Black Myth: Wukong Xbox Delay Reportedly Tied To PS5 'Exclusivity Deal'

What is very not cool here, despite the fact that Microsoft is currently porting Xbox games to PS5 and that Sony is doing exclusivity deals in return... what is very not cool is the fact that it is not a clear, plain and simple, exclusivity deal announced like one.

Because this kind of move participates to create general suspicion around the Series X console itself, and its general power / quality.

So, when not saying things clearly like that, you take away some game from gamers AND damage an entire brand (Xbox).

Sony is playing dirty right now, exactly when Microsoft is in Wonderland, where everybody is nice and happy, giving away its exclusive games with a smile.

How can we not suspect something similar with all those Capcom games, right now ? "MT Framework problem" ? And not on Windows PC ? Come on...

If history tells is anything then Sony would have sung from the rooftops about any timed exclusivity. Not sure I'm buying this.

It might be true, but I can't help but feel this is a weak attempt at drawing away from development problems on Xbox being the real issue.

If it’s true (and I don’t believe it is) it has to be one of the worst ever signed exclusivity deals in history.

0 marketing to say console exclusive.

0 showing of it on a ps5

Everything prior to release was all about Nvidea including them giving the game away when making certain purchases.

And the fact most sales have turned out in China and on PC makes the ‘deal’ even worse.

Also wasn’t it reported that Game science said they hadn’t passed Xbox scrutiny of the game back in June (maybe a different game) - apologies it was. Rumour.

https://www.purexbox.com/news/2024/08/rumour-black-myth-wukong-memory-leak-has-caused-xbox-series-xs-delay

Oh and then the rumour just happens to leak on the same day Obsidian say they are still figuring out avowed on the S.

(I also believe far more people will believe this rumour because it’s anti Sony even though we are constantly told not to believe these ‘insiders’)

If this turns out to be the case,and I don't think it wouldshock many people, than Sony, Game Science and all their apologists on PX can eat sand.
This thread should make for entertaining 🤣 reading though...

I dont buy it, exclusivity deals are common and just business. This is probably what they say it is.

How would you feel about a delay tied to the game potentially having an exclusivity deal with Sony?

Not very surprised😉?? I think we should just go with what PS fans say and blame it on the Series S(a tried and tested approach)😅.

@Sol4ris nobody would be shocked.

I wouldn’t have been shocked had Sony said they had exclusivity. It’s something Sony is well known for. Something Sony admits when they do.

But would you say this ‘deal’ is like every other Sony exclusivity deal?

And imo it would be probably slightly better for Xbox it being Sony that have paid rather than it being issues with the S.

Genuine question, if this is untrue then would Sony/Game Science have legal recourse for defamation?

@Llamageddon true or false, sony would have done nothing wrong, just shady as hell (lmicrosoft did it some times). Relax sony will be fine

An exclusivity deal without the "Only On Playstation" banner? I find that doubtful.

..and you've still want to port games to their console?? I don't think it's fair and if that continues I am thinking that is best to do some exclusivity with COD where some mods to be only on Xbox and PC and then to make a deal for no third parties exclusivity..or just add Gamepass to ps5 and we all will buy their console..

(Updated 4 Sep 2024)
Facts:
0) Game Science said they delay the xbox release due their issue to develop a proper version on x/s but in same time didn't ask any support to MS as other did in past.
1) the official statement from MS talks about an agreement between Sony and Game Science
2) nobody from Sony or Game Science have replied yet saying it's not true
3) sony ps5 is sold out in Cina
4) more sources asked to both Sony and Game Science directly and let's see what they say
5) Sony didn't advertise this game as exclusive, thing that every big tech would have done proudly.
6) MS says again there are no technical issue but some possible agreement between Sony and Game Science
7) internet is full of fake news in any direction and nothing should be taken seriously till is not confirmed

Pretty straight forward this.
On one hand....Announced for Xbox, mentions of delays, no exclusivity deal mentioned previously, Sony not claiming console exclusivity as with every other exclusive in the past, previous Xbox games being delayed because of the S being underpowered and console release parity between X and S, reports that technical issues causes the delay.

