Commander Fury

Greetings, PlayStation Nation! December is just around the corner, so let’s take a look at the PlayStation Plus free games lineup for next month. First up, we have Soma. Dive into this sci-fi horror title from Fictional Games, the creators of Amnesia: The Dark Descent. It is an unsettling story about identity, consciousness, and what it means to be human. Delve through locked terminals and secret documents to uncover the truth beneath the ocean waves. Next, we have Onrush, the all-action, gravity-defying, racing game. Drive on the very limits of control in an effort to win victory for your team. This game is action-packed and full of unlockable customization options. This month’s PlayStation Plus lineup also includes: Steredenn, PS3 Steinsgate, PS3 Iconoclasts, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS4) Papers, Please, PS Vita All games will be available from December 4, 2018 to January 1, 2019. For Warframe players looking for a healthy set of extra resources, Digital Extremes’ dev team has you covered! The Warframe: PlayStation Plus Booster Pack III has a little bit of everything to jump start your game. This includes 100 Platinum, 100,000 Credits, Quanta (a Corpus laser rifle), Quanta Obsidian Skin, 7-Day Affinity Booster, and a 7-Day Credit Booster. PS Plus members can get the pack for free from now until January 15, 2019. And that’s it! See you next month! View the full article

Hello, I am Balthazar Auxietre, co-founder and creative director of Innerspace. Our upside-down, inside-out VR puzzle adventure game A Fisherman’s Tale is launching in January 2019 and we’re happy to share some more details on the game. You play as Bob, a puppet, living a cozy life in an old lighthouse, isolated from the rest of the world. But as you try to leave your cabin, you realize quickly that the world outside is not at all what you expected: you’re just a little wooden puppet trapped inside the model of a lighthouse! And this model is replicated inside and outside of the room, like Russian dolls. Playing with the amazing sense of scale only possible in VR, we invented a unique mechanic based on the recursion principle. It all started with a character in a room within a room, and in each room, that same character’s moves were replicated at different scales. The effect was stunning and we knew right away we had stumbled upon an extraordinary way of using VR. The gameplay and story soon followed, built closely around this principle. In a way, this is a co-op game but instead of playing with others, you’re teaming up with multiple dimensions of yourself. We imagined a series of multidimensional puzzles that will have you twist and bend your newfound, peculiar reality, and which we hope will surprise and enchant you. Have a look at the all-new gameplay trailer released today to see it in action. On your journey you will also meet a range of quirky characters, who play a big role in the special tone of the game. We worked with talented voice actors (the game’s voiceover has been localized for English, French and German), and hope you appreciate the care and love we put into bringing these crazy sidekicks to life! But besides the fun, we wanted to bring something meaningful and poetic to this game. What does it mean to be inside a replica, in an elusive virtual world? A Fisherman’s Tale at its heart is a story about breaking away from illusions to find truth. So we hope you’ll enjoy the ride and maybe learn something about yourselves along the way… We hope you will love its weirdness and colorful art style, and will be amazed and challenged by its quirky puzzles when you play A Fisherman’s Tale in January 2019! View the full article

Hi everyone! It’s been a few months since the launch of Guacamelee! 2, and we’re super honored by the critical reception and the support from our fans. We haven’t just been kicking back and frantically refreshing review sites though — we’ve been busy since August, and today we’re finally ready to show off some fun extras that are coming out very soon! The ‘Three Enemigos’ Character Pack Starting tomorrow, you can purchase this character pack ($2.99) to play Guacamelee! 2 as three of the game’s beloved bosses: El Muñeco, Uay Pek, or Jaguar Javier. Each new character skin has unique gameplay pluses and minuses to change up your playthrough, as well as associated trophies you can earn. And on December 7, we have something even bigger: ‘The Proving Grounds’ Challenge Level This new DLC pack ($3.99) introduces a new challenge level, The Proving Grounds – a floating temple and home to the god Tiempochtli, where luchadores have gone since the beginning of time to sharpen their skills. Your five lucha trainers team up to guide you through a series of challenges, and each trainer is ready to award you with a character skin that lets you play the game as that trainer. Like the Enemigos, their costumes have unique gameplay attributes suited to the trainer’s specialty. Flame Face does higher and higher damage the greater your combo grows; Uay Coco’s magic lets him execute many special moves, but his body is extra-vulnerable to damage (and he makes for a pretty adorable ‘chicken’). We set our designers loose to fill the level with 15 ridiculously fun challenges that push the limits of Juan’s capabilities in new ways. Once you’ve mastered them and earned gold medals across the board, you’ll meet Tiempochtli and receive one final (secret) character skin reward. We can’t wait to hear what you think of it! Please feel free to ask any questions you have in the comments below, and we will try to answer them the best we can. View the full article

From the team that brought you Arizona Sunshine, a new VR strategy game is coming to PS VR in early 2019! Skyworld is all about building your army and commanding your knights, snipers, catapults, even dragons and many more unique units as you tower over your toy-like battlefields made of the stuff of classic strategy fans’ dreams. In a unique blend of classic turn-based strategy, deck building and fast-paced real-time battles, Skyworld offers a story-based campaign spanning eight unique Skyworlds for you to conquer from a range of enemy commanders. Or prove your might against other players online in Skirmish mode… for Skyworld! Turn-based world building takes place in the so-called Overworld; this is the world map where you lead your kingdom, construct buildings such as mills, quarries, lumberjack huts and more to support your increasing population and set out to claim new regions for your growing kingdom. Of course, this will bring you head to head with your inevitable enemy. Clashing in the Overworld will see the whole world flip as you’re taken into the so-called Battle Arena to fight out the battle in real-time! Choose from up to 16 unique units — from ground units like swordsmen to areal units like blimps and dragons — that you built and researched in the Overworld and see your troops come alive on the battlefield. Manage your mana level, choose strategic deployment spots and tactically counter enemy units to ultimately destroy the enemy’s castle. Tough battle? Throw up to seven unique magic spells like freeze spells and fireballs to directly influence the battle and turn the tide. We’ve designed the game purely for VR to create an experience that is as smooth as possible. The UI can be adjusted to players’ own preference and even the world can be lowered or raised. We’ve tried to make the interactions as physical as possible without them ever getting tiresome. It’s cool to pick up pawns and pull levers, but you want to do that in the comfort of your chair without the need to stretch or twist your neck around. There’s just something instantly gratifying about physically walking around your kingdom, seeing your troops come to live in the battle arena at the flick of your wrist, and manipulating the battlefield to totally wreck your opponent’s army and kingdom. But maybe that’s just us. With many huge strategy fans on our team, after bringing the FPS genre to VR with Arizona Sunshine, we set ourselves the perhaps even more ambitious goal of reinventing the strategy genre in an addictive and easy-to-pick-up-hard-to-master VR title with Skyworld. We sure hope you’ll think we succeeded when Skyworld hits PS VR in early 2019! View the full article

Today, we’re excited to announce the new PlayStation VR Borderlands 2 VR and Beat Saber Bundle that will give you access to two action-packed VR games. Borderlands 2 VR is the latest blockbuster experience to come to the immersive platform, bringing the iconic shooting-looting world of Pandora to life like never before. Virtually become a treasure-seeking Vault Hunter facing off against the galaxy’s most charming psychopathic dictator — Handsome Jack — with nothing but your wits and your arsenal of 87 bazillion guns. Meanwhile, if you feel like testing out your dancing skills, it’s time to get moving with Beat Games’ VR rhythm game, Beat Saber. Use your sabers to slash the beats as they come flying through a futuristic world to keep up with great music and sounds that are perfectly fitted to each of the handcrafted levels. The PS VR Borderlands 2 VR and Beat Saber Bundle hits store shelves on December 14 across the U.S. and Canada for $349.99 USD / $449.99 CAD, same day as the launch of Borderlands 2 VR. The bundle includes: One PS VR system One PlayStation Camera One Demo Disc 2.0 Two PlayStation Move Motion controllers Borderlands 2 and Beat Saber digital game vouchers (internet required to download) With PS VR, you can discover a whole new world of play — 340 PS VR games and experiences are available now, with new titles on the horizon like Blood & Truth, Ghost Giant, Star Child, and more. Let us know which games you’re excited to play in the comments below! View the full article

The world of Darksiders has always been replete with outlandish beings, weaponry and environments. Interpreting planet earth’s Apocalypse and its inhabitants for Darksiders III was like working inside a playground for our artists. No design direction was off-limits. The playbook was simple. The Darksiders III world is modern and post-apocalyptic, designed as a vertical gamescape that takes the player from the bowels of Hell to the heights of Heaven. Darksiders III Wallpapers | PlayStation.com Our heroine, the third horseman of the Apocalypse best known as Fury, is everything her brother War and Death aren’t: a duty-bound, vengeful mage who is presented in five different designs complete with evolving weaponry. And finally, a seemingly endless cast of enemies. The headliners of which being The Seven Deadly Sins. Much of the team here at Gunfire had art and design roles on the original Darksiders, Darksiders II, or both. Coming together to continue the story of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse like never before all these years later has been an absolute blast. We believe we have created an absolute feast for the player’s eyes! View the full article

PlayStation Classic launches December 13 for $99.99! As you probably could have guessed, we’re big fans. So, we did a little digging around PlayStation HQ to find answers to some commonly asked questions about our new mini-console. Think of this as an Ultimate FAQ — just… smaller. Q: What is PlayStation Classic? PlayStation Classic is a new mini-console, built to celebrate the rich heritage of the original PlayStation. It has been designed to closely resemble the design of the original console in a much smaller form factor, and is preloaded with 20 games from a wide variety of genres. It includes two wired controllers, and will be available December 3, 2018 for $99.99. Q: How big is PlayStation Classic? How much does it weigh? PlayStation Classic measures 5.8″ x 1.3″ x 4.1″, which is a 45% reduction in size from the original console. The footprint of the mini-console is smaller than a PS4 game case. PlayStation Classic weighs approximately 6.0 ounces, and each controller weighs approximately 4.9 ounces. Q: Which games are pre-loaded on PlayStation Classic? Battle Arena Toshinden* Cool Boarders 2* Destruction Derby* Final Fantasy VII Grand Theft Auto* Intelligent Qube Jumping Flash!* Metal Gear Solid Mr. Driller Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee* Rayman Resident Evil Director’s Cut* Revelations: Persona R4 Ridge Racer Type 4 Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo Syphon Filter Tekken 3* Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six* Twisted Metal Wild Arms​ *Denotes a title based on the PAL version Q: Which PlayStation Classic games support two-player multiplayer? The following titles support two-player multiplayer: Battle Arena Toshinden Cool Boarders 2 Destruction Derby Intelligent Qube Mr. Driller Ridge Racer Type 4 Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo Tekken 3 Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Twisted Metal Q: How long are the cables for the system and its controllers? The included HDMI cable is 2.0m / 78.7″; both included controllers have cables measuring 1.5m / 59.1″. Q: Which cables can I use to connect the console to my TV? PlayStation Classic ships with an included HDMI cable, which you can use to connect the system to your television. It does not support any other video or audio output methods. Q: Can I use DualShock 4 with PlayStation Classic? How about PS2 or original PS1 controllers? PlayStation Classic is only compatible with official PlayStation Classic controllers. Q: How do disc changes work? In games that originally shipped on multiple discs, like Final Fantasy VII and Metal Gear Solid, when you reach the end of a “disc,” press the “Open” button on the PlayStation Classic console to transition to the next virtual disc. Q: How do memory cards / save states work? Each title can support up to 15 virtual memory card slots, which you can manage from the console’s main UI. Just like the original PlayStation, once you delete a save file it fades away and cannot be recovered. Additionally, pressing the Reset button on the PlayStation Classic console will bring you back out to the system’s main UI, creating a restore point wherever you left off in the game you were playing. Next time you play that game, you can return to the Restore point you had created before. Q: Can I use the System Link feature to link more than one PlayStation Classic together? System Link functionality is not present in PlayStation Classic. You can, however, make use of split-screen multiplayer in supported games. Q: What does the user interface of PlayStation Classic look like? Like this: Click here for more screencaps of PS Classic’s UI Q: What kind of power source can you use with PlayStation Classic? Can I use my phone charger? Use the included USB cable to connect PlayStation Classic to a USB power source that supports 5V, 1.0A (minimum) output, such as a USB AC adaptor (not included). Q: Can I connect to PSN to download new games to PlayStation Classic? PlayStation Classic is a plug and play offline experience, and as such cannot connect to the internet. There are no plans to bring new content or updates to PlayStation Classic post-launch. Q: Can I buy extra games for the PlayStation Classic? The PS Classic is preloaded with 20 of the best games from the original PlayStation. It is not possible to purchase additional games for PlayStation Classic. Q: Can the PS Classic read discs from the old PS1? The PS Classic is 45% smaller than the original PlayStation and does not have a disc drive. All 20 titles are contained in the PS Classic’s internal storage. Q: How closely does the design of PlayStation Classic match the original PlayStation? Pretty darned closely. Judge for yourself: Will the PS Classic include the original startup sound? Yes. Once you switch your PS Classic on, you will hear the iconic startup sound. Raise your hand if you can hear this gif Where can I buy PS Classic? The PS Classic will be available at major game retailers starting December 3. Will the PS Classic perform upscaling? The PS Classic outputs video in 720p or 480p — your display device may also perform some upscaling depending on the model. View the full article

