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Sony is shutting down Knack and 'The Last Guardian' developer Japan Studio
It looks like Sony is shuttering its oldest in-house developer.
Puppeteer director to pursue smaller games next, steer clear of retail
In a Puppeteer postmortem peppered with prickly punditry, Sony Computer Entertainment's Gavin Moore gave attendees of the Game Developers Conference a small idea of what he and his team hope to craft next. Coming off Puppeteer, a dark and clever PlayStation 3 platformer carved from the world of theater, Moore intends to pitch and pursue three to four smaller games beyond the borders of retail stores. "I think we're too reliant on stores to sell our products for us," Moore said. Though Puppeteer failed to find a large audience – "not a disaster by any way," he added – it seems to have spurred a serious rethink of retail, marketing and the backbreaking work of creating a unique and polished game. Moore intends to "make three or four products at once, and put them up on the net somewhere for people to download."
PS4 disc install trials: Knack playable in seconds, Killzone under 3 minutes
At a New York event yesterday, Sony demonstrated install speeds - the time from the point the disc is inserted, install is initiated and play can begin - for retail versions of two PS4 launch games: Knack and Killzone: Shadow Fall Knack, the action-adventure game from PS4 architect Mark Cerny, will take only tens of seconds before play can begin after priming the installation, Kotaku reports. Killzone: Shadow Fall will take a bit longer to reach play, Polygon reports, because there is an unskippable introduction movie and mandatory profile set-up. Guerrilla Games Managing Director Hermen Hulst told Polygon it takes under three minutes total to get into gameplay. Sony outlined the launch limitations of its PS4 console last month. All retail PS4 games will have to install data to the console's 500GB hard drive, which can be manually swapped out should the need for more space arise. The PS4 won't let users store data on an external hard drive or memory stick.
Here's how Knack's two-player co-op works
PS4 launch title Knack will feature local co-op support, allowing another player to jump in and control titular hero Knack's companion and helper, Robo Knack. Using a DualShock 4 controller or Remote Play through a PS Vita, this second player can use Robo Knack to pummel baddies or support Knack by hooking him up with spare parts - basically health - when he's running low. Knack, which is developed by Sony's Japan Studio and directed by PS4 architect Mark Cerny, will be available at the PS4's launch on November 15. The action-platformer centers around a Katamari-like creature known as Knack, who grows in size as he gathers objects known as Relics.
Final Soul Sacrifice update adds 16 new (and tough!) quests
The Marvelous AQL and Japan Studio-developed Vita-exclusive Soul Sacrifice has been given its final update, SCEA producer Kumi Yuasa revealed in a post on the PlayStation Blog. Update 1.30 adds "16 challenging new quests" to the game, for free. Unlike previous updates, unlock keys from the PlayStation Store are not required to enjoy the content. Yuasa says the game's final bonus quests are all at level ten difficulty. "You'll be tasked with facing challenging boss characters you may have come across before," Yuasa adds. Soul Sacrifice launched for the PlayStation Vita in North America on April 30. The Joystiq review noted that playing it could exact an "unexpected toll on your thoughts." Spooky!
Rain review: A steady drizzle
There are many different kinds of rain. The shower that comes out of nowhere and is gone just as quickly. The driving storm that makes you think about building an ark. The gentle mist that makes the summer air even thicker. And then there's the steady, relentless thrumming of drops beating a steady staccato on your roof, never slackening, never intensifying, just monotonously droning on and turning your day into a doleful shade of headache gray. Rain, the latest from Sony's Japan Studio and PlayStation CAMP, falls into that last category.
Knack features local co-op built with younger players in mind
Knack includes a local co-op mode that should, according to game creator and system architect Mark Cerny, help kids around 5 to 7 years old play the PS4 launch game. At Gamescom, Cerny showed us a brief demonstration of the same-screen mode, in which a second player controls a robot version of Knack who provides support for the first player. Like Knack himself, the silver robo-Knack can combat and defeat enemies to grab their parts and grow bigger. The difference is that when Knack gets hurt and becomes smaller and weaker, robot Knack can donate his parts to the damaged Knack. Cerny noted that the two-player mode allows a parent to jump in and help his seven-year old child playing as the main Knack, and for a younger player like a five-year old to play as robot Knack without harming the overall experience. "Progress is gated by what Knack does," said Cerny, indicating the second player won't hinder the first player as he or she progresses through the campaign. Cerny wants Knack to be an inclusive, family-orientated game; he previously showed how developer Japan Studio built a giant DualShock to help its developers see how it would be to be an 8-year-old holding the controller. Knack will be one of the games available on the PS4's launch day, November 15 in North America and November 29 in Europe.
