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84
Sony backtracks on the Helldivers 2 mess: "The May 6 update, which would have required Steam and PlayStation Network account linking...will not be moving forward." (twitter.com)
posted 2 years ago by Totsugeki 2 years ago by Totsugeki +84 / -0
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Comments (63)
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▲ 71 ▼
– Chillin_in_PNW 71 points 2 years ago +71 / -0

and we’ll keep you updated on future plans.

That sounds like 'we'll just do it later' talk.

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▲ 38 ▼
– alucard13mmfmj 38 points 2 years ago +38 / -0

Its like microtransactions. 8 years ago, people rejected it. Now.. most people accept it and it seems if you speak out, they call you man babies or go touch grass.

Slippery slope is real. All the cancerous crap we endure today is because of it. Trannies, microtransaction, national debt, crime.

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▲ 18 ▼
– TomSeeSaw 18 points 2 years ago +18 / -0

All rooted at the feet of people that say "it's ok". Fuck the participation trophy tards.

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▲ 7 ▼
– Vebent 7 points 2 years ago +7 / -0

Exactly my thoughts. If they don't implement it in this game then they will do it in a future game. They will also make it a requirement to get PS+. That's their moneymaker right there.

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– nuggetpatrol 4 points 2 years ago +4 / -0

Something tells me you're right, they'll just play the long game. These games will all require PSN accounts and they'll be mandatory. They're just relenting in the here and now because of the massive fuck up it's been.

I still say that they should have done it the soft way. Make PSN creating and linking optional. If you don't do it, you can't cross play with PS players. It's that simple. I mean heck, people have also mentioned they would do it if they were incentivized. A skin, or some in game currency or something to sweeten the deal.

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▲ 3 ▼
– deleted 3 points 2 years ago +3 / -0
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– deleted 12 points 2 years ago +12 / -0
▲ 5 ▼
– WeedleTLiar 5 points 2 years ago +5 / -0

The desperation of it make me think the Stellar Blade/PSN cancellations hit them pretty hard.

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▲ 52 ▼
– 8BitArchitect 52 points 2 years ago +52 / -0

You create/fund a massively popular game, then you tank it so hard that Steam won't even cover for you like they normally do when a game gets "review bombed". Good job Sony.

Even with this backtrack you aren't getting that goodwill back. You could've continued selling the game for $40 almost indefinitely on that goodwill and people still would've bought your game for that even years out. But now you've made people hesitant to buy it even if it's on sale. I haven't seen a fuckup this colossal on a released game maybe ever.

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▲ 40 ▼
– BandageBandolier 40 points 2 years ago +40 / -0

tank it so hard that Steam won't even cover for you like they normally do when a game gets "review bombed".

I think steam is probably more than happy to let any publisher get curbstomped for trying to cram their third party logins or launchers down customers throats.

They might cover for other shitty business practices with "off-topic review" bullshit, but Valve likes the loyalty being the biggest userbase launcher brings, they're not gonna help anyone usurp that even a little.

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– ParadigmShift2070 3 points 2 years ago +3 / -0

Also this has potential to be mutli national class action lawsuit and breaking EU laws, valve isn't going to cover for Sony

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▲ 14 ▼
– deleted 14 points 2 years ago +14 / -0
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– SoctaticMethod1 24 points 2 years ago +24 / -0

Not even close, that's just failure to deliver, this would be like making GTA Online only available to Rockstar members after 10 years.

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– GoldenInnosStatue 3 points 2 years ago +3 / -0

The fact that Steam didn't actually remove negative reviews was real refreshing, usually these scummy fucks cover for big woke companies but this time they didn't, they also granted refunds to those who played more than 2 hours because EU/Aussie consumer protection laws (though americans have none of that shit)

i think its the pressure of the negative reviews and refunds that pressured them to reverse that decision, usually they just treat their customers like garbage and expect the people to continue as "usual" but they outjew'd their hand to the point where everyone on twitter/youtube knew about their schemes (the leaked "we are using playstation network to ban people we don't like")

though gamers precieve it as a "victory" but if i was granted a refund i'd take it leave this company to its own devices, since the "community managers" are literal trannies who HATE gamers with a burning passion, until these subversive degenerates are purged from the company, only then and there will my faith in this company will be restored

otherwise continue to precieve them as hostile because that's usually the case, hell i bet in 2 months (or even 1 month) they'll try to sneakily add the playstation network thing again, albit with better PR

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▲ 31 ▼
– SoctaticMethod1 31 points 2 years ago +31 / -0

There NEEDS to be firings for this:

For Arrowhead, a few community managers who were less damage control more adding fuel by antagonising the community.