I was blown away by the response to the release of the PG2 x PlayStation back in February. As a huge fan of PlayStation, I was honored to get the chance to collaborate on something that so many of you loved. Because of that, I’m happy to announce that PlayStation, Nike Basketball, and I have returned with a new collaboration, the PG 2.5 x PlayStation colorway. For those who know me, gaming is a big part of who I am – I love the fans and I love this community, so it was amazing to see the gaming and sneaker worlds collide with the original PG2 collaboration. This time around, I wanted to take the design old school, back to my earliest days of gaming. For me – as I’m sure many of you can relate – those memories date back to the original PlayStation. Working with Nike and PlayStation, we focused on bringing that original PlayStation inspiration to life in this new design. Here are a few of my favorite elements about this new colorway: The tongues of the shoe still have the PG and PlayStation logos that light up and pulsate blue, but this time we added the original four-color PlayStation logo that lights up on the other side of the tongue. The strap across the top front of each shoe provides stability to really lock you in. The iconic PlayStation symbols are embossed in patent leather on each shoe, just like on the original PG2 x PlayStation colorway. This collaboration is very special and personal to me. I’ve been a PlayStation fan ever since I was kid, so I’m excited about continuing to partner with a brand that I grew up loving. The PG 2.5 x PlayStation colorway drops globally on December 1, 2018. For more information on the release, make sure you download the Nike SNKRS app. View the full article

Hello, everyone! Visions is a new free update releasing on Thursday for all No Man’s Sky players. We’ve called it Visions, because it reimagines our universe, introducing new environmental biomes, new planet types, more colourful worlds, new fauna and flora, archaeology, salvaging, and much more… Just last month we launched The Abyss, which completely changed underwater in No Man’s Sky. We are excited to now make the planet surface far more interesting and varied to explore. Some new features you might notice in Visions… New Worlds The variety and diversity of planet surfaces has been greatly improved. Millions of previously dead planets have now burst into life, creating a weirder, more surprising universe to explore. Mysterious artifacts can be found on alien planets, which can be collected as mementos and displayed as trophies in your planetary base. Bizarre Creatures Strange new creatures can be found among the stars, never before discovered by another traveller. Predatory fauna protect their planets from interlopers, with some creatures even masquerading as ordinary minerals. Deadly flora now has much more variety, with carnivorous trap plants and bloated gas flora waiting to snare the unwary and reward the cautious. More to Discover With more varied planets comes more reasons to explore. Unleash your inner archeologist and search the galaxy for planets containing the ancient bones of alien lifeforms. Unearth the long-forgotten remains of fallen satellites and scrap them for salvagable parts, but risk drawing the attention of new, challenging, corrupted sentinel drones. Those who endure the hazardous storms that blast extreme planets can seek out precious new crystal treasures that only light up during the worst weather. More Variety The universe has become more alien, vibrant and exciting to explore. New shades of sky, grass, and water enable more unique worlds and a more diverse set of science fiction aesthetics. Atmospherics and skies have been improved and rainbows have been added to the range of weather effects. Global Community Missions A new Community Research mission allows explorers to share progress and work towards a common goal. Discover the Visions universe together to unlock the new Eye of the Korvax helmet, as well as well as new emotes, building parts and a range of fireworks to celebrate any occasion. We hope you enjoy this and what follows — and we look forward to meeting you out there! Our journey continues. Thank you, Sean View the full article

Email us at blogcast@sony.com! Subscribe via iTunes, Spotify, Google or RSS, or download here Can you believe PS4 turned 5 this past week? Sid and Kristen share some of their favorite PS4 memories, along with which games the new PS Classic makes them nostalgic for. Enjoy! Stuff We Talked About PS4’s anniversary PlayStation Classic Beat Saber Red Dead Redemption 2 Dream Daddy Assassin’s Creed Odyssey Those sweet, sweet Black Friday deals The Cast Sid Shuman – Director of Social Media, SIEA Kristen Titus – Social Media Specialist, SIEA Thanks to Cory Schmitz for our beautiful logo and Dormilón for our rad theme song and show music. [Editor’s note: PSN game release dates are subject to change without notice. Game details are gathered from press releases from their individual publishers and/or ESRB rating descriptions.] View the full article

Battlefield V launches today worldwide. All-out war across a mix of new and iconic multiplayer modes for up to 64 players on massive maps are in your hands. So, where do you start? Press X on Grand Operations and you’ll start an intense tour of Battlefield V’s World War 2-based maps and multiplayer modes. Each Grand Operation is arranged as a clash between opposing forces played on rotating maps across up to four “days” of matches. Veteran players will recognize these as upgraded Operations from Battlefield 1. However, this time with a better focus on fast-paced, coordinated military actions to invade or defend, sabotage or disarm, and make a final stand if all else fails. Here’s How it Works Each Grand Operation contains several in-game rounds referred to as days. Two teams try to best one another in each round for final victory. Each day’s results affect the conditions of the next, making it one big battle where the momentum can shift. Typically, you’ll start with an insertion mode like Airborne, and then proceed to fight on the ground in modes like Breakthrough or Conquest. However, the setup varies between Grand Operations and can be modified in many ways (more on these modes below). Grand Operations at Launch The experience is built into the four major geographical areas of the game, Holland, France, North Africa, and Norway — each represented by two maps per region. The operations are inspired by historical battles of WW2 and the offering will grow post-launch with the Tides of War. A Look at Grand Operations in North Africa The iconic WW2 experience of staging an invasion from above comes to you in Airborne. This is how day one starts; Allied paratroopers drop from the skies as Axis forces dig in and prepare to hold territory. On the second day, two teams will clash in Conquest, specifically the Conquest Assault variant, where the round starts with defenders controlling every flag that attackers must capture. Both Airborne and Conquest Assault are contested on the Hamada map, a massive playing field of sunbaked rock and sand inspired by WW2 battles on a strategic point between Libya and Egypt. Drenched in sweat and caked in dirt, the fight continues in the Aerodrome map. This one is loosely based on the British attacks on German installations, supply lines, and airfields in the Libyan desert in 1942-1943. Control of the central hangar is ideal here, but you’ll have to survive a barrage of infantry nests and tank shells. Day three on Aerodrome is won in Breakthrough, where one team will push to seize all control points in a sector, and to force the enemy to retreat. Day four is a worst-case scenario. If nobody pulls ahead after three days, it’s time for Final Stand. Few will survive in this sudden death mode, where you’ll have depleted ammo and no respawns. Final team standing wins! Experience Them All Each Grand Operation brings something different. For example, day three in the France Grand Operation is contested in a match of Frontlines, where teams fight for one objective point at a time, and once an objective is captured, the action moves on to the next. Conquering the last flag opens the vulnerable enemy base. At launch, some game modes will only be available to play in Grand Operations, such as Airborne and Final Stand. Grand Operations will be the initial home for many new experiences as the post-launch Tides of War journey expands, so it’s always worth a visit. Deploy now on PS4 with the Battlefield V Deluxe Edition or the Battlefield V Standard Edition. View the full article

We didn’t set out to make a scary game when we started developing Subnautica five years ago. We wanted to make an open-world underwater game where you didn’t kill creatures. Yet, some of our biggest fans tell us we “accidentally made a horror game.” How did this happen? It turns out, there are a lot of primal psychological fears at play in the game. We didn’t have to work too hard to trigger a lot of adrenaline and chills in Subnautica. Some of it happens unintentionally due to innate fears that many of us have. Once we saw these psychological factors at work, we focused on them to create thrills. Thalassophobia This is an “intense and persistent fear of the sea or of sea travel.” This includes fear of being in large bodies of water and being far from land, both of which are a mainstay of the game. You start in your deployed escape pod, but you’ll spend a lot of your time diving for resources and navigating coral and the seabed, gently sloping down into the depths. Megalohydrothalassophobia This is the fear of large things underwater. We have your incredibly massive and still-burning half-submerged spaceship Aurora, giant underwater mushroom forests and serpents thicker and longer larger than a sunken school bus. Submechanophobia This is the irrational fear of man made objects underwater. Submarines, statues and wrecks all fill some with dread. We delivered this one in spades, as we have both procedural wrecks to explore for loot as well as some ancient alien structures. These are also really big, which doubly triggers megalohydrothalassophobia as well. Acrophobia This is fear of heights. When you’re swimming around a beautiful sunny ocean reef and the ocean floor suddenly drops off into an abyss, it can feel like you’re about to fall. Or when you’re swimming at the surface and you duck your head beneath the waves and you see nothing below you can trigger the same feeling. Nyctophobia, Claustrophobia & More The game also captures the fear of the dark (when it’s night and you’re at the surface, or you go down deep), fear of being in closed spaces (diving in caves) and running out of oxygen (a common occurrence), and quite a few more. One fear to rule them all But possibly the biggest or most fundamental fear is the fear of the unknown, which Subnautica strives to portray at all times. Creating the feeling of unknown and discovery is so important to our company that it’s in our company name (“Unknown Worlds”). We strive to preserve the feeling that you never know when you’ve seen everything, been everywhere or have truly “completed” the game. Doing so would break that intoxicating shiver of the unknown. Positive feelings So why would anyone want to play a game that could trigger all these fears? It’s the same reason people ride roller-coasters, go sky-diving and watch horror movies. It’s a huge thrill, and excites and stimulates as much as it scares. We’ve received many messages from players that started off with one or more of these phobias but who then conquered them after 5-10 hours of playing. Some of them have even gone on to get their scuba certification and have fallen in love with the underwater world, which is quite gratifying for the dev team. But besides all these phobias, above all we’ve tried to create a game that really captures the imaginations of players. The game doesn’t tell the player what to do with quests or goals, but instead leaves a trail of breadcrumbs off into the fog, tempting you to discover for yourself what lies beyond. Is that a big creature in the distance? Will it eat me? Is it actually friendly and beautiful? More often than not, those shapes in the murky depths are beautiful and helpful, like fertile kelp plants, as big as redwoods, or harmless creatures as big as UFOs, with gardens on their backs. But not always… -The Subnautica Dev Team View the full article

Hey everyone! Once again, we want to thank all our fans out there for your tremendous support of Marvel’s Spider-Man since its launch on September 7. Whether you’re playing the main game, experiencing it again with New Game+ and Ultimate Difficulty, or checking out the beginning of the game’s post-launch DLC, Marvel’s Spider-Man: The City That Never Sleeps with Marvel’s Spider-Man: The Heist, we’ve been blown away by the response. We know you’ve been waiting for the next chapter, and we’re excited to release Marvel’s Spider-Man: Turf Wars today! This chapter picks up right where Marvel’s Spider-Man: The Heist left off, with Hammerhead Hammerhead — the horrific head-butting villain who remains obsessed with his organized crime’s “glory days” — continuing his battle against the other Maggia families. I hope you’ll enjoy our take on a classic comic book Spider-Man villain in a storyline that has some pretty intense moments and a few surprises in store. Want to see more from Marvel’s Spider-Man: Turf Wars? We have another Just the Facts video to give you a glimpse! Just the Facts is the in-game podcast of former Daily Bugle editor J. Jonah Jameson, who is always ready to complain — loudly — about Spider-Man and all the ways our beloved web-slinger is screwing up royally. We have a lot of fun writing these and working with actor Darin De Paul to bring JJJ to life in our universe. You can pick up Marvel’s Spider-Man: Turf Wars from PlayStation Store now for $9.99 USD MSRP. Haven’t checked out Marvel’s Spider-Man: The City That Never Sleeps yet? The entire bundle of all three chapters* — including nine new Spidey Suits** — offers a savings at the price of $24.99 USD MSRP compared to $29.97 USD MSRP if purchasing the three chapters separately at $9.99 USD MSRP each. If you haven’t played Marvel’s Spider-Man yet, we have a special deal for you. For the first time ever the game will be going on sale, and only at PlayStation Store! This temporary price drop of $20.00 USD will apply to the two Digital versions of the game only, and only from November 20 through November 26. Yup, that means during that promotion the Digital Standard Edition will be $39.99 USD MSRP, and the Digital Deluxe Edition will offer an especially good value at $59.99 USD MSRP. Also, be sure to catch up with the latest Marvel comic reading list I put together with our friends at Marvel Unlimited. You can check it out here and preview some of my favorite classic Hammerhead appearances. Of course, we aren’t done yet with Marvel’s Spider-Man. Even now we’re continuing support of the game and wrapping up production on the third and final Marvel’s Spider-Man: The City That Never Sleeps chapter: Marvel’s Spider-Man: Silver Lining — which we aim to have to you just in time for your holiday break*! That’s all for now — enjoy Marvel’s Spider-Man: Turf Wars! Ryan *Users will receive Marvel’s Spider-Man: The City That Never Sleep’s third chapter, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Silver Lining by December 2018. **Each Marvel’s Spider-Man: The City That Never Sleep’s chapter contains three new Spidey Suits. View the full article