On the other hand... IGN, Windows Central, Forbes say so.

The logical brain in me says to never read an IGN, Windows Central and Forbes article ever again...

I would not be surprised but in this case I don’t believe it’s an exclusivity deal. This game plays rough on PS5 with a dodgy 30fps setting and a laggy, fake 60fps setting. Its not hard to imagine they’re having trouble getting it to an acceptable standard on Series S. It wouldn’t be the first time the S has held back games hitting Xbox the same time as its rivals.

Sony hate us because they ain't us very simple!

Well, we can never know for sure, but the fact that two big anti-xbox and ps pro websites like ign and Paul Tassi confirmed that looks that is probably true. It is also logical since when the game first announced, it also had the Xbox logo on the trailer. After on the summer fest the Xbox logo on the trailer was already vanished, making some people wonder why did that happen? And now they claimed some technical issues, but still no Xbox logo with tbd for example as date? I am leaning more to a shady timed exclusive deal since PS is in a weird spot right now with their games line up, but I guess we will find out eventually.

PS5 version of the game wasn't well optimized, so I do believe it take more effect to optimize the for Series S. However, I also believe that there was a deal made between Game Science and Playstation too, it's just that they choose not to make it public as there is chances that it will hurt their sale on Xbox.

@kelomaniack Paul Tassi is not someone that would be called "anti-Xbox", almost quite the opposite at times (most of the time being neutral). IGN are also known for negative coverage of Wukong (for some reason), so claiming a shady backdoor deal is right up their alley. Forbes also pushed the Series S and memory leak rumours, so them coming up with an "Um, Actually" against themselves out of seemingly nowhere is pathetic. Plus, it's not as if Forbes (an American news outlet) would ever want to imply a Chinese company (Game Science) has gone against an American company (Microsoft), because American-Chinese news stories are definitely not just a common American media tactic to sow discontent.

@themightyant

Yep, Sony absolutely would advertise the hell be out of any exclusivity deal.

This story is complete bull from a nonsense source.

@DarkTron he's a fake neutral I would say. He criticized Xbox heavily the last years, although he didn't do that for PlayStation and he has almost not covered switch at all. Even on a quick search I could quick find at least 10 very negative articles of him with negative critic on Xbox. So, yes he's antixbox in my opinion. Same with IGN.
@themightyant Sony hasn't also marketed other third party exclusivity deals they had a lot. Actually sony almost didn't market anything lately. If the game comes to Xbox soon, it was probably some technical issues. If it takes months, it's probably a third party deal, being closed at the "last minute" and that would also make sense why there isn't marketing on behalf of sony. About the other scenario: Other similar games were super optimized as Lies of P and played super smooth also on the S day one. Neither sony nor game science commented / declined an exclusivity deal though. I guess we will find out soon

@themightyant @kelomaniack the rumours swirling (even from game science) is the game is not optimised for Series console.

Yet if this wasn’t the case, why would MS let this blatant lie run? It’s harming them and their consoles.

@themightyant please don't paraphrase what I wrote. I said alot. See Callisto, foamstars for example. Even stellar blade didn't have the same huge marketing as first party titles. We can never be sure, but when two big publications claim that, there is a high probability that is true. Why do you have a problem if at the end is a third party exclusive?

@kelomaniack Callisto protocol had TV adverts in the UK, was heavily marketed. Stellar blade had a lot of marketing also.

@Mustoe I would lean toward utter nonsense for timed exclusivity but with maybe a kernal of truth that is being wildly thrown out of context. I Imagine its probably something like Gamescience where struggling with optimising the game in general and Sony threw some cash / expertise their way to make sure the game was able to go on time.

Something along those lines would ring more accurate to me as by all accounts the game is not even well optimised on PC and is relying on much more powerful setups to brute force performance.

@themightyant I guess we will see for sure in the next months what's going on. Either way, it's not some Xbox sites that claiming that, but 1 of the biggest gaming websites (IGN) and one also big one. I don't see any reason for the websites to hate on the game. Even IGN gave a good grade on their review on the game. So, an exclusivity deal is definitely not out of the table. Lack of marketing in this case could be out of various reasons, such as a last minute deal, potential bad advertisement, reputation for the game, financial reasons, or either has to do with the situation on sony right now ( change of leadership, concord release, no real roadmap, games lineup), or even that they didn't expect such success of the game, contractual terms (don't forget the developer studio resides in China) or a combination of these reasons.

