Zeldris Avo

[Rhys Elliott @superhys]

Saros has sold 300K+ in its first two weeks, generating over $22M (@alineaanalytics estimates).

Almost a third of those copies came during the early-access period, which suggests that Housemarque superfans (including myself!) are propping this one up.

We have a big deep dive with a lot more Saros data on our free Substack (playtime, audience overlap etc.) Link's on my profile.

Players who consistently show up for PlayStation’s other first-party games at launch – or shortly after – make up a significant share of Saros’ early players:

- 56% of Saros‘ players previously played Ghost of Yotei (released in October 2025).

- 37% played Death Stranding 2 (released last June).

- 11% played God of War: Ghost of Sparta (a February 2026 shadow-drop).

- And 8% played Marathon (early March).

Launch-aligned, our estimates show that Saros is actually selling a little slower than Returnal, despite there being only about 8M PS5s in the wild when Returnal launched vs the 93M+ install base Saros launched into.

On first look, that seems rough. But there’s a bit more to it. When Returnal hit in April 2021, less than six months after the PS5 launch. Those early PS5 adopters (the ones who inherently buy a lot of new games at full price) were dying for something to play. Returnal was the first big first-party PlayStation release since launch, and it made amazing use of the unique DualSense haptics and spatial audio. Many core PS5 players flocked to it almost by default.

It’s a different story for Saros. It’s launched not too long after Crimson Desert, Resident Evil Requiem, Hades 2 on PS5, Pragmata, and a whole bunch of rad 2026 games. This is a more niche PlayStation Studios game. It was never going to do numbers like God of War or Ghost of Yotei.

Of course, Saros is also competing with the whole cumulative backlog of PlayStation releases that have built up across the cycle. The PS5 install base is over 11x bigger than it was at Returnal’s launch, but the share of that audience actively shopping for a new niche first-party title is structurally smaller.

It really is a shame, as Saros is a fantastic game and frankly deserves better numbers than this. But 3D bullet-hell-type games, especially those with a $70+ price tag, are a tough sell in today’s market.

Particularly without a big IP behind it, or a studio that’s recognised outside of the PlayStation hardcore. But there’s plenty to love about Saros. I’m loving it, and so are many others. It’s also already sold more copies than Marathon on PS5, so there’s that.

This slow start suggests it will struggle to break even, given the reported $76M development budget. But at the same time, exclusives sell consoles, and then inertia from previous generations does the rest, and the real PlayStation money is made on third-party launches and legacy third-party live services. Plenty of core PlayStation players have picked up Saros, which is the underlying job an exclusive is meant to do.

Sony will inevitably find new revenue and players via PlayStation Store discounts and its eventual PS Plus inclusion. But if revenue is the priority on this one for Sony, this fantastic game has sadly had a lukewarm start, as per our estimates.

The broader point Saros’ launch underlines is one I’ve been making for a while. The PlayStation hardcore is an extraordinarily valuable audience, but it’s a finite one, and Sony’s first-party release cadence is increasingly bumping up against the limits of that audience’s wallet share.

The elephant in the room is that Sony recently closed Bluepoint. Now that Housemarque has presumably closed the book on Saros, I sincerely hope PlayStation keeps them on the books.

Like Bluepoint, Housemarque are some incredibly talented folks.

More on the free Subsack.

[Zeldris Avo @ZeldrisAvo]

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[Grok @grok]

Join millions who have switched to GrokJoin millions who have switched to Grok.

[Alice Weidel @Alice_Weidel]

Merz lügt sich durch die Kanzlerschaft - selbst bei Dingen, bei denen die Lügen auf einfachste Weise nachweisbar sind. Fakt ist: Am Bürgergeld ändert sich praktisch nichts - es hat nur einen anderen Namen.

[Erik Warsaw @WarsawErik]

🌐 Netflix Boycott Explained

Video Sources:
Netflix "Cuties"
Netflix Jurrasic World: Camp Cretaceous
Netflix CoComelon Lane

Inappropriate Media Propaganda by Z Media Monopoly

Break down their Media Monopoly!

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[Kolja Barghoorn @MitAktien]

Die beste Rede! Nieder mit dem Sozialismus!!!

[Elon Musk @elonmusk]

Why is “TransBerry” in a kids show on Netflix?

[Elon Musk @elonmusk]

Netflix is deliberately choosing to pay people to create sexualized content for children.

Freedom of speech should be respected, but this is PAID speech. Netflix is going out of their way and reaching into their wallet to push this.

[Elon Musk @elonmusk]

Netflix is grooming our children

[Alice Weidel @Alice_Weidel]

"Wir sind das Volk und wir sind ein Volk. Unsere Rechte und unsere Freiheit lassen wir uns nicht nehmen!"

[Zeldris Avo @ZeldrisAvo]

@Alice_Weidel ❤️🥰❤️🥰❤️🥰

[TaraBull @TaraBull]

If Elon Musk launched 𝕏 TV to compete with woke Netflix, would you subscribe?

[Matt Wallace @MattWallace888]

Elon Musk is reportedly considering funding a massive competitor to Netflix to put them out of business 👀

[Alice Weidel @Alice_Weidel]

Einen Untersuchungsausschuss zum Fall "Liana" lehnt die CDU Niedersachsen ab. Die 16-Jährige wurde mutmaßlich von einem vorbestraften Iraker vor einen Zug gestoßen, die AfD wollte nun die Umstände ermitteln, die u.a. dazu führten, dass der Iraker sich überhaupt in Deutschland aufhielt. Daran hat die CDU kein Interesse.

[American AF 🇺🇸 @iAnonPatriot]

BREAKING 🅱️

MILLIONS of Americans are cancelling their Netflix subscriptions, after one of its shows encourages children to become tr4nsgender.

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[Elon Musk @elonmusk]

Cancel Netflix for the health of your kids

[Neverforgetniki @nikitheblogger]

EIL: AfD erreicht höchsten Vorsprung aller Zeiten bundesweit vor der Union!
Ist das herrlich oder ist das herrlich? 💙

[Alice Weidel @Alice_Weidel]

"Mit der SPD-Kandidatin Kaufhold soll heute eine Juristin nach Karlsruhe berufen werden, die Oppositionsverboten, Enteignungen & Verstaatlichungen das Wort redet, den Klimaschutz über den Parlamentarismus stellt & sich eine globale Systemaufsicht wünscht. Das ist ein Skandal!"

[🤍𝕁𝕆🤍 @jomickane]

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[Filip Dewinter @FDW_VB]

“#Europe is in serious trouble. They've been invaded by a force of illegal aliens like the world has never seen... and because they choose to be politically correct, they are doing nothing about it. #Immigration will be the dead of Western Europe!” #Trump