Beat Saber is almost here. Get ready to dance to the energizing music and slash some beats! Whether you prefer to play alone or with friends, there’s something for everyone. Developed by Beat Games, the PS4 version of this VR rhythm game comes with a challenging new campaign, 5 exclusive new songs, and more. For a full list of new games coming to PlayStation next week, read on. And enjoy The Drop! Achtung! Cthulhu Tactics PS4 — Digital Explore the Lovecraft-meets-WW2 universe of Achtung! Cthulhu Tactics, a turn-based tactical strategy game set in the award-winning Achtung! Cthulhu universe. Battlefield V PS4 — Digital, Retail Enter mankind’s greatest conflict with Battlefield V as the series goes back to its roots in a never-before-seen portrayal of World War 2. Take on all-out multiplayer across the world or witness human drama set against global combat in single player War Stories. Beat Saber PS VR — Digital Enjoy precisely handcrafted levels and exclusively created electronic dance music, all embedded in an appealing futuristic world. Swing your sabers, match the color and the right direction to slash the cubes, and keep up with the adrenaline-pumping music… This game is gonna make you dance! Bendy and the Ink Machine PS4 — Digital Bendy and the Ink Machine is a first-person puzzle action horror game that begins in the far days past of animation and ends in a very dark future. With twists and turns around every corner, this game is sure to thrill you… and decimate your childhood. Boxing Apocalypse PS VR — Digital Trapped in an alien prison, you must fight your way to freedom in this action combat game featuring a fully immersive, intuitive fight system. Crow: The Legend PS4 — Digital In this animated movie, Crow is the most admired animal in the forest with his magnificent colors and beautiful voice. But when the very first winter arrives, can Crow make the personal sacrifices needed to save his friends? Farming Simulator 19 PS4 — Digital, Retail The ultimate farming simulation returns with a complete graphics overhaul and the most complete farming experience ever! Become a modern farmer and develop your farm, filled with exciting new farming activities, crops, and animals. Flashback PS4 — Digital, Retail 2142. After fleeing from a spaceship but stripped of all memory, the eminent scientist Conrad B. Hart awakens on Titan, a colonized moon of the planet Saturn. He must find a way back to Earth, defending himself against the dangers he encounters and unravelling an insidious extra-terrestrial plot that threatens the planet… Gundemoniums PS4 — Digital (Cross-Buy) Gundemoniums is a revamped version of the cult Japanese PC classic Gundemonium first released in 2003. This side-scrolling high-speed ‘danmaku’ shoot-em-up has a focus on navigating the mazes created by the curtain fire. Marvel’s Spider-Man: Turf Wars PS4 — Digital Spider-Man must put an end to the turf war erupting between the Maggia crime family and gang leader Hammerhead before Marvel’s New York becomes its greatest casualty. Mecho Wars: Desert Ashes PS4, PS Vita — Digital (Cross-Buy) A classic reborn! Casual, turn-based strategy in a land of fantastical creatures and deadly machines! In the aftermath of a great flood, a vengeful leader threatens to conquer the world with the aid of a once lost technology, and only a small but determined army stands in their path. Slayaway Camp: Butcher’s Cut PS Vita — Digital A killer puzzle game where you control Skullface, an adorably demented murderer, across hundreds of isometric puzzle levels in a darkly comic homage to 80s horror movies. Squishies PS VR — Digital Get lost in a cheerful world full of adventures! Squishies is a single player, puzzle platform experience, built exclusively for PlayStation VR. Solve puzzles and save Squishies or be creative and build your own levels then share them with the community. Storm Boy PS4 — Digital (Out 11/21) Based on Colin Thiele’s 1964 children’s book of the same name, Storm Boy takes place on the beaches of South Australia near the mouth of the Murray River, where the titular protagonist rescues orphaned pelican chicks, one of whom later becomes the child’s pet and faithful companion, Mr. Percival. Titanic VR PS VR — Digital (Out 11/22) Titanic VR is a diving simulator and immersive interactive story. You will leave with a greater understanding of the historic tragedy that unfolded in 1912 leading to the sinking of the world’s most famous ship. Youtubers Life PS4 — Digital Become the most successful YouTuber on the planet! Create videos, get subscribers, attend events, interact with your fans… and grow your channel. Live a true YouTuber’s life! The information above is subject to change without notice. Hip-Hop and Play: Wu-Tang Clan Takeover Anderson.Paak – Oxnard Chris Cornell – Chris Cornell The Nun The Equalizer 2 Searching Season Premiere Sunday, November 18 at 8/7c on Smithsonian Channel Premieres Sunday, November 18 at 10PM ET/PT on Showtime Catch the Thanksgiving action live on November 22 at 12:20PM ET on CBS, 4:30PM ET on Fox, and 8:20PM ET on NBC PlayStation Vue has your favorite sports, news and must-watch shows. The information above is subject to change without notice. View the full article

Last week, we asked you to dig into the emotional moments of your favorite games. From curious moments to rage-filled outcries, you shared every feeling using #PS4share and #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights: @TheFourthFocus shared Senua grappling with her hallucinations in Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice . @console_gaming_photography shared a jovial moment from Red Dead Redemption 2. Spyro looks skeptical in this curious Spyro Reignited Trilogy share from @wolfgamer_19. Aloy wistfully learns about the past in this share from @AreeLyBadPun. @FadeBlack shares Kratos screaming with Spartan rage in God of War. Jodie curls up during this emotional scene from Beyond: Two Souls, shared by @4mllr. Search #PS4Share and #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this week’s theme. Want to be featured in next week’s Share of the Week? Theme: Valkyria Chronicles 4 Share by: 9am Pacific on Wednesday, November 28 You’ll have two weeks share your grandest moments fighting for freedom in Valkyria Chronicles 4. Make sure to share using #PS4share and #PSBlog for a chance to be featured. View the full article

Get a head start on savings with PlayStation Store’s Black Friday Sale! Starting tomorrow, enjoy deals up to 50% on games like Call of Duty Black Ops 4, FIFA 19, NBA 2K19, and more. Take a first look at the full lineup below. Then head to PlayStation Store over the next ten days – this year’s Black Friday sale ends November 27 at 8 a.m. PT. PS4 Games Title $Sale $Original ASASSIN’S CREED ORIGINS – GOLD EDITION $39.99 $99.99 ASSASSIN’S CREED ODYSSEY $40.19 $59.99 ASSASSIN’S CREED ODYSSEY – DELUXE EDITION $53.59 $79.99 ASSASSIN’S CREED ODYSSEY – GOLD EDITION $64.99 $99.99 ASSASSIN’S CREED ODYSSEY – ULTIMATE EDITION $77.99 $119.99 ASSASSIN’S CREED ORIGINS $23.99 $59.99 ASSASSIN’S CREED ORIGINS DELUXE EDITION $27.99 $69.99 BATMAN: RETURN TO ARKHAM $4.99 $19.99 CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS 4 $47.99 $59.99 CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS III – ZOMBIES DELUXE $49.99 $99.99 CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS III-ZOMBIES EDITION $29.99 $59.99 CALL OF DUTY BLACK OPS III: ZOMBIES CHRONICLES $19.49 $29.99 CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS III – SEASON PASS $24.99 $49.99 CALL OF DUTY: WWII – DIGITAL DELUXE $49.99 $99.99 CALL OF DUTY: WWII – GOLD EDITION $29.99 $59.99 CALL OF DUTY: WWII – SEASON PASS $24.99 $49.99 CRASH BANDICOOT N. SANE TRILOGY $19.99 $39.99 CREED: RISE TO GLORY (VR) $14.99 $29.99 DESTINY 2: FORSAKEN $29.99 $39.99 DESTINY 2: FORSAKEN – ANNUAL PASS BUNDLE $59.49 $69.99 DESTINY 2: FORSAKEN – COMPLETE COLLECTION $69.99 $99.99 DESTINY 2: FORSAKEN – DELUXE EDITION $67.99 $79.99 DESTINY 2: FORSAKEN – LEGENDARY EDITION $35.99 $59.99 DETROIT: BECOME HUMAN $21.99 $39.99 DETROIT: BECOME HUMAN DIGITAL DELUXE EDITION $27.49 $49.99 DIABLO III: ETERNAL COLLECTION $19.79 $59.99 DIABLO III: RISE OF THE NECROMANCER $8.99 $14.99 DISHONORED 2 – PREY BUNDLE $25.99 $64.99 DISHONORED 2 COMPLETE COLLECTION $31.99 $79.99 DIVINITY ORIGINAL SIN 2 DEFINITIVE EDITION $41.99 $59.99 DOOM – FULL GAME $14.99 $19.99 DOOM VFR $14.99 $29.99 DRAGON BALL FIGHTERZ $26.99 $59.99 DRAGON QUEST XI: DAY ONE EDITION $41.99 $59.99 DYING LIGHT $13.99 $19.99 EA SPORTS UFC 3 STANDARD EDITION $17.99 $59.99 FALLOUT 4 $14.99 $29.99 FALLOUT 4 GOTY $23.99 $59.99 FAR CRY 5 $26.99 $59.99 FAR CRY 5 DELUXE EDITION $34.99 $69.99 FAR CRY 5 GOLD EDITION $40.49 $89.99 FIFA 19 $29.99 $59.99 FIFA 19 CHAMPIONS EDITION $39.99 $79.99 FIFA 19 ULTIMATE EDITION $49.99 $99.99 FINAL FANTASY XV POCKET EDITION HD $19.49 $29.99 FINAL FANTASY XV ROYAL EDITION $24.99 $49.99 FIREWALL: ZERO HOUR $29.99 $39.99 FIST OF THE NORTH STAR: LOST PARADISE $39.59 $59.99 FOR HONOR $9.99 $39.99 FOR HONOR MARCHING FIRE EDITION $29.99 $59.99 GHOST RECON WILDLANDS ULTIMATE EDITION BUNDLE $59.99 $119.99 GHOST RECON Y2 GOLD EDITION $39.99 $79.99 GOD OF WAR $21.99 $39.99 GRAND THEFT AUTO V $19.79 $29.99 GRAND THEFT AUTO V & GREAT WHITE SHARK CASH CARD BUNDLE $32.99 $49.99 GRAND THEFT AUTO V: GRAND THEFT AUTO ONLINE MEGALODON SHARK CASH CARD $84.99 $99.99 GRAND THEFT AUTO ONLINE WHALE SHARK CASH CARD $42.49 $49.99 GRAND THEFT AUTO V: PREMIUM ONLINE EDITION $32.99 $59.99 GTA ONLINE: CRIMINAL ENTERPRISE STARTER PACK $19.49 $29.99 GTAV: PREMIUM ONLINE EDITION & GREAT WHITE SHARK CARD $37.39 $67.99 GTAV: PREMIUM ONLINE EDITION & MEGALODON SHARK CARD $79.19 $119.99 GTAV: PREMIUM ONLINE EDITION & WHALE SHARK CARD $52.79 $87.99 HOLLOW KNIGHT $7.49 $14.99 HORIZON ZERO DAWN COMPLETE EDITION $14.99 $19.99 INJUSTICE 2: LEGENDARY EDITION $17.99 $59.99 JUST DANCE 2019 $23.99 $39.99 KINGDOM COME: DELIVERANCE $29.99 $59.99 LEGO DC SUPER-VILLAINS $29.99 $59.99 LEGO DC SUPER-VILLAINS DELUXE EDITION $37.49 $74.99 LEGO THE INCREDIBLES $29.99 $59.99 MADDEN NFL 19 $29.99 $59.99 MADDEN NFL 19 – HALL OF FAME EDITION $31.99 $79.99 METAL GEAR SURVIVE $14.99 $29.99 MIDDLE-EARTH: SHADOW OF WAR $19.99 $49.99 MLB THE SHOW 18 $20.09 $29.99 MLB THE SHOW 18 STUBS (1000) $0.49 $0.99 MLB THE SHOW 18 STUBS (11000) $4.99 $9.99 MLB THE SHOW 18 STUBS (150000) $49.99 $99.99 MLB THE SHOW 18 STUBS (24000) $9.99 $19.99 MLB THE SHOW 18 STUBS (5000) $2.49 $4.99 MLB THE SHOW 18 STUBS (67500) $24.99 $49.99 MLB THE SHOW 18 ALL STAR EDITION $26.79 $39.99 MLB THE SHOW 18 DIGITAL DELUXE EDITION $46.89 $69.99 MONSTER HUNTER: WORLD $24.99 $49.99 MONSTER HUNTER: WORLD DIGITAL DELUXE EDITION $29.99 $59.99 MORTAL KOMBAT XL $5.99 $19.99 NARUTO TO BORUTO SHINOBI STRIKER $35.99 $59.99 NARUTO TO BORUTO: SHINOBI STRIKER DELUXE EDITION $53.99 $89.99 NASCAR HEAT 3 $19.99 $49.99 NASCAR HEAT 3 BUNDLE $31.99 $79.99 NBA 2K PLAYGROUNDS 2 $19.49 $29.99 NBA 2K19 $29.99 $59.99 NBA 2K19 20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION BUNDLE $49.99 $99.99 NBA 2K19: 15000 VC PACK $4.49 $4.99 NBA 2K19: 200000 VC PACK $44.99 $49.99 NBA 2K19: 35000 VC PACK $8.99 $9.99 NBA 2K19: 450000 VC PACK $89.99 $99.99 NBA 2K19: 75000 VC PACK $17.99 $19.99 NBA LIVE 19: THE ONE EDITION $19.99 $39.99 NHL 19 99 EDITION $39.99 $79.99 NHL 19 STANDARD EDITION $29.99 $59.99 NIER: AUTOMATA $29.99 $59.99 NIER: AUTOMATA 3C3C1D119440927 $6.99 $13.99 NIOH – THE COMPLETE EDITION $22.49 $49.99 NIOH LIVE $15.99 $39.99 OVERWATCH LEGENDARY EDITION $19.79 $59.99 PERSONA 5 $19.99 $49.99 PREY $17.99 $29.99 PREY – DIGITAL DELUXE EDITION $19.99 $39.99 PRO EVOLUTION SOCCER 2019 DAVID BECKHAM EDITION $34.99 $69.99 PRO EVOLUTION SOCCER 2019 LEGENDARY EDITION $39.99 $79.99 PRO EVOLUTION SOCCER 2019 STANDARD EDITION $29.99 $59.99 RED DEAD REDEMPTION 2 SPECIAL EDITION BUNDLE $69.59 $79.99 RED DEAD REDEMPTION 2 ULTIMATE EDITION BUNDLE $89.99 $99.99 ROCKET LEAGUE $9.99 $19.99 ROCKET LEAGUE – GAME OF THE YEAR EDITION $12.49 $24.99 SCRIBBLENAUTS: SHOWDOWN $19.99 $39.99 SHADOW OF THE TOMB RAIDER $29.99 $59.99 SHADOW OF THE TOMB RAIDER – CROFT EDITION $44.99 $89.99 SHADOW OF THE TOMB RAIDER – DELUXE EDITION $34.99 $69.99 SHADOW OF THE TOMB RAIDER – SEASON PASS $20.09 $29.99 SOUTH PARK: THE FRACTURED BUT WHOLE $14.99 $59.99 SOUTH PARK: THE FRACTURED BUT WHOLE GOLD EDITION $22.49 $89.99 STAR TREK BRIDGE CREW + TNG DLC BUNDLE $27.49 $54.99 STAR TREK: BRIDGE CREW (VR) $11.99 $39.99 STAR WARS BATTLEFRONT II $9.89 $29.99 STARLINK: BATTLE FOR ATLAS – COLLECTION 1 PACK $50.99 $59.99 STARLINK: BATTLE FOR ATLAS – DIGITAL EDITION $44.99 $59.99 STARLINK: BATTLE FOR ATLAS DELUXE EDITION $59.99 $79.99 STRANGE BRIGADE $29.99 $49.99 STRANGE BRIGADE DELUXE EDITION $47.99 $79.99 SUPER BOMBERMAN R $19.99 $39.99 THE CREW 2 $23.99 $59.99 THE CREW 2 GOLD EDITION $49.99 $99.99 THE CREW 2 MOTORSPORTS DELUXE EDITION $27.99 $69.99 THE ELDER SCROLLS ONLINE COLLECTION $39.99 $79.99 THE ELDER SCROLLS ONLINE SUMMERSET $14.79 $39.99 THE ELDER SCROLLS ONLINE SUMMERSET COLLECTOR’S ED. UPGRADE $14.79 $39.99 THE ELDER SCROLLS ONLINE SUMMERSET COLLECTOR’S EDITION $22.19 $59.99 THE ELDER SCROLLS ONLINE SUMMERSET UPGRADE $11.09 $29.99 THE ELDER SCROLLS V: SKYRIM SPECIAL EDITION $19.99 $39.99 THE ELDER SCROLLS V: SKYRIM VR $29.99 $59.99 THE ELDER SCROLLS ONLINE $9.99 $19.99 THE EVIL WITHIN 2 $19.79 $59.99 THE GOLF CLUB 2019 FEATURING PGA TOUR $29.99 $49.99 THE JACKBOX PARTY PACK 5 $19.49 $29.99 THE JACKBOX PARTY QUADPACK $37.49 $74.99 THE LAST OF US REMASTERED $5.99 $19.99 THE SIMS 4 $15.99 $39.99 THE SIMS 4 DELUXE PARTY EDITION $19.99 $49.99 TOM CLANCY’S RAINBOW SIX SIEGE $14.99 $49.99 TOM CLANCY’S RAINBOW SIX SIEGE ADVANCED EDITION $17.99 $59.99 TOM CLANCY’S RAINBOW SIX SIEGE COMPLETE EDITION $38.99 $129.99 TOM CLANCY’S RAINBOW SIX SIEGE GOLD EDITION $26.99 $89.99 TOM CLANCY’S GHOST RECON WILDLANDS STANDARD EDITION $19.99 $49.99 TOM CLANCY’S THE DIVISION $9.99 $49.99 TOM CLANCY’S THE DIVISION GOLD EDITION $17.99 $89.99 TORN $20.99 $29.99 TRACK LAB $11.99 $19.99 TRANSFERENCE $14.99 $24.99 UFC 3 CHAMPION EDITION $19.99 $79.99 UNEARTHING MARS 2 (VR) $9.99 $19.99 VALKYRIA CHRONICLES 4 $29.99 $59.99 WATCH DOGS 2 $17.99 $59.99 WATCH DOGS 2 – DELUXE EDITION $20.99 $69.99 WATCH DOGS 2 – GOLD EDITION $29.99 $99.99 WE HAPPY FEW $40.19 $59.99 WE HAPPY FEW DIGITAL DELUXE EDITION $59.99 $79.99 WOLFENSTEIN II DELUXE BUNDLE $26.39 $79.99 WOLFENSTEIN II: THE NEW COLOSSUS $19.79 $59.99 WWE 2K19 $29.99 $59.99 WWE 2K19 DIGITAL DELUXE EDITION $44.99 $89.99 YAKUZA KIWAMI 2 $34.99 $49.99 ZONE OF THE ENDERS THE 2ND RUNNER: MARS (VR) $20.09 $29.99 View the full article

