Aside from some smaller State of Play introductions, PlayStation has been quiet for the past year.
On the one hand, that’s understandable – the PS5 is selling exceptionally well, so it wasn’t exactly necessary to say much. But the absence of a major show has felt especially evident after Xbox and Nintendo had solid presentations at E3, an event Playstation has missed for the past two years.
Play station he even seemed to acknowledge this in a recent blog post. “He has been very patient and we thank him for that,” wrote Sid Shuman, the company’s senior director of content communications.
All of that to say there was a lot of anticipation at the big PlayStation Showcase 2021 on September 9, the first of its kind in a full year. What would the company show? Speculation ran rampant.
Thankfully, PlayStation killed it off, giving us one of its most diverse and impressive introductions in recent memory. In a tight, well-paced 42-minute presentation, the company featured a host of promising games.
After a bit weird and expensive looking live action ad, Sony successfully started the Showcase with one of the biggest and most exciting reveals possible: Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic – Remake, coming exclusively to PS5 and PC at launch.
Originally developed by BioWare Edmonton of Canada, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is a beloved Xbox original game that blends a rich choice-based story with memorable characters, deep RPG mechanics, and fantastic world-building. It’s easily the best Star Wars game ever made (though its tragically overlooked sequel comes in second) and one of my absolute favorite games overall.
We certainly know very little about the game, and developer Aspyr Media will need to prove itself accordingly. But at least the developer promises that various veterans of both the original KOTOR team and those who worked in teams like Tsushima ghost and Dragon Age: Inquisition. We also know that Canadian extraordinary actress Jennifer Hale is reprising her role as Jedi Bastila Shan, as well as “some other familiar voices. “
Ultimately, I am excited about the potential of the KOTOR remake, especially considering how many quality remakes we’ve gotten over the years. For my money, the last two years have given us the two gold standards for how to reinvent beloved games: From Capcom Resident Evil 2 (2019) and Square Enix Final Fantasy VII Remake. Both games faithfully captured the spirit of the originals while making meaningful but meaningful revisions to the visuals, storytelling, and mechanics. The BioWare Masterpiece Thought getting the same treatment is tempting. It is also a great achievement for Sony; Not only did the original game never make it to PlayStation consoles, it is practically synonymous with the original Xbox.
I could go on KOTOR, but PlayStation Showcase had a lot more to be excited about.
Perhaps most importantly about the show, it represents a deepening of Sony’s already strong relationship with Disney. Above KOTOR, the companies revealed a new collaboration: Insomniac Games’ Marvel Wolverine. This was a complete surprise to everyone, especially my Marvel fan. After all, Insomniac has been working on Spider-Man for several years, in addition to Ratchet & Clank!
The same as KOTOR, we know practically nothing about GluttonBut Insomniac is such a high-level study that your participation is basically the only stamp of approval we need. Of particular interest to me is that Walt williams, the co-writer of the criminally underrated military shooter Spec Ops: The Line, is working on Glutton. While this might be an illusion on my part, it would be fascinating to see Glutton explore at least partially the Canadian mutant’s many years of struggle in wars from a Special operations-esque psychological perspective. At least one Quebec license plate seen in the trailer points to none other than the Hulk, who might just be an easter egg, but hopefully hints at a confrontation with Wolverine.
If that wasn’t enough, Insomniac showed what we’ve all been waiting for: Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. The game will feature Peter Parker and Miles Morales’ webslingers as they take on Venom and, most likely, Kraven the Hunter. Insomniac’s previous two Spider-Man games have had some of Wallcrawler’s best adventures, and Spider man 2 It will surely continue that when it launches in 2023. With Disney working with PlayStation on three main games (as well as showing a new teaser for the multiplatform platform, made in Canada Guardians of the Galaxy) with mass appeal, it will be interesting to see if the two companies continue that partnership in the future.
But even if you don’t care about any of these Disney-owned properties, Showcase had so much more to offer. We take a deeper look at Square Enix Forgotten, a new PS5 exclusive fantasy RPG from the team behind Final Fantasy XV. While I was not a fan of that game, Forgotten It looks a lot more promising, especially with its frenetic travel and magic-focused combat. Meanwhile, we saw more of Bethesda Ghostwire: Tokyo, what, how Forgotten, will be released in the spring of 2022. The game is also about magic, but in a Tokyo setting, which gives it an incredibly cool Japanese atmosphere. (The less is said about Bethesda Deathloop, which will surely be great but has been shown an unpleasant number of times, best and Project Eve, A post-apocalyptic action game, it looks like a delightfully elegant and satisfying hack and slash experience. Gran Turismo 7 He even made an appearance, which, while not my jam, is enjoyable for racing fans to watch.
But the best demo outside of the three Disney games was, hands down, God of War: Ragnarök. After a year of silence (and not even an official title), we finally got to see the game in depth. From 2018 God of War It was a genuine masterpiece, and I can’t wait to see Sony Santa Monica continue the Kratos and Atreus story sometime next year.
Of course, none of this changes the fact that late 2021 will go through an unusually slow release period for PlayStation, outside of Deathloop, Death Stranding: Director’s Cut (a re-release of Hideo Kojima’s 2019 adventure game) and Kena: Bridge of Spirits. But 2021 was always going to be a comparatively calmer year due in large part to COVID. It’s hard to blame PlayStation for this. After all, I was supposed to have so much God of War: Ragnarök and West horizon forbidden in 2021 before its delays. But this just means that 2022, if COVID allows it of course, will be absolutely packed with those two games, as well as Ghostwire: Tokyo, Forgotten, Gran Turismo 7, and more.
And that’s just what was shown on September 9. We have yet to see what Naughty Dog is working on after last year. The Last of Us Part II. According to credible sources, a new Twisted metal it is said to be in development. After some screenings this year, West horizon forbidden It will finally launch in February 2022. And we have significant exclusive third-party support from companies like Bethesda (Spring 2022 Ghostwire: Tokyo) and Square Enix (the undated Final Fantasy XVI and then Final Fantasy VII Remake play).
For PlayStation owners, now is a great time to sit back, relax, and take the rest of 2021 to play. Deathloop or even catch up on your pending work. The best is yet to come.
Image Credit: PlayStation / Marvel