring and combine the PSVR 2 event and a Showcase event so more people see the PSVR 2 pitch and games? PSVR 2 blowout + games , Final Fantasy XVI , God of War Ragnarok and release date , 3rd party , and some new 1st party reveals around May ? That would be great imo.

I would assume Zelda > Elden Ring > Horizon as far as scores.

But I'm most excited about Horizon right now. I loved the first , and it appears they took some of the criticisms of Zero Dawn to heart. They are showing or promising -

• Better combat against humans
• Better melee
• Better/more traversal/exploration
• Better cinematics
• Livelier settlements
• A revamped skill tree
• More scanning abilities and info
• Better sidequest rewards
• A less cluttered HUD
• More time with Companions
• The ability to create jobs for upgrade parts
• Bigger weapon wheel

We know about the additions of battle surges (special abilities) , workbenches , a mini-game , and fighting pits. Also the menu for traps in the trailer is something different from the first.Throw in the expected - new machines , new weapons , new tribes , new areas , top notch sound design, top notch graphics/effects , great animations , good music , a solid level of destruction/physics , etc.

I'm curious to see how well they do with the world , story , events , and characters. They were able to be really compelling with the first because everything was so fresh and the way things unfolded - the world , young Aloy , Rost , Teersa , Sylens , Gaia , Ted Faro , the mysteries of the world and Aloy , and the revelations. How to follow that up and keep things compelling seems like a good challenge and a mystery.

Which ones did you beat (and like)? Which ones did you drop temporarily or drop for good ?

My first thought is that it makes me want to play the game less , not more. What a strange thing to tout.

2021 recap - Subscription services/Free game offerings - How much did you play in 2021? What games did you beat? I'm curious to see what and how much people are playing on these services and the freebies. Feel free to comment on the games.

It was a down year for me without owning a PS5 yet. I wanted to play some other games only on PS5 or wanted to wait and play the PS5 versions of games like Kena.

Games beaten on subscription services - Gamefly/PS+ - I liked them all to a certain extent.

• Gris
• Sackboy A Big Adventure
• Little Nightmares 2
• Immortals Fennyx Rising
• Nier Replicant
• Resident Evil Village
• Life Is Strange True Colors
• The Persistence

I also played some of these

• Enter the Gungeon - played a lot , but didn't beat it yet. I suck I guess.
• Rez Infinite - tried for a bit , fell off
• PGA Tour 2K21 - Tried it some , but it just made me want to play Everybody's Golf instead. Deleted it.
• Alan Wake Remastered - played some in 2021 , finished it in 2022

What about you? What were your experiences?

I'm assuming management took a lot of different things into account

• The long and hard development cycle - 6+ years
• Development spend
• Marketing spend
• Return
• John Garvin's management style/skills or lack thereof
• John Garvin's management training and the results
• John Garvin's firing - a major driving force for Days Gone
• Bugs at launch / patches needed
• Reviews
• What people were saying - Podcasts / message boards
• How much people were playing / how far they were getting
• Potential Days Gone burnout from some of the team the team / what some devs and management wanted to do next
• SIE portfolio
• The pitch for the sequel
• etc.

I liked Days Gone enough and very likely would've played a sequel if it seemed as good or better , but I'm not mad about it not getting a sequel. Not every game is going to be greenlit and not every project gets off the ground (like their Uncharted attempt). Hopefully they make something that they like making and appeals to me , but it's not the end of the world if they don't.

What are your gaming plans for 2022?

I'm mostly planning on playing catch-up , and tackling 3 new AAA beasts - Horizon FW , God of War R , Elden Ring

• Alan Wake Remastered - finish it (now playing)
• Persona 5 Strikers - try it at least (PS+)
• Acquire a PS5
• Horizon Forbidden West
• Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart
• Astro's Playroom
• Demon's Souls
• Returnal
• Iki Island/Ghost of Tsushima Director's Cut
• Kena Bridge of Spirits
• God of War 2018 - (replay)
• God of War Ragnarok
• Elden Ring

I'm open to some other stuff , but I'm not sure for the rest of 2022 - GotG , Psychonauts 2 , SIFU , Dying Light 2 , Suicide Squad , Gotham Knights , etc. Only time will tell.