@kelomaniack it wasn’t a last minute deal. It was announced months before release that it wouldn’t be on Xbox.

IGN have made articles about Game Science. Negative ones.

Sure it may be Sony but everything points elsewhere currently.

@Bobobiwan Nothing new about Sony's behavior in the gaming market in general, unfortunately. And it works for them, so why would they change ?

If true, this makes me want to destroy my PS5. I'm tired of Sony pulling ***** stunts like this and if the reporting is correct, it should be illegal because the game was advertised for PS5, PC, and Xbox. I guess I'll have to wait longer than expected to pick up the game on my preferred platform.

I really don't care.

Corporate will do what makes them money including exclusivity deals (if that's the case here, remember rumour not fact.)

There is nothing I can do to change that so I don't waste my time getting upset or angry about it.

I have a load of games I can play now, basically more than I have time for. So if I have to wait for a bit for a particular game it's not really an inconvenience.

The positive take on this is that by the time I get to play such games after an exclusivity deals expires is that a lot of the general game bugs & balance issues will have been sorted out. That way I get to play it in it's best form without suffering the wait for patches.

Whilst I accept your premise about Sony would usually announce an exclusivity deal, @PsBoxSwitchOwner, Sony would also have noted the damage to the Xbox brand that is done when a game is delayed due to the S etc. So, in some ways, it makes perfect sense to both sign an exclusivity deal AND say nothing about it, because then you can sit back and watch Xbox being torn apart by its own fans. It's deeply shady, but I would say entirely impossible...

@Widey85 and worth noting that if this the case then MS could have likely done the same. I recall when BG3 was having issues they also said they had to really hound MS for assistance. So if thats the case they can hardly complain for choosing to do nothing.

I get what you are saying regarding Sony usually being open about exclusivity, @themightyant, however, they're not entirely open about it. After all, we have no idea if or when FF7, Rebirth or 16 are coming to the Xbox. Nor do we know whether Stellar Blade will be coming at all.

As for why they may not have promoted Wukong, take a look at my response directly above this one. Wukong was widely anticipated, so advertising it was not essential, and if Sony have signed a secret deal, then advertising it heavily would put pressure on them to reveal the deal, with the implications being that they had signed it as an exclusive. No need to advertise a game that going to sell itself.

I have no idea one way or another whether they have signed a deal. I simply would say that it is not beyond the realms of possibility...

@Fiendish-Beaver but if it had nothing to do with getting it running on Series consoles. Why haven’t Microsoft come out and said that the statement was a lie?

Surely MS would come out and say something on it. Because it is damaging if it is untrue.

As I’ve said I wouldn’t put it past So y to have made a deal, but when Nvidea also have one plus everything else around it. For me it doesn’t add up.

Or it could just be due to the technical difficulties of getting it to run on the Series S as per Microsoft's demands like they said it was so they skip Xbox entirely as some other developers have done to not deal with the headache. Just a thought.

Edit. Btw, it's not reportedly it's rumoured. Probably best not make your headline look like it's a fact when it's unknown. Just saying.
Terrible journalism. This may be an Xbox centric site but you should probably get your facts strait first.

I was shot down for saying it was an exclusivity deal in the last thread.
Sony haven't marketed the game because a) heavy marketing would make it look obvious and b) this game has done a great job of just marketing itself. Souls-likes are the gaming media's darling and get plenty of boosting naturally.
It will come to Xbox eventually. It would be amazing if one day we could see it on gamepass.

My guess would be situation is a bit more complicated than an exclusivity deal, which is why nobody is making any public announcements.
Most likely scenario, team developed for PC first and had issues porting to any of the 2 powerful consoles. Sony stepped in first and offered to help with porting (as a way to boost PS5 sales in China market). Team opted to go with that offer even if MS made one, as porting to Xbox meant optimizing 2 versions vs 1, and their home market has more interest in PS over Xbox hardware.
It could be something completely different though, we might never know..

