So in other news, I got around to finishing up TLoU2 Remastered in Chronological mode. SPOILERS obviously:

Firstly, this mode isn't actually quite what some of you wanted regarding game progression. While it is true that you switch between Ellie and Abby, this mode does put cutscenes/ gameplay segments into a timeline on when they happened (more or less, because many cases these overlap or certain segments technically over extend). It's also important to note that it;s just a simple rearranging: not more was done to try make it as true to a scheduled timeline, because I imagine that would've been more work than was necessary.

That said, while I enjoyed experiencing the game this way, it doesn't quite work. 

1. From a chronological perspective, the impact of many scenes are misplaced. Of of the more important ones is towards the end of the game where you learn more about the night just before the snowy gameplay segments. It's a crucial scene, that thematically serves its purpose later in the game. But in this mode, it's one of the first story moments you encounter. It's nonetheless interesting to experience it early on, because it makes things a little clearer to the player.
2. The Hospital sequence in particular actually is quite negatively affected by this. Abby gets to the hospital first, but originally you play it via Ellie first. When you play this segment, you get to explore the opening sections of the area, when you don't with Abby (you skip this after she is caught). One of the first items you pick up mentions the bottom floors being cordoned off. The expectation a player has coming to the hospital is that it's entirely a Wolves base, but this message suggests this isn't the case: there are areas roaming with infected that they don't even visit. Later on when you chase Nora you enter these areas, and realise they the Wolves very clearly do not explore this area and that there are infected area. Cut to Abby, how more can this escalate? Well, it does quite grandly so with the whole segment leading up to the Rat King and the fight itself. In chronological mode, these are flipped around: you get the major escalation here and then it only deescalates when you play as Ellie. 

But on top of this, you also get the character switching, and this doesn't work either for the overall experience:

1. Firstly, you get the above sequence: switching just means that you experience the day as Ellie, only to immediately go back in time to experience that same location (albeit different) from Abby's POV. That would be kind of jarring.
2. The lead up to the hotel actually loses a lot of momentum as well. When you're playing as Ellie, you learn of the Scars. But you don't know anything about them. Your first encounter is in the woods, and it's one of the best sequences in the game. You get hit by a bow and arrow (players of the first game would connect this weapon with Ellie) after not seeing an enemy with one the entire time to this point. You learn the arrow bleeding mechanic. You're then swamped by an enemy that you've never seen who are also randomly whistling. It's incredibly unsettling, and that only heightens the experience. With character switching, this entire sequence is diminished because Scars are a the common enemy for Abby. You see them in her Day 1 experience. You see them with arrows, you hear them whistling. This makes sense for Abby but also the player at this point because you would've experience them first as Ellie when they are brand new to you. 
3. And lastly, and this is maybe on me: but I felt it very exhausting constantly switching between Ellie and Abby. The game basically has 3 main arcs going for it, the one with Ellie, the one with Abby and then the final Santa Barbara part. The problem with constantly switching is that you're basically running through 2 story arcs at the same time, and it feels like it takes a very long time to reach different checkpoints of those arcs. For some reason, this Chronological playthough felt longer for me to get through even though it was easily 1/3 if not more shorter. I've seen complaints about how the story abruptly ends after Ellie for you to go back and play as Abby, but imagine that happening multiple times before reaching that part in the story. 

All-in-all, Chronological mode is fun. And I am glad I played it. But it only makes it more obvious to me how much better the original structure actually is. 

@twintail

I think even Naughty Dog recommends first playing the game as it was originally presented and only playing the new chronological mode after, because yeah, many of the build ups will definitely be lost by having more information than you need to have when you are where you are.

That game was brilliantly constructed and presented, on that regard, IMO, it's the best crafted game ever.

Detective Seeds has historically been inaccurate. 

Good to note, I'm sure we'll get a full report from a reputable source soon. 

Still very sad about the situation. Even looking at how they seemingly remade Demon Souls in 2 years (SOTC 2018)... It seems entirely reasonable that they could of been put onto another remaster (even a less ambitious one) and had a new game out by 2028 which is honestly not much different Naughty Dog as we won't get a proper new game from them until 2027 at the earliest.

The Wolverine announcement out of nowhere with no media to support it smells of deflection from the negative studio closure and doesn't sit right or do service to Wolverine.


Anyway I hope Phantom Blade moves in one direction or another to have a bit more breathing room. It will absolutely be hurt by Wolverine looming a week behind it in early sales.

Yeah, why not announce it during the SoP?

Sony is beyond stupid sometimes, as we can see this last few days, after such a big wave of positivity in the SoP.

I don't know the guy but that post is mostly a compilation of things that were either obvious or confirmed by better sources and official sources.

The most important point for me was that BluePoint wasn't obligated to make a God of War service.

When TLOU multiplayer was cancelled Naughty Dog officially stated that no one obligated them to make the multiplayer a service, was their decision the same way it was their decision to cancel it. When Yoshida left Sony and was in his interviews tour, he was quite critical of Sony and rightfully so but obviously the interviewers asked about the service push expecting the next click bait news and every time he made clear that no studio was forced to do anything. When BP and Bend games were cancelled and it was out that BP game was a GOW spinoff service inside the Greek saga, that same people said BP decided to make that game after helping the development of GOWR. 

Obviously if Sony was looking for services all studios felt pressure to make a service, specially studios that aren't called Santa Monica/Naughty Dog/Insomniac/Polyphony and I'm almost sure that was the reason why Bend decided to make a service after their first original franchise in 20 years was killed after the first game but then why Housemarque is weeks again from releasing their biggest single player game yet? HM and BP were very similar, similar size, acquired around the same time, worked for sony for many years before acquisition, even better Demon's Souls sold more than Returnal then why their fates were different? At least to me the difference is that one knew what they were doing and the other didn't. 

So even if that post is fake I'm glad more people are aware of something they should have known since 2023, these services they love to hate were conscious decisions and that matters because if those games end up being good they deserve more than the Concord stigma. 

All of clearly this doesn't mean Sony isn't responsible of anything. This happened because of mismanagement, part of a good management is to save your employees from themselves, if they saw that BP a studio that can only handle one game at a time wanted to make a service about PlayStation biggest franchise as their first "original" game in God knows how long it was their obligation to tell them NO but they didn't because of greed so of course it's their fault too. 

Wolverine releases September 15th, the mexican "leak" was right LOL. 

Probably because the date wasn't finalised 2 weeks ago .

But it is now and it's already disclosed so shortly after being decided?

No, I don't believe it.

I would rather believe they didn't want to disclose there to give more space to other reveals instead.