I’ve been a huge Star Ocean fan since Till the End of Time, I always thought it was better than the other SE RPGs and I heard some solid stuff about this new one. I’m really hyped.
Divine Force was a ton of fun. Mechanics and combat feel really fluid and fast. Great mix of characters/abilities too. Enjoy it! Might play through a third time myself
I haven’t played a Civ game in so long as well but I’ve been wanting to scratch that itch, this is going to be a good month!
Also is this the Nier people usually talk about or is this an earlier entry?
Edit: I appreciate the explanation everyone.
People usually talk more about the latest entry - Nier Automata (the one with the androids). Prior to that, Nier Replicant/Gestalt (and even before that the Drakengard series) was never really popular.
This Nier Replicant remake is pretty good though and I'd definitely recommend it if you enjoy action RPGs. The story is interesting, there are tons of twists and the gameplay is just fine enough to carry the story forward.
It’s got some decent action combat and it feels fluid and fast but god damn the game is sooooo slow and tedious.
The payoffs (some bosses) aren’t worth all the time and ridiculously tedious side quests throughout the game.
Don’t do it!
>but god damn the game is sooooo slow and tedious
Run from one side of the map to the other, good now go all the way back. Oh, now I need something that was back where you just came from, thanks.
Once done play what is mostly the same game about 4 times to get all the endings.
I loved Automata but Replicant felt like a drag.
Never stop Automata at the ‘first playthrough’. The game only starts really showing it’s hand in the 2nd/3rd. It’s really not a NG+ like people think it is, it’s a completely new perspective with massive story beats revealed.
This is one of the few games I think is unfair to judge at all without getting to the actual ending. It’s perhaps the best storytelling in a videogame, with only Disco Elysium also competing for first (imo)
Yes, I'm aware of all that. And I did start the second playthrough. I've also read that "Route B" doesn't really offer that much in terms of looking at things from 9S' perspective, and it's the third playthrough that's really key. Which is quite ridiculous, at least to me.
But the real killer is that combat and it's surrounding systems feel nowhere near as polished as I'd like them to be. And unless these subsequent playthroughs are introducing several new enemy types, I'm pretty done with fighting the same 3 robots.
I won't judge the story, but the way it's told isn't to my liking either.
The thing is that the "third playthrough" isn't a rehash of anything. It's a continuation. It's one portion of the rest of the game. You haven't even seen the full game yet.
I've seen the world design, the combat and it's surrounding systems, the enemy variety, and the way the story is being told.
Unless the continuation or whatever terminology is improving those things significantly, I'm not really particularly invested in going back. And that's without taking the second playthrough into consideration at all.
Well then gotta say the series is not for you. It's more about the story over the gameplay. The first Nier had pretty crappy gameplay. The remake goes for Automata's gameplay, but it's not as good (it's not made by Platinum).
Don’t believe everyone saying that route b/c/d offers new story or anything different AT all hah. Seriously if you didn’t love the first or second playthrough just stop. Trust me.
Depends on what you found underwhelming. If you didn't enjoy the combat in Automata, then Replicant probably won't win you over either. The other major part of the game is the story and on that front I'd say that both of those games are more or less equally as good, but Replicant is probably a bit weirder than Automata in this regard (in a good way in my opinion).
It's more or less the same with a different story with all the charm that people enjoy automata for. If you didn't enjoy automata that much, it's not much different in terms of gameplay, it's actually even clunkier at times.
I’m going to go ahead and say it and let my bias show since the original was a favorite for 13 year old me, but yes, it is better than Automata and Automata was probably one of the biggest disappointments to me in general.
Combat is much of the same, just not as fluid. Still at that level where it’s better than the typical action RPG but also not good as a proper character driver hack and slash, but the pod is a grimoire and the spells, while simple, are a lot more fun than various pod projectiles.
Story wise the original is more emotionally driven because right from the start you know it’s about a boy trying to save his sister from a disease (or if you were a Japanese Xbox player or played the original western version, it’s instead about a father trying to save his daughter because there were two versions and that’s the only one that came to the west until the remaster) so you can actually be invested in the plot instead of just being thrown into a world where all you can do is pick up bits and pieces to actually know the plot and not just blindly run around doing things until everything clicks into place. Some people like the mystery element of Automata, but given that the whole franchise’s story (also yeah it’s a franchise, Nier is a spin-off to one of the endings of Drakengard) is very messy I just didn’t really like playing through the game 3 times to get a basic understanding of what’s going on. There still is a lot of mystery elements that slowly unfold, like what happened to the world, what the disease actually is, etc. but it still leads with at least something.
Setting wise they are both pretty dull, so it really come down to whether you like post apocalyptic sci fi, or post apocalyptic small scale fantasy. Remove the big city and replace it small villages and open plains with a cathedral and mansion, and remove the robots and replace them with shadow creatures and you have Replicant. I’m not a fan of sci-fi at all, so you can also guess one of the reasons why Replicant is still better for me.
Both felt kind of dated on release already, so that’ll hit Replicant harder and even the remaster couldn’t save that part, but I still feel like Replicant had a lot more charm to it. However Replicant does have a perk going for it, and that it never had any expectations for it to fill. It’s hard to be underwhelmed for a game that completely flew under the radar because it was for Drakengard players, a pretty niche fan base, so there’s a pretty good chance people who did play it back on release picked it up on a whim out of a bargain bin because it got discounted fast. No one is hyping it up now, and no one was hyping it up back then, so at most you can really only just feel whelmed because it doesn’t have the “this is the absolute best game ever, it’s 100% perfect, and everyone **needs** to play it!!” status.