I’m so excited to share with you the news that In Death, our roguelike VR shooter, is coming to PlayStation VR on November 27. Over the past couple of years, we’ve been hard at work crafting a core VR game that pays tribute to one of our favorite game genres: the roguelike dungeon crawler. In Death is an unforgiving, challenging first-person shooter that incorporates many of the hallmarks of roguelike games. Set in a surreal medieval world, you are the hero that must venture into the depths of Purgatory and traverse the soaring cathedrals and floating islands of Paradise Lost to bring harmony to the Afterlife. In Death features procedurally-generated levels and random enemy spawns meaning each run is unique and unpredictable. This is a high-stakes permadeath style combat experience, with no save points during your run of each chapter of the game, only offering a continue point if you successfully complete a discrete chapter. We’ve created an achievement-based progression system that unlocks new power ups for your bow in the form of randomly generated special arrows and health boosts that you can loot from enemies. Defeating enemies also accumulates gold that you can spend in the Reliquary, an in-game item store where you can bolster your arsenal or defensive edge. As you unlock new achievements, you gain ever-increasing offensive and defensive skills that persist across each run. But as you improve, new and more powerful enemies arrive on the scene, making each run increasingly more challenging. We’ve put great effort into balancing this progression system against the enemy difficulty level, and we think we’ve created a core loop that rewards skill-based players with the kind of replay value that is the holy grail of all good roguelikes. Creating a core shooter experience for VR is all about delivering rewarding weapon handling coupled with a movement system that keeps you in immersed in the flow of combat. With In Death you move by shooting a golden teleport arrow, allowing you keep your aiming and combat stance while moving through the world, and even adjusting your aim mid-flight to land an awesome headshot as you drop into a slew of enemies around the corner. We think this locomotion mode, tightly integrated with your combat stance, works incredibly well in VR. And for those of you that prefer to play with a DualShock 4 controller, we’ve come up with a novel way of using the Lightbar for motion tracking together with the gyroscope and accelerometer to create a six degree of freedom (6DOF) and tracked experience for weapon handling and aiming. I really look forward to hearing how you think it plays compared to using the Move motion controllers, which we naturally also support. As your skill improves and you master the single player game mode, graduate to competing with other In Death players on the Ladder, our global leaderboard and asynchronous multiplayer mode. The Ladder is ranked leaderboard featuring a challenge-and-response system that allows players to issue a challenge to another player in their tier of the Ladder. A challenge is basically a contest between two players where they both will need to finish a run using the same random seed and achievement profile. Each week, the tiers are adjusted based on your performance in challenges, allowing you to progress up the Ladder over time. Launching November 27, In Death is priced at $29.99 USD ($39.99 CAD). During our launch week, PlayStation Plus members can pick up In Death at a 20% discount. See you in the Afterlife! View the full article

After five months of online and live regional events in Tokyo, Madrid, and Las Vegas, the world’s fastest GT drivers will gather at Monaco, home of the iconic Monaco Grand Prix this weekend to determine the first-ever Nations Cup Champion and Manufacturer Series Champions. Where can I see the action? You can catch the race live at the following times: Friday 16 October 9:00am – 11:00am (PST) Nations Cup: Qualifying Races Saturday 17 October 9:00am – 11:00am (PST) Manufacturers Series World Finals Sunday 18 October 9:00am – 11:00am (PST) Nations Cup World Finals Links to the live stream with commentary for your respective languages and details including tournament structure and race formats can be found at www.gran-turismo.com. Nations Cup The Americas region has some superstar drivers in the form of Igor Fraga, Fabien Porilla and Andy McCabe. With his experience in F3 racing, Fraga achieved a comfortable win in the Americas Finals just a few weeks ago but Portilla showed he was both fast and consistent. With Andy McCabe winning the Manufacturer’s exhibition race in Salzburg along with Mikail Hizal he has also shown his ability to perform on a global stage. Of the European drivers, Mikail Hizal is one of the current favorites following his stellar performance in Madrid where he managed to maintain pole throughout the competition with his consistently fast lap times. Or can Suswillo or Mangano pull ahead with their aggressive but calculated racing styles which has led them to a podium position in the European Finals? The Asia contingent has some incredibly strong and consistent drivers with many of them excelling during qualifying rounds. Both Kokubun and Yamanaka are potential favorites to win and have proven they are some of the fastest in terms of lap times but can they fend off the hungry European and American drivers under pressure? Or could Jonathan Wong from Hong Kong pull off a surprise win for the small country which has always had a passion for GT? Manufacturer Series Monaco will mark the first time we will see the manufacturer teams come together to race. Be sure to tune in on Saturday to find out which team will emerge as the first-ever Manufacturer Series champions! Each Manufacturer will consist of the top driver in each of the three regions — Europe, Asia/Oceania and the Americas. Drivers would have raced three seasons of online races consisting of up to 22 rounds for their chosen manufacturer and come out on top at the end of the season to earn their spot on the team. Below are the 16 manufacturer teams being represented in the final and their respective drivers. You will see some familiar names from the Nations Cup, in particular Nissan with all three regional winners! Will they be standing on the podium or will we see some new stars emerge to challenge them? If you missed any of the previous races you can find them all here and more on GT TV. Remember: You can find all the latest info on upcoming GT Sport content here on PlayStation.Blog or on the official Gran Turismo website. View the full article

