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Will Hermen Hulst get the axe for Concord?

will he?

  • yes, and he should

    Votes: 150 29.4%
  • yes, but he shouldn't

    Votes: 1 0.2%
  • no, but he should

    Votes: 274 53.7%
  • no, and he shouldn't

    Votes: 85 16.7%

  • Total voters
    510

Kurimao

Member
udzD8os.gif
 
the idea that hulst continues to push the idea that horizon's success is all about the series wonderful star, aloy, & not so much its ingenious, bad-ass robotic menagerie, the thing that elevates it into something genuinely 'unique' (which aloy absolutely, positively does not), is just an embarrassingly transparent attempt at marketing a character that, in-game, is deeply unlikable, self-absorbed, & obnoxious...

guerrilla could've stuck the clerk at your local 7-11 in a game with that menagerie/setting/gameplay & it would've been equally successful...
 
I think he'll survive for now - when he was made CEO they clearly had the internal metrics for Concord and it wasn't looking good.

If FairGame$ flops too, (which is likely), we'll see. Marathon being anything less than a major hit is almost unimaginable to me when accounting for the pedigree of the studio.

Ultimately - putting the guy responsible for Killzone/Horizon in charge of being the ultimate purveyor of gaming taste @ PlayStation was a bad idea. Guy just doesn't get what makes games fun.
 

Crayon

Member
Jesus the character roster is just awful. There are times when you get into a new game and are trying to pick a character that doesn't totally put you off. This is one of those times and it's a real bad thing. When I pick up a new fighting game, ideally there will be several characters I have trouble choosing from because they are all cool to me. These just look like absolute shit.
 
Jesus the character roster is just awful. There are times when you get into a new game and are trying to pick a character that doesn't totally put you off. This is one of those times and it's a real bad thing. When I pick up a new fighting game, ideally there will be several characters I have trouble choosing from because they are all cool to me. These just look like absolute shit.
There was one character who was essentially Nightcrawler from X-men but with an Uzi who was super fun to play...but aesthetically she was so awful and annoying I couldn't stick with her.
 

ArtHands

Thinks buying more servers can fix a bad patch
They know the risk, don't worry. They just need 1 GAAS success

Besides Sony is still pumping out top quality AAA hits like no tomorrow such as Stellar Blade, Ronin and shits. God of War Ragnarok just came out too. that lego Horizon and that remaster Horizon.
 
the idea that hulst continues to push the idea that horizon's success is all about the series wonderful star, aloy, & not so much its ingenious, bad-ass robotic menagerie, the thing that elevates it into something genuinely 'unique' (which aloy absolutely, positively does not), is just an embarrassingly transparent attempt at marketing a character that, in-game, is deeply unlikable, self-absorbed, & obnoxious...

guerrilla could've stuck the clerk at your local 7-11 in a game with that menagerie/setting/gameplay & it would've been equally successful...

Oof. Tell us how you really feel, bruh.

Aloy's cool enough. I don't think she sells the game, but she's still a decent protagonist.
 

phant0m

Member
No, but he does need a couple good W's to make up for it. Astrobot was a good start but it's a one-and-done sale and will be discounted by Black Friday

Sucker Punch has still produced nothing new for this gen.
Bend studio has produced nothing for this gen
Nothing from BluePoint since DeS (a launch title, and a remake at that)
Nothing from Naughty Dog this gen but remakes & remasters

tbh their best studio so far from an output perspective has been Insomniac:
  • a new cross-gen game (Miles)
  • a remaster (SM 2018)
  • a new next-gen only game (Rift Apart)
  • another new next-gen only game (SM 2)
  • and still have Wolverine on deck
(also, somebody - Resistance trilogy remaster? I need the games trapped on PS3 to get out, not remasters of shit I played on PS4 3 years ago)
 
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StreetsofBeige

Gold Member
There's no way Hulst gets axed. Jim Ryan looked like he was pushed out the door already, so to save face there's no way he gets booted.
 

AJUMP23

Parody of actual AJUMP23
You get one early failure in your tenure. I also think the concord decision was not his. They started funding that before he took over.

He should learn the right lessons from it though or his tenure will be quick.
 

yurinka

Member
I think it's a dumb take. He's the most successful PS Studios/Worldwide Studios head that Sony ever had. He broke all records many times, won a ton of awards and broke sales records with games released in 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024. Plus the most recent game of most of their studios is the best selling one ever of their teams.

There's no reason to axe Hermen. It's normal to have some fail from time to time.
 
Oof. Tell us how you really feel, bruh.