@kelomaniack and a quick search for PlayStation shows negative articles towards them too. Fun fact; negativity sells more than positivity. Both sides have made mistakes, both sides got negative feedback. He isn't one for positive stories, he's just trying to write whatever will get clicks (very convenient he wrote an anti-PlayStation article on Wukong, after writing 2 anti-Xbox articles on Wukong).

I agree, @themightyant, there is a big difference. I mean, Sony said they had a 12 month period of exclusivity for FF7, which would have ended in March 2021. Since then, there have been persistent rumours of Sony extending that exclusivity period, upon which they have passed no comment. And here we are, three and half years later, and still no sign of FF7 on the Xbox, and none of us have a clue what's going on...

You are most likely right, @PsBoxSwitchOwner, though of course, Microsoft has previously suggested there is some form of deal in place, though the most recent 'insider' comment is suggesting that that deal may have been for the Developer to prioritise the PS5, at the detriment of the Xbox, and which sort of confirms what Microsoft were saying. Whilst not strictly a period of exclusivity, it does that have precisely that effect, does it not...?

As for the whether Microsoft consider this to be a 'lie', both can be true. By signing a deal with Sony to only work on the PS5 version prior to release, that will have prevented the Developer from resolving the memory leak issue earlier because they were obligated to work only on the PS5 version. Thus no one is lying...

Jeff Grub has said Sony may have helped the devs with development and they may have prioritised ps5 due to Asia’s larger install base rather than an exclusivity deal.

Who knows, we don’t!

Question is why again Xbox aren’t the ones getting a timed exclusive for a top game ? They are always the last one to the table complaining instead of taking action and getting games . Phil rather pay millions for indie games too one game pass that’s his Damn issue

I doubt they would lie about the reasoning they delayed it (but this developer seems kind of shady with the laundry list of demands of how influences need to cover the game - dont mention womens rights, etc).

It's possible both things are true. Sony could have dispatched engineers or money to aid in ps5 development. Since they wouldn't be paying for publishing or marketing rights, they wouldnt necessarily be shouting that they are financially tied to the game. And technically the xbox development would be behind (not troubled).

The "exclusivity deal" might be more of a "what can we do to get this on ps5 at the same time as pc" instead of "What can we do to keep this off xbox." I doubt there is a strict date that the xbox release has to be after. The xbox version probably is just behind in development because they were paid to prioritize the ps5 launch. It can probably release on xbox whenever it's ready.

No it's not. This is nonsense and everyone knows that. I wish "leakers" would stop clout chasing with blatantly false info.

Another week another rumour and more than likely another bunch of Muppets getting upset kicking off before finding out the rumour isn't true just like the time everyone was apparently selling their Xboxes 🤣🤣🤣

It runs poor on the PS5 so I don't really care either way, the gameplay just looks so repetitive, people went for the hype and the graphics not the most important part.

For some folks, rumours are literal truth's but just on one side, and bring hundred's of excuses. It's just rumours, get over it.

@Rog-X I've also played it on ps5, first chapter performance is "ok", tanks on certain boss fights. The plot is paper thin and those invisible walls are infuriating. For me is meh...

The reason I am very suspicious of it is that they claim a 'memory leak' has caused the XBOX version, and specifically the XBOX version, to be 'indefinitely delayed'. Like six to twelve months delayed, maybe?

There's clear signs that neither console version should have dropped, with the PS5 version running like molasses. But with the Microsoft version, they gave it a few more weeks/months of development, while pushing the Playstation version out of the door still not fully tested.

I could see Sony not publicizing an exclusivity deal since they pretty much know that China doesn't give a flying monkey about what platform it's on. The game is out on console on Playstation first, even if it should have waited until 2025 before it came out.

Sony got the biggest slice of the console cake. Whatever reason it is, rather too many games still give Sony over half the sales, Nintendo a nice chunk of the rest... while Microsoft gets anyone who doesn't have the other two systems.

You've gotta be in serious denial about this one to not see it at this point.