Happy fifth birthday, PlayStation 4! In half a decade, PS4 has seen the release of some of the greatest games ever created. And it’s all thanks to the hard work of passionate, driven creators. We wanted to celebrate this momentous milestone, so we invited 23 of the world’s top game designers to build a list of the best PS4 games released to date. Each developer got three picks — you’ll see some clear patterns emerge quickly, but there are some surprises in store. Be sure let us know your picks in the comments! And finally: thank you. Not only for your support since PS4 launched five years ago, but for being part of this community for more than two decades. Without further ado… let’s get to the list. Table of Contents John Garvin Angie Smets Hermen Hulst Bryan Intihar Siobhan Reddy Neil Druckmann Anthony Newman Kurt Margenau Cory Barlog Scott Rohde Shawn Layden Shuhei Yoshida Jason Connell Nate Fox Scott Taylor Lars Bakken Naoki Yoshida Sebastian Kalemba Rami Ismail Steve Filby Derek Yu Tim Schafer Greg Kasavin John Garvin Creative Director // Bend Studio Uncharted 4 I love the entire Uncharted franchise, not just because we got to make one here at Bend Studios (Uncharted Golden Abyss for PS Vita!), but because of its characters. Drake, Sully, Elena, Chloe all have great stories to tell. We get to learn more about who Drake is, how he became the treasure hunter and adventurer we all know, and explore Drake’s relationship with Elena. In the end, I like narrative-driven games that are about interesting relationships, and Uncharted 4 is one of the best. God of War Speaking of relationships! How about that father and son relationship in the new God of War? It’s a franchise I’m a huge fan of, but until now, not one which I would have considered to be “character driven.” I was blown away by some of the game’s bold story choices: making Kratos a father; introducing a kid into the mix; having quiet moments like when Kratos helps Atreus kill the stag. In fact, throughout the game, it’s the moments where things aren’t said that are the most powerful. Kratos reaching out to say something, but not finding the words. Red Dead Redemption 2 I am a huge fan of the first game. In fact it was a major inspiration for Days Gone – I loved the fantasy of being a gunslinger in the Old West, and that love hasn’t faded. I’m only a few hours in but I’m already sold – the atmosphere, the cinematography, the environments, the mood, the music. And the characters – I want to avoid spoilers, so all I’ll say is that the cast of characters, the performances, the stories, all consistently top-notch and entertaining. The sheer scope of the game is daunting at times, but I’m not going to complain about having too much game. Angie Smets Executive Producer // Guerrilla Games The Last of Us: Remastered I missed The Last Of Us on PS3 amidst my never-ending backlog of great games, but when I played the remastered version on PS4 I was amazed by its timeless quality. From the nuanced characterization of Joel and Ellie to the poignant narrative, The Last Of Us: Remastered has lost none of its relevance. Inside Coming from the makers of Limbo, I knew Inside would be dark – but I didn’t expect it to be so haunting. The game uses neat puzzles and platforming mechanics to draw the player towards an ending that shocks and satisfies at the same time, and for months after completion my thoughts would involuntarily return there. Rayman Legends I loved playing games with my mom when I grew up, so being able to do the same with my son is very special to me. Rayman Legends fits the bill perfectly. Its co-op implementation is terrific, and the gameplay hasn’t lost any of the accessibility and inventiveness that I remember from back in the day. Hermen Hulst Managing Director & Co-founder // Guerrilla Games God of War With God of War, I feel as though Santa Monica Studios pulled off the impossible: they redeemed the most brutal demigod ever to star in a videogame franchise, by reframing his character through the very human lens of fatherhood. It was a stroke of genius that hugely paid off, reinvigorating the franchise and paving the way for a brand new chapter in its mythology. Red Dead Redemption 2 When Rockstar releases an open-world game, it sets a new bar that can only be surpassed by the next Rockstar game. I’ve barely spent a week in Red Dead Redemption 2, but I can honestly already say that I’ve never played a game with more attention to detail. Which is all the more impressive given the sheer scope and size of the game world. Inside Proof positive that puzzle platformers don’t always need to be lighthearted colorful affairs, Inside combines intricate puzzle platforming with deeply disturbing visual storytelling – without any of its characters uttering a single word. And just when I thought I’d seen it all, developer Playdead pulled the rug out from under me for a conclusion that defied all sanity. Bryan Intihar Creative Director // Insomniac Games God of War I’ve been such a huge fan of this franchise since the PlayStation 2 days. That being said, never did I expect God of War’s transition on the PS4 to be so fresh in its new setting, bold in its design, and emotional in its narrative. Seeing Kratos juggle not only the dangerous threats all around him, but also the responsibility of fatherhood really left such a mark on me. And when you throw in the technical marvel of a single-shot camera, it’s safe to say Sony Santa Monica has delivered one of the hallmark titles of the console’s first five years. Horizon Zero Dawn As a developer I always love to see my favorite game makers mix things up and take risks. And wow, did Guerilla ever do that with Horizon Zero Dawn. This experience has one of the most unique settings of any PS4 title (I mean, who doesn’t love ROBOT DINOSAURS?!?!?). But beyond the premise, exploring the terrain and battling these metallic beasts led to some of the most fun I had with an open-world game in the past few years. Lastly, I thought Aloy was an amazing character and she quickly became one of my favorite new heroes. Destiny Bungie’s new first-person shooter world was one of those PS4 experiences where I simply lost track of…well, quite frankly, everything. It’s one of those games where I would say to myself, “one more weapon upgrade…one more mission…one more strike with my friends” and the next thing I know it’s 4am and I need to be up for work in a few hours. In addition, Bungie’s buttery smooth shooter controls make it feel like anyone can be a top-tier Guardian while planet hopping. While the later installments in the franchise are just as strong, I’ll never forget that first go-around with Destiny. Siobhan Reddy Studio Director // Media Molecule Resident Evil This is one of the games that absolutely clinched my love of gaming. I’m a huge horror fan and the combination of atmosphere – music, visuals, story – made it actually frightening to play. It marks a period in my life where my appreciation of games began to rival my appreciation of film, because I could see what was really possible in the medium. Dark Souls 3 I came into the Dark Souls series at number 3 and just loved it. The passive co-op play is such a great mechanic. I also love the story of what inspired it, it has such a beautiful beginning. The game’s director Hidetaka Miyazaki told a story about being stuck in a row of cars on a hill in the show and the cars nudging each other up, allowing everyone to get home. I love the idea of people who don’t know each other helping each other. The Flame and the Flood I love a survival game, I think you can see that in all my choices. The Flame and The Flood has a beautiful atmosphere, funny characters, and gorgeous music. I loved the mechanics: you just get a little further every time. It also doesn’t hurt that your character, Scout, has a pet dog that you have to look after. I’m a big fan of dog companions. Neil Druckmann Vice President and Director of The Last of Us Part II // Naughty Dog God of War Love how Santa Monica Studio reinvented this franchise. The combat is tight and has greater depth, the world is fascinating to explore, and they made Kratos into a complex character that I truly cared for. Bloodborne This was my first “Souls” game. I was initially frustrated with its difficulty and its obscure mechanics. After a couple of hours, everything clicked and I learned to appreciate the tension this game provides. Few games match its tone, complexity, and the sheer sense of achievement upon conquering it. Resident Evil 7 Another brilliant reinvention of an existing franchise. I adored the more intimate tone of the environments, encounters, and enemy designs. It was great to have the original survival-horror series going back to its roots. Anthony Newman Co-Game Director // Naughty Dog Horizon Zero Dawn As a developer, I can’t help but have my impression of a game be influenced by the nature of the game’s development as well as the game itself. It’s hard to overstate my admiration for Guerrilla’s courage and ambition: to go from gritty, linear, first-person shooters to a colorful, open-world, third-person action game in a wholly original setting was a leap of faith you seldom see in the medium. And they nailed it! God of War I’m pretty jaded when it comes to hype, but I’ve never (ever) anticipated a game as much as God of War. The series had an immense influence on me as a designer, and knowing that Corey (who directed GoW II, my favorite entry) was returning for the reboot made it that much more thrilling. God of War flipped the script on its combat, found a slick new take on an open world, and represents a quantum leap forward in storytelling for the series. This game’s innovation is what all sequels should strive for. N++ Raigan Burns and Mare Sheppard created a game that exemplifies simplicity and elegance while offering a breadth of content that boggles the mind: they’re up to 4,340 levels, along with a wealth of player-created levels. Each level is a unique, brilliant haiku of death, and they’re made with the same simple building blocks. N++ reduces platforming gameplay to its purest essence, and puts a laser focus onto every last detail in physics, graphic design, game feel, and the best techno soundtrack you’ll find frankly anywhere. Kurt Margenau Co-Game Director // Naughty Dog God of War I don’t know what it was about this game, but I found myself playing it until 3am like I was a teenager again. Santa Monica Studio was already at the pinnacle of melee combat games in my book, and yet they still thoroughly re-invented this great franchise for an over-the-shoulder perspective, a more mature story, open-world layout, and no camera cuts?! I couldn’t help but smile seeing that every change was for the better. It’s clear they stuck to their vision even if it was way different from what people thought the franchise could be. They nailed it. Rocket League I don’t play many multiplayer shooter games because….I suck at shooting, I guess. As a die-hard racing game fan, Rocket League made more sense. And I fell in love. The mechanics are so approachable, but so hard to master. The smoothness and sheer speed of the game is unlike anything else. Technically speaking, it’s incredible a game this fast even works over the internet! I’ve put more hours into Rocket League than any other PS4 game, and it’s the only game where I’ve ever cared about playing ranked matches. The communication and positioning took me back to my high-school soccer days. I love that three years on, this silly game about cars playing soccer still has my heart. Inside Inside is the game that I loved as a player, but hated as a developer. It’s a masterclass in design elegance, with its minimal aesthetic and bare-bones interactions, while still having genius puzzles, amazing animation, and an absolutely mind-blowing final act. There were so many times as a developer playing the game I sat back and said “wow.” This small team from Denmark had made everyone in the industry look bad. Congrats to Playdead for proving you don’t need a lot of people to create a generation-defining experience. Cory Barlog Creative Director // Santa Monica Studio Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End There was a tie between Last of Us and Uncharted 4, but since my first TLOU playthrough was on PS3, I chose (what I suppose is) the final act of Nathan Drake’s story. I absolutely love the writing and performances in this game. It perfectly binds together incredible artistry, technical wizardry, and the concept of playing through the great action-adventure movies I grew up watching. This experience grabs you right from the start and takes you on an amazing journey that I will not soon forget. Horizon Zero Dawn For me, this was once of PS4’s best surprises. It’s just utterly brilliant. Guerilla put together a game with so much heart and imagination that I didn’t want it to end. It was thrilling to explore a world with such a unique take on the post-apocalyptic theme, and taking down giant robot dinosaurs really allowed me to get creative as a player. I cannot wait to continue the story of Aloy in what, I hope, is many more games to come. Marvel’s Spider-Man I grew up watching the reruns of the 1967 Spider-Man cartoon after school, but I can’t say that I was a huge fan of the web crawler. I started reading the comics when Todd McFarlane started his Amazing Spider-Man run. Insomniac’s vision of Spidey was everything I never even knew I wanted from a superhero game, and more. From the traversal to the combat, the game just felt right. Add to that the fantastic writing and performances and you pretty much have one of the best damn superhero games I have ever played. Scott Rohde SVP of Product Development // Worldwide Studios America Infamous Second Son I’ve always loved this series, but as an early PS4 title, this game really opened my eyes to the power of the machine. Second Son has some of the best lighting and visual effects I’ve ever seen, coupled with a first-of-its-kind Photo Mode built to make great use of PS4’s new Share button. Photo Mode has basically become a default feature in most big games these days, so kudos to the team at Sucker Punch for trailblazing! Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End Probably my favorite action series of all time. Since I was a kid, I’ve been a sucker for a good treasure hunt, and Naughty Dog never disappoints. U4 really blurred my personal lines between action movies and interactive games in a way I never thought possible. The cast is one of the best ensembles ever in a game, and they all work together with amazing cohesion to help tell an amazing tale. This is my go-to game when a new gamer is looking for an epic storytelling experience. Gets ‘em every time. God of War This game and the team at Santa Monica Studio hold a very special place in my heart. Much like the plot of the game, the development of this masterpiece was a long and perilous journey, filled with bold risks and amazing triumphs. In film, I’ve always been drawn to coming-of-age stories, so to experience the bond between Kratos and Atreus in such a unique and impactful way makes this game extraordinary to me. Shawn Layden Chairman of Worldwide Studios Astro Bot Rescue Mission I’m so pleased and proud for Japan Studio and Team Asobi for the creation of the best platformer in VR, perhaps the best new platformer in years. The unabashed fun and delightful gameplay is surrounded in a world that comes alive with characters and bosses you simply cannot resist falling for. It reminded me of some of classic platformers going back to an early fave of mine, Jumping Flash!. And it sits well alongside the likes of Crash, Spyro, Jak and Ratchet. Welcome, Astro Bot. Horizon Zero Dawn When Guerilla Games said it was going for a new IP that was 180 degrees different from Killzone, we were quite curious as to what that could be. As the story and ambition for HZD revealed itself, our curiosity was now met with anticipation. Aloy’s journey of discovery – into her past, into our future – is compelling and gorgeous. The game is simply beautiful, and the creatures, tribes, and robot dinos are revelatory. For a brand-new IP, HZD scored a bona fide critical and commercial hit. And Guerrilla has a fabulous franchise start. God of War When Santa Monica Studios decided to return to the legend of Kratos, but many years in the future and in the world of Norse rather than Greek mythology, we were intrigued. When we saw that they were taking it to open world gameplay, full-on adventure ethos, and pairing him up with a son, we were gobsmacked. No resting complacently on past laurels here, apparently. It was a huge undertaking and not a project for the faint of heart. But in the end, the Santa Monica team delivered a tour de force of story, engagement, character development, and spot-on combat mechanics. Oh yes, the soundtrack is bloody awesome, too. Full package. [Editor’s Note: We let Shawn call out a few honorable mentions here: “Other favorites of mine, and really the list does go on, would include Marvel’s Spider-Man (of course), Everybody’s Golf (no, really, try it), Shadow of the Colossus (now as beautiful as you “remembered” it being), and Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy. So good to have that manic marsupial back on the platform.”] Shuhei Yoshida President of Worldwide Studios Bloodborne I was already a big fan of “Souls” games, and Bloodborne tweaked the formula with faster gameplay and a more aggressive combat style by replacing the shield with a gun. I was obsessed to play this game, to the point of acquiring the Platinum trophy, and to do that I had to beat the impossibly difficult “Big Flame Dog” boss in the Chalice Dungeon. In a livestreaming show by Japan Studio, I beat the boss as hundreds of people watched live. I chipped life away from the beast and, in the end, got a big triumph. I still remember the adrenaline rush when I did it. God of War As game creators grow and gain life experiences, that reflects on the titles they work on. God of War is a great example. The creative lead Cory Barlog, who had been an integral part of creating the first three games, grew up and raised a son of his own. God of War shows a perfect blend of a touching, universally appealing story of father and son with GoW’s signature “feels so good the controller disappears from your hands” combat. I was compelled to play to gain my second Platinum trophy from a AAA title on PS4. PlayStation VR Worlds: Ocean Descent PS VR has been an enormously fun project for me. VR has brought back the pure excitement and amazement that I felt when I worked on the original PlayStation, which pioneered the use of real-time 3D graphics for gaming. Ocean Descent, aka the “Shark Demo,” was a perfect experience to convert people from “curious” to “completely excited” about the future of VR gaming technology. After two years after the launch of PS VR, developers are using their learnings to develop amazing titles like Firewall and Astro Bot Rescue Mission. This fast progress has not been possible without early innovators like London Studio, who produced Ocean Descent and The London Heist at launch. Jason Connell Creative & Art Director // Sucker Punch Productions Bloodborne The tone, mood, colors, and vibe of the world totally captivated me. This was my first Souls-like game and, needless to say, I became a huge fan. The cryptic storytelling and Old World feel of Yharnam makes my skin crawl…in all the best ways. Horizon Zero Dawn I was looking for something new, and Horizon delivered. It showcased fresh art direction consisting of fantastic character and mech designs, along with vibrant lighting direction. The big-picture environmental storytelling drew me in, while the ranged combat and traps kept me playing far beyond a healthy number of hours. Guerrilla brought something new to the table, and it was inspiring to just exist in that world. Shadow of the Colossus One of my all-time favorite games remastered on PS4. Shadow has a subtle approach to storytelling, simple features, and a camera that unforgivingly immerses you in its world. I enjoyed using Photo Mode to practice my cinematography skills against the backdrop of Shadow’s simple and vast art style. It’s a sad tale, and one I’ll always hold close. Nate Fox Creative Director, Sucker Punch Productions Horizon Zero Dawn Honestly, they had me at robot dinosaurs. I went in excited, but kept playing for the unscripted encounters with deadly robo-predators. Guerrilla made good on the promise of a living, breathing ecosystem that begged to be explored. God of War Santa Monica Studio packed a lot of soul and fresh ideas into this reboot… so many, in fact, that it’s hard to think of this game as a sequel. The story between Kratos and his “boy” routinely managed to grab my attention between the escalating lush combat encounters. Also, the recall on Kratos’ axe was amazing. PlayStation VR Worlds: Ocean Descent It never gets old watching people new to VR go down into the deep ocean for a shark encounter. My five-year old likes to pinch the unsuspecting VR player’s legs once the great white starts chewing through the dive cage, which always elicits an inappropriate four-letter word. Scott Taylor Production Director, Bungie Batman: Arkham Knight All of the Arkham games are special to me, because I am not Batman in real life, and in this game I get to be Batman. This game feels huge, has a ton of twists, and combat that is simple to engage in and super satisfying to master. Arkham is my favorite all-time game series. Journey This launched, of course, as a PS3 game. But playing it on PS4 is a revelation, and the spirit of exploration and discovery of other players makes this an absolute classic. When you run into another player and begin silently working together it feels like a true connection is being made. And that music! Destiny 2: Forsaken I know I worked on it, but I can’t put this down. I work on it all day and play it all night. For me there’s no better feeling in gaming than invading another team in Gambit and wiping a team of enemy Guardians. If I could play Gambit 24 hours a day, I would. Maybe I can find someone to pay me to do that. Lars Bakken Design Lead, Bungie Bloodborne Where do I begin!? As an unabashed Souls fan, I highly anticipated this game’s release. It did not disappoint. I love the hardcore nature of these types of games, which makes your accomplishments feel so rewarding! The atmosphere was unique as well, and while I love the dark-medieval high-fantasy of Souls, Bloodborne’s comparatively more modern art and ambience were a refreshing change. Also, encouraging players to get in close to ensure their health stays up is a great combat mechanic that kept me hooked for weeks. God of War The God of War games have always been fantastic at spectacle, and the latest one has no shortage of that. The three things that make me put it on the list however are: 1) its amazing depth in combat mechanics; 2) the excellent narrative interaction between father and son that changes over time, and 3) exploring Norse mythology. Journeying through the different realms was exhilarating, and exploring all the nooks and crannies always felt rewarding. Until Dawn For me, this game sets the bar for interactive fiction with branching outcomes. It took my love of horror and for gaming and smashed them together in such a novel way. How many times have you ever screamed at the TV or a theater screen that they should never go into the basement? This game allows you to make those choices yourself as a player, and you have to live with the outcome. The characters and dialog were also pitch perfect for what the game (and genre) requires. One of the highlights for me was Peter Stormare playing Dr. Hill. So creepy! Naoki Yoshida Producer & Director of Final Fantasy XIV, Square Enix Monster Hunter: World I’ve been a fan since the original Monster Hunter, and it’s been exciting to see how the series has evolved with each new platform. I can only imagine the amount of pressure that falls on the development team to deliver the next installment, but they’ve pushed that aside and created what I felt was the Monster Hunter of the new generation. This is an amazingly entertaining game that hooked me from the start. It’s a title that brings a lot of pride to those in the Japanese game industry. Marvel’s Spider-Man I have to say that Marvel’s Spider-Man is the current pinnacle of character-driven games. I feel a deep connection with the protagonist, and on top of that, the action gameplay was nailed down perfectly. Traversing from one point to the next is especially fun, to the point where I stopped using fast travel. From an engineering perspective as well, I am amazed at the development team’s ability to both design and execute something like this. I would strongly recommend this game to anyone who is considering working in the gaming industry in the future. Fortnite This title made me think about a lot of different things: originality, community, game design, play style, and a lot more. Overall, I feel that this title left a big impact on the gaming scene. I am honestly a bit envious, and even jealous as a game developer, when I see how this game was able to capture the imaginations of so many gamers – especially the younger crowd. Looking at it from a historical perspective, I think this title will be seen as one that brought about a big transitional period in gaming. Sebastian Kalemba Associate Game Director & Head of Animation, CD Projekt RED God of War This is one of my favorite games of the year and I love every aspect of it. From the father-son dynamics between Kratos and Atreus, to how consistent and well-executed the story is, to a perfect conclusion that beats the typical larger-than-life boss fight cliché…. Rarely do games get me this involved on an emotional level. Mad props to the devs at Santa Monica Studio and everyone involved for rebooting God of War the way they did. It was a bold decision to move the setting to Norse mythology, as well as to change the gameplay to be more methodical and closer to action-adventure. I think it paid off big time, and fits well with the more mature and human tone of the game. Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus I was pleased to learn that Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus is every bit as good as its predecessor. The alternative post-WWII setting is one reason — it feels new, yet vaguely familiar. The gameplay features the best elements of The New Order, with some much appreciated tweaks and new features. I particularly enjoyed that collecting and deciphering enigma codes gets you intel on where to find special targets, as well as how the game handles the open world after you finish the campaign. Still, the story is the biggest highlight. The humor is spot on – perfectly over the top, introduced in just the right amounts and at just the right moments. The characters are all rich and varied, andI felt like I knew them better with each conversation. I had three completely “WTF” story moments that I couldn’t believe. I was absolutely sure I knew what was coming next, but was masterfully misdirected by the game’s writers and designers. Each new twist was better than the previous. I loved it! Titanfall 2 Titanfall 2 is a great shooter, and offers some of the most dynamic and fun mech combat I’ve ever encountered. It also has some of the best FPS level design I’ve ever seen, perfectly capturing the scale of the world and technology within it, plus some ingenious puzzles and clever gameplay mechanics. Without spoiling too much, shifting between the “states” of the world was simply amazing. And I’m amazed with just how attached I became to BT. On the surface, BT seemed to be just a piece of tech, a machine I could replace if I wanted… but it became so much more over the course of the story. Thanks to solid writing, a simple but welcome dialogue system, and some intense single-player co-op action from both leads, the finale turned out to be a real tear-jerker for me. Which is something I didn’t expect coming in. If you haven’t played Titanfall 2, you should, even if you’re not a fan of multiplayer. The campaign is worth it alone. Rami Ismail Vlambeer NieR Automata A powerful mix between Yoko Taro’s unique scenario writing and Platinum Games’ relentless action game experience created a once-in-a-lifetime game, a game for enthusiasts of the medium, and a game that tells a story that only a videogame could tell. Destiny 2 Whether I’m stuck in the wild west of Red Dead Redemption 2, the snowy mountain peaks of Celeste, or the Japanese underworld of Yakuza Zero, I always return to Bungie’s universe. Sometimes for the friends, sometimes for the expertly crafted gameplay, sometimes for the universe, and sometimes to rage at that random who is messing up the Gambit match. God of War A flawless execution in both form and presentation, God of War shows that the most mythological of settings can be fertile grounds for intimately personal stories, empathetic storytelling, beautiful scenery, and violently ripping off the arm of an enemy before slinging your axe into some giant’s face, all at once. Steve Filby Motion Twin The Last of Us There’s not a terrible lot to say here, but the storytelling and the acting here was just on another level. I was wanting to stay to the end, even though I’m not usually into the narrative-driven games. I think Naughty Dog did a great job with a lot of the stealth aspects of the game. I love stealth, so sneaking around and throwing bricks at people is right up my alley. Bloodborne Bloodborne took the challenge of a standard Souls game and added a new faster pacing that I hadn’t found in the previous games. The rally mechanic got you moving forward and wanting to play riskier loadouts, and moving into positions that you probably would have just ruled out in Dark Souls. Then the change of setting gave me a whole other place to explore and be immersed in. Horizon Zero Dawn For me, I think HZD was the first big AAA game that I’d played for a while where I was really interested in the story as well as the mechanics. I’m a big sci-fi fan, so the whole dystopian future and techno-paranoia was really my thing. I often feel like a lot of games focus entirely on the story, and it ends up feeling like more of an interactive movie than anything else. On the other extreme, some games entirely focus on a tight and polished mechanic, but once you master that there’s no sense of mystery or desire to keep going forward. HZD found that balance for me. Derek Yu Mossmouth Bloodborne Bloodborne took the winning formula of the Souls series and cranked up the speed and ferocity of the combat, making it one of the best action videogames of all time. The Victorian/Gothic world that the game is set in is haunting and beautiful. It’s an unforgettable masterpiece. Shadow of the Colossus I’m still taken by how confident Shadow of the Colossus is in terms of its design. Even years after its initial release, it feels like games are afraid of the emptiness and quiet that Shadow of the Colossus uses to such great effect. It’s a game you wish you could erase from your memory so you can play it for the first time again. Marvel’s Spider-Man Swinging through New York in Marvel’s Spider-Man I can’t help but think about all the years of hard work by so many people trying to make moving around in a game feel like this. It’s a technical marvel that makes you reflect on how far games have come. Tim Schafer Double Fine Loot Rascals Amazing style, challenging gameplay, and even during times when I was deeply involved with another game there was always time at the end of the night to squeeze in a run. I am still playing this game. The Last Guardian Like all of Fumito Ueda’s games, it created a magical world that instantly put me in an altered state of mind every time I went there. And this time, I had an amazing companion. Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor So many fun, creative, tactical choices to make when sneaking up on nasty orcs. I would get slaughtered by them over and over, but each time I’d think, “Hm, but what if I tried something else? Maybe bees?” Greg Kasavin Supergiant Games Bloodborne While I’ve enjoyed From Software’s games for many years, I think this grueling and atmospheric horror-themed 2015 action adventure is easily one of the studio’s greatest achievements. The unsettling, even otherworldly vibe of Bloodborne, the design of its vicious weapons and countless enemies, the unnatural yet believable architecture of its spaces, the raw and daunting challenge… it all comes together to create a rich, memorable, endlessly replayable experience that really got under my skin. I love how this game, above all, trusted me — to find my way not just through its often brutally tough battles, but through its evocative and labyrinthine world. Nier: Automata A game that grew on me the more I played it, up through its climactic and unforgettable finale at the end of multiple interconnected storylines. The sci-fi world of Nier: Automata has this beautiful bleakness to it expressed through every detail, from the look of it and its distinctive android protagonists, to the tightly woven themes of the narrative, to the breathtaking musical score. Nier: Automata is also a game with courage enough to save many of its finest moments for later on, so it keeps you guessing even as it enthralls you, and ultimately really rewards the time you put in. I can’t say I’ve ever played anything that ended up making me feel quite the way Nier: Automata did. Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End I think developer Naughty Dog is unequaled in its ability to create incredibly lifelike, wonderfully written game characters. Uncharted 4 just reinforced to me that this is a studio at the pinnacle of its craft, continuing to define the state-of-the-art while setting a hopelessly high bar for the rest of us trying to make games worth a damn. It’s got stunning set-piece encounters, from a breathtaking jeep race through a mud-soaked villa to a swashbuckling battle in a burning ship. It’s got a wonderful cast, from Nathan Drake’s no-good brother Sam, to the cool-headed mercenary leader Nadine Ross. It’s brimming with wonderful detail and has tons of heart. 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We are thrilled to announce the new Astro C40 TR Controller, an Officially Licensed PlayStation 4 product designed with more than two years of development with pro gamers. Astro is expanding into a new category with a product that utilizes our class-leading industrial design and professional gaming expertise to reset expectations for professional controllers, just like we did with headsets 10 years ago. Our products have dramatically changed the esports landscape: improving team and player performance along the way. This new controller is the next natural evolution of our continued commitment to esports, pro gaming and gamers in general. The Astro C40 TR Controller delivers best-in-class features and premium components in an ergonomically comfortable controller that can withstand rigorous use by professional gamers in high-stress environments. The controller has been designed from the ground up with pro gamers and professional tournaments in mind — aspiring pros, hardcore gamers or any gamer who demands more from their gaming equipment will find much to like in our new controller. Replaceable, swappable stick modules: Quickly and easily swap the Analog Stick or D-Pad Modules for consistently sharp performance. Setup the controller in either Offset or Parallel configurations. Replaceable Stick Caps provide added customization for a competitive advantage. Integrated, remappable rear buttons: Optimum rear button layout for superior ergonomics improves precision during critical moments. Mappability streamlines the controller for any genre and playstyle while improving response time and accuracy. Remap buttons directly on the controller with no PC software required. Astro customization software: Astro customization software exponentially increases the C40 TR’s versatility and accuracy. Create profiles that can be switched directly from the controller. Adjust trigger and stick sensitivity, remap buttons, adjust dead zones, tweak EQ, audio output, mic out and sidetone. Wired/wireless modes: With the on-board Mode Switch, quickly change between wired and 2.4 GHZ wireless mode to adapt to any gaming environment. Game sound and voice chat are available using the 3.5mm jack in both modes. Wireless audio: The C40 TR Controller delivers high fidelity game sound and voice chat in Wired and Wireless mode via the 3.5mm jack. Compatible with any gaming headset. Trigger stops: Quickly and easily activate the trigger stops, which adjusts the trigger pull distance, to allow hair trigger performance in most FPS titles. 12-hour battery life: Outlast your game with up to 12 hours of battery life. Included travel case: Travel safe and secure with the travel case for the C40 TR. Protect your controller, module, stick caps and tool all in one hard-shelled case. Tournament ready: Ready for any environment, the TR line of Astro Gaming products deliver premium design and performance for every type of gamer. All Tournament Ready products are designed and developed to meet the demanding specifications of pro gamers. The modular and highly customizable Astro C40 TR will deliver a competitive edge while adapting to any gaming environment, from professional tournaments to head-to-head competitions with friends. The new Astro C40 TR Controller is available for pre-order now online direct from Astro’s website for $199.99 ($269.99 CAD), shipping in early 2019, with Gamestop, Amazon, Best Buy and Best Buy Canada also offering the product in early 2019. It is available for PS4 and Windows PC in the United States and Canada, with more countries to follow. For more information about Astro Gaming or the C40 TR, please visit www.astrogaming.com. Thank you for being a part of the Astro family! This product is being developed under the official licensing program for PlayStation by Sony Interactive Entertainment and is subject to Sony Interactive Entertainment’s final product approval. View the full article