From Sony, a LOT of executives and managers need to go. The people that thought this was a good idea and tried to implement this being high on the list. We still don't know if Helldivers 2 will recover after 2 days of immense negativity, if it wasn't for the communication of their CEO I'd say it couldn't but it'll take time.

Sony did a power grab and blinked so they have lost A TON of reputation for nothing and have now taught gamers to fight back HARD for results.

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▲ 12 ▼
– deleted 12 points 2 years ago +12 / -0
▲ 12 ▼
– SoctaticMethod1 12 points 2 years ago +12 / -0

I hope gamers remember this win and learn to replicate the same again with any other game worth fighting for (as let's be honest, we'll fight for a Stellar Blade but NO ONE gives a shit about suicide squad).

I'll laugh if the Helldivers community becomes a training camp on how to organise and fight against horrible business decisions in the gaming industry.

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▲ 14 ▼
– throwawayaccount2037 14 points 2 years ago +14 / -0

Keep in mind that Helldivers 2's whole design was around fighting for a unified cause.

The developers ironically designed atmosphere that mentally trained everyone to focus with incessant diligence on a singular mission for "Super Earth".

As much as it was/is a meme, it's also something DARPA has probably been watching with keen eyes as people from around the world came together to achieve a singular mission using the exact same tactics that the game taught them to use, and for a cause that the game taught them to fight for.

Within two days you had a quarter of a million negative reviews from people across more than 150 countries using the platform to send Sony a very obvious message.

I think it worked well in the Helldivers 2 case because the game managed to build people's psychological profile to enact the exact kind of action that was required to get these kind of results.

As you stated, no one is going to fight like this for Suicide Squad because no one cares. Will people fight this hard for Stellar Blade? Maybe. It depends. But the Helldivers 2 case is a unique one because I've seen a lot of people say that they scored a hard-fought victory just like Melovan Creek, so they've likened this activism to the same kind of grinding they did in the actual game.

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▲ 9 ▼
– SoctaticMethod1 9 points 2 years ago +9 / -0

'Gamerfied resistance'

That should strike terror into any establishment type with a brain if we look at dismantling their plans and corrupt regime as a way to farm XP lol

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▲ 7 ▼
– WeedleTLiar 7 points 2 years ago +7 / -0

This is valid, but don't underestimate how stupid the move was on Sony's part. They literally made the game unplayable in any country where PSN isn't available (which is dumb in the first place).

Stellar Blade censorship is a bitch move, but the game is at least still playable.

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▲ 2 ▼
– deleted 2 points 2 years ago +2 / -0
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– Piroko 8 points 2 years ago +8 / -0

have now taught gamers to fight back HARD for results

This is not news, it's just rarely been successful because what's necessary is for the response to be instantaneous.

It's kinda like artillery. How long you bombard a target has basically no impact on effectiveness. The effectiveness is determined by how much boom you get in the opening seconds of the barrage. Once the survivors are in cover you're not doing any damage.

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▲ 4 ▼
– Kaarous 4 points 2 years ago +4 / -0

While the point is fine, that is not how artillery works.

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– SoctaticMethod1 2 points 2 years ago +2 / -0

It's kinda like artillery. How long you bombard a target has basically no impact on effectiveness. The effectiveness is determined by how much boom you get in the opening seconds of the barrage. 

Don't know about that, I do like the Death Korps of Kreig mentality of bombing an area for centuries until there is nothing left THEN accepting their surrender lol.

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▲ 3 ▼
– Piroko 3 points 2 years ago +3 / -0

Don't know about that

True story, the US Army did casualty analyses of WW1 and determined that artillery barrages have a diminishing returns effect as survivors get into cover. It's what governed the development of time-on-target missions, to maximize the amount of metal falling in the opening seconds.

Time-on-target: Rather than assigning a battery to shell a target for a period of time, a central HQ directs ALL available batteries to put a couple shells on target, synchronized so that all shells arrive at the same time regardless of travel distance. MRSI (multiple-round-simultaneous-impact) takes the same concept and uses different powder charges and elevations in the same gun to get even more rounds to arrive at the same time

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▲ 4 ▼
– WeedleTLiar 4 points 2 years ago +4 / -0

Interesting.

So if you were to, say, bomb a city to kill certain leaders, it would be totally pointless to continue for months? Especially if you knew they had a vast network of underground tunnels?

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▲ 2 ▼
– ernsithe 2 points 2 years ago +2 / -0

Maybe. But if someone else is paying for all the bombs, is there really a reason to stop dropping them?