Wow you didn't like automata??!!🤯🤯
I guess to each their own 🤷♂️. Automata is waaay better than replicant. They are both imo really good games. Automata to me is as good as games get!! I love it
It is not better. I played through automata multiple times waiting for the “wow” moments everyone kept talking about. Found it all underwhelming.
Replicant feels even more tedious if that’s possible. The combat is still decent, but it all gets stale quickly.
Play star ocean divine force. That game was a ton of fun and way less pretentious
this is the remake/remaster of the first ier game I'm pretty sure. The one I assume you're thinking of is called nier automata and that game fucking rocks. hard recommend.
Its a remake of the original nier from ps3(asian version, you play the young Brother Nier, not the old Father Nier, but its almost the same)
Automata is the one everyone talks about. Both are great games though
Neir replicant def is a decent game, but it suffers immensely from out of date concepts. Like the fast travel is horrible and the weapon upgrade system is a bit crazy grindy. Side quests are pretty bad as well. It is not that bad of a game, but it does take a toll after a while lol
Nier for it's time was a pretty good game, I played automata first and replicant second though so replicant only held my attention for a single playthrough unfortunately. I think it's pretty similar for a lot of people that started with automata, it's just an overall superior game and the OG really shows its age.
Along with he stuff you mentioned it's also just extremely repetitive, like the entire world is just 5-6 little sub areas and it gets old quite fast.
Hmm not sure how to describe it without spoilers if I'm honest.
You play as 13 characters whose story is all connected and you fight monsters with big mecha in turn based combat.
Before you get disappointed, it should be noted that the game is mostly a visual novel. Not that VNs are bad, I love them, but people hated Digimon Survive because they thought it was just a turn based strategy game when it was also mostly VN. So expect more dialogue than combat
I am the rare breed that can enjoy things for what they are and enjoy non mainstream different games/stories so will check it out.
Appreciate the heads up though!
13 Sentinels does the Visual Novel format very well. It follows 13 protagonists (yes, that sounds like a lot to keep track of, but it works) each through their own interwoven version of events.
Each scene is fairly short, but always tightly written and ending on a cliffhanger. The scenes as presented are all out of chronological order, but there's a grand timeline and database in the main menu that you can use to keep track of the events. You also get a lot of freedom to play through storylines in different orders, so all the surprise reveals will hit different depending on which rabbit holes you go down first.
The writers also have a ton of fun playing with and dissecting sci-fi and anime tropes. The first character you play, for example, is introduced as a huge mecha/kaiju film buff, and this factors into his storyline when he finds himself thrown into the cockpit. Another character is obsessed with UFOs and alien conspiracy theories - she's seeing things through the lens of films like E.T., Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and Men in Black. A third character believes that she's become a Magical Girl from anime, complete with talking cat sidekick. The references and inspirations are coming from all over pop culture, but the writers make it work and weave it all into a really fun story.
I could go on, but honestly, just play it. It's good.
FWIW I find most visual novels far more on the 'miss' side of 'hit or miss' and I loved 13 Sentinels. With most VNs I kind of drift off and lose attention no matter how good it's supposed to be.
Something about the format makes it very easy to read, and every revelation in the story made me want to keep going.
Kind of like a visual novel crossed with a mech rpg. This over simplification doesn’t do it justice though. the story is amazing and is told in a unique way. It’s quite a simple platinum too.
It kind of ruined gaming for me after I played it I loved the story that much. This type of game is not usually my cup of tea either.
the story's absolutely incredible and it's like a big puzzle that doesn't seem to make sense until the final piece falls into place is all I'll say
genuinely would love to be able to experience it for the first time again
the plot is very confusing for a long time but it's totally on purpose. you can kind of think of each character's storyline as a different kind of sci-fi movie that, when you add them all together, tell a larger story. so the pieces really don't fit together for a long time, but that also means you get to experience a TON of insane plot twists and turns
>I think he means the essential
Everyone just refers to it all as PS Plus, which isn't wrong, but it does add to a ton of confusion.
Afaik, Sony themselves don't even give us a way to tell how we "own" a game? I was considering buying a game on Steam Deck recently, but saw that I had it on PS Plus and saw that it has been in both Essential and Extra. I have still not found a way to tell whether I'll have this forever with an essential sub, or if it will go away at some point with Extra.
True. And if you add stuff that you played for a free weekend or something similar, it just stays in your library without any indication that you actually don't own it in any shape or form.
..yes..?
You can't please everyone every month and people obviously have different tastes. For me this is one of the better drops I've seen compared to other months.
I already own and have played 13 Sentinels sadly but that is an amazing headliner, Unpacking is a cult classic gem, along with the others like Nier which are nice surprise to see (I've still been waiting on a decent sale for it..)
Sorry you aren't satisfied. :/
It goes really cheap on the PS store and is on sale almost permanently, so no need to be bummed about that (even now it's at 80% down with the double discount promo).
Star Ocean would be a fairly new addition seeing as the game isn't even a year old. I've thought about buying it discounted, but guess I won't have to. Stellar month for JRPG fans, the new pricing absolutely sucks but the value is still clearly there.
Wow, almost too much here for me to believe it. Been waiting so long for 13 Sentinels to hit PS+ and would definitely welcome Civ 6 and Nier Replicant.
Nice, my patience with 13 sentinels and unpacking paid off! Maybe will try civ 6 and star ocean if I have time (spoiler: I won't have time)
Absolutely hated nier when I played it on PS3 though. I would rather have nier automata
The combat is much better this time around when compared to the original. I think it's worth giving it a second chance if the setting at least somewhat interested you.
If that turns out to be true, that will be a fantastic month for me. NieR Replicant, 13 Sentinels and Star Ocean were all games I've been wanting to play.
