Why Is Destiny Suddenly Among Your Downloaded PS4 Games?

[Fanghawk]

Why Is Destiny Suddenly Among Your Downloaded PS4 Games?

Why is Destiny appearing in your PS4 games list? That's just one way Sony advertises featured content.

Editor's Note: The original version of this story contained incorrect information regarding the PS4, and has been updated. We apologize for the error.

Original Story: Do you think you have a PlayStation 4, but not Destiny? If you checked your games listings recently, you might have questioned that notion. That's what several customers wondered when <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/features/14729-Is-Destiny-The-Taken-King-Worth-Coming-Back-to-the-Game-For>they logged in to find Destiny: The Taken King on their system regardless of purchasing choices. It seems one of Sony's automatic download features is to treat featured store links like they're downloadable games.

"The PS4 system has the ability to learn about your preferences," Sony explained on its website. "It will learn your likes and dislikes, allowing you to discover content pre-loaded and ready to go on your console in your favorite game genres or by your favorite creators."

The good news is you haven't actually downloaded game content, despite what "pre-loaded" implies. The function can even be switched off in your PS4 settings. Just open the "System" menu, access "Automatic Downloads", and disable "Featured Content".

Source: GamesRadar

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[Zhukov]

Really?

Must they?

I don't even see how it benefits them. Are they really just trying to make things convenient? Because, like the article says, that's going to be lost on anyone with cheap internet.

Is this supposed to be a marketing strategy? Like if people find it already on their console they'll just be like, "Whelp, may as well just buy it then!" Because I'm not sure it will work like that. It doesn't make the price any lower or the game any better. The only scenario I can think of in which this facilitates a sale in with someone who wanted the game but was unwilling to download it for some reason, like perhaps due to download limits. But those are the people most likely to be screwed over in some way buy the auto-download.

Fucking bizarre.

 

[Neurotic Void Melody]

Yep, I found this game on my dashboard yesterday. After a second's confusion and a loud exclaimation of "you cunts!" ...it got immediatly deleted. The whole 'recommendation based on user history' is bollocks anyhow. I never expressed any interest in any of the games recommended and if they think downloading them for me will bring me around to their way of thinking (that is; "give us all your cash"), then those thoughts are the thoughts that are not to be thunk. If only Bungie spent even half their marketing budget on making a better game...

 

[fix-the-spade]

It wouldn't surprise me if this, the Windows 10 thing and a few other incidents are all part of some weird conspiracy between major tech firms and Comcast to make more money in an otherwise stagnating market.

It boggles my mind that there are people high enough in companies to authorise things like this yet stupid enough not to consider why it might be a bad idea. Actually, wait, no it doesn't, not at all.

I'm waiting for the class action suit or the refund claims system to drop from a great height.

 

[Aiddon_v1legacy]

If people haven't bought it by now, trying to force it on them isn't going to work. Considering how boring Destiny was revealed to be after launch, this just seems desperate on Activision's part. It turned out NOT to be the next Halo or CoD, get the hell over it.

 

[Something Amyss]

It wouldn't surprise me if this, the Windows 10 thing and a few other incidents are all part of some weird conspiracy between major tech firms and Comcast to make more money in an otherwise stagnating market.

Comcast doesn't charge you, do they? I thought what they did was throttle your speed once you passed the cap.

Anyway, this is a deal more for lower caps (Comcast's sucks, but it's still more generous than almost any other cap) and the like. And a scummy move either way.

 

[fix-the-spade]

Comcast doesn't charge you, do they? I thought what they did was throttle your speed once you passed the cap.

Anyway, this is a deal more for lower caps (Comcast's sucks, but it's still more generous than almost any other cap) and the like. And a scummy move either way.

Depends where you are and what contract you have. I know plenty of people who are charged by the Gigabyte once they go over their cap.

Luckily I have unlimited, it's glorious.