Giant DualShock helped make Knack accessible to kids, taught design lessons
Sony made the PS4 launch game Knack more accessible to children by creating a super-sized DualShock to playtest, with the core concept being to make developers feel like an 8-year old holding the controller. In a keynote speech at the UK's Develop conference today, PS4 system architect Mark Cerny touched again on how he wanted the colorful platformer-brawler to appeal to both experienced and younger, newer players. Cerny described his aim for Knack is as an "on-ramp to the world of console gaming," but found through playtests that similar games with mascot-like heroes were often inaccessible to their target audiences. Cerny said Sony's research showed 8-year-olds had difficulty with those games' control schemes, but not because of their complexity. Instead, the size of the controller was the problem. "So as part of our design process we ended up making a giant controller, 50 percent larger than usual, so that we could directly experience what it feels like to be a child playing a game," Cerny said. "And we immediately understood that the shoulder buttons are simply out of reach for the typical 8-year old, but that all the face buttons can be used by an 8-year-old." Playing Knack at E3, we found the control scheme limited to a few face buttons, sometimes in combination, and the two analog sticks. We can't speak for 8-year-olds, but the limited controls made it easy for us to pick up and enjoy the game. While we didn't check out the harder difficulty, Cerny said he feels Knack has appeal there for old-school players too. [Image Source: @yosp]
Knack influenced by God of War, says PS4 architect Mark Cerny
PlayStation 4 system architect Mark Cerny discusses the console's upcoming launch title Knack in a recent interview at PlayStation Blog, revealing that the project aims for international appeal among both the casual and hardcore crowds. Continuing a decade-spanning career in which he designed games ranging from Marble Madness to Ratchet and Clank, Cerny currently serves as Knack's director and lead designer. He notes that Knack will feature multiple difficulty settings, in an effort to court veteran game players. "We are definitely speaking to the nostalgia that people feel for the play experiences of the past," Cerny said. "If you play this game on the hard difficulty setting it will definitely challenge you. And the control scheme is on the simpler side but you'll need really think about how best to use it." Cerny cites numerous influences for Knack's gameplay, hinting that Crash Bandicoot and God of War fans may find a lot to like in the finished product. "The way I look at it – there's a bit of Crash Bandicoot in there, a bit of Katamari Damacy, which is a game I love and must have bought three or four times over the years," he explains. "And there's a bit of God of War too. You can see that game's influence on Knack – especially in the control set, where the right stick is the dodge." While Knack is developed by Sony's Japan Studio, Cerny mentions that the game was specifically designed for worldwide audiences. "The original concept was 'let's make an international title,'" he recalls. "The problem is that if you have a mascot, that mascot is going to be immediately identifiable as a Japanese mascot, or a US mascot, or whatever. "Our way to get around that was to make the character an effect, so the first question was 'what sort of effect should he be?' We came up with the idea that he would pick up things in the environment and get bigger, and a year or so later Knack was born." Knack will be available when the PlayStation 4 launches later this year.
YU-NAMA: The Puzzle - Minion mayhem on PlayStation Mobile
This is Portabliss, a column about downloadable games that can be played on the go. "Yu-WHAT NOW?" If you own a PSP, you may already be familiar with Acquire's RTS-like YU-NAMA series. NIS America released the first two entries stateside as Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman! After Bruce Wayne's lawyers stepped in, the games were retitled What Did I Do to Deserve This, My Lord!? Sony further complicated matters when it later localized the third entry in the series as No Heroes Allowed! At this point, it might just be easier to refer to the series by its Japanese title, Yuusha no Kuse ni Namaikida. Sony apparently agrees, as a PlayStation Mobile-exclusive spinoff game was recently released in North America as YU-NAMA: The Puzzle. It's a shame that the series can't seem to hold on to a single consistent title, as it means that PS Vita owners might miss out on one of PlayStation Mobile's best releases to date.
