r/videogames • u/D3struct_oh • May 13 '26

News / Trailers / Articles PS5 Exclusive Saros Reportedly Selling Worse Than You'd Expect

https://kotaku.com/analyst-claims-sonys-latest-ps5-exclusive-saros-isnt-selling-great-either-2000695652?fbclid=IwdGRleARxcuZleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEeG-CkZ9KPtozDdUCRmNuvf27RXEmrsLfA73BVptvwWKP8A2MaGwiNVVMvH5A_aem_9pzQEWNCIDf-219jig3K0w
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262

u/Organic_Following_38 May 13 '26 edited May 13 '26

Maybe I'm out of the loop, but isn't bullet hell kind of a niche genre, even with a AAA coat of paint?

134

u/MileHighRC May 13 '26

THIS.

Been gaming for 32 years and play a LOT of different genres.. But time is limited so the appeal of starting over constantly turns me off instantly. Imagine many others feel the same.

Price has nothing to do with Saros sales. Resident evil 9 sold 6 million in two weeks....

53

u/joeyjoejojo19 May 13 '26

Absolutely right. For me, as I’ve gotten older and life more stressful, I turn to video games more for relaxation. Super intense or difficult games are great for others, but I can’t fit them into my time.

23

u/IneptFortitude May 13 '26

Same reason I could never get into Returnal, or Elden Ring, or Dark Souls, or Bloodborne, or Sekiro, or Rise of the Ronin, or Wo Long, or Lies of P, or… why the hell are there so many of these?

12

u/PassePartouche May 13 '26

I always avoided these too, but I tried Elden Ring and oh boy, what a journey. You should try at least Elden Ring, not easy at first but very doable as you can explore everything and come back way stronger

9

u/IneptFortitude May 13 '26

I did try Elden Ring as well as all the Dark Souls games. They just aren’t for me. I thought ER being open world would finally be my gateway into that style of game but it was an extremely boring open world to me. Just not my kind of game, I need more to do besides just fight stuff.

10

u/PassePartouche May 13 '26

At least you tried

2

u/joeyjoejojo19 May 13 '26

I’m imagining “YOU TRIED” in the blood red “YOU DIED” font.

2

u/MileHighRC May 13 '26

Yeah Elden ring is in it's own category, not a linear experience like the rest so you're never actually stuck.

1

u/thineholyhandgrenade May 14 '26

I’ll say, I have 1300+ hours in that game and I’m still finding new things on replay. It’s my ultimate comfort game. So cozy.

6

u/Charbus May 13 '26

There are great games and a lot of people are teens or living with their parents or single people doing wfh

Father owl on sekiro took me like 40 tries. If I wasn’t working a strict 40 hour workweek remotely during that time I’d still be on him today

4

u/Gessen May 13 '26

Because they are really fun and comfy once you get into them. Dark souls and bloodborne are comfort games for me. No shade on you not liking them though. To each their own.

4

u/Divine_Wind420 May 13 '26

Damn as a person who hates bullet hell and platformers with a passion and all other ridiculously difficult games, I would never put any souls games on that list.

Unlike most quasi-masochist games, you can beat all souls games naked with a broken weapon if you want real difficulty. The skill gate people think exists in those games is made up by gaming media and frustrated people who put 2hrs in and never touched it again.

3

u/IneptFortitude May 13 '26

It’s because I don’t find slamming my head against a wall until I can memorize every enemy’s moveset to be engaging from a gameplay or challenge standpoint.

Bro, Elden Ring fans are so incredibly pretentious. They think they’re cosmopolitan geniuses because they enjoy a niche game. That’s what the game is, a NICHE, meaning it does not interest everyone.

I played it for a lot more than 2 hours, but you guys are so angry and assumptive and rude that you probably don’t care. Not everyone is going to like your game bro and you guys really need to get a grip on that. Most of you guys would fold in the first half hour of an actual CRPG.

-1

u/Divine_Wind420 May 13 '26

Jesus calm the fuck down lol I know elden ring fans are idiots(first casual souls game) but damn, you just jump right to being offended.

Thats why people say "get good" with these games, not because you have to be skilled thats a misconception, but because you have to press a button when you get audio or visual cue to dodge.

That does not mean you have to die 1000 times to win. Sekiro is the only Fromsoft game I've ever played where I had to die more a few times(like 3-5) to beat a boss, again not about skill. The games give you all the tools to succeed it just expects to not want the victory handed to you with no chance of defeat.

2

u/IneptFortitude May 13 '26

Soulslikes aren’t the first games to ever not hold people’s hand… I’m saying challenge in games can be offered in other ways than pure muscle memory… I’d rather play a basketball game or a fighting game which would use similar skills. When it comes to RPGs i don’t find that style of difficulty endearing at all. I prefer things more like Morrowind or DAO.