 

[Lightknight]

I thought that was only because I already owned Destiny. Even then, forcing me to download the entirety of the Taken King was pretty shitty. The update also entirely ruined things like the previous expansions. Good fun...

I will admit though, the Taken King is top class. I'm just not a fan of the shit they're pulling. At least Wow created new regions to avoid screwing old customers over.

 

[zombiejoe]

Wait wait wait, I understand paying the internet service provider for the download, but is the game itself downloaded for free, or are they charging you for the game too?

 

[Fanghawk]

Wait wait wait, I understand paying the internet service provider for the download, but is the game itself downloaded for free, or are they charging you for the game too?

No, it auto-downloads the game for free, but you can't actually play it until you pay money. It just sits there taunting you.

 

[SlumlordThanatos]

Wait wait wait, I understand paying the internet service provider for the download, but is the game itself downloaded for free, or are they charging you for the game too?

They're preloading it so that it's ready to go in case you do wind up buying it.

Still a shitty thing to do. Sony is starting to make me regret not upgrading my laptop and buying their console instead.

 

[zombiejoe]

Wait wait wait, I understand paying the internet service provider for the download, but is the game itself downloaded for free, or are they charging you for the game too?

No, it auto-downloads the game for free, but you can't actually play it until you pay money. It just sits there taunting you.

Ooooohh.

In which case, yeah that does seem like a pretty sleazy way to promote the game.

 

[The Enquirer]

This is a kind of neat feature, if they left it off by default, anncounced it, and you know what? Just change it completely so it only gives suggested games.

 

[Dominic Crossman]

Strange the icon appeared on my dashboard but no actual downloading took place. Maybe I didn't have enough space?

 

[DemomanHusband]

Strange the icon appeared on my dashboard but no actual downloading took place. Maybe I didn't have enough space?

The same thing happened to me and a friend of mine, I'm not really sure this pre-loading is actually taking place. I mean, I guess if there's a news story on it, it's happening. I haven't seen any pictures of a PS4 with Destiny downloaded but not purchased however. Even the setting to disable the featured content setting only indicates that a link to the store download page will be provided, not an actual pre-download.

 

[Elfgore]

Looks like I got lucky since at one point I already owned Destiny in disc form. They just updated my version in my library to The Taken King.

Still, this is really shitty and pretty damn unacceptable in my book. This download would have take over half of my father's download cap for the entire month for a game that would be unplayable due to the slow internet speed and that it would consume the rest of his cap. It's my system, Sony. I'll download it if I want it.

 

[JSRevenge]

Really?

Must they?

I don't even see how it benefits them. Are they really just trying to make things convenient? Because, like the article says, that's going to be lost on anyone with cheap internet.

Is this supposed to be a marketing strategy? Like if people find it already on their console they'll just be like, "Whelp, may as well just buy it then!" Because I'm not sure it will work like that. It doesn't make the price any lower or the game any better. The only scenario I can think of in which this facilitates a sale in with someone who wanted the game but was unwilling to download it for some reason, like perhaps due to download limits. But those are the people most likely to be screwed over in some way buy the auto-download.

Fucking bizarre.

I can think of a reason apart from your suggestions that make sense for Sony: if they download it to PS4's during "off-peak" times (overnight, during business hours), they can reduce or spread out network congestion from people trying to download it on the weekend or early evening. It's still plenty problematic, though. In my mind, it's more about hard drive space than data caps.

 

[AlbinoBunny]

Honestly if this were an optional feature that you could turn on and which warned you of the potential downsides (IE, If your internet is not unlimited don't turn this feature on) it'd be fine.

Like, turning on my PS4 to find it going 'hey, we noticed you seemed to glance at this games store page a while or have played similar games, so we're making it easier for you to buy it' isn't really a bad thing. It's either going to be convenient if I buy it or not effect me at all if I don't.

 

[WeepingAngels]

Anyone else missing the simplicity of the PS2 era and before?