There is literally no exclusivity deal in place at all. It’s not hard to understand that. There was no mention of console exclusivity in Sony’s trailer or anything. If it was, it would be mentioned “console exclusive”. And Sony would make it known it is a console exclusive.

The reason it hasn’t come to Xbox is because of the Series S simple as that.

@Bobobiwan It very likely is a MT Framework problem considering Fighting Collection 2 wasn’t announced.

And no, it’s not an exclusivity deal from Sony otherwise why is the game on Switch? In fact, that collection got announced in a Nintendo showcase.

That's all true, @themightyant. Xbox was never stated to be a future platform. Rumours were floating around at the beginning that said Sony had paid not only for exclusivity, but also to keep the game off Xbox. We will likely never know the truth of the situation, but not knowing the truth does not mean that the rumours were false. And whatever else can be said, the game is still not on the Xbox.

My hope is that there will be a 'complete' edition that bundles all three parts, and that the new management at Square port it to the Xbox too. That said, it probably won't affect me, as I think I'm at the point where investing in further games on the Xbox seems foolhardy, which is a shame, because that is where I prefer to play my games. Unfortunately, I still cannot make up my mind whether to buy the games I want on the PS5 or on the PC...

@themightyant The deal thing still seems unlikely to me as well, however, the "they didn't market it" thing doesn't hold water, depends what the deal is, exclusivity money to take the marketing rights and make it their own vs hush money to delay the competition and keep it off the market and tarnish its image. The latter's probably a much cheaper deal yet gets the same benefits.

Do I think that happened here? PROBABLY not. But, so far neither company confirming or denying is raising my suspicions higher than they were. Silence can be pretty loud. And even if it's not this game, they may be sweating being caught on something they've done elsewhere. MS did pointedly accuse them of exactly that during the ABK trials after all.

Most likely for this game it's not a deal, and it's also not a "memory leak problem" so much as, as one dev commented during gamescom "nobody needs Xbox" - i.e. it's just last place priority and they DGAF. But the silence makes me curious. This game or other games...such deals may well exist.

Doubt it.
I still believe it's the Series S, that is causing the delay. This is one hell of a demanding game.
The PS5 version, runs like *****. The performance mode, seems to be 30fps, using framegen, to stay closer to 60fps, at 1080p. But the framegen are adding lots of input lag, due to the low native fps.
And the FSR artifacts ain't pretty.

I don't know what black magic they'll use, to get this to run on Series S. But I expect a brutal downgrade.

No matter WHY we know Sony's shady deals continue maybe here maybe not. At least there is a good chance by the time it does launch we will get a better launched product on Xbox vs what PS5 received.

I played this yesterday for the first time and I would definitely say that after seeing how demanding this is on the PlayStation 5, because Microsoft demands that there is a parity between their console versions to be able to run and release on the ‘S’, this is probably proving to be an absolute nightmare to get the game running to any kind of standard. Microsoft really shouldn’t have released the downgrade console, I think we would have seen far better graphics this gen by now. Having the inferior S on the market has kept everything held back of late and I would not expect Microsoft to follow the same approach for their next (and probable final) console release, but it is what it is. Also, if Sony had paid for exclusivity, why in earth was the PS5 version not even seen until just before reviews were up? Or marketing? It was none existent compared to Final Fantasy 16 or team ninjas Ronin game. It would be good if someone came out with official confirmations either way, but I personally think the S is causing the issues, nothing more.

@NEStalgia Do we have any evidence to suggest Sony has done what your suggestion with any other game? Or is this a first time where they sign a secret deal?