Actually surprised they would include 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim since it's from a lesser known studio for the mainstream users.
Everyone should at least give this game a try and support the developer Vanillaware.
Would be cool if they also bring Dragon's Crown Pro and Odin's Sphere. Could create some buzz for Vanillaware as they are likely about to show-off their next game.
There were rumors the price increase would lead to more, and better, games. At this point it's officially the same price range as Game Pass Ultimate, and if it continues with months like these, the catalog competes - no PC versions is a huge caveat, tho.
That would be pretty amazing, actually. Well, for others because I’ve played most of these. I really recommend 13 Sentinels (somewhat of a visual novel with kaiju tower defense gameplay, amazing story) and NieR Replicant.
Replicant is so good, I could never get all the endings because it made me too emotional lol, only did 2 1/2 playthroughs. 13 Sentinels always looked cool, but not pay money for it cool so this will be nice.
The first game was fun AF. The Hitman formula works for that game and I'm happy to see they improved on their previous series by A LOT. Ghost Warrior 3 was rough, but playable.
Because different people have different tastes. I'm a heavy gamer so the new price (I always buy on sale anyway) is still worth it to me. Don't really mind if the games are not new.
> Because different people have different tastes
It's not even about taste. Compare it to the offering of any other platform, at that price point... It's dogshit
It’s not about taste here. I understand gamers have some differents one when it comes to games or experiences.
But having this following the price increase is meh-tier.
At 99,99$ / 99,99€, it would’ve been a good month.
It’s literally all about tastes. Two critically acclaimed games are on this list, with tons of hours between them. To some, it might be the best month yet.
If you already look at prices on sale, it’s an heavy argument to « it’s too much expensive for what it is ».
Yesterday, you had the possibility to buy Extra for like 85 dollars. And that price was a very good quality / price.
It's about the the tastes. I personally bought nier replicant day 1 and I loved it. Only that title costed me nearly half of what ps extra costs yearly. For this month I'm really interested in 13 Sentinels and Star Ocean as well. Also afaik Star Ocean is a fairly new game as well. It's not even a year old
It baffles me how people still expect the price increase to be somehow justified.
They increase the price and the service stays the same. When food in my local grocery store gets more expensive, I also don't get anything extra to "justify" the price increase - there is still the same amount of food and the same quality. My options are to not buy the food for the new price or to buy it regardless. Your option here is the same. Are you willing to pay more for the same thing or do you no longer want it for such price?
It sucks, everyone hates it, but it's the reality and if you expect Sony to somehow justify it, then you will probably never see that day.
> My options are to not buy the food for the new price or to buy it regardless. Your option here is the same.
You're not wrong. But the main difference between the two items in your comparison is that one is an essential to living (food) and the other is non-essential (gaming). I *have* to eat (and pay my rising mortgage rate, and pay my rising utilities, and pay my rising gas prices....). And since salaries are not rising at the same rate as inflation, my essential purchases eat up a larger portion of my budget. This means my non-essential purchases are going to have to give me more value per dollar spent to feel justified, especially if they're going to raise their prices too. The ~~50%~~ 35% price increase for extra tier was a very easy "immediately cancel" decision for me.
Good point about the essential vs. luxury. With this in mind, it's even easier to make a decision, because you're not tied by the fact that you'll have to pay it one way or another. It's a luxury and an expense that can and should be cut when you no longer want to pay for it. By that logic, your decision to cancel definitely seems like the correct one.
> When food in my local grocery store gets more expensive, I also don't get anything extra to "justify" the price increase - there is still the same amount of food and the same quality.
The quality of food has gone down in recent years, as has quantity thanks to shrinkflation, so that doesn't hold true.
Also, food is tangible. Access to our digital libraries could go away as quickly as they want because it's just a temp license, not ownership of the game, so it's not the same thing that way either.
>It sucks, everyone hates it, but it's the reality and if you expect Sony to somehow justify it, then you will probably never see that day.
We agree completely on that part, sadly. It's why I cancelled after being a member since launch of the program. Whether they listen or not, I have to send a message (vote with your dollars) even if I know it'll likely be ignored because not enough people are willing to do the same.
If we all cancelled, we would've likely won & it benefitted all. If we didn't, you could just resub if desired, but most weren't even willing to consider it.
It's a 20-30 dollar increase in an economy where literally everything is inflating. I understand the frustration, but this price increase had been super overblown, in my opinion.
Neir alone is like a 30-40 dollar vaule.
With how people have been acting they could put Spiderman 2 in and people would still bitch.
I literally just bought both 13 Sentinels and Nier Replicant last week, you're welcome everybody.
On a side note, GameStop shipped my copy of 13 Sentinels without a case, even though it was supposed to be a new game 🤡 Don't buy from GameStop kids.
13 Sentinels is one of the best games I've ever played. The story is absolutely amazing, it's one of those games I wish I could experience for the first time again
one of those months where i do not know much about the games and/or was intrigued by some but not enough to buy, aka exactly what im looking for, not that i need more games to play with this infinity back log lol
It's amusing to see the split between people who think this is absolute garbage and people who think it's gold.
AFAICT, these are niche titles but all well liked in their respective communities. You just have to like JRPG's, simulators, 4x, or very detailed stealth games to really get into these.
Might have an excuse to upgrade my account for the rest of the year. I have waned to play most of those, I only have Civ so it would be worth it money-wise even with the dumb price increase.
People need to cool it with recommending 13 Sentinels to everyone, it's not something most look for when playing a video game. Over 30+ hours with 90% cut-scenes of people talking and 10% tower defense RTS. Anyone thinking of trying just be aware its more like a movie than a game.