And yes, Elden Ring fanboys are massive dicks, so I was expecting the same here given the other people who have already flipped out at me on this thread and called me retarded for not liking their game.

1

u/TheOneWithThePorn12 May 14 '26

Hmmmm.... Those games aren't for you?

What do you like anyway?

1

u/ShopTrick8877 May 14 '26

Suggest you try First Berserker Khazan. It’s been on sale a few times. I think it’s around 30-40 hours long and also has difficulties.

1

u/Forsaken-Society6022 May 17 '26

The Reason cause there dam fun and challenging I understand there not your cup of tea but that’s the reason instead of looking at the. As street full try a different point of view that you are going to take your stress out on the game and blow of some steam and if there’s a difficulty setting set to low and just crush everything very fun 😂

1

u/Warm-Carpenter1040 May 13 '26

These games are challenging for everyone tbf but nothing beats the feeling of beating a boss you’ve been trying so hard to beat. I guess it’s a mentality thing.

Just seeing yourself get better and do better every time you play the game is the reason I love hard roguelites like I couldn’t beat the first boss before now I’m doing it hitless and not even trying.

2

u/IneptFortitude May 13 '26

I love challenging games, but challenging in a very different way. Give me complexity, stat sheets, reputation systems, dynamic factions and a massive world I can get lost in. Everything in Souls/Elden Ring has already went to shit, so there’s literally nothing to do but fight, with a pretty hard limit on how powerful you can be (only as strong as you are good at remembering an enemy’s moves). I’m more of a CRPG person.

1

u/Moneymotivation1 May 14 '26

That last part is insanely not true with Elden ring😭

1

u/IneptFortitude May 14 '26

The PVP fascinates me a lot more with Elden Ring. It starts to resemble a fighting game when it’s two really skilled players. I just could never get into the actual main game attached to it

-3

u/arturorios1996 May 13 '26

Why not? The games are some of the best games ever made and just because a game is difficult maybe you should try a little harder? I don’t get this mentality, it’s a game after all.

2

u/IneptFortitude May 13 '26

I play tons of challenging games, that are challenging and stimulating in much more enjoyable ways than “remember this boss’ moveset or die a billion times”.

That’s actually a hilarious assumption to make. Souls players tried streaming KCD2 when it came out and they could not stop crying over how hard they thought it was. Meanwhile it’s perfect for me. I need more of that kind of challenging.

2

u/arturorios1996 May 14 '26

With all due respect. KCD is not “hard” more like tedious for anyone not familiar with a literal simulator. I played RDR2, many people considered “slow” and “boring” i dont even know what they would say about KCD lmao. I never beat it, too slow for my tiktok brain but I admire the game itself and should’ve won Game of the Year hats off to those developers, game is a masterpiece

0

u/IneptFortitude May 14 '26

The combat can still be really challenging until you’re at the absolute maximum limit of gear quality and stats, and even then you’re going to get cooked if you don’t understand the game’s systems. It’s a more mindful game - less about farming bosses for gear drops and memorizing attack patterns, more about caution and preparation and situational awareness. I also find the historical aspect very stimulating for my brain and highly interesting. And trust me, KCD barely even grazes the wall of simulator gameplay, it could be so much more annoying and realistic. I wouldn’t have it any other way, I’ve learned so much.

1

u/StrawberryWestern189 May 16 '26

KCD combat isn’t hard, it just isn’t very good. It’s easily the weakest aspect of both the games

1

u/JHartigan May 15 '26

Interesting. I'm the complete opposite. As I've gotten older and busier I like games where I can jump in and immediately get to gameplay. Anything mundane like gathering resources, watching cut scenes, or even exploring large open worlda I just don't have the patience for and feel like I'm wasting my time when I just want a quick 10-30 minute game/run. I also hate multiplayer games so roguelikes are where I live.

2

u/TrickOut May 13 '26

Comparing a franchise like resident evil to what ever the heck saros is, is kind of unfair lol.

Also Resident evil is on everything, no one saw saros and said ok this I will go get a PS5 for. Even among people who already own PlayStation it’s going to be a small audience that is interested in a tough rougelike bullet he’ll game.

2

u/MileHighRC May 13 '26

Which is why it's mind blowing they spent 70M given its potential ceiling..

Meanwhile RE9 reportedly had 60M budget

2

u/ChiefWatchesYouPee May 13 '26

RE9 is also a sequel to a massive IP.

I don’t think it’s really fair to compare a new game to a sequel like that

2

u/yeezusKeroro May 13 '26

I think you're missing the point. They put more money into the niche game than Capcom put into a massive IP they knew was going to sell.

1

u/jswck May 13 '26

It also released before gas prices shot up through the roof.

