Hello, video game fans. Back again with another set of thoughts. Have you read my previous thoughts about EVO 2022? What was special about that one is that it informs anyone that after 15 years since EVO 2007, Super Smash Bros. won't be in the lineup either this year only or ever again as Nintendo ended their tradition this year following Sony's purchase, yet all of the DLC characters have been released. Wow, that hurts a bit. But it's a fair enough decision. Don't get me wrong. Smash is a fighting game. It just that it doesn't use health bars in game, but it uses a Stamina feature and a Final Smash meter, which SSF2 also uses. They weren't really that clear.
So what's on the docket recently? Well, there's an upcoming Skullgirls Lore to assigning the Skullgirls characters to BBTAG character themes alongside the Black Dahlia one, which I can't really discuss, but I can tell you that Umbrella's full release on Steam and PlayStation is on the horizon and fast approaching as everything in the Active Angel Beta has been finalized a week ago without transferring everything to the retail version to pave the way for it after months of work that took blood, sweat and tears. Then it's off to the wait for Black Dahlia and her Alpha phase where I play Walpurgisnacht upon her entrance as a point character on the player 2 side and after the death of a point character on the same team and the time I make a Nine palette out of her. To participate, you must purchase the Season 1 Pass.
There's an EVO 2022 lineup reaction skit coming soon to Mightykeef's channel that will be explosive. Emphasis on "explosive" since Super Smash Bros. won't be at EVO either for this year only or ever again. I'm even learning and labbing Athena Asamiya and finding other two characters to learn and lab on KOFXV, which is what I probably should do eventually.
But what I like to mention now is regarding the new and beefed up PlayStation Plus, which was codenamed Spartacus. Sony is actually giving PS Plus a big upgrade by giving it two higher additional tiers that involve granting access to a collection of modern and classic games, but there is one flaw. Upcoming first-party games like God of War: Ragnarok won't be on the service on day one of its release. You know how Game Pass is the Netflix of gaming? Well, since PS Plus is getting an upgrade, it'll be the Hulu of gaming. Here are the three tiers below.
Essential - Offers the same benefits the original PS Plus offers; monthly free games, exclusive discounts, the PS Plus Collection and access to online multiplayer.
$9.99 for monthly
$24.99 for quarterly
$59.99 for yearly
Extra - Offers benefits provided in the Essential tier and access to a library of over 400 PS4 and PS5 games, including blockbuster hits by PlayStation Studios and third-party partners.
$14.99 for monthly
$39.99 for quarterly
$99.99 for yearly
Premium - Offers benefits provided in the previous tiers, time-limited game trials and access to a library of 340 classic games across PS1, PS2, PSP and PS3 generations. PS3 games are only available to play through streaming while PS1, PS2 and PSP games are available to both download and through streaming on PS4, PS5 and PC.
$17.99 for monthly
$49.99 for quarterly
$119.99 for yearly
These are the three tiers that the new PS Plus will have. Once it launches here in June, PS Now will transition to the new service. That said, I'll be buying the monthly plan under the Premium tier so I can not only play the classics, but to find out what they are. With over 400 PS4 and PS5 games and over 340 PS1, PS2, PSP and PS3 games added at launch, do the math and over 740 games across the PlayStation family will be on the new service at launch.
I know you are itching to play games that were released under the umbrellas of defunct video game companies and bear a charming environment as much as I do. Chances are, they might or might not be in the catalogue. You'll see what they are once the new PS Plus drops here in June. In fact, if you have an Xbox Series, you are able to play your favorite classics that are released under the defunct umbrellas since full backwards compatibility is supported thanks to the Xbox 360 architecture that is easy to work with. Well, most of them. While the PS5 can only play PS4 games through backwards compatibility, the Premium tier's got you covered.
So you're wondering what's the conflict to this. I'll tell you right now. There is one conflict in terms of emulation: the PS3. Sony has confirmed that the PS3 games will only be available to stream. It's because the PS3 console is hard to emulate and uses some sort of unique structure the Xbox 360 didn't have. That's why both the PS5 and PS4 can't play PS3 games through backwards compatibility. Because of this, Sony is most likely not to emulate the PS3. This means the PS3 games will only be available to stream on the new PS Plus and you need a stable internet for streaming. But the PS2 games will be available to not only stream, but also to download along with the PS1 and PSP games, which are also available for streaming. It's due to the fact that the PS1, PS2 and PSP consoles are easy to emulate and their architecture is straightforward.
