To be more specific, Microsoft is allegedly paying publishers to not show any PS4 versions of their multiplatform titles.

I mentioned the other day that I was hearing rumors of Microsoft throwing around a considerable amount of money to have publishers only show games on the Xbox One during E3. Most people dismissed my admittedly flakey news as 'that's what always happens.'

I've talked to more people since then though and this isn't the usual jostling for publishers on stage that happens at E3. Microsoft is throwing BIG money around to reverse course on idea that they aren't a games console. The rumors are that PS4 versions of multiplats, by those who do take the money, won't be shown AT ALL. Not on stage and not on the show floor.

I don't feel bad for Sony because business is business. I'm sure they will find a way to have a decent show... or they will have to recover afterwards. That's not really my concern.

Now, there's no need to take my word on this if you don't want to. But do keep an eye on E3 next week. With them buying up everything in sight and now potentially cutting an open roundtable out(to assumedly talk one on one with friendly press) and word that finding multiplat games on the ps4 on the show floor will be much harder than anticipated.... just keep an eye on it. Maybe my sources are wrong. But I feel confident enough in this info to share it.

I'm not saying to jump to conclusions. I'm just saying it may be something to keep an eye on.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=577741

Just a rumor at this point, but if you hear a lot of "we're not talking about other platforms right now" nonsense from 3rd party publishers at E3, or you don't see very many non-exclusive titles that are running on PS4 hardware, this might be why.

I highly doubt that not a single person at any of these companies that are supposedly being paid off would speak up about this.

This news has gone around for a while and nobody will confirm this any way but anonymously. If EA ends up a 99-100% no-show on the PS4 section then that's more than enough proof.

Right from the post: "That's what always happens" and "Business is business"

I'm not going to get up in arms because one giant corporation is throwing money around to come out ahead of another giant corporation.

Yep. This rumor will be "confirmed" by E3 itself. And if that does seem to be the way things are going down, I hope journalists do their job and push for answers.

I'm not really upset with MS for doing this--as was said, it's just business--but I absolutely feel that gamers themselves should be pissed at any company who would take the money. Hiding away certain versions of your product would be doing a rather large disservice to your customers.

BREAKING NEWS: "Microsoft allegedly paying journalists at E3 to stab Playstation developers and Sony execs, urinate on corpses and display consoles."

BREAKING NEWS: "Microsofts Xbox One video game console allegedly made primarily of bones of Native Americans and endangered species, assembled by blind orphans."

BREAKING NEWS: "Microsoft giving free Xbox One consoles to supporters of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, internal email declares excitement for Xbox-Assad partnership in eradicating Israel."

And? No different then paying for ads during the super bowel.

And even if its true you think Sony isn't doing the same?

Gross.

heh

So? How is this bad?

@connerthekewlkid: I had a bad experience during a Super Bowl one time. It turned into a joke. Long versio short my car window was smashed with a bowl because I was parked next to a car with the winning teams logo on its bumper. Friend with accent said "bowel" by mistake.

The only one I'm interested is EA. How annoyed is EA at Sony, right now? It started with FIFA does some exclusive features on Xbox, but I think it might be more than that..

This is about as shocking as them having employees on their payroll. I don't get why this matters so much.

I wish this were true.

The game ended like half an hour ago and there had been yelling outside because people are stupid like that. Friend was outside doing what ever he was doing then ran inside " Oy your windshield been bashed with a bowel!"

Did anyone ever tell you your a really good story teller?

There's one rumor going around right now that Sony is going to be more forgiving with their DRM than Microsoft, EA is not happy about that, so EA is "punishing" Sony by making Titanfall--the first game from Respawn Entertainment (ex-Call of Duty developers)--an Xbox One exclusive.

Like I said, I'm not really upset with MS for doing this--as was said, it's just business--but I absolutely feel that gamers themselves should be pissed at any company who would take the money. Hiding away certain versions of your product would be doing a rather large disservice to your customers.

Sony fans deserve to see how their games are going to look, and undecided buyers deserve to see how each console stacks up when games are running side by side. If your favorite publisher is going to screw you out of that opportunity because they'd rather take money under the table, instead of doing what is best for their customers, THAT is what people should be upset about.

Its easy when one of your friends is Irish and likes to get drunk.

This can't be legal.

Its like paying for more advertising space at a store.

Actually, how will Destiny be comparable on XONE? What does PS4 exclusive features, mean? Like is it just PS4 Home integration-thing, or like additional "levels, or environments?"

How is this any different than Bioshock Infinite commercials with a PS3 logo at the end?

How is this different from Sony shelling out money to get exclusive footage for Destiny and that hour of extra gameplay?

@the_laughing_man:

I suppose. But it's just another thing that gives me the impression that I would hate Microsoft as a company and don't want to support them with my money.

Sony has done the same thing for other stuff. Like Bioshock infinite. And Destiny game play.

@connerthekewlkid: Yup, totally. How many more exclusive 3rd party games will Sony have?