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▲ 2 ▼
– SoctaticMethod1 2 points 2 years ago +2 / -0

Oh I don't question the reality of what you are saying, I just have enough bitterness that even if they surrendered I'm going to say 'continue the barrage' till there's only a hole in the ground..

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▲ 4 ▼
– Kaarous 4 points 2 years ago +4 / -0

I do question it, because it ignores the purpose of artillery as suppression, morale killer and area denial. I mean for God's sakes we have a modern day trench warfare situation right now as plain as day as an example to draw from.

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▲ 4 ▼
– OmegaBird 4 points 2 years ago +4 / -0

Arrowhead themselves are also responsible and not free of guilt.

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▲ 2 ▼
– ArchRespawnsAgain 2 points 2 years ago +2 / -0

Community Tranagers

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▲ 30 ▼
– Adamrises 30 points 2 years ago +30 / -0

Too bad a large amount of people already refunded it and almost certainly aren't coming back.

Its a real lose lose here. Because now they've already lost the money and good will, but also look weak and pathetic by backtracking on it. Especially as we all know they only did it because the backlash was getting bad enough to fuck up their big conference call soon.

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▲ 14 ▼
– BandageBandolier 14 points 2 years ago +14 / -0

They might actually just be trying to stem the refund tide. The game has already sold crazy well, they probably have more to lose from existing purchases than new ones.

All the refunds past the guaranteed grace period are at valve's discretion. They were refusing at least some refunds at the start of the shitstorm, maybe by undoing the announcement they're hoping to not lose any more of their banked sales by not giving valve good reason to approve any more refunds.

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▲ 1 ▼
– Adamrises 1 point 2 years ago +1 / -0

I know I been trying for a few days and haven't gotten past the auto bot, while most of my buddies have.

Now I'm fairly certain I won't get it any longer. Which sucks but I can't be too upset as I still got my fun out of the price.

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– VA-Pede 3 points 2 years ago +3 / -0

And you know they're going to just try and to it again in the future

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▲ 27 ▼
– Hellsbells00 27 points 2 years ago +27 / -0

Meanwhile it's still forced always online DRM for a perr to peer game, still has rootkit malware "anticheat" bundled with it that can fuck up your system and is beyond layman ability to remove without a clean OS reinstall, and still has freemium cancer.

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▲ 2 ▼
– deleted 2 points 2 years ago +2 / -0
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– jimjim19875 2 points 2 years ago +2 / -0

It's amazing isn't it, how people will rally to such a degree to change the least bad thing about the game, but ignore everything else wrong with it.

Gamers rise up etc.

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▲ 1 ▼
– Happygo 1 point 2 years ago +1 / -0

Damn I removed the game. I didn't know I couldn't get rid of the software without a full OS wipe

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▲ 1 ▼
– Hellsbells00 1 point 2 years ago +1 / -0

There is apparently a third party tool for removing it without that, but I've never had to deal with it so YMMV.

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– ModsAreAIDS 25 points 2 years ago +25 / -0

The damage is still done. People know that the sword of Damocles is hanging over their heads now. I'm sure some will go crawling back, but their success will never be what it was before all of this.

The fact that Arrowhead knew all of this was coming six months ago and didn't say anything is absurd. If these AA developers are going to act no differently than the AAA studios, they will be going down with them in the coming crash. Fuck Arrowhead. Fuck Shift Up. Fuck Sony.

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▲ 24 ▼
– Adamrises 24 points 2 years ago +24 / -0

The fact that Arrowhead knew all of this was coming six months ago and didn't say anything is absurd.

Everyone at that studio should probably have thier social media revoked, because I've never seen a sadder bunch of attempts at dispelling controversy that watching their CM and CEO keep stepping on landmines and making the situation sound worse.

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▲ 8 ▼
– Tourgen 8 points 2 years ago +8 / -0

you already know this, but most people are midwits at best. you could probably do better, and you should try. start today. do it now. making a game is rough work but it is doable. Look at Helldivers (the first game). You can make this in Godot.

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– Totsugeki [S] 12 points 2 years ago +12 / -0

Arrowhead knew all of this was coming six months ago and didn't say anything is absurd

In Arrowhead's defense, they never anticipated six months ago how much this game would blow up. They then spent weeks in crunch time just trying to keep the servers alive. Then Sony starts demanding that they crack down on PSN linking even though Sony, who is in charge of sales, sold the game in countries with no PSN support. Sony deserves the bulk of the blame here.