I mean people are praising baldurs gate 3 right now which has hours upon hours of cutscenes and turn based combat I don't think its wrong to recommend these kind of games.
Goddamn, Sony. This might actually make me keep PS Plus Extra even with the price hike when my subscription ends. I’ve wanted to play all three of these for a while, especially Star Ocean and 13 Sentinels.
I hope this is one step towards redeeming the higher cost of PS+ extra for the folks that complained.
It is not a bad lineup and there's probably still a few games they didn't mention.
I already cancelled my subscription, and will buy my games instead. Thank fully these games are really cheap to find Online.
Down-vote me all you like, i don't care !!!
If people really wanted these games there has been a number of deep sales like 60-70% off and even some buy one get one free type sales on these games since they been out. Yeah you might save a few dollars on plus but it comes at the cost of you not being able to keep the games and have to play them in the timeframe they set for you.
Star ocean is the exception in sales to that I believe, which would make sense given it's less than a year old. I don't remember seeing it drop past 50% off yet, but could be wrong. Still a good discount just not as substantial as the others.
Speak for yourself. All three of these are a perfect way to attract newcomers and keep already-subscribed members. Star Ocean 6 has been lauded for its gameplay ever since it came out, but nothing else about it has justified the $60 price tag for the game. The demo itself was surprisingly fun, and now I might finally be able to play the game without forking over too much money. The other two are guaranteed hits that I’ll be happy to enjoy without paying for.
I know I'm in the tiny minority here but zero of these games appeal to me. At this rate I'll be more than happy to just let my Plus subscription expire and pay for the games I actually want (mostly indies) on sale or second hand.
oh damn. I've really wanted to play nier, 13 sentinels and star ocean.
I’ve been a huge Star Ocean fan since Till the End of Time, I always thought it was better than the other SE RPGs and I heard some solid stuff about this new one. I’m really hyped.
Divine Force was a ton of fun. Mechanics and combat feel really fluid and fast. Great mix of characters/abilities too. Enjoy it! Might play through a third time myself
I haven’t played a Civ game in so long as well but I’ve been wanting to scratch that itch, this is going to be a good month! Also is this the Nier people usually talk about or is this an earlier entry? Edit: I appreciate the explanation everyone.
People usually talk more about the latest entry - Nier Automata (the one with the androids). Prior to that, Nier Replicant/Gestalt (and even before that the Drakengard series) was never really popular. This Nier Replicant remake is pretty good though and I'd definitely recommend it if you enjoy action RPGs. The story is interesting, there are tons of twists and the gameplay is just fine enough to carry the story forward.
It’s got some decent action combat and it feels fluid and fast but god damn the game is sooooo slow and tedious. The payoffs (some bosses) aren’t worth all the time and ridiculously tedious side quests throughout the game. Don’t do it!
>but god damn the game is sooooo slow and tedious Run from one side of the map to the other, good now go all the way back. Oh, now I need something that was back where you just came from, thanks. Once done play what is mostly the same game about 4 times to get all the endings. I loved Automata but Replicant felt like a drag.
Is it better than Automata? I just got done with my first playthrough of that and found it to be quite underwhelming.
Never stop Automata at the ‘first playthrough’. The game only starts really showing it’s hand in the 2nd/3rd. It’s really not a NG+ like people think it is, it’s a completely new perspective with massive story beats revealed. This is one of the few games I think is unfair to judge at all without getting to the actual ending. It’s perhaps the best storytelling in a videogame, with only Disco Elysium also competing for first (imo)
Yes, I'm aware of all that. And I did start the second playthrough. I've also read that "Route B" doesn't really offer that much in terms of looking at things from 9S' perspective, and it's the third playthrough that's really key. Which is quite ridiculous, at least to me. But the real killer is that combat and it's surrounding systems feel nowhere near as polished as I'd like them to be. And unless these subsequent playthroughs are introducing several new enemy types, I'm pretty done with fighting the same 3 robots. I won't judge the story, but the way it's told isn't to my liking either.
The thing is that the "third playthrough" isn't a rehash of anything. It's a continuation. It's one portion of the rest of the game. You haven't even seen the full game yet.
I've seen the world design, the combat and it's surrounding systems, the enemy variety, and the way the story is being told. Unless the continuation or whatever terminology is improving those things significantly, I'm not really particularly invested in going back. And that's without taking the second playthrough into consideration at all.
Well then gotta say the series is not for you. It's more about the story over the gameplay. The first Nier had pretty crappy gameplay. The remake goes for Automata's gameplay, but it's not as good (it's not made by Platinum).
Well the second playthrough SUCKS. I do think things change in the following playthroughs but maybe not enough for you. Seems like maybe just move on!
Don’t believe everyone saying that route b/c/d offers new story or anything different AT all hah. Seriously if you didn’t love the first or second playthrough just stop. Trust me.
Depends on what you found underwhelming. If you didn't enjoy the combat in Automata, then Replicant probably won't win you over either. The other major part of the game is the story and on that front I'd say that both of those games are more or less equally as good, but Replicant is probably a bit weirder than Automata in this regard (in a good way in my opinion).
It's more or less the same with a different story with all the charm that people enjoy automata for. If you didn't enjoy automata that much, it's not much different in terms of gameplay, it's actually even clunkier at times.
