Sony kicks off game-reveal season in style

#17: And here, we, go!

Well, that State of Play was pretty good eh?

Usually the smaller of Sony’s gaming events, State of Play is (despite much over-hyping and speculation from fans) generally used as a bit of a catch-up show. A low-key update on some previously announced games and a couple of reveals of some smaller ones. But this one was a bit different, and surprisingly full of goodies to chew on. Even more surprising considering the amount of big reveal events coming up in the not-E3 celebrations over the next week or so that these titles could have been shown at.

Indeed, the show kicked off with something that could have opened any typical E3 event; the Resident Evil 4 remake. Series traditionalists won't agree (and will be disappointed that it isn't Code Veronica getting the remake treatment), but Resident Evil 4 is the best game in the series for me. The Res 2 remake team are reportedly on this one, and it looks as though Capcom will be putting their full weight behind it. It'll be interesting to find out exactly what "reimagined" means, but we can worry about that later. After much speculation, REM4KE is real, and it looks GOOD.

This was followed by the news that the game will include some kind of VR content for PSVR2, and that Resident Evil: Village would also be making its way to the platform. Anybody who played the utterly terrifying Res 7 VR will either be counting down the days to that one, or will know to stay the hell away from it. I'm not embarrassed to say that I'm in the latter camp.

There was the announcement that the still-evolving No Man's Sky would be getting a PSVR2 outing, and a rather lovely trailer for Horizon: Call of the Mountain - a PSVR2 exclusive that should hopefully showcase exactly what Sony's new headset is capable of.

There was confirmation that Spider-Man is the latest PlayStation first-party title heading to PC, a new trailer and a July 19th release date for delightful looking cat-em-up Stray, and a trailer for new horror game The Callisto Protocol - looking as much like a Dead Space remake as the Dead Space remake - which is to say it looks both brilliant and horrifying at the same time. There was arena battler Rollerdrome from Roll7, the horribly named Eternights (where "action games and dating sims collide"), a substantial look at Street Fighter VI, confirmation that Tunic is coming to PlayStation, and finally a decent amount of footage from Final Fantasy XVI.

Sony packed a lot into 30 minutes, and it was good stuff. There were fears that this summer was going to be a slow one in comparison to some of E3s past. But the fact that Sony's kind-of kick-off show has generated such noise bodes well for what's to come over the next couple of weeks.

Of course, one downside to a show full of big games is that smaller ones can get overlooked. So if you missed the show, please watch this:

I'd just like to take this opportunity to thank those who have supported The Week in Games with a membership, by sharing it online, with kind feedback, or simply by reading this right now.

If you're in the UK I hope you're enjoying the long weekend. If not, I hope you have a great normal weekend!

And I hope you enjoy the rest of the newsletter.

Take care everybody!

NEWS

  • With a depressing sense of inevitabiltiy, some Texas officials have blamed video games and rap music for the recent Uvalde shooting. Despite both being widely available in all of the countries around the world where these kinds of tragic events never happen.

  • The devs and publishers taking part in next week's Summer Game Fest have been revealed.

  • Microsoft has announced the next batch of games heading to Game Pass.

  • Sega has shown off 7 minutes of gameplay footage for the new 3D Sonic game, Sonic Frontiers. Generating much online debate in the process.

  • Director Hidetaka Miyazaki has revealed his favourite Elden Ring boss.

  • Legendary Sega creator Yu Suzuki has unveiled Space-Harrier-like shooter Air Twister for Apple Arcade.

  • Playground Games has moved to reassure Fable fans after reports surfaced claiming the game was being scaled down due to difficulties adapting their ForzaTech engine.

  • EA Sports will honour the late John Madden by making him the star of 3 different covers for Madden NFL 23.

  • Take-Two boss warns it may not end well for companies betting on blockchain-based metaverses.

  • Plague Inc creator admits profiting from the pandemic was "awkward."

  • Microsoft has shelved a version of the low-cost Xbox Cloud Gaming streaming device it had been working on.

  • To celebrate Pride Month, Xbox is releasing a brand new controller design that incorporates 34 community flags.

  • Cyberpunk 2077's next-gen update reportedly gave it a 600% sales boost.

  • 18 European countries’ consumer groups have joined the fight against loot boxes.

  • Bungie will have a major role in establishing Sony's Live Service Center of Excellence.

Heads-Up:

  • Tell Me Why from Life is Strange developer Dontnod is currently free to download on Xbox and PC in celebration of Pride Month.

  • If you've let your Game Pass sub lapse or have yet to sample its delights, the 3 months of Game Pass for £1 offer is back.

  • Throughout June if you buy two items from the Ninty Media Store you can get a third for free. Perfect for grabbing some top-quality Nintendo print mags.