Aloy's cool enough. I don't think she sells the game, but she's still a decent protagonist.
she's a decent protagonist in zero dawn. for who knows what reason, she is transformed into an insufferable bitch in forbidden west. it's very obvious, & i'm baffled as to what the reasoning behind doing it was. they wanted to create 'tension'?...
 

Loboxxx

Member
If a game with the design and concept of Concord, as rumoured, is Hulst's personal bet, yes, the axe should be sharpened, as it shows that he is looking more for business than passion and has a very debatable artistic taste. Business vision zero.

Besides, I don't like the fact that he is overexploiting the Horizon saga.
 
I think it's a dumb take. He's the most successful PS Studios/Worldwide Studios head that Sony ever had. He broke all records many times, won a ton of awards and broke sales records with games released in 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024. Plus the most recent game of most of their studios is the best selling one ever of their teams.

There's no reason to axe Hermen. It's normal to have some fail from time to time.

Showing their roadmap would take all the pressure away.

Is this the reason why they’re not announcing any big games…


…or does that only apply to Naughty Dog? Last of Us 2 was revealed 3.5 years before release.
 
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I really think he’s done if that video is true. That’s a career-ending fuck up.
He should/could be done if Concord can rightly be laid at his feet, but I don't know about career ending. People left and right the last 2 years have been made redundant, many of whom probably haven't returned to the industry yet and some never will. Their careers, in this field, did end for shit they have no control over.

People at Hulst's level are part of the fraternity. If Sony axed him he'll land on his feet somewhere soon to fuck something else up. That, or he's got 'go lay on a beach' FU money sipping on Pina Coladas until his next opportunity arises. People like that don't suffer their bullshit and have enough protection in place ( ie money and other 1% contacts) that they'll always be fine. I bet Jim Ryan wipes his ass with $100 bills daily, whether he left on his own or otherwise.

If not for the fact that it would mean the loss of thousands of jobs and ruin innocent lives, I'd love to see this industry burn if it only affected the fucks at the top who've screwed it up.
 
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Lunarorbit

Member
He should. Toroki is gonna look hard at whether having a western head of Sony is a great idea.

The lack of innovation is very troubling. No psvr2 support from 1st party. Endless remasters. Buying bungie when it was in decline. Allowing a hero shooter to take 8 years. Canceling a mp of one of your most successful franchises cause it wasn't monetarily sticky. Allowing 2nd party deals to define ps5. Obsession with having 1st party games cross gen.

Ps5 has been a creative dump compared to other generations.
 

Hypereides

Gold Member
The guy is good at persuasion. Watch how he talks and presents himself in videos. I get the feeling he fed the top Sony management a bullshit sandwich with some tangibly believable empirical data and managed to avoid the axe by a hair. Then got promoted while at it. I assume the promotion had more to do with his seniority at the company rather than actually being a visionary mind that got him the position.

So, he should, but he won't. He's the wrong choice for a figure overseeing Sony's studios.
 
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They should bring back Shawn layden.
I wonder if that would even make a difference now( if such a return were possible). The industry has changed so much in the last 10-15 years and some of what worked then may not now. I would contend alot of what they're doing now isn't working but someone will always 'wellll actualllly' drop some console sales data.

I don't know what the answer is. I have spent time pondering whether the wider industry has moved beyond my personal tastes, at least in the AAA space. I just grabbed a used PS5 Slim ( I was waiting for the Pro announcement, that's a nope at $700 for me), and I'll grab a copy of Astrobot and probably replay some PS4 first party stuff on my PSN account, but otherwise meh. Funny enough the game I have the most time in the last year is Vampire Survivors on Steam, I'm like over 70 hours in. Kinda says alot about where I am nowadays with gaming.....
 
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jumpship

Member
Now that’s what I call a hot take. No, the co CEO of SIE will not be stepping down or fired due to the commercial failure of Concord. Taking some tough lessons from it and applying that to future projects, sure. But this hot take fuelled internet drama is not how entertainment businesses are run.
 

midnightAI

Member
Probably? He was notably the guy who pushed to have Japan Studio closed.
Was he? Didn't the whole idea that Hulst pushed for Japan Studios closure come from one of Jaffe's supposed sources? Have we had confirmation about that from anyone else?

It would shock me if it did seeing as how it was Jim Ryan as CEO when that happened and so ultimately it was on him.
 

kyussman

Member
Given the current corporate climate(you must be fully in on DEI and wokeism)I don't think it really matters who runs any of this stuff,the results are going to be the same,a big ole' pile of shit.
 