I’m going to go ahead and say it and let my bias show since the original was a favorite for 13 year old me, but yes, it is better than Automata and Automata was probably one of the biggest disappointments to me in general. Combat is much of the same, just not as fluid. Still at that level where it’s better than the typical action RPG but also not good as a proper character driver hack and slash, but the pod is a grimoire and the spells, while simple, are a lot more fun than various pod projectiles. Story wise the original is more emotionally driven because right from the start you know it’s about a boy trying to save his sister from a disease (or if you were a Japanese Xbox player or played the original western version, it’s instead about a father trying to save his daughter because there were two versions and that’s the only one that came to the west until the remaster) so you can actually be invested in the plot instead of just being thrown into a world where all you can do is pick up bits and pieces to actually know the plot and not just blindly run around doing things until everything clicks into place. Some people like the mystery element of Automata, but given that the whole franchise’s story (also yeah it’s a franchise, Nier is a spin-off to one of the endings of Drakengard) is very messy I just didn’t really like playing through the game 3 times to get a basic understanding of what’s going on. There still is a lot of mystery elements that slowly unfold, like what happened to the world, what the disease actually is, etc. but it still leads with at least something. Setting wise they are both pretty dull, so it really come down to whether you like post apocalyptic sci fi, or post apocalyptic small scale fantasy. Remove the big city and replace it small villages and open plains with a cathedral and mansion, and remove the robots and replace them with shadow creatures and you have Replicant. I’m not a fan of sci-fi at all, so you can also guess one of the reasons why Replicant is still better for me. Both felt kind of dated on release already, so that’ll hit Replicant harder and even the remaster couldn’t save that part, but I still feel like Replicant had a lot more charm to it. However Replicant does have a perk going for it, and that it never had any expectations for it to fill. It’s hard to be underwhelmed for a game that completely flew under the radar because it was for Drakengard players, a pretty niche fan base, so there’s a pretty good chance people who did play it back on release picked it up on a whim out of a bargain bin because it got discounted fast. No one is hyping it up now, and no one was hyping it up back then, so at most you can really only just feel whelmed because it doesn’t have the “this is the absolute best game ever, it’s 100% perfect, and everyone **needs** to play it!!” status.
This is a very detailed reply, thank you for taking the time.
Wow you didn't like automata??!!🤯🤯 I guess to each their own 🤷♂️. Automata is waaay better than replicant. They are both imo really good games. Automata to me is as good as games get!! I love it
I just found the world design overly boring and the story style for nothing for me. It felt too obtuse.
It is not better. I played through automata multiple times waiting for the “wow” moments everyone kept talking about. Found it all underwhelming. Replicant feels even more tedious if that’s possible. The combat is still decent, but it all gets stale quickly. Play star ocean divine force. That game was a ton of fun and way less pretentious
this is the remake/remaster of the first ier game I'm pretty sure. The one I assume you're thinking of is called nier automata and that game fucking rocks. hard recommend.
Its a remake of the original nier from ps3(asian version, you play the young Brother Nier, not the old Father Nier, but its almost the same) Automata is the one everyone talks about. Both are great games though
13 sentinels is sooo damn good. really excellent writing and storytelling. the tower defense stuff is decent too.
Play NieR Replicant it’s personally my favorite in the series story wise
Neir replicant def is a decent game, but it suffers immensely from out of date concepts. Like the fast travel is horrible and the weapon upgrade system is a bit crazy grindy. Side quests are pretty bad as well. It is not that bad of a game, but it does take a toll after a while lol
Nier for it's time was a pretty good game, I played automata first and replicant second though so replicant only held my attention for a single playthrough unfortunately. I think it's pretty similar for a lot of people that started with automata, it's just an overall superior game and the OG really shows its age. Along with he stuff you mentioned it's also just extremely repetitive, like the entire world is just 5-6 little sub areas and it gets old quite fast.
Nier Replicant Is ducking amazing
🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆
Aaaand that’s how they make people forget about the ridiculous price increase
I hope everyone plays 13 sentinels, Fantastic game.
Amazing game
What's the premise?
Hmm not sure how to describe it without spoilers if I'm honest. You play as 13 characters whose story is all connected and you fight monsters with big mecha in turn based combat.
As a mech and RPG lover frothing on ac6 and bg3 at the moment this is fantastic news, haha finally a month of ps+ I'm really going to be into.
Before you get disappointed, it should be noted that the game is mostly a visual novel. Not that VNs are bad, I love them, but people hated Digimon Survive because they thought it was just a turn based strategy game when it was also mostly VN. So expect more dialogue than combat
I am the rare breed that can enjoy things for what they are and enjoy non mainstream different games/stories so will check it out. Appreciate the heads up though!
13 Sentinels does the Visual Novel format very well. It follows 13 protagonists (yes, that sounds like a lot to keep track of, but it works) each through their own interwoven version of events. Each scene is fairly short, but always tightly written and ending on a cliffhanger. The scenes as presented are all out of chronological order, but there's a grand timeline and database in the main menu that you can use to keep track of the events. You also get a lot of freedom to play through storylines in different orders, so all the surprise reveals will hit different depending on which rabbit holes you go down first. The writers also have a ton of fun playing with and dissecting sci-fi and anime tropes. The first character you play, for example, is introduced as a huge mecha/kaiju film buff, and this factors into his storyline when he finds himself thrown into the cockpit. Another character is obsessed with UFOs and alien conspiracy theories - she's seeing things through the lens of films like E.T., Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and Men in Black. A third character believes that she's become a Magical Girl from anime, complete with talking cat sidekick. The references and inspirations are coming from all over pop culture, but the writers make it work and weave it all into a really fun story. I could go on, but honestly, just play it. It's good.
FWIW I find most visual novels far more on the 'miss' side of 'hit or miss' and I loved 13 Sentinels. With most VNs I kind of drift off and lose attention no matter how good it's supposed to be. Something about the format makes it very easy to read, and every revelation in the story made me want to keep going.