Love Sega mags? The makers of Sega Mania Magazine have launched a new website where you can revisit classic Sega magazines from the ’90s and early ’00's.

NEW RELEASES:

E3 may not be happening this year, but that doesn't stop June from giving us a decent amount of gaming shows to get stuck into.

Here are the main ones announced so far, and with a bit of luck we'll see one from Nintendo and a couple of others added too...

June 9: Summer Game Fest / Day of the Devs

June 10: Netflix Geeked Week: Games

June 10: Tribeca Games Showcase

June 11: Future Games Show

June 11: Wholesome Direct

June 11 & 13: Guerrilla Collective

June 12: Xbox + Bethesda Games Showcase

June 12: PC Gaming Show

(PS5, Xbox Series X/S) – May 31

Silt 

(PS4, PS5, Xbox, Switch, PC) – June 1

(Switch, PC) – June 2

(iOS, Android) – June 2

(PS4, PS5, Xbox, Switch) – June 2

(PS4, PS5, Xbox, Switch, PC) – June 2

(PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC) – June 2

UPCOMING RELEASES:

(PS4, PS5, Xbox) – June 7

(Switch) – June 8

(PC) – June 9

(PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC) – June 9

(Switch) – June 10

(Switch) – June 10

(PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC) – June 10

GAME OF THE WEEK

A randomly selected game each week! Any and all games are eligible for selection regardless of age, platform, popularity, or otherwise.

This week, the honour goes to…

Sensible World of Soccer (1994)

Fast, fun, and gloriously chaotic, the original Sensible Soccer - released in 1992 - represented the beautiful game in its purest form. Sensible Software designed a sports title that was easy to pick up and play but which hid greater gameplay depths beneath its surface.

Two years later, Sensible World of Soccer was released and introduced detailed customisation and management options to the series.

A wonderful remaster of SWoS was released for Xbox Live Arcade in 2007 which added HD visuals and a widescreen option to the game whilst retaining the classic look and feel of the original. This version is still available to buy for Xbox One and Xbox Series S/X as part of Microsoft’s incredible backwards compatibility program.

Sensible World of Soccer is a true retro classic, and a legend of its genre.

RECOMMENDED READS

Andy Robinson - VGC

Former Microsoft exec Ed Fries expresses his concern over the potential impact the company’s Game Pass subscription service could have on the games industry in this interesting interview with VGC.

Jill Grodt - Game Informer

There's been a little bit of negativity around Game Pass in this newsletter of late, so let's balance it out a bit with an article on one of its greatest recent games as Game Informer talk to the lead developer of Tunic, Andrew Shouldice.

CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGNS

The VM2

Chris Diaoglou - campaign not yet launched

The VM2 is a from-scratch remake of the original Dreamcast VMU with new electronics and upgraded functionality. Register your interest now!

Perfect Organism: An Alien: Isolation Companion

By Andy Kelly / Unbound

Calling all Alien superfans! This is the ultimate unofficial guide to Alien: Isolation, considered to be part of the Alien franchise canon

The Legend of Final Fantasy X

By Third Editions - Campaign ends June 13th

Third Editions is raising funds for The Legend of Final Fantasy X! A new Third Editions book: behind the scenes, lore and analysis of Final Fantasy X.

INBOX

Last week's main topic discussed certain corners of social media questioning Game Pass and its lack of AAA games. Thanks to everybody who commented!

"I dropped out of Game Pass recently," says Ben. "But that's mainly due to a lack of time to make use of it. I'm going to dip back in next month. I'm really not that fussed about AAA content; Game Pass has got a BRILLIANT indie line-up, and that's what draws me in."

Dan on Twitter didn't think Game Pass would be for him, until he was tempted in by a tasty deal and never looked back, "Years ago, I didn't see Game Pass as something I'd be interested in under any circumstances. Then I got pulled in by the £1 offer to covert my Gold to Game Pass, at the time to play Gears 5. I blitzed through as much as I could before it ran out, falling in love with the Ori games in the process. Then I started using Rewards more. And that's when I started discovering Indies. Edith Finch, Mighty Goose, Artful Escape and dozens more I'd have never batted an eye at before... its turned me from someone who said they'd never use it, to a massive fan, someone who didn't play enough Indies to someone who loves them."

If you have any thoughts about this newsletter or gaming in general then please reply to this email directly, write to [email protected], or catch me on Twitter!

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...and that's it for this week!

I hope you enjoyed this issue of The Week in Games! I’d be delighted if you would consider forwarding this email to anybody you think may like it, by sharing this link on social media, or simply telling people about it!

I'm always looking at ways to improve this newsletter, so if you have any comments, suggestions or enquiries, please reply to this email directly, write to [email protected], or catch me on Twitter!

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