Rain: Boy meets invisible girl
The concept at the heart of Rain is magical. Looking out his window, a boy witness an invisible girl, her silhouette revealed by the rain as she runs splashing through the night. She's followed by another invisible entity outlined by the rain, a ferocious bipedal monster, which is referred to only as an "unknown." Fearing for the girl's life, the boy chases after her, following her and the monster through a strange door of light. Emerging on the other side, the boy finds himself in different though familiar world. It looks like his own, a seemingly European city filled with alleyways, though this world is cloaked in perpetual night and never-ending rain. In this world, he too is invisible, his presence revealed only by the rain pattering against his body. The boy sets off in search of the girl, looking for answers. Is he cursed to remain invisible? Can he ever return to his own world? Those will have to wait though, as the boy is soon running from a pack of different four-legged monsters. He quickly discovers that invisibility has its advantages. By hiding under structures so that the rain doesn't give away his position, the monsters can no longer see him. Normally, this sort of storybook world would be right up my alley (see: my Unfinished Swan review), but I'm afraid Rain's big trick may be its only trick.%Gallery-189816%
'Panopticon' is Freedom Wars, a Vita multiplayer action game due in 2014 [update]
Sony's Japan Studio followed up last week's mysterious 'Panopticon' trailer with a second offering today, unveiling the project a a Vita multiplayer action game called Freedom Wars. The trailer also revealed it's coming to Japan sometime next year. The new trailer is an embellishment of the first one, providing more context. Panopticon seems to be the region Freedom Wars takes place in, a totalitarian dystopia in the future. The world is devastated by dwindling resources and zero population growth - maybe because hundreds of millions are dying in war. The YouTube blurb denotes Freedom Wars as a "multiplayer action" game. A collection of screens on the game's website show what looks like skirmishes taking place across regions in Japan. One screen is a Yahoo Maps snapshot of the Shibuya region in Tokyo, but with icons superimposed on it indicating particular in-game locations. Freedom Wars remains shrouded in mystery - although at least we now know it's a Vita game. The website indicates more info will be spilled later this month. Update: Here's a bit more info, courtesy of a press release translated by NeoGAF. According to it, Freedom Wars supports 8-player co-op and competitive modes, supports both Adhoc and Wi-Fi, and use the Vita's GPS and Near tech - which may explain the Yahoo Maps screen (see above). Freedom Wars is a brand new game which aims to offer a new gaming experience in the popular multiplayer action genre by taking advantage of the PS Vita's unique functions. The player is a criminal in a post-apocalyptic near future, sentenced to a million years of hard labor, fighting for his freedom. By completing missions where you rescue civilians and allies who have been captured by huge enemies known as Abductors, you can reduce your sentence. The game supports a maximum of 8 players at a time in both co-op and competitive modes, and supports Adhoc and Wi-Fi Online functions so players all over the country can play together. The game will also support the GPS and Near capabilities of the PS Vita to enhance the gameplay experience.
Puppeteer pulls back the curtain on PS3 [update: trailer!]
Gavin Moore from Sony Online Entertianment took the stage during Sony's Gamescom 2012 press conference to reveal Puppeteer, a new platformer from Sony's Japan Studio. Puppeteer stars a boy who is unluckily transformed into a puppet, and as a result is imbued with special powers. After showing off the brief gameplay trailer above, Moore promised that we'd hear more on Puppeteer "soon."
'Rain' announced for PSN from SCE Japan Studio
Rain, an atmospheric looking PSN game from Sony Computer Entertainment's Japan Studio, was just announced during Sony's Gamescom presser. The story centers on a little boy who has become invisible, and the player's only distinct impression of the boy's position is through interacting with the world's ever-pouring rain.It's like that scene from Hollow Man, but way more endearing and way less super freaky. No information was given regarding a release date, and it's worth noting that Rain is the game's working title.