Elog

Member
He won't and shouldn't for Concord. Having said that, Sony's preoccupation with MP games in their line-up will back-fire for them. The whole point of the MP scene is big brands that are easy to access and where most log-on to play something they recognize and then off again. There is always a hardcore group for each game (primarily PC based) but the MP game library is incredible inert and stale (hence why CS:GO is still king). Sony will waste a lot of resources and money in my opinion. The likelihood of developing a game that will enter that inert and stale group of games as a new household name is so incredible low that it is not worth the risk as part of a development strategy,
 

Chechack

Member
Nah im more convinced Jim was forced to buy Firewalk due to during that time all this DEI hire was hot and ongoing and then when he say how shitshow it was he quickly retired to avoid backlash because he knows nothing can be done to salvage the studio anymore.
 

Clear

CliffyB's Cock Holster
Hulst landed Kojima as a long-term partner, that
Nah im more convinced Jim was forced to buy Firewalk due to during that time all this DEI hire was hot and ongoing and then when he say how shitshow it was he quickly retired to avoid backlash because he knows nothing can be done to salvage the studio anymore.

I honestly doubt everyone employed there is an activist type. Most people will likely keep their heads down and nod along just to avoid entering the firing line. Do not underestimate how coercive a handful of people can be even inside a large organization.

Their stock-in-trade is cultivating a climate of fear and oppression amongst those who don't toe-their-line; and its an extremely effective sort of bullying/cliqueism because they hide behind a veil of moral righteousness.
 
He's gone after Marathon flops.

I get what you're saying but... Marathon - for better or for worse -won't flop just for the fact that it's a Bungie game and at the very least, most of the Destiny anonymous addicts® will give it a try...

Look at D2, people keep saying for years that it's "dead" and yet, users go back in droves after each expansion release as to get their dopamine injection and virtual clothing/weapons.
Shit's an addiction, no 2 ways about it.

So, at the very least, it won't be a flop like Skulls and bones/Suicide squad/Concord were and IMO, it will get supported by the D whales/addicts (at least for the first few weeks/months).

Cheers
 
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zokie

Member
When Jim Ryan was around , he got some power but now he's on equal power with Hideaki Nishino
If the acquisition was his idea before Jim Ryan's departure than i guess he will lose some bonus points with the even higher sony management

 

ANIMAL1975

Member
Moriarty on Sacred Symbols just dropped the megaton of the day - Concord was referred to as a game with Star Wars-like potential inside Sony and the "The Future of PlayStation", despite allegedly looking like shit in alpha after drowning 200mil, just to make Sony to drop another 200 to reach a bare MVP...
At 400 000 000 USD, excluding studio purchase costs! And GaaS running cost budget, at the end making 0 USD profit.
It's the biggest game Sony has ever released and most likely the biggest financial flop in the history of the videogame industry.

Episode 1 Mind Blown GIF by The Office


Moriarty says the game was "Hermen Hulst's baby" championed by himself this hard internally.

What happens now? Is this the end of Hermen Hulst as the CEO at Playstation?
How da fluke does Moriarty knows whats going on at Sonys studios at this level?.... Dude cant even defeat his opiumhead archenemy and rule the world
 
But for those they need
Sony needs to remaster Uncharted & Killzone MP from the PS3 era.

Minimal cost, high ROI.
But for these they need to put in the work redo the textures , animations, maybe engine upgrades.
How about another remaster of last of us 2 where all they have to do is unlock the frame rate to 60 and call it a day.
And for PS6 maybe raytracing and 120 fps ?
 

Urban

Member
I get what you're saying but... Marathon - for better or for worse -won't flop just for the fact that it's a Bungie game and at the very least, most of the Destiny anonymous addicts® will give it a try...

Look at D2, people keep saying for years that it's "dead" and yet, users go back in droves after each expansion release as to get their dopamine injection and virtual clothing/weapons.
Shit's an addiction, no 2 ways about it.

So, at the very least, it won't be a flop like Skulls and bones/Suicide squad/Concord were and IMO, it will get supported by the D whales/addicts (at least for the first few weeks/months).

Cheers
40$ Buyin for a Hero/looter shooter.

D.O.A.
 
"Concord is supposed to be the company's biggest product of all time!"
"Huh, so don't expect any big sellers in FY 24-25, investors".
this shit doesn't make any sense


If you alter Totoki's quotes, of course it doesn't make sense.

In its latest fiscal report, Sony president Hiroki Totoki said it wouldn't release "any new major EXISTING franchise titles"

Concord is NOT one of those. So there is no contradiction.
 
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