We’ve been working on Vermintide 2 for PlayStation 4 for a while now, and it’s finally time! On December 18, Warhammer: Vermintide 2 is coming to PS4. The Closed Beta goes live today, and if you pre-order the game you get instant access to the Closed Beta, as well as four days early access and a bunch of other goodies. Fight together or die alone Warhammer: Vermintide 2 is set in the Warhammer Fantasy Battle world, and it’s the sequel to the critically acclaimed Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide. The Warriors of Chaos have joined forces with the relentless Skaven ratmen, forming a Dark Pact to ravage the realms of men. If you fall, so shall the empire. In Vermintide 2 you’ll be playing as one of the five heroes, and choose between fifteen unique career paths. Will you stand at the frontline donned in your Ironbreaker armor, let your belief in Sigmar guide your path, or give in to your flame addiction? The choice is yours to make, but be prepared to face a challenge like never before. The combined forces of the swarming Skaven horde and the destructive warriors of Chaos will climb walls, crawl through sewers, summon dark magic, and do just about anything to stop you. You will never experience the exact same playthrough twice. “How is this possible?” you might ask. Building on what we learned from Vermintide 1, we evolved our Spawn Director. Enemy spawning and formations now change constantly and make each playthrough unique and unpredictable, keeping you on your toes. The motto to follow while playing Vermintide 2 is “fight together or die alone.” The game is dependent on cooperation. You and your allies have to use your combined forces, skills and talents to survive. Your enemies have a wide array of specialized units ready to punish and tackle any cheeky hero attempting to play the solo hero. Fight your way together through the immense hordes of enemies and earn loot to match. Get instant access to the Closed Beta With the release, we’ve created a Pre-order Ultimate Edition bundle that might curl your whiskers a little. It will give you instant access to the Closed Beta, four days early access, two DLCs and other cool stuff. Here’s the full list of included content: Instant Closed Beta access 4 days early access Shadows over Bögenhafen DLC Back to Ubersreik DLC 6x Heroic deeds 2x Portrait frames Helmgart Heraldry themed skins Sigmar keep statue The release on PS4 has been a long time coming, and we’d be lying if we said that we’ve not received daily inquiries about it. Get ready to tackle the onslaught of the Dark Pact, but remember: If you fall, so shall the Empire. May Sigmar protect you, hero. View the full article