@themightyant depends on when Sony did the deal I guess. Plus people aren't looking at the bigger picture as the Chinese market to outside competition is relatively a new market. A ban was lifted in 2015. So the prospect for growth is huge. But also competition started evenly for Nintendo, Sony & Microsoft. It's estimated worth is $42.6 billion. Sony has also pledged aggressive growth in entertainment in the region. It has exclusive deals with publishers like Genshin Impacts MiHoYo Co Ltd. Stellar Blade also this year. It also has China Hero Project & regularly shows up at Chinese game events. So Sony has invested a lot in the region. Another thing people forget is the ABK deal. Blizzard games are extremely popular in China. Add all Xbox/PC Blizzard games into Games Pass now they have returned to the region. It's a win for Microsoft. We also have Playstation pivot in strategy since the ABK deal. I didn't see Sony scream from the rooftops it has exclusive content for the new Sonic X Shadow Generations. I haven't seen any Sony advertising also but Sega confirmed Playstation versions have an exclusive anime. So maybe a new strategy after the attention it received from the ABK trails. As the American government questioned there dominance. So buying up exclusive rites last minute to a potential game changer in China isn't out of the question.

@FatalBubbles they have kept quiet about have exclusive content to Sonic X Shadow Generations. Sega responded to a rumour. They confirmed PlayStation versions would come with an exclusive prequel anime.

@Mustoe the old Sony. Pre ABK deal would. But now after it's exclusive deals came under scrutiny during the FTC, CMA trails. I can see them being a bit more secretive about it to avoid getting pulled up by regulators themselves. As even American Congress questioned it's dominance in Asia.

@cragis0001 So not actually a game? An anime?

@FatalBubbles if they can stay quiet about buying content exclusively when before they used to weaponise it. Then why would they not do the same with games. Specifically if they get them to sign a deal to say otherwise. Maybe what Game Science said isn't wrong that the game needs extra optimisation as they had to push the Xbox version to aside while they prioritize the PlayStation due to the deal they signed.

@cragis0001 Because it’s the opposite of what they’ve done in literally every other case. They ALWAYS shout they have exclusives.

@cragis0001 the article hasn’t been updated, but the guy who tweeted this is rolling back his comments and other ‘insiders’ are saying their isn’t a deal.

So yeah probably not one on this occasion

@FatalBubbles to be fair there whole strategy has changed since Jim Ryan got the boot. So why that wouldn't mean the way they do exclusive deals wouldn't change either. Specially after the exposure the deals got during the ABK trails. But Like I said before Sony has invested a lot lately into the Chinese market. Microsoft got a foothold owning Blizzard. It's a relatively new market with lots of potential for growth. But then others have just said the sources are pulling back. Now saying it's not the case so who knows.

@PsBoxSwitchOwner probably till someone else claims something else I guess 😂😂. Let's see what next week brings lol.

@cragis0001

If there's monkey business involved between Sony and Game Science and they're keeping it shtum than it's quite c***p. But looks like lady karma got involved...apparently Concord sold around 25K (so far) across PS5 and PC.

The guy who started it is now saying there isn't a deal. Would be nice to see the article updated instead of baiting silly console wars.

@Weebleman

Yep, the article needs to be updated. Although that probably won't sway the Xbox faithful. They've made up their mind - "Sony are teh evil!"

@FatalBubbles We don't know. That's kind of the point where this would be interesting on their response. One could assume there's no contract like this. But Sony so far seems to have had no response to any press inquiries. The silence is curious. It would be easy to say no it's untrue even accused by Forbes. And in fact they've done so before when Forbes printed they cut PS5 production and again when Forbes claimed they cut psvr2 production. They were quick to refute the false claims. This one? Silence. Curious indeed. If this one is real, it means others are probably real that we didn't know about. And if they don't answer I'm pretty much taking that as confirmation that against the odds this one really is true.

@NEStalgia Personally I think it’s a better look for Sony or Game Science to just say yes or no. As you mentioned, it makes them look suspicious by staying silent.

I did see that Paul Tassi (Forbes) now said this is a “very complicated” situation and he believes his source “heard what they heard”. That to me is not super compelling but who knows.

It's a bit of a strange one imo but either way, the current console release isn't very good optimized so they still have a lot of work to do! With Sony devs being part of the game they probably called dibs on it? Don't let FOMO get you😉

@FatalBubbles agreed. Is honestly the silence on the matter giving it the most credibility now. It would be easy to say no. Do why won't they? And if it's true now, how often has it been true before?

@NEStalgia Can we think of any other games that didn’t release right away on Xbox aside from BG3 that Sony hasn’t claimed exclusivity on? The studio was very clear that it was struggling to get things going on Xbox, which I have to assume is related to the S.

