"Helldivers fans – we’ve heard your feedback on the Helldivers 2 account linking update. The May 6 update, which would have required Steam and PlayStation Network account linking for new players and for current players beginning May 30, will not be moving forward.
We’re still learning what is best for PC players and your feedback has been invaluable. Thanks again for your continued support of Helldivers 2 and we’ll keep you updated on future plans."
Maybe I’m just jaded, but I wonder how long it will be until Sony ‘changes their mind’ and tries to enforce contractual obligations again. I’m going to guess 6 months to wait for the negative PR to cool.
Like TV manufacturers who wait until the product return period is over before enabling ads.
That’s exactly why you never connect your TV to the internet
People keep saying this, but when you only want to use the TV for online streaming apps, it makes it quite difficult to keep it offline.
That’s why you plug in a streaming device to the TV…
“Buy two things instead of one”
Yes, exactly.
If your $20 streaming device starts fucking with you, rip it out and replace it. If your several hundred (thousand?) dollar device decides it’s going to fuck you with rampant ads and user data collection and forced arbitration you didn’t agree to when you bought it 6 months ago, well now you have a much bigger problem.
What streaming device is $20? Amazon firestick is close to that but still more and has all the ads and tracking we’re complaining about. Chromecast, a used crappy version, is $50+ after taxes it looks like, then Roku seems to be even more. I mean I get it and we all want to stop ads. I personally have pihole and just blocked the Samsung telemetry stuff but not everyone is that savvy. That’s the point of the first comment of this chain. Most people just want a simple single device to watch what they want without all the ads and tracking. All these companies suck, let’s unite over that!
Walmart ONN 4k
Unfortunately that’s unlikely to ever be the case. You can use a Linux PC but it will not be a great experience.
Using the one in your TV is most likely to get you the most ads and tracking because they know they can implement them in such a way that the only recourse you have is to succumb to their demands or buy a new TV. Roku has already begun this.
Sure.
That said a lil media center PC (maybe Raspberry Pi) or an Apple TV - both more than $20 once properly loaded, even used I imagine - is probably much less enshittified (spy-y & ad-y).
I pretty much have always had an Xbox connected to every TV I’ve had, but ever since owning a Smart TV, with the streaming apps are all there the moment you turn on the TV, why would I add an extra level of booting up, signing in and starting the app on my Xbox (which will then probably run worse and lower quality than my native TV app)?
If you buy a proper streaming device instead of an XBOX you will have an identical experience as you would just using your TV.
As for why, it’s already been explained: there’s a precedent that’s been set that these companies can change the terms of service on you at will (to, for example, show you an ever-increasing frequency of ads or collect your data), and that you can choose to either accept the new terms or throw that shit in the garbage because it is suddenly not functional and it is past the return period.
Aside from all of that, you can choose what kind of user experience you want, rather than having it chosen for you. Most of the cheap streaming boxes will deliver a better experience than whatever comes on your TV.
Got it, so I don’t need to buy a seperate streaming device.
I get where you’re coming from with the privacy aspects and whatnot, but I very much doubt that a seperate streaming box will get me a better experience than turning on my TV and having Netflix booted in 3 seconds.
…huh? No, not strictly. I’m just telling you it’s in your best interest.
I don’t think you do. This is about much more than privacy.
In regards to that specific function, it will likely be identical or better, depending on exactly what streaming box and TV we’re talking about. You can choose to not believe me, but you do so at your own potential peril.
If anything the power of the external device is much more than the native TV app shoehorned on there, especially an Xbox or even a roku that can do 4k streaming for $50
I don’t understand. I’m telling you the TV is faster and higher quality than the Xbox. I thought we were all shitting on Roku lately, why would I but a Roku device to daisy chain it into my system?
This has not been my experience at all with my Smart TV and Xbox. I routinely use the Xbox for simple things like YouTube because the apps are noticeably slower to respond than the TV.
And I’m saying it’s not but we can agree to disagree, and also just providing examples of devices that aren’t expensive and better than what the TV provides but if you want to use what ships with the TV that’s fine, this conversation isn’t for you to defend your purchase and choices, cheers.
Connect it to a small PC or a used laptop. It will be a million times better than the 8 year old phone CPU inside your Roku TV. I’m honestly surprised by the number of people I interact with who don’t have their TV connected to a computer.
I’m not sure about that. Whenever I’ve used my PC to stream to my TV it’s been less responsive and much slower. Unless I go for the super long hdmi cable to my gaming PC, but that’s just a faff.
I guess it varies greatly by TV though. My Samsung is super fast, but have recently had the misfortune of using a Philips which has similar functionality but is horrendously slow. I know nothing about Roku TV other than the kerfuffle about ads, but assume they are a bit shitty.
Don’t stream to the TV, you do have to plug it in directly. A Raspberry Pi sized computer is perfect for this, and then you don’t need to run a cable all the way to your gaming PC.
I hear you. I want to be positive about this because I want to keep playing, and the reversal (for now) makes me OK with doing so.
But Sony has a horrid track record. Edit - so does Msoft, people often forget how bad both of them are.
I also expect they’ll try to work it back in somehow to capture more revenue and/or data. If it’s not this again in a stealthier form, then it’ll be something similar. No crossplay without PSN or no credit store without PSN, something like that.
This is moreorless what I’m expecting. They will either strongly incentivize it when the publicity dies down or place restrictions on those that don’t link accounts.
They might require it for crossplay or give some goodies for linking, but there’s no fucking way they try to make it retroactively mandatory just to play at all again. After this statement, there would be ACTUAL grounds for a class action lawsuit if they did.