It’s hard to believe it’s already been five years since the launch of PlayStation 4. In that time, we’ve sold more than 86.1 Million hardware units, in addition to over 777.9 Million software units worldwide. We are so grateful to all the fans who have helped us come this far — it truly is an amazing time to be a part of the PlayStation family, and we thank you for your continued support. Here are a few highlights of some unique PS4 stats, including what games you all have played the most and what DualShock 4 color is the most popular after the standard black (hint: it’s a color we love at PlayStation). Check out the infographic below. To celebrate this occasion, we are also revealing a new PS4 bundle to add to our lineup, the Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 PS4 bundle. If you haven’t already, now is the perfect time to join the PS4 community and experience the latest multiplayer first-person shooter that features gritty, grounded, fluid Multiplayer combat, the biggest Zombies offering ever with three full undead adventures, and Blackout, where the universe of Black Ops comes to life in one massive battle royale experience. Not to mention, PS4 players can look forward to unlocking content in advance of anyone else*. This bundle is available November 27 at participating retailers nationwide for $299.99 MSRP (USD) / $379.99 MSRP (CAN), and includes a jet-black 1TB PS4 system, a matching DualShock 4 wireless controller, and Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 on Blu-ray Disc. This year has seen some of the best content ever on the platform, with God of War, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, and Red Dead Redemption 2. There’s so much more still to come, including Days Gone, Death Stranding, Dreams, Ghost of Tsushima, and The Last of Us II! Once again, I’d like to thank all of our incredible fans, whose passion inspires us every day to make PS4 the best place to play. We look forward to welcoming all those who will be joining the PS4 community this holiday and beyond. What are some of your favorite PlayStation 4 experiences or memories from the past five years? Share in the comments below! *New playable content, when available, will launch on PS4 7 days prior to launch on other platforms. Content may be sold separately. View the full article

Rainbow Six Siege is coming to a PS4 near you from November 15-18 for a Free Weekend, and it’s an excellent chance to try out the strategic first-person shooter for the first time ahead of the release of Operation Wind Bastion, which features two new Operators and a new map. Those looking to keep playing after the Free Weekend — and keep their progress going — can pick up all editions of Rainbow Six Siege from PlayStation Store for 70% off from November 15-27. We’ve got four tips to help you hit the ground running: 1. Get to know the basics Every match of Rainbow Six Siege consists of multiple rounds, and pits five defending Operators against five attacking Operators in an objective-based game in which teams switch roles after each round. The three game modes will task you with securing an area, defusing a bomb, or rescuing a hostage. Each round begins with a preparation phase; this is a time for Defenders to fortify their location, and for Attackers to scout out the objective room and its defending Operators using their drones. Defenders should focus on reinforcing walls, deploying their gadgets, and shooting the attacking team’s drones. Attackers should prioritize finding the objective room and then identifying the defending Operators. Once the round starts, Attackers converge on the objective location, and the round ends either when the objective is completed, all Operators on one side are killed, or time runs out. Once the shooting starts, it’s important to stay in communication with your teammates. While voice chat is best for communication, never underestimate the power of a well-placed ping to alert your teammates of the location of an enemy. Make sure to check your corners when entering a room and press L3 and R3 to lean around walls and obstacles without completely exposing yourself. 2. Get to know the Operators Siege features more than 40 Operators to choose from, meaning that no matter your play style, there’s someone for you. Operators are broken up into two groups, Attackers and Defenders, and each Operator comes equipped with a unique gadget that helps separate them from the pack. Not only is it important to understand which Operator suits you best, but it’s crucial to learn what other Operators do so you can be prepared for what they’re bringing to the fight. When it comes to choosing your own Operator, you’ll have to find at least one Attacker and one Defender that you’re comfortable with. A few Operators are great for beginners. If you’re an Attacker, try an Operator that comes with extra defense, like Montagne, Blitz, or Blackbeard. When you’re on defense, try out a “set it and forget it” Operator that can place their gadgets during the prep phase, like Castle, Kapkan, or Rook, to maximize their utility. 3. Build Up and Tear Down Destructible environments play a huge role in Rainbow Six Siege, as nearly any wall can be breached or shot through. To help secure the objective zone, Defenders can deploy their unique gadgets, but are also able to reinforce two “soft walls” with steel barricades, making them impervious to gunfire or regular breach charges. For every strategy in Siege, there’s at least one counter, and because all Defenders are able to reinforce walls, multiple attacking Operators can breach those reinforced walls. Thermite, Hibana, and Maverick are considered “hard breachers,” and are able to break through reinforced walls, making them strong picks for any attacking team. 4. Intel, Intel, Intel In Siege, every bullet counts, and a single, well-placed shot can be deadly. Runners and gunners won’t last long. Information and communication is paramount and will often result in victory over quick reflexes. Intel is the deadliest weapon in Siege and fortunately, there are multiple ways to get it. Attackers start each round scouting with one of their two drones – don’t forget to use the second one once the round starts. Drones can help reveal camping Defenders and alert you to traps in your way. Likewise, Operators like Lion, Dokkaebi, and Jackal can help locate and track down enemies. Defenders have access to multiple cameras located around the map, so they can get a sense of where the attacking team is coming from. Certain Defenders, like Valkyrie and Maestro can set up additional cameras to maximize their intel-gathering, while Pulse can detect enemy heartbeats through walls. There’s no replacement for experience when it comes to Rainbow Six Siege, but with these four starter tips, you’ll be miles ahead of other rookies during the Free Weekend, which runs from November 15-18. View the full article