But still, the Premium tier is where it's at, as long as I can revisit my favorite classics, including the most charming one that must be added, Midway Arcade Treasures, a compilation that has arcade games that are released under the Midway Games umbrella. You guys heard of Midway Arcade Treasures before, right? My cousin and I both played it and I found it the most charming game that is in my wish list. What makes it the most charming about that one is that it is like Namco Museum. You just need to beg Nintendo to make Super Mario: The Wrath of Bowser following Smash not returning at EVO this year and SEGA to make Sonic: Enter the Frontiers.
Well, Midway Arcade Treasures is basically the Namco Museum of Midway, but the company was liquidated and bought out by WB Games and rebranded into NetherRealm Studios, so it is unclear that they might remake it. I suppose that it can be tied with Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex and Spyro: Enter the Dragonfly as most charming. Both games use a charming environment, yet I heard they turned out to be a fail. Still, I hope for those two be included into the PS Plus Premium catalog. I mean, if Activision plans to make a Crash and Spyro crossover game, I'll be down for that. After all, both Crash and Spyro are under the Activision umbrella since Mind over Mutant and Dawn of the Dragon were released under the same publisher since... you know, Sonic 06 has failed because of glitches, bad camera angle and unbearable load times.
By the way, if the original Skullgirls Encore is listed on the catalog at launch, I might play it eventually. But it won't get the Season 1 Pass that contains Annie, Umbrella, Black Dahlia and the fourth TBD character accordingly and won't cross-play with PS4. That's why they don't have the resources for that. But BBTAG music stays. Because the PS3 version won't get the Season 1 Pass, Justice Sword, Active Angel, Walpurgisnacht and the fourth Season 1 Pass character's theme (preferrably an Under Night In-Birth theme) are disabled. But since it's a PS3 game, it can only be streamed and it'll be harder when playing online and listening to BBTAG music. After all, you can't beat BBTAG music.
There is one advantage for playing the PS3 version. PS Plus isn't required for online play, but required for online play on the PS4 version, which is the only Sony console that Skullgirls will get future content on and that's why they don't have to worry about memory limits and it's also playable on PS5 through backwards compatibility and loads faster than on PS4. And with Skullgirls at this year's main lineup, the excitement surges. Again, Umbrella is getting very close to her PS4 release and with Skullgirls being on the lineup for this year's EVO, she will come out before then, so expect duos and trios that involve the Renoir sisters assigned to Missions for the Brilliant Executor and Active Angel and TV's finest assigned to A Pure Hearted Beast and Justice Sword to be shown on the big screen for 20th Century Fox to sponsor. Then it's off to waiting for Black Dahlia, and I know she may not come out before EVO. Maybe I should think about co-streaming it and create my own watch party.
EVO is upon us but not the Smash players since Nintendo has decided to not to join the party and end their tradition at EVO. I'm currently waiting for Mightykeef to post the EVO 2022 lineup reaction skit so I can find out how Smash Ultimate would react about it not being at EVO this year. If it has a Sony logo on it to indicate that Sony bought EVO, it might also indicate that Sony bought EVO, but it's not why Smash couldn't make it. This means the nine games in this year's lineup will all be played on a Sony console.
And... why am I off topic? I just want to talk about playing the classics on the new PS Plus more. I know I said this before, but I'm buying the Premium tier, which offers access to playing classic games released on the PS1, PS2, PSP and PS3. I hope for Sony to add more of them (preferrably the ones on my wish list). I am interested to relive the nostalgia and feel the old school charm and goodness among the defunct video game companies (mostly on the PS1 and PS2 games) as much as a lot of PS fans are. So I'm sure even on the PS4 and PS5, the retro games will still retain all that charm.
I won't sign off without hints to what I have been working on behind the scenes I compiled below.
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