1

u/RightRudderr May 13 '26

I mean price most definitely has something to do with it. Gas and groceries are hitting everybody so people are going to cut costs on expendable purchases. Resident Evil was a mainline release for a tier 1 franchise its not really comparable to something as niche as Saros even if the game is good and worth its sticker price. The pool of potential customers for something as globally known as a Resident Evil game has gotta be exponentially larger.

1

u/JesusTron6000 May 14 '26

Agreed wholeheartedly

1

u/IAmAlive_YouAreDead May 14 '26

This game might be for you but each run is designed to last 20-30 minutes per level, so it is actually pretty good if you just want to hop it and out.

1

u/Jingster May 14 '26

Resident Evil also has that brand power behind as it is a long running series. Most likely if Resident Evil 9 was a horrible game it would still have outsold most any newcomers.

1

u/ajm53092 May 18 '26

For what its worth this game is much more approachable that Returnal was. More meta progression between runs and you dont have to start from the beginning each time.

1

u/TheCVR123YT May 20 '26

I’d say if it was $40 it would’ve gotten a couple more sales tbf

1

u/PowahBamb May 13 '26 edited May 14 '26

Comparing one of the largest gaming franchises of all time against a new IP… one that’s console exclusive at that.. is a mind numbingly fucking stupid take - shocking that other humans could even upvote such a stupid comparison.

But this video game sub is filled with people who basically hate video games. So I’m not exactly surprised by these bad takes

2

u/Moneymotivation1 May 14 '26

Lmaoo just went into this and based on the comments it really do seem like everybody hates every game possible in this sub😭

0

u/Hungry-Class9806 May 13 '26 edited May 13 '26

That what's turned me off with games like Hollow Knight and Control.

Great games but I just don't have the patience to repeat something over and over again and go to a certain point just to die and repeat.

Really wanted to try Returnal but as soon as I knew it was like that... not for me.

0

u/MileHighRC May 13 '26

Yeah I had PS premium at one point and tried Returnal. It was really fun until I died... Tried a second run and of course died again and that was it for me. Just not my kind of game.

0

u/TopSpread9901 May 15 '26

Just play the game? What are you looking for exactly, a list of boxes to check off?

6

u/Thelonius_Dunk May 13 '26

Bullet Hell and a roguelike. I played their previous game Returnal which was a stretch for me as I don't like either of those genres. I recently went out of my comfort zone and tried Hades and loved it so I figured Id like Returnal.

It was well made and well put together, but the progression loop was a little more punishing than Hades. Felt like I barely got stronger each run and eventually put it down.

I've heard the progression loop in Saros is more forgiving, but I'll think I'll wait til it's on clearance to try it out.

5

u/SuperIga May 14 '26

Saros, while roughly as difficult as Returnal, is far more forgiving when it comes to progression.

5

u/n00bBlaster1337 May 14 '26

Yes. People claim everyone is broke but it's just not a game that people want to play. Sorry. Also it's only on PS5 which people own to play Fortnite & FIFA. No one had a problem going out and buying Pokopia for $70. It's not the cost. It's the game and platform. Put it on PC as well and it would have done better.

2

u/B_mico May 14 '26

This, not sure what are Sony’s expectations but sure wasn’t to sell millions.

6

u/ExplodingFistz May 13 '26

Yes. This game was doomed to fail as soon as it was announced as an exclusive. Extremely niche genre, even if it received glowing reviews it's definitely not everyone's cup of tea.

1

u/HyperFunk_Zone May 14 '26

Bullet hell is a subgenre of shoot them ups.

Returnal is a 3rd person shooter with lots of slow projectiles.

1

u/Exciting_Drawing_553 May 14 '26

Yeah so why the hell would Sony spend all this money on a AAA bullet hell game?’ It makes no sense. They are making some dumb decisions lately (gaas, marathon, saros, etc)

I fear how poorly Wolverine will sell. That’s a game that should have come out ten years ago. Today marvel is mid.

1

u/Brain_lessV2 May 13 '26

Yes, it's a niche, but Saros and Returnal aren't really bullet hells at all. They more or less use bullets for the 'style' so to speak rather than actual curtainfire that you gotta maneuver around.

As a result, in theory they're not even capturing the audience for said niche. For reference, bullet hells include games like Dodonpachi, Ketsui, Ikaruga, Touhou, Star of Providence and many more.

4

u/CosmicChar1ey May 13 '26

People aren’t used to it and Returnal is a little too hard. I love Saros. We are currently living in another era of incredible video game releases, one after another, similar to the Xbox 360 era but people aren’t appreciating it because the Internet has ruined their minds into all being petty critics. I recommend getting GameFly and using the public library to try these games out.

0

u/MDethPOPE May 13 '26

Orb hell. No buulets

-2

u/CursedSnowman5000 May 13 '26

There's the thing, why did they even bother with the Triple A cost of paint for such a minimalistic game.