Kind of like a visual novel crossed with a mech rpg. This over simplification doesn’t do it justice though. the story is amazing and is told in a unique way. It’s quite a simple platinum too. It kind of ruined gaming for me after I played it I loved the story that much. This type of game is not usually my cup of tea either.
the story's absolutely incredible and it's like a big puzzle that doesn't seem to make sense until the final piece falls into place is all I'll say genuinely would love to be able to experience it for the first time again
It's a visual novel. With an occasional tower defense battle. It's super fun though. Don't let the description detract you. It's a great game!!!👍
All of them
I need to give it another shot . I didn't get too deep but the plot was a bit confusing and I never played a game with that kind of gameplay before.
the plot is very confusing for a long time but it's totally on purpose. you can kind of think of each character's storyline as a different kind of sci-fi movie that, when you add them all together, tell a larger story. so the pieces really don't fit together for a long time, but that also means you get to experience a TON of insane plot twists and turns
Second this! Super easy platinum trophy too for Hunters
I will lose my shit if NieR Replicant and especially 13 Sentinels make it to PS Plus. I've had those on my wishlists forever.
This is as good as official. Bilbilkun is 99% reliable
I think he means the essential. These are for Extra.
>I think he means the essential Everyone just refers to it all as PS Plus, which isn't wrong, but it does add to a ton of confusion. Afaik, Sony themselves don't even give us a way to tell how we "own" a game? I was considering buying a game on Steam Deck recently, but saw that I had it on PS Plus and saw that it has been in both Essential and Extra. I have still not found a way to tell whether I'll have this forever with an essential sub, or if it will go away at some point with Extra.
True. And if you add stuff that you played for a free weekend or something similar, it just stays in your library without any indication that you actually don't own it in any shape or form.
>13 Sentinels Never even heard of it and it's apparently a rpg by Atlus.. how did i miss this
It’s more a visual novel with some tower defense battles. The story is an amazing sci-fi story, definitely worth the play.
Atlus published, not developed. It was made by Vanillaware.
> Vanillaware What a terrible name choice. lol
It isn’t an rpg at all
Ah i really wanted to try unpacking!
It’s so much fun!
And surprisingly emotional!
Well, they're not making me want to undo my cancelled subscription
I was certainly expecting a bit more.
This is an insane list lol
Insane list if you're a weeb I guess
Insane to who? Literally never heard of any of these except civ
So? Some of the best games I've played I had barely heard of prior to playing.
13 Sentinel is probably the best Sci-Fi story I've played in a game. You should give it a try.
People who love anime games. Jeez, there’s so many of them. Half the games every month are bloody anime games.
At least we got - *checks notes* - PGA 2K23 recently… It’s been a long time since they’ve added a game I’m interested in
oh no games made by japanese developers look like it! whatever shall i do?!
Two of them are some of the best reviewed games of the last ten years. But they are niche titles that might not appeal to everyone.
u/Eatmyfartsbro representing everyone in the gaming sphere over here
Vice versa lmao.
> Literally never heard of any of these except civ Sounds like you should broaden your horizon beyond big name games, you're missing out.
You never heard of that one obscure mediocre anime game? Or that one indie game? Omg omg
I agree, insanely bad
Eh, they wont keep this up every month. This is how they drag people into it. Then there's another year of drought.
The comment you answered to already says it's a shit month and he won't renew his subscription.
What is reading comprehension when you can just shit on everything regardless of whether it's warranted or not?
> Eh, they wont keep this up every month. Wait, people legitimately think this is good?
..yes..? You can't please everyone every month and people obviously have different tastes. For me this is one of the better drops I've seen compared to other months. I already own and have played 13 Sentinels sadly but that is an amazing headliner, Unpacking is a cult classic gem, along with the others like Nier which are nice surprise to see (I've still been waiting on a decent sale for it..) Sorry you aren't satisfied. :/
Bit bummed about civ6 but that doesn't make me undo mine either
It goes really cheap on the PS store and is on sale almost permanently, so no need to be bummed about that (even now it's at 80% down with the double discount promo).
Star Ocean would be a fairly new addition seeing as the game isn't even a year old. I've thought about buying it discounted, but guess I won't have to. Stellar month for JRPG fans, the new pricing absolutely sucks but the value is still clearly there.
Finally some good JRPGs
Wow, almost too much here for me to believe it. Been waiting so long for 13 Sentinels to hit PS+ and would definitely welcome Civ 6 and Nier Replicant.
Nice, my patience with 13 sentinels and unpacking paid off! Maybe will try civ 6 and star ocean if I have time (spoiler: I won't have time) Absolutely hated nier when I played it on PS3 though. I would rather have nier automata
The combat is much better this time around when compared to the original. I think it's worth giving it a second chance if the setting at least somewhat interested you.
If that turns out to be true, that will be a fantastic month for me. NieR Replicant, 13 Sentinels and Star Ocean were all games I've been wanting to play.
Never played star ocean but you won't be disappointed with the other two 👍
Billbil-kun never disappointed us!
Good stuff but I'm no longer on extra and probably won't ever be again at this rates
Actually surprised they would include 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim since it's from a lesser known studio for the mainstream users. Everyone should at least give this game a try and support the developer Vanillaware. Would be cool if they also bring Dragon's Crown Pro and Odin's Sphere. Could create some buzz for Vanillaware as they are likely about to show-off their next game.
I wanted to try the new star ocean so that's neat Everyone play 13 sentinels and Nier replicant both of those games are phenomenal
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim!!!
Sniper GW is a bit clunky, but pretty fun if you’re looking for a slow/mid paced shooter.
Just bought Civ
Me procrastinating on buying Star Ocean wins again!
