Sony Warned 2024 Would Be Light But PS5 Still Has The Best Games
ISSUE NO. 3
Despite a lack of first-party games, PlayStation is still the place to play great games.Posted:
Oct 13, 2024 1:30 pm
This is the latest guest column from Push Square, the voice of the PlayStation community, offering passionate, in-depth coverage and insight into the world of Sony. Its goal is simple: to keep you informed, engaged, and part of the conversation surrounding all things PlayStation.
Sony sparked discontent among the PlayStation fandom in February this year when it said during an earnings call thereâll be no sequels or updates to âmajor existing franchise titlesâ on the PS5 before March 2025. With the platform holder keeping its content roadmaps close to its chest, the comments were largely taken out of context and many assumed this would be a lean year for the companyâs new-gen console.
While itâs true this has been a fairly quiet year for PS Studios, itâs been anything but light on the games front. At the time of writing, my three Game of the Year frontrunners are Astro Bot, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, and Metaphor: ReFantazio and the PS5 is the only platform where you can play all three. Other possible contenders for awards include Silent Hill 2, Helldivers 2, and Black Myth: Wukong â all console exclusives.
There seems to be a sentiment on social media that a game doesnât count unless it comes from a wholly owned first-party studio, but PlayStation has done a particularly good job of working with partners to keep its portfolio packed this year.
Stellar Blade is a great example. It collaborated with Korean developer Shift Up to help bring the NIKKE: Goddess of Victory creatorâs console debut to market and in my opinion is another game in contention for an end of year gong. Rise of the Ronin, a similar partnership with legendary studio Team Ninja, may have received a cooler critical reception but itâs currently ranked 17th in IGNâs ongoing Game of the Year user poll, proving it was a hit with fans.
The nauseating number of remakes and remasters may not be to everyoneâs taste, but itâs easy to forget The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered launched this year and tagged a 90 critical average on aggregators Metacritic and Open Critic. And while many rolled their eyes at the rumours around Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered, a $10 upgrade fee and re-recorded dialogue and motion capture mean itâll almost certainly attract positive reviews as well.
Not everything PlayStation has touched has turned to gold. Its complete misreading of the market with first-person shooter Concord will go down in history
Of course, not everything PlayStation has touched this year has turned to gold. Its complete misreading of the market with first-person shooter Concord â a competent albeit uninspiring affair â will go down in history after getting axed after two weeks. And yet for all the talk of its live service initiative stumbling, it launched the fastest-selling game in PS Studios history with Helldivers 2, an online co-op smash that, despite benefitting from a simultaneous PC launch, has outpaced juggernauts like Marvelâs Spider-Man 2 and God of War Ragnarok.
Itâs been a quietly colossal year for PS5 then, and you get the sense the best is yet to come. The companyâs largely kept its blockbusters close to its chest but 2025 should see the release of Ghost of Yotei and Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, with Marvelâs Wolverine waiting in the wings. These are the âmajor existing franchise titlesâ the Japanese giant was referring to in that aforementioned investor call.
Many may still argue this has been a light year for PS5 but the catalogue of content Sony has amassed paints a very different picture. The most exciting thing is that itâs successfully filled the time while its first-party teams continue to cook. A huge second-half to the generation now awaits.
Sammy Barker is the Editor of Push Square. Heâs been living and breathing the wonderful world of PlayStation for decades now â and has the tattoos to prove it. You can find him on @_get2sammyb.