@FatalBubbles TBH I haven't cared enough to follow close enough to have a list but there's been lots of games delayed on Xbox due to technical issues that we assume are true. Like wukong. But if there's monkey business here that Sony won't deny then maybe there's more to that? It's all weird

@NEStalgia Tbh the rumours of it being a ps5 exclusive probably help them more than coming out saying it isn’t. So why deny it? Sure it would be helpful of course.

Just as the rumour it being a ps5 exclusive kinda helps MS. It’s a better narrative that big bad evil Sony took it away from the plucky rascal underdogs the trillionaire Microsoft. Rather than it look like a Dev is struggling to get the game running on an Xbox.

Maybe it is exclusive, but that as an exchange for allowing parity with PlayStation for Call of Duty titles with the ActiBlizz court stuff, Sony agreed with Microsoft to not market a number of titles as exclusive after completing the exclusivity deals already? We'll see.

‘we’re excited for the launch of Black Myth Wukong on Xbox Series X|S and are working with Game Science to bring the game to our platforms.’

If there is an exclusivity deal, then why are Microsoft still working to bring the title to Xbox? It’ll come once the deals over. I’m not buying it, I think they’re just muddying the water, I still think they’re struggling to get it to an acceptable level on the S.

Digital Foundry recently talked about how the Series S would handle Black Myth Wukong, and everyone felt that it would not be a problem to get it to an acceptable level on the machine.

@JoyfulFire they said it’s possible but with huge compromises. I don’t know what you were listening to but I didn’t get that impression.

John of DF: “It's very likely true that they're struggling to get this game running on Series S. As we know, this is Unreal Engine 5 version 5.0, I believe. This is like original Unreal Engine 5, which is extremely heavy.”

“And then on top of that, they probably very realistically are having troubles bringing into Series S and maybe even Series X because let's face it, clearly they had troubles bringing it to PS5. It does not work well on the PS5. And Unreal has traditionally based on, I mean, I think in our testing, we've seen Unreal games typically favor PS5”

Like I said. Idk how you came away thinking it’s no problem.

If you watch the Digital Foundy test on the PS5 version it's probably best to wait anyway.

Some people are literally obsessed with the series s what it can and can't do there's so much more to life the series s is more scared of you than you are of him ok so just ignore it👏👍

@Fenbops yeah I agree. Especially after game science even came out and said it’s because of (whatever) issues. So MS are basically calling them liars, yet in the next breath say they are working with them.

Very strange all around.

Funny how people keep bringing up Digital Foundry because they themselves also said they heard from reliable sources that there is an exclusivity deal in place with Sony.

I'd be curious as to the question that was posed to MS here. If it was 'Can you comment on Black Myth Wukong being delayed due to system issues on xbox or an exclusivity deal with Sony?' Then the answer given is in a whole new light.

Not due to issues raised with them. This could mean it's due to an issue not raised with them yet.

Can't comment on deals.... could simply be a response to the question 'cam you comment...'

Either way, it's a muddy water response that gives nothing away.

Dame control is controlling

@PsBoxSwitchOwner it doesn't help when the major point of the rumour is making a sneaky back-alley deal to specifically hamper development on one platform over another.

Hmm, maybe it's a silent exclusivity deal where they don't market the product and instead create an odd situation and let the internet do all the work in creating viral buzz. Everybody is talking about it, without a booth or ad. Saves advertising budget. I look forward to seeing web banner ads in the future just be blank, once this catches on

@awp69 Funny how they do not mention this secret deal they have confirmed once in the recent DF direct. They do however mention lots of other potential issues but not once do they say there is an exclusivity deal.