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▲ 17 ▼
– BandageBandolier 17 points 2 years ago +17 / -0

Some of Arrowheads own staff were initially on twitter basically just saying 'sucks to suck, you won't be missed'.

They changed their tune as the backlash grew but they've showed their true colours and can't hide them now, they were on board with this.

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▲ 15 ▼
– ModsAreAIDS 15 points 2 years ago +15 / -0

A lie of omission is still a lie. Arrowhead is equally guilty, just like Shift Up is for their mess. "Just following orders" will never earn any sympathy from me.

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▲ 16 ▼
– Canuckistani_Refugee 16 points 2 years ago +16 / -0

The real issue at the end of the day was that Sony willfully listed the game on Steam in regions that cannot (without breaking ToS) create a PSN account. Even if the account linking requirement was supposed to be in from the start and only got kicked down the road due to server issues, Sony created a shitstorm largely because of how widely listed the game was. Arrowhead isn't to blame for that aspect at the very least, because the reason studios opt for a publisher is to manage logistics, like where to sell the game.

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– Kaarous 3 points 2 years ago +3 / -0

That was Steam doing it to go after the publisher for the potential refund shit storm.

Sony wasn't awake and at work til last night, and odds are their executives crapped themselves when they walked in.

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▲ 1 ▼
– ModsAreAIDS 1 point 2 years ago +1 / -0

I haven't once said that Arrowhead is entirely to blame, so I don't know why people keep responding to me as if I did. Go read the responses that Arrowhead employees were making to angry gamers on Twitter over this and see if you are still so willing to go to the mat for them.

Arrowhead knew this was coming since before they launched and didn't say anything about it to warn their customers. And then when customers were upset, they laughed in their faces and told them to go fuck themselves. They have plenty of responsibility for the problem that has absolutely nothing to do with Sony. So once again, they are equally responsible here, and no amount of "bu bu but Sony!" is going to convince me otherwise.

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– realerfunction 15 points 2 years ago +15 / -0

too little too late

show some sincerity, i want to see firings.

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– Careless_Ejaculator 14 points 2 years ago +14 / -0

Boy, the gamers in the comment section sure are eager to get back to licking Sony's boots.

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– ArchRespawnsAgain 14 points 2 years ago +14 / -0

Imagine a blue and white boot stomping on a human face forever.

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– AryanIQFacts1488 13 points 2 years ago +13 / -0

Whoa I thought we were talking about Sony, why are you bringing up Israel? lmao ;D

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– OmegaBird 3 points 2 years ago +3 / -0

This, im glad some of us that the integrity to punish devs and publishers with no recourse. It should serve as a warning to future devs.

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– Hugs 6 points 2 years ago +6 / -0

I think the damage is done, sorry Sony. I was going to try this game at some point, but now I don't have confidence that my efforts can't or won't be ripped away from me.

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– WeedleTLiar 4 points 2 years ago +4 / -0

I started actively distrusting Sony when they pulled OtherOS from the PS3, and then sued the hackers who got it running again.

If they're willing, and legally able, to remove an existing feature that was a selling point of the console, they're capable of anything.

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– Norenia 2 points 2 years ago +2 / -0

Same. I had it on wishlist, but took it off at the "AcKsHuAlLy, it's woke AF, because we have women and blacks" nonsense, that and I figure it's best played with a regular group of buddies, which I don't exactly have right now.

Arrowhead can still get themselves out of this hole, but Sony is basically making it clear they can't be trusted ever again. I dropped PS4 at the California move and saw how they started treating Japanese devs.

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– OmegaBird 4 points 2 years ago +4 / -0

Fuck off and die SOYNY and take helldivers with you. I would be very disappointed if people went back to this game. It would be as equally pathetic of a weak backtrack of the helldivers community to return as it was for SOYNY to backtrack their decision. They need to eat those class action law suits and this game NEEDS to fail.

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– JiggsawCalrissian 4 points 2 years ago +4 / -0

Nice, damage is done though

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– ThreeLights 3 points 2 years ago +3 / -0

For their reputation, yea but it went from fractions to negative numbers. For the sheeple, they will still buy Sony schlock.

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– KingLion7 4 points 2 years ago +4 / -0

Hopefully, Sony got tired of Steam and Helldivers fans pimp slapping them.

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– ThePipeGuy 3 points 2 years ago +3 / -0

Soyny - After we completely destroy anu good will and reputation we've decided not to go forward with it (for now).

Damage is already done, good luck getting it back.

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– You_Are_Based 3 points 2 years ago +3 / -0

Ha ha!

NelsonMuntzPointing.jpg

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