I don’t want to be that guy, but I’m going to give Sony some free advice: do not, under any circumstances, attempt to reintroduce Fairgames at next month’s State of Play.
It doesn’t matter how good the game looks and how much confidence you have in Haven’s work, I’m telling you right here and now: it’s not going to go down well.
I genuinely don’t want to seed negativity, but I’ve been doing this job long enough to know it’s a terrible idea.
If the recently registered trademark Break In is indeed a rebranding of the heist game, then I think the platform holder should reintroduce it separately from the State of Play.
I know it seems insane to suggest a publisher shouldn’t promote one of its upcoming games during its next big livestream, but I’ve seen this scene play out a dozen or so times before.
The people watching your broadcast are the enthusiasts, the ultra-hardcore players – and they despise even the slightest sniff of live service. It will bring the mood down, and it’s not in the best interests of the game.
“But Sammy,” I hear you scream, “everyone hates Horizon Hunters Gathering, and that wasn’t in a State of Play.”
Correct! But we all saw the reaction to that game when it was revealed on a random weekday via the PS Blog; it would have been 1,000x worse if it had been part of a live broadcast.
I think we all remember what happened with Highguard – after all, it wasn’t too long ago.
Yes, there’s a general malaise circling hero shooters anyway, but this game got eviscerated because it had the temerity of being the last announcement at The Game Awards.
Now I think the pent-up fury around that game did help it to achieve impressive day one player numbers; there was a curiosity around it.
But the pitchforks were already out for it, and its prime position during Geoff Keighley’s awards ceremony made it public enemy number one. It was never going to recover from that.
I feel for the folks at Haven because I’m sure all it wants to do is make a game people want to play. And I’m confident it’s pouring its heart and soul into the project.
But the PlayStation fanbase is savage; Sony’s created a culture where only single player games are accepted, and while I don’t think that should deter it from releasing multiplayer games, it has to be careful how it presents them.
I just don’t think State of Play, with its intense enthusiast audience, is that destination. No matter how good it looks, once fans realise what they’re looking at is a rebranded Fairgames, the fury is going to come forth. There’s just no way around this.
I honestly think the manufacturer’s better off just giving the fans what they want: Marvel’s Wolverine, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, maybe even the new God of War. I think we all inherently know the type of games enthusiasts are tuning into a State of Play for.
It doesn’t need to ignore Fairgames forever; just present it differently, separately, at a venue where it has the best possible chance to succeed.
There’ll still be haters, there always is – but State of Play is a death sentence for these types of games now.
That’s the culture Sony’s created in this post-Concord world and it needs to suck it up and accept it for what it is.
There is a way to reintroduce Fairgames and not set the Internet on fire, but I think it’s a fool if it believes State of Play is that place.
And yes, the culture of gaming discourse and the Internet at large is a big fat bummer, but this is the climate PlayStation has to navigate. If it decides to bury its head in the sand, well, don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Do you think Sony will re-reveal Fairgames at next month’s State of Play? Is it the right destination for the game, or should the platform holder take a different approach with this project? Let us know below.
