Back in May, head of PlayStation Studios Hermen Hulst said in an interview with Wired that they had over 25 games in development under the PlayStation Studios brand, with almost half of them being new IPs.
On September 10, we began to see the fruits of this claim at the PlayStation Showcase, with headline acts such as Sony Santa Monica’s God Of War: Ragnarok and Polyphony Digital’s Gran Turismo 7 showing off plenty of gameplay.
To hear more about the PlayStation Showcase and all the announcements, tune in to episode 14 of The Standard’s entertainment and pop culture podcast, Switched On.
Insomniac Games continues to surprise with the reveal of both Marvel’s Spiderman 2, a sequel to the successful 2018 PS4 exclusive, and Marvel’s Wolverine.
However, this appears to be just a small taste of what PlayStation has in store for fans. Here’s what you didn’t see coming exclusively to PlayStation over the coming years.
Games already revealed
Horizon Forbidden West
The clear standout that was absent from the showcase, however, there hasn’t been silence over the sequel to Guerilla Games’ 2017 hit.
This open world title received a heavy gameplay reveal in a State of Play back in May, featuring new environments, new abilities, and new machines to take on.
An update was recently given over the title at Geoff Keighley’s Gamescom Opening Night Live in August, in which it was announced that the title had been delayed to 2022, with a firm release date of February 18 revealed.
Game Director Mathijs De Jonge said, “We know how much you’re looking forward to reuniting with Aloy and her friends, continuing her story and exploring new and dangerous worlds.”
Final Fantasy 16
The next entry in Square Enix’s long running RPG franchise hasn’t been sighted since its reveal back in September last year, when it was revealed to be a timed exclusive to the PS5.
Developed by the team behind the 14th entry in the series, which was an online RPG, this title appears to feature more action-adventure elements as opposed to their previous work, with a similar presentation to recent titles such as Final Fantasy 15 and the Final Fantasy 7 Remake.
While no release period has been revealed, Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier said last year on the Triple Click podcast that the game had been in development for at least four years, and is closer to releasing than many might expect.
Abandoned
The mystery PS5 game which has captured the internet’s attention, this first-person horror survival shooter was originally slated for Q4 2021 but has recently been delayed into 2022, according to an FAQ page on the developer’s website.
Blue Box Games Studios, the team behind the title, have never released a game and refute claims that they are somehow connected to Hideo Kojima of Kojima Productions, who was previously slated to create a Silent Hill game before his company split from Konami in 2015.
Very little gameplay has been revealed for the title, but the concept will become clearer as more layers of this intriguing project are uncovered.
Sifu
The new PS4 & PS5 game from developers Sloclap, the people behind 2017’s online combat game Absolver, this game focuses on the martial art of Kung Fu, with each death aging the player forward and granting them new abilities that were previously inaccessible.
Dated for February 22, 2022, this title’s striking art style and fluid combat catch the eye of the player and will follow the protagonist’s path for vengeance over the death of their family.
Stray
Developed by BlueTwelve Studio and published by Annapurna Interactive, Stray is an adventure game centered around a cat lost in an abandoned dystopian city.
Slated for early 2022, this PS4 & PS5 title’s ominous setting and unique perspective serve as the catalyst for the interest that surrounds this project.
Other known projects
PlayStation Studios
Naughty Dog, the team behind Uncharted and The Last Of Us, appear to have multiple projects in the works, with the team hiring up staff for a multiplayer title.
There is also the Last of Us Remake, which was originally headed by Visual Arts Service Group, who saw the project handed to Naughty Dog for completion, as reported by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier back in April.
Corey Barlog, the game director behind hit 2018 title God of War, was revealed to not be returning to that role for its upcoming sequel in an interview after the showcase.
He is named as a producer for the title, whilst the studio Sony Santa Monica appears to be hiring for another project already in the works.
In a post-showcase interview, Barlog hinted at working on another project, although wouldn’t provide further information.
Guerilla Games also appears to have been hiring staff for another game that is yet to be announced, as the studio previously behind the Killzone franchise continues to expand.
Sony Bend, after the rejection of their Days Gone sequel pitch and assisting Naughty Dog with development, have begun work on a new IP from the developer.
London Studio has also been hiring for a new IP, which makes no mention of VR, something the studio has been heavily involved with in the last generation.
Pixelopus’ next project appears to be in collaboration with Sony Pictures Animation according to a job listing by the developer, which the team behind Concrete Genie are slated to develop using Unreal Engine 5.
PlayStation Studios has also announced multiple projects in collaboration with new external developers, including Haven Studios, Firewalk Studios and Deviation Games, which feature talent that have worked on franchises such as Assassin’s Creed, Destiny, and Call of Duty respectively.
PlayStation appears to be holding their cards close to their chest on a broad range of exciting new projects still in their infancy.
For now, fans can expect a jam-packed twelve months ahead when it comes to releases and announcements as we head into 2022.