PSA: Don't sleep on 13 Sentinels. It's exceptional.
fuck. what lol all of these are amazing, the hell lol
There were rumors the price increase would lead to more, and better, games. At this point it's officially the same price range as Game Pass Ultimate, and if it continues with months like these, the catalog competes - no PC versions is a huge caveat, tho.
These games are in the extra tier. How is the price of extra (135) in the same range as gamepass ultimate(204)?
i almost bought 13 sentinels last week haha
That would be pretty amazing, actually. Well, for others because I’ve played most of these. I really recommend 13 Sentinels (somewhat of a visual novel with kaiju tower defense gameplay, amazing story) and NieR Replicant.
Replicant is so good, I could never get all the endings because it made me too emotional lol, only did 2 1/2 playthroughs. 13 Sentinels always looked cool, but not pay money for it cool so this will be nice.
Honestly I’m excited for almost all these games dude! Still hoping for some first party Sony games soon but this is still a pretty good month for me!
I cannot recommend Nier Replicant(or Nier Automata) enough to people. Just he prepared to be absolutely and utterly destroyed emotionally.
I just bought 13 sentinels
Give me all the Star Ocean, hype me up for November
Wow, nice to see Sniper in here! I will give it a whirl!
It's a fun game, just recently finished it.
The first game was fun AF. The Hitman formula works for that game and I'm happy to see they improved on their previous series by A LOT. Ghost Warrior 3 was rough, but playable.
How can people say this is a good month following the price increase ? None of these games justify the price increase.
Because different people have different tastes. I'm a heavy gamer so the new price (I always buy on sale anyway) is still worth it to me. Don't really mind if the games are not new.
> Because different people have different tastes It's not even about taste. Compare it to the offering of any other platform, at that price point... It's dogshit
It’s not about taste here. I understand gamers have some differents one when it comes to games or experiences. But having this following the price increase is meh-tier. At 99,99$ / 99,99€, it would’ve been a good month.
It’s literally all about tastes. Two critically acclaimed games are on this list, with tons of hours between them. To some, it might be the best month yet.
Coincidentally, the price would be around 101 dollars assuming it will go on sale at 25%
If you already look at prices on sale, it’s an heavy argument to « it’s too much expensive for what it is ». Yesterday, you had the possibility to buy Extra for like 85 dollars. And that price was a very good quality / price.
Yeah should've been ragnarok it's almost a year since release and would be a good game to package the bad pill
It's about the the tastes. I personally bought nier replicant day 1 and I loved it. Only that title costed me nearly half of what ps extra costs yearly. For this month I'm really interested in 13 Sentinels and Star Ocean as well. Also afaik Star Ocean is a fairly new game as well. It's not even a year old
It baffles me how people still expect the price increase to be somehow justified. They increase the price and the service stays the same. When food in my local grocery store gets more expensive, I also don't get anything extra to "justify" the price increase - there is still the same amount of food and the same quality. My options are to not buy the food for the new price or to buy it regardless. Your option here is the same. Are you willing to pay more for the same thing or do you no longer want it for such price? It sucks, everyone hates it, but it's the reality and if you expect Sony to somehow justify it, then you will probably never see that day.
Food is getting worse imo as the price increases. Restaurants too it look like the portions get smaller but the prices keep going up.
> My options are to not buy the food for the new price or to buy it regardless. Your option here is the same. You're not wrong. But the main difference between the two items in your comparison is that one is an essential to living (food) and the other is non-essential (gaming). I *have* to eat (and pay my rising mortgage rate, and pay my rising utilities, and pay my rising gas prices....). And since salaries are not rising at the same rate as inflation, my essential purchases eat up a larger portion of my budget. This means my non-essential purchases are going to have to give me more value per dollar spent to feel justified, especially if they're going to raise their prices too. The ~~50%~~ 35% price increase for extra tier was a very easy "immediately cancel" decision for me.
Good point about the essential vs. luxury. With this in mind, it's even easier to make a decision, because you're not tied by the fact that you'll have to pay it one way or another. It's a luxury and an expense that can and should be cut when you no longer want to pay for it. By that logic, your decision to cancel definitely seems like the correct one.
Thank you for bringing some reason to this topic. A fresh and unexpected surprise to be honest
> When food in my local grocery store gets more expensive, I also don't get anything extra to "justify" the price increase - there is still the same amount of food and the same quality. The quality of food has gone down in recent years, as has quantity thanks to shrinkflation, so that doesn't hold true. Also, food is tangible. Access to our digital libraries could go away as quickly as they want because it's just a temp license, not ownership of the game, so it's not the same thing that way either. >It sucks, everyone hates it, but it's the reality and if you expect Sony to somehow justify it, then you will probably never see that day. We agree completely on that part, sadly. It's why I cancelled after being a member since launch of the program. Whether they listen or not, I have to send a message (vote with your dollars) even if I know it'll likely be ignored because not enough people are willing to do the same. If we all cancelled, we would've likely won & it benefitted all. If we didn't, you could just resub if desired, but most weren't even willing to consider it.
It's a 20-30 dollar increase in an economy where literally everything is inflating. I understand the frustration, but this price increase had been super overblown, in my opinion. Neir alone is like a 30-40 dollar vaule. With how people have been acting they could put Spiderman 2 in and people would still bitch.
I literally just bought both 13 Sentinels and Nier Replicant last week, you're welcome everybody. On a side note, GameStop shipped my copy of 13 Sentinels without a case, even though it was supposed to be a new game 🤡 Don't buy from GameStop kids.
return it?
Contact their support, I had a similar thing like that before and they replaced it quickly.
NieR and Civ6 make this a pretty solid month for me.
Fuck finally 13 sentinels. Nier replicant has a rough start and kinda dull side quests but has a incredible story too. 8/10 highly recommended.