@Ilyn Not exactly sure what you’re trying to say but this is from the Digital Foundry article on Eurogamer about the Series S and Black Myth Wukong:

“ News journalists with good track records have corroborated the Sony exclusivity angle (and to be clear, we've heard the same ourselves from sources with good knowledge of the situation) ”

How is that “not once” said by Digital Foundry? If you’re mentioning a different DF article / video, does it matter? They DID say it in this one.

https://www.eurogamer.net/digitalfoundry-2024-df-weekly-if-black-myth-wukong-has-issues-on-ps5-is-a-series-s-port-viable

@awp69 I was referring to the DF direct on youtube from a day ago (its on the link you sent) when they did not confirm it being exclusive at all. And I would say it matters greatly because in the editorial Rich says journalists have said there is a deal and they have heard the same from good sources, yet in the video says there are reports of a rumour but stops short of saying they have heard it also and doesn't challenge when the other commentator says they don't believe the deal rumour.

So which is it? since they are not even sticking to the same version themselves it brings credibility into question.

@Ricky-Spanish

Some people are literally obsessed with the series s what it can and can't do there's so much more to life the series s

That's true. Then again how else would said people defend the action(s) of a corporation they support? Console wars are of paramount importance, don't you know 😉..

It still seems unlikely. And MS saying this easily could be cute corporate wording to insinuate a connection where there is none. The classic "Do you still beat your wife?"

On the other hand, Sony and Game Science ghosting every media request for comment, combined with MS insinuating they have a deal.....it REALLY makes one wonder.

I get a policy of not commenting on rumors. But Sony has commented on rumors from Forbes multiple times in the past 4 years, and when the media AND your competitor are publicly insinuating you have secret agreements and you continue ignoring media requests for comment....... Either there's truth to it, or Sony's "doing a Microsoft" and creating their own negative PR by ignoring the negative PR.

Lol, they're working to get the game on Xbox platforms, but it's not series s fault... Lmao, why still working to get it to work properly on the console then? Yeah maybe Sony did say release it on PS5 then, if it's stable, but why should everyone have to wait on the series version? It's not like Sony really made a deal here, otherwise we would have seen it in marketing deals. But whatever, probably the truth is somewhere in the middle and they probably said to Sony, we won't delay the PS5 version. Remember, BG3 was the same story and other devs have given there opinion on the series s as well. It's not like Sony paid these devs to tell these things...

My opinion and I stress opinion before I get jumped as it appears very heated in here right now 😂

I think it's a simple Sony put resources in and aided development so it released quicker. So subsequently through a contract or otherwise came to PS first.

If I am right then like a lot in this thread agree that Sony and GS staying silent on the issue does not help.

Similarly though if it is the case then MS publicly saying it's otherwise is really bad PR.

@BossBE

Lol, they're working to get the game on Xbox platforms, but it's not series s fault... Lmao, why still working to get it to work properly on the console then?

Platform holders use the term WORKING with our third party game developers or content creators all the time ( Did Microsoft used the term WORKING PROPERLY or is that just insinuation on your part??).
One only has to watch an Xbox, Sony or Nintendo game shows to see it, its capacious but not some unprecedented term as you and others are implying...

The only "deal" I foresee with Sony for this game is that optimization work was still being done on Xbox that would have resulted in a delay and Sony provided some kind of help or incentive that caused Game Science to simply put Xbox work on the backburner to focus on PlayStation (and PC) releases - which were already the closest to being finished.

This is why Microsoft can't comment on "deals" made because, honestly, Microsoft probably doesn't know what was decided between Sony and Game Science. All Microsoft can say is that it's working with the developer to get the game out and that's it.

I have slowly lost interest in the game (and I am only in Chapter 2). It was cool at first, but the whole "boss rush" nature of it is starting to get old. I still fire it up from time to time, but my hype has dissipated, and I find myself going back to older games instead.

@Rog-X

Astro Bot recieving not just amazing reviews across the board, but an almost flawless break down from Digital Foundry must be ever so upsetting for you.

😂

@FatalBubbles all they said was that the Xbox series of consoles version requires further optimisation. Which would be true if they did a deal with Sony to prioritize the PS5 version. As they'd halt work on the Xbox port. Or there is a memory leak which would effect both consoles. Your the one blaming the Series S.

@Mustoe all that means nothing if the bulk of the PlayStation community don't buy it.

@Sol4ris I'm sure we will get more news to this ongoing saga.
As for Concords failure. Will it lead to another shift in policy within PlayStation when it comes to 1st/3rd party exclusives.