On behalf of my team, I’m really excited to announce Floor Kids, a funky hand-drawn breakdance game, featuring an original soundtrack, and an emphasis on freestyle moves and self expression. I’m JonJon, the creator and animator of the Floor Kids characters, and a lot of my best friends are bboys. So how did I get here? I moved to Montreal in 2004 and while working on some short films in my round-head-dot-eyes style, I was also getting involved in the local break scene. I gained entry to a small 4-man crew, hidden in the shadows of the city. Each crew member covered one of the basic elements of – Power, Freezes, Toprock and Footwork. I was more the footwork guy. Relying on ideas from my drawings to try to invent movements to impress my friends. In a flash of spontaneity, my two passions came together. I started animating my sketch-style character with realistic bboy moves and spunky attitudes. No video reference. From the moment of creation, I knew there was some kind of a hook to the concept, because I couldn’t stop laughing and having fun with it. I had met Kid Koala through the animation scene in Montreal and as we were hanging out one day, I showed him a couple stacks of animation that I had tested of Noogie and O-Live, and I flipped it for him at 24 frames per second speed in front of his eyes. He lost it. And by that I mean, he was just blinking and staring into space, deep in thought. He broke the silence. “How fast can you finish this battle? My new album’s about to drop. We could do a video for promo!” Later I would find out that it was the album titled “Your Mom’s Favorite DJ”. We made the promo project official with the help of Ryhna Thompson, Kid Koala’s long time collaborator. I got to work finishing a small series of animated bboy clips. The world of Floor Kids was born. Floor Kids made a little splash on the internet, and did a short stint touring animation festivals, like the Brooklyn Animation Block Party. I also remember being at the practices and a few of the bboys would show up with their PSP rocking a brand new game called B-Boy. It was the wildest thing ever, featuring big names in the international break battle scene. A lot of the knew that I was also doing my own brand of break animation so they would show me. To me, the game B-Boy for PSP and PS2 will always be the pinnacle of breakdancing games for the bboys & bgirls of the community, because it comes directly from one of the most influential, original bboys of all time: Crazy Legs of the legendary Rock Steady Crew. B-Boy the game will always be the first, and most comprehensive of its kind, and we didn’t try to replace it. I never would have thought that we would come full circle with Floor Kids, just over 10 years later, reaching the level that we are on the brink of launching on PS4. 10,000 drawings & 5 trillion lines of code later, and we have three things to consider: 1) it’s fun. 2) It’s FUN. 3) IT’S FUN!!! With those technicalities aside, whilst developing our game, we wanted to approach everything with style, so that the game would be an interpretive vision between two artists. The visuals, with eight never-before-seen characters, and the music, over 40 original tracks. The idea was to make something fresh & original from our own memories and experiences of the eras that we grew up in. I will always be primarily a visual artist. That’s my bread & butter. But having the opportunity to make this game reminded me that I’m also a bboy at heart, who still has things to accomplish. To me, the breaking artform is about many things. It’s about expression. It’s about telling a story with your steps. It’s about proving to yourself what is possible. It’s about competition and respect, but respect that must be earned by giving everything you have… and then some. It’s about creativity and invention. The element of surprise. Levelling up your skills. It’s about seeking more knowledge. It’s about you and your friends, and having fun. And it’s about having the freedom to find your style. Floor Kids Pro Tips: Combo hints are located on the backs of the character recruit cards and are instrumental in achieving the highest scores. Cards are located in the Break Deck, accessible from the map screen in Story Mode.
 Infinity Mode lets you practice and master your combos without the pressure of fixed time.
 Discover the hidden Strobe state during power moves by spinning the left analog stick faster to accelerate your spin, when at max speed, repeatedly press the analog stick like a button to S-T-R-O-B-E!
 Earn extra Flyness points by adding holds and poses to your routine by pressing L1 or R1 during top rock or down rock moves.
 Add flyness hops to your freezes by pressing L1 and R1 during a freeze.
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Hello, everyone! This is Matt “Bayohne” Hilton from the Final Fantasy XIV Online community team, this time sitting down with one of Final Fantasy XIV’s battle content designers, Yoshito Nabeshima. When it comes to MMOs, one of the most exciting elements for the team is creating something that truly challenges your players–and a raid is a perfect example of that. Providing tough-as-nails encounters and new mechanics, these battles are not just a test of skill, but a test of teamwork. In the last five years we’ve released three different series’ of raids to challenge our players in Final Fantasy XIV. It’s not as easy as you might think to come up with not just new mechanics, but bosses that fit with the story and have a unique visual look! We wanted to give you a first-hand look at how the development team creates a raid boss from start to finish, and with four all-new bosses in the recent 4.4 patch, this is the perfect opportunity! Let’s take a look at Omega with Nabeshima-san, a boss who should be familiar to anybody who has played Final Fantasy V! How did the creation of this boss fight begin? Did it start with gameplay concepts, fitting the boss to the story or something else entirely? When we first started work on the Omega boss battle, we had to consider the storyline of the raid series: Omega fights in order to learn and grow stronger, and is holding a ‘tournament’ to find a worthy opponent. Our team took this base and considered how Omega might behave in an encounter with the Warriors of Light, who continued to triumph in each of the tournaments bouts. It boils down to the very simple theme of “who is stronger?”– Omega or the Warrior of Light. Because of this, we didn’t want to have a monster swoop in and assist Omega in battle, but instead utilize only Omega and its own battle capabilities when creating the battle. How did your team decide on the battle mechanics (attacks, AOE patterns, etc.) for this raid? With this basic idea in mind, we started to think about the battle mechanics. If you’ve raided in FFXIV before, you might have noticed we include mechanics that require teamwork from the group–think of it as something like a three-legged race, or having a giant jump rope and having a whole group jump in sync. Unfortunately, including these kinds of mechanics have never been my strong suit, but I challenged myself to do it for this fight! I think it’s easier to get a grasp of this by looking at some specific mechanics, so let’s dive into two particular parts of this fight a bit deeper–the “Level Checker” phase and “Pantokrator.” The First Leg of the Level Checker Phase The Level Checker phase is inspired by the “Encircle” ability, which you might remember from the very first fight with Omega in Final Fantasy V. I’m sure there is a rhyme and reason to it, but the “Encircle” in FFV was pretty hard to understand since it is never really explained during the fight. I took that idea for our FFXIV battle and built it into it one of those “jump rope mechanics” I mentioned previously. The way it works is that two players are marked with a debuff called “Chains of Memory.” These players need to move along the edge of the battlefield opposite each other in an arc–they’re essentially drawing a circle. That was my way to tie-in my own Encircle into the fight. Drawing the Circle with Chains of Memory Handling this mechanic isn’t as easy as it sounds, as these two players are linked by a kind of particle beam which rotates with them as they move. It gets pretty hectic since the other players in the raid not only have to deal with avoiding this beam, but also pay mind to other mechanics at the same time. Now with Pantokrator, the idea was to have a weakened Omega retaliating against players by unleashing a barrage of its strongest attacks one after the other. We wanted the eight Warriors of Light fighting Omega to band together as one to conquer this challenge. Move in Sync or Else! Pantokrator is a slew of different laser attacks brought out one after the other, and all party members need to know the characteristics and patterns for each. We designed this portion of the fight so that without complete teamwork, you won’t be able to succeed! These are just a few examples, but in both cases, we thought of the overall goal for the mechanic, and then fit it into the parameters of the specific boss. I’m sure several teams worked together to make this happen. What is the overall flow in working with these teams to create the boss model, the battlefield, the animations, and everything else that is needed to bring the fight to life? Creating a boss doesn’t start off with creating the mechanics. Typically, the first thing to happen is the story and setting of the raid get hammered out, and then the art team works on the initial design. We work together during the design process, letting the art team know our vision for the battle so they can incorporate those elements into the design. Omega Design Sketches Omega was unique though, since it had been around since Patch 3.5. It was a rare case where the design was finalized well before we began designing the fight. Omega, as revealed in Patch 3.5 We continue planning out the battle content, working with the lore team to incorporate any enemy lore into the overall fight. This stage of planning is where most of the battle mechanics are decided upon: the shape of the battlefield, the flow of battle phases, and other key features. The next step is a team review of the content that includes the battle and monster teams. If we receive feedback or revision requests, we go back to the drawing board here to make those adjustments. We’ll actually repeat this process as many times as needed until all teams are in agreement with the proposed content. We also need to make sure our plan is actually going to work in game. We share our full plan with the programming team and they review the battle to make sure there won’t be any problems with making our boss fight a reality. As you can see, every step of the creation process is a group effort. We talk not only with the teams I’ve mentioned so far, but also with the graphic and sound teams. It’s important to make sure all of us are on the same page in terms of the battle concept, and ensure all parts of the fight match the overall vision. The pieces start to come together as we put the puzzle pieces from each team together to build the fight for the first time. The battle and monster teams do a lot of play testing, and FFXIV’s Producer and Director Naoki Yoshida joins in for these in the later stages. With his approval, we move on to QA to hammer out all of the bugs, and then all of you get to enjoy the fight! Well, at least that’s the typical flow… A Completed Omega…after a few tweaks. Omega: The Wild Card Omega had another rare occurrence: for the first time in FFXIV boss history, we had to do a major overhaul of much of this fight. Around the office we call the reviews from Producer and Director Yoshida “P/D checks.” Most of the time, Yoshida will request small tweaks or adjustments, but with Omega things were a bit different. It was a bit of a shock, but during that first check Yoshida was very blunt in his feedback: “it doesn’t feel like you’re battling Omega at all!” The Omega Savage fight at the time had two parts to the “Level Checker” phases that I mentioned earlier, and he felt it dragged on for too long. Yoshida also told us the fight didn’t have that climactic feel other bosses up until now did. Reworking the Fight I took that feedback to heart, and went to work on a revised plan right away. I worked with some of our raid design veterans, and went through the entire process again talking to all of our teams. It was somewhat of a miracle, but the revised plan was approved by Yoshida. The new plan required changes from all sides. We were adding new mechanics, changing existing mechanics, adding animations, graphical effects, and sound effects. It was another huge team effort that went all the way to our QA team again–I was the one who had to bear the bad news of needing to retest the fight because of the new mechanics… So what did we actually change? First we removed the second “Level Checker” phase, but we also bumped up the intensity of the fight following that phase. We added in new animations to visually show Omega’s rampage in the later stages of the fight, as well as two new laser attacks: Condensed Wave Cannon Kyrios and Diffuse Wave Cannon Kyrios. Our teams also created the “Rocket Punch” attack for this fight in record time. Just for fun, let’s take a look at that second Level Checker phase we took out. This image is clipped from the design document, and shows the different positions players would need to be in and move to in order to succeed. Looking at this now… I’m actually glad I was able to rethink this phase! As you can see, Omega was born out of very tough labor, and I probably caused more than a bit of trouble to many of the teams. They might not have the best memories coming out of all of this, but their willingness to go back to the drawing board is why this battle turned out as well as it did. I’m filled with nothing but gratitude for their support. When the modeling team created this raid boss’ 3D model, what factors needed to be taken into account in order to translate the concept art into the game itself faithfully? Hello! Lead character artist Yuji Mitsuishi jumping in here to talk a bit about creating the Omega model! Omega is comprised of an extremely large number of parts, so getting each of those elements in order and putting them together to create the model was a very time consuming task. My team did not want to deviate from the envisioned design we were given, so we would make even the slightest adjustments to the position of each part of Omega to fit the design. If you’ve fought Omega, you might have noticed the relief on the surface of his body. I think this is a very important element that makes Omega a memorable foe, but it was important to not lose the sense of three-dimensionality in the design or create a frail-looking Omega in the process. Omega looks like a pretty tough fight to me! Did you or your team had any “Aha!” moments during development that changed the outcome of this raid’s design? Sometimes we do have those moments where something just clicks and you end up with a great idea that might change the fight entirely, but again Omega was a unique case. Almost all of the fight from the Level Checker phase onward was born from reflecting and brainstorming the fight as a group following Yoshida’s orders for the overhaul. Omega’s ‘frenzy’ after the Level Checker phase was actually a suggestion from my team leader. He told me, “why not just make Omega go completely berserk?” That alone was an eye opener to create that feeling of a true battle against Omega that Yoshida was looking for. That’s a lotta lasers Were there any moments during the creation of this raid that sparked new ideas for other content we might see in the future? When working on mechanics for one fight, there are times when new ideas come to mind that you can’t always realize right away. I actually thought of a few new ideas when working on the Chains of Memory mechanic for Omega–I’m hoping I can fit them into a future boss fight! If the boss is inspired from a past Final Fantasy boss, how do you and the teams balance keeping true to the original, but also providing a special flair for Final Fantasy XIV. When working with bosses from a past Final Fantasy we do make sure to provide a unique experience in Final Fantasy XIV, but at the same time it’s important to consider the original. You’ll only see this in the Omega Savage fight, but we actually included an “Encircle” ability (known as “Loop”) in the battle. It’s basically the enrage timer for the fight, so you’ll only see it if you can’t finish the fight within a certain time limit. Encircle was an ability used by Omega in Final Fantasy V that would remove a target from the battle–no questions asked. Unfortunately, mimicking this exactly in FFXIV and removing players from the raid instance wouldn’t really work, and honestly just randomly killing players during a fight isn’t that interesting. However, after thinking about it I came up with the idea of using this as the boss’ enrage, since we would be able to preserve the original concept. If you happen to encounter this in FFXIV, you can see your raid party get exiled to another dimension! The Original Encircle and the Final Fantasy XIV version – “Loop”! What part of this new raid are you most excited for players to experience? Which gameplay moments or lore should players should keep an eye out for? I’m sure many of you have already had a chance to play, but I’d say my favorite part of this fight is when Omega goes berserk after the second Pantokrator. You can only see this in Savage mode, but the visuals and animations of Omega filling the screen up with its onslaught of attacks are truly amazing. This might sound a bit weird, but if you do get a chance to do Savage, make sure you hit that Enrage timer and see the full Loop effect! You won’t be disappointed! View the full article