Sony's 'wacky' Tokyo Jungle headed to North America and Europe
Despite the absence of a pomeranian guest appearance at Sony's E3 2012 press conference, the company's delightfully bizarre-looking Tokyo Jungle is indeed headed to PlayStation Network in North America and Europe. A press release this week confirmed the EU release, and Sony VP of product development and worldwide studios Scott Rohde told us in an interview this week that the "wacky" internally developed PSN game will indeed arrive in North America as well."It'll ship here, it'll ship everywhere," Rohde said. To him, Tokyo Jungle's worldwide release is emblematic of Sony's "crazy innovative" approach. "That game is just wacky, but in a good way, because we like to show that there's still an art form, and you can still experiment," he said. "Is everyone gonna love a game like Tokyo Jungle? Absolutely not, but there's a whole bunch of people it's gonna make really happy. Specifically for the fact that it's so different, and so unexpected. That's a key part of the culture of Worldwide Studios and how our games are developed."Though he couldn't name one specific person internally who championed the previously Japan-only game, Rohde extolled the internal culture that allows games like that to be created. "Someone has a key vision in our [Japan Studios] about Tokyo Jungle, they wanted to build this game. And so we're gonna embrace that. And of course we discuss it, and if it doesn't make sense, we can walk away. We walk away from dozens and dozens of titles every year. But the difference is, we actually build them out to a certain extent. And when they hit a point where we think, 'You know what? This is pretty interesting and it's gonna make some people happy,' we're gonna build it."Frankly, we're pretty darn happy this one made it through the wringer. Tokyo Jungle doesn't have a release date or price just yet.%Gallery-157097%
Sony's Rohde explains The Last Guardian's E3 absence: 'It just wasn't appropriate for us to give an update'
Sony's E3 2012 press conference was full of surprises. For one, Quantic Dream's new game was unveiled – Beyond – Two Souls. Just like that!More surprising, however, was a game that didn't make an appearance: The Last Guardian. Since being teased in a January 2008 Sony Japan job listing with a single image, the Team Ico-developed game has only been shown by Sony a handful of times. Moreover, the only news we've heard recently on the long in-development project has been worrisome – the game's creative lead, Fumito Ueda, ended his employment at Sony and began working on the game as a contractor. And then in February, Sony revealed that the company's Santa Monica studio was assisting in the development process.SCEA senior VP of product development and worldwide studios, Scott Rohde, assured me in an interview this week that the game's absence from Sony's presser isn't something gamers should be concerned with. "It just wasn't appropriate for us to give an update. That's just how it worked out," Rohde said. Rather than seeing it as a potential sign that the four-plus year project is stagnating, Rohde said that it's absence was a question of time limitations during the press conference and Sony's approach to internal development. "Almost more than any game that Worldwide Studios develops, it's all about the emotion and the experience that's crafted in what that team can deliver. And there's a vision that must be upheld. And until it can be upheld, it's not gonna ship," he said.
Gravity Rush review: Disorient Express
Gravity Rush for PS Vita is a particular kind of superhero simulation I can't recall seeing before: not only is it an excellent approximation of what I imagine it's like to be a superhero, it approximates the life of a new superhero, with all the awkwardness that entails.Protagonist Kat, who wakes up with no memories and a starfield-patterned cat companion that allows her to alter her personal gravity, is not terribly graceful with her abilities, as befits someone who just gained the power to fall in any direction. She is, however, immediately willing to help save her new friends from mysterious "gravity storms" eating away parts of the town, and the "Nevi" monsters that start creeping in, and her enthusiasm makes up for the growing pains.%Gallery-156045%
Sneak a peek at Soul Sacrifice before its official debut
The official "reveal" of Sony's Vita "true fantasy" Soul Sacrifice is still scheduled for May 10, but you can catch a few snippets of gameplay footage in this teaser vita, if you can sacrifice the seconds to watch it.The game appears to be a medieval action game in which the player faces off against large, grim-looking monsters – a look superficially similar to Demon's or Dark Souls. However, don't take the look and the name as evidence that this is a sequel: the trailer identifies this as a Japan Studio game, and not a From Software game. Besides, if all we see is a knight-type person hacking away at huge monsters, we can't exactly extrapolate the whole game design style.
Gravity Rush demo floats to PSN on May 29 in NA, May 30 in EU
Only five months after it landed on Japanese PlayStation Vitas, Sony's Gravity Rush will arrive on PlayStation Network in both North America and Europe. At least in demo form, that is. After a tweet from EU retailer GAME last week alleged a May 30 date for the game's EU demo, Sony confirmed to Joystiq today that the demo is set to arrive on NA and EU Vitas