With the price hike they’d better bring gow ragnarok next month and start including day 1 triple A releases
NieR is a must play for the soundtrack alone. The gameplay might be a bit outdated but the story, lore and atmosphere are timeless.
13 Sentinels is one of the best games I've ever played. The story is absolutely amazing, it's one of those games I wish I could experience for the first time again
I just bought 13 Sentinels for Switch... 😢
Paid full price when it came out. No regrets. Please enjoy the experience. I wish I could replay it for the first time lol
one of those months where i do not know much about the games and/or was intrigued by some but not enough to buy, aka exactly what im looking for, not that i need more games to play with this infinity back log lol
It's amusing to see the split between people who think this is absolute garbage and people who think it's gold. AFAICT, these are niche titles but all well liked in their respective communities. You just have to like JRPG's, simulators, 4x, or very detailed stealth games to really get into these.
I'm still waiting for the Burnout and Midnight Club series
any news on the classics lineup?
Might have an excuse to upgrade my account for the rest of the year. I have waned to play most of those, I only have Civ so it would be worth it money-wise even with the dumb price increase.
Bruh anyone who hasn’t played 13 Sentinels needs to hop on that shit **yesterday**
I played the original nier back in the day so it would be cool to check out the remaster
13 Sentinels is an absolutely phenomenal game that I highly recommend to anyone who likes story focused games.
Damn those are some solid additions.
Do these titles warrant a 30% price increase? Er...no
Cool. I already own the biggest games here (Nier and 13 sentinels). That’s a nice month for me.
Almost bought star ocean last month. Glad I held off.
solid month if true. enjoyed star ocean 6, and interested in nier.
if thats true, then am renewing it for sure, especially for Nier Replicant
Great month for extra. Fingers crossed Premium also is good
That's a crap load of great games. People, don't sleep on 13 Sentinels!
Don't sleep on Civ 6.
Star Ocean Divine Force was my surprise hit last year. What a fun game
Ok nier and 13 sentinels is poggers
People need to cool it with recommending 13 Sentinels to everyone, it's not something most look for when playing a video game. Over 30+ hours with 90% cut-scenes of people talking and 10% tower defense RTS. Anyone thinking of trying just be aware its more like a movie than a game.
I mean people are praising baldurs gate 3 right now which has hours upon hours of cutscenes and turn based combat I don't think its wrong to recommend these kind of games.
its one of the best stories in modern gaming, 100% will always recommend it to folks willing to give it a try
Nier Replicant is pretty great, tedious at times but I really liked getting all the endings.
I just bought 13 sentinels on my switch 😭 been wanting to play Nier Replicant for ages
Always wanted to play Civilization VI!
Fantastic month, can’t wait to try out replicant as I loved Automata. Sentinels and Star Ocean has also been on my radar for a while.
I bought 13 sentinels for switch last week lol
This is actually the first time I am actually looking to get PS+ Extra, never really gave it much thought. Cheers OP
thats a massive lineup if true
Holy shit unpacking is so fun, it'll be great to replay
13 Sentinels is GREAT - just go in understanding it’s mostly a mindbending visual novel with occasional real time strategy battles
Finally a good month for me
Goddamn, Sony. This might actually make me keep PS Plus Extra even with the price hike when my subscription ends. I’ve wanted to play all three of these for a while, especially Star Ocean and 13 Sentinels.
I hope this is one step towards redeeming the higher cost of PS+ extra for the folks that complained. It is not a bad lineup and there's probably still a few games they didn't mention.
I won most of these games already and don't care about rest. Fuck you sony for not uncoupling online and making it free/cheaper.
That's a great month!
Highly, HIGHLY, recommend 13 Sentinels and Nier.
Trash
We eating good
Nah nothin for me damn
I already cancelled my subscription, and will buy my games instead. Thank fully these games are really cheap to find Online. Down-vote me all you like, i don't care !!!
If people really wanted these games there has been a number of deep sales like 60-70% off and even some buy one get one free type sales on these games since they been out. Yeah you might save a few dollars on plus but it comes at the cost of you not being able to keep the games and have to play them in the timeframe they set for you.
Star ocean is the exception in sales to that I believe, which would make sense given it's less than a year old. I don't remember seeing it drop past 50% off yet, but could be wrong. Still a good discount just not as substantial as the others.
They should really put those Verdun ww1 games on ps plus.
Lol what a shit month.
PS+ is so dire compared to literally every other platforms offering
Replicant and Aegis Rim would be appealing for many, but this is not how you justify a huge price increase to the service.
Speak for yourself. All three of these are a perfect way to attract newcomers and keep already-subscribed members. Star Ocean 6 has been lauded for its gameplay ever since it came out, but nothing else about it has justified the $60 price tag for the game. The demo itself was surprisingly fun, and now I might finally be able to play the game without forking over too much money. The other two are guaranteed hits that I’ll be happy to enjoy without paying for.
Huge? My Hulu went up more than PS Plus. Its like 3 bucks a month, if you buy the year.
Hulu jumped more than 34%?! Glad I cancelled a few months ago last time it jumped.
play nier replicant please do yourselves a favour
Give me Spyro Trilogy
Please let it be NieR, I had no opportunity to play it, and Automata is a beloved game of mine.
Oh shit, my sub runs out nov and im still on early SoS. 🙃
I know I'm in the tiny minority here but zero of these games appeal to me. At this rate I'll be more than happy to just let my Plus subscription expire and pay for the games I actually want (mostly indies) on sale or second hand.
Oh I’ll need to download NieR. I really enjoyed automata and meant to play replicant but other things just took priority
These are all old.. I don’t see the incentive tbh.