Also, 8-4 Play went off on MS on their latest. Especially at the end. Yeesh..

Typical dirty western bastard Microsoft tactics.

Sony is superior in its eastern morality and spirituality, and would never stoop to such low hand machinations. Big nosed western companies have no morals. This is how they do business.

No big deal. So Sony can focus on Exclusive games and gamer are smart enough to know that these games come out on PS4 as well.

@spaceinsomniac: They're not "hiding away" any version of their game. There has never been a precedent for showing all versions of games at E3, it's just a question of which version to show. Comparisons of versions never comes out of the industry, it's comes out of the media through reviews etc.

How is a small mom & pop organization like Sony supposed to compete with these tactics?

@connerthekewlkid: Down with the baka gaijins!!

One is a company paying more money to secure the better version of a product for their customers, and the other is a company paying more money in an attempt to hide their competitors product from their customers.

But ultimately, they both kind of suck. If Microsoft customers want to hold Activision's feet to the fire over Sony's Destiny exclusives, more power to them.

Eh.

So you have no issue with Sony doing it to? But MS doing it gives you a bad impression.

This has been going on for generations and I've never been a fan of it because it is money thrown away that isn't into the tech or the game. Its a big reason why this/last gen was a bust where the platform holders where throwing money into a market that couldn't sustain it. But who am I to suggest that anyone shouldn't entice a developer to show only at their stage/booth if they show up with a Publisher's Clearing House sized check?

If they're really throwing around more money than usual for this sort of stuff I'd just take it and show on both anyway, Its a shitty time out there for publishers, get all the god damn hype you can.

This new generation has really done a great job showing how many people really have no idea how this whole industry works. This has always happened.

It was a rumor that started at reddit, so it's most likely not true but those guys do love their witch hunts. For those who don't know about reddit's witch hunts those are the guys who blamed some poor kid who committed of the Boston bombing, turned out that kid committed suicide about a week before that.

@the_laughing_man:

I'm conciding your point.

You're thinking of the rumor that MS was paying an image management company to invade forums. This isn't that.

Bungie : Destiny Gameplay Reveal : Sony E3 conference , Enough said.

Because working with a publisher to secure exclusive in-game content, and afford them the opportunity to reveal their game during one of the two biggest press conferences at E3 = paying publishers to not show any multiplatform titles on your competitor's hardware?

MS has been working with Activision to secure limited time DLC exclusives and reveal the latest Call of Duty titles at their press conferences for years, but this is kinda different. Customers don't get anything out of this. It's fine for MS to offer it, IMO, but it's pretty shitty for anyone to actually take the money.

I wouldn't be shocked if this is true. I don't think it will make a big difference because people will know which games are multiplatform and the Xbox One versions that are shown will probably look the same as the PS4 version that are not. I am really more excited to see how the console exclusives stack up against one another.

@spaceinsomniac:

Well that sucks. Not surprising but crappy nonethless if true.

Maybe I'm just an optimist by nature, but I think people will see this desperate move for what it is. And frankly publishers would be pretty stupid to take that kind of payout and damage their own product's sales potential due to underexposure.

anyway I'm not buying a console this year in all likelihood so I can wait until the truth is out there.

I don't quite see what the issue is here. It's what these companies have done for a long time now. Like Sony trying to get publishers to send out PS3 versions of games for review instead of 360 versions. This rumor seems likely because it'd be surprising if they weren't trying to get some publishers to stress that their titles are on one platform over another. It's the reality of trying to identify a title with a platform for promotional purposes despite the majority of titles being multi-platform now.

Sony and Microsoft will continue to do this, and as exclusives get even more sparse, you'll probably see this even more so. Either stressing one platform during a press conference or one platform in a commercial. It's just what the companies have to do now to bolster their brand identity with consumers.

How is this any different than ever? Commercials for games almost always have the PS or Xbox ending to them, which kind of implies that it's only for that system.

I don't know, I don't see this as being anything new. Take Diablo 3 for example. Sony made it seem like that game was coming out only for PS but I only found out like 2 days ago that it was coming to 360 as well.

Sony bought rights to extra Destiny DLC, and Bungie used to be in MS's back pocket. They've done the same with the recent Assassin's Creed games, too...

Business is business. This is just another rumor post trying to get people to shit on MS. Sony does just as equally shitty of things on occasion... it's how this industry [unfortunately] works.

Ha.

With the bad press already surrounding the Cross bone or whatever all the cool kids are calling it these days, i think this kind of story is unlikely to make any real impact. If Sony come out and say, "hey kids, there are no used game restrictions and you can give your games to whoever you want" they have won, if they spin the same yarn as MS then it will come down to these kinds of arguments. E3 is going to blow Sony's way this time, Microsoft had a really good chance to knock Sony on its ass and not once, but twice messed it up. All Sony has to do to win this is play the good cop, failing that Nintendo will walk away with another one by default by being the only company without screwed up as hell DRM policies. E3 starts in less than 12 hours, lets see what comes out...