San Francisco played host to PlayStation Experience for the second year in a row. The two-day event kicked off with a keynote highlighting some of the upcoming projects coming to the PlayStation brand in 2016.
Updates
The show started with a crowd favorite and franchise staple. A new scene from Uncharted: A Thief’s End showed Nathan Drake reuniting with his older brother Sam. After some catching up, Sam reveals that he is in trouble and seeks the help of his younger brother. One part of the conversation asks for player input. You can choose from one of three options to answer Sam’s question, and each of the answers correspond to each of the three previous games in the series. However, it’s unsure if we’ll get the same feature in other conversations for the rest of the game.
Initially revealed at E3, Final Fantasy fans had another, and more extensive, look at Final Fantasy VII Remake. This time around, we get to see Cloud and Barret talk and fight their way through the game’s early levels. The updated game won’t be out for quite some time, but a surprise announcement from Square Enix’s Yoshinori Kitase and Tetsuya Nomura revealed that the PC version of Final Fantasy VIIis now available on the PS4.
Gearbox’s upcoming shooter Battleborn also made an appearance. There will be a total of 25 characters in the game, but the full roster has yet to be revealed. However, the team continues to reveal more characters with each appearance. This time around, fans were introduced to Toby, a penguin that sits inside a giant robot and unleashes a volley of gunfire and missiles to take down enemies.
Street Fighter V is coming in two months, but producer Yoshinori Ono showed off F.A.N.G., the final revealed character in the fighting game’s list of combatants. Ono noted that six more characters will be added after the game’s release. Players can unlock them for free as they play the game, but for those who want to use them immediately without the extra work, a season pass is also available at $29.99.
Destiny continues to lure players in, especially with its new expansion, The Taken King. Bungie continues to add more content for the expansion, and its latest update isn’t targeted for combat at all. Instead, players will be introduced to the Sparrow Racing League, where players compete with the game’s hover vehicles and become the fastest Guardian around. The event is free for owners of The Taken King and starts on December 8.
The Ratchet and Clankseries has been an integral part of PlayStation since its first release in 2002. Fourteen years after the first game, a movie based on the title is finally coming out April 28, 2016. However, a game based on the movie (based on the game) was also announced last year, and fans were able to see more gameplay at PlayStation Experience. The new release date of April 12 means that fans can play the new game a few days before they see the movie.
Smaller Titles, Big Releases (Japanese Games, Too)
Aside from the big-budget titles, PlayStation also helps bring smaller and third-party titles to players. The company worked with partners such as Adult Swim Games, which has six games coming next year to the platform; Double Fine, which announced a remastered version of both Full Throttle and Day of the Tentacle; and Klei, which is bringing Invisible Inc. and the cooperative gameplay of Don’t Starve Together to the console.
Square Enix initially had Hitman Go on mobile devices, but now it’s coming to the PS4 and Vita. Vlambeer’s hit game Nuclear Throne, as well as Supergiant Games’ Bastion and The Bit.Trip(a collection of the first six Bit.Trip titles) are all making their way to both the living room console and its handheld counterpart, as well. This means that most of these game will support the Cross Buy feature, where a purchase on either device means you can play it on both the PS4 and Vita.
The Tokyo Game Show presentation in September featured some new titles, but a majority of them will see a release only in Japan, leaving Westerners out of the loop. However, a few of them will see a release in North America. This includes Yakuza 5, which is coming to the PlayStation 3 (yes, the PS3) on December 8, and Yakuza 0, which came out in Japan earlier this year for the PS4. Another installation of The King of Fighters, specifically The King of Fighters XIV, is on its way as well, featuring a 50-character roster. Ni-Oh was revealed as a PS4 title at Tokyo Game Show, but it looks like it’s coming to North American audiences, too. As a final treat, The Last Blade 2, an arcade fighting game from 1998, is making a comeback on both the PS4 and Vita.
PlayStation VR
The countdown continues to the launch of PlayStation VR, and Sony continues to show off more titles for it. This includes Ubisoft, which is making Eagle Flight, where you fly above the streets of Paris in single- or two-player modes. Santa Monica Studios, well-known for creating the God of War series, is making a new VR title called The Modern Zombie Taxi Co., which has the player drive zombies around in their new town. Think Crazy Taxi meets zombies.
Rez, which initially came out in 2002, is finding new life through VR. The psychedelic shooter with a digital theme will be remastered to bring back old fans and attract newcomers. Development team No Goblin is perhaps making the most interesting game of all time by combining large robots and golf to create 100ft Robot Golf. It’s safe to say we’ll be keeping a close eye on this one. Fresh off the announcement of Psychonauts 2 at The Game Awards, Tim Schafer announced a Psychonauts game for PlayStation VR titled In the Rhombus of Ruin.
As a final surprise for PlayStation VR, a new Ace Combat is coming. The popular flight arcade/simulation series is coming out with Ace Combat 7, and this time around you’ll be able to step into a cockpit with the help of virtual reality.
The Future Of PlayStation
Sony also teased a handful of new games. A new Ni No Kuni game titled Ni No Kuni: Revenant Kingdomwas announced, as well more details on Paragon, Epic Games’ new multiplayer online battle arena. Finally, PlayStation’s own baseball franchise, MLB The Show, will be back next year with some new features.
In two hours, Sony was able to pack in as much content as possible, both for some of its more well-known PlayStation franchises and for its lesser-known games. Fans loved the nostalgia of a few re-released titles and remastered versions but were also excited to see some new projects in development.
More importantly, the company showed off more of PlayStation VR. In a field that will undoubtedly grow in the next few months in terms of content, PlayStation wanted fans to know that with a new device comes new ways to experience games. All of these announcements and releases should keep fans excited for a few months, until we hear more from the company at shows such as GDC, PAX East, and E3, just to name a few.
Update, 12/5/2015, 3:15pm PST: Another PlayStation VR game called Golem was also shown. The trailer depicts a giant monster roaming the area, but it's being controlled by a woman through the power or telekinesis. It seems that you'll most likely be taking her spot in controlling the giant creature.
______________________________________________________________________
Rexly Peñaflorida II is a Contributor at Tom’s Hardware. He writes news on tech and hardware, but mostly focuses on gaming news. As a Chicagoan, he believes that deep dish pizza is real pizza and ketchup should never be on hot dogs. Ever. Also, Portillo’s is amazing.
Follow Rexly Peñaflorida II @Heirdeux. Follow us on Facebook, Google+, RSS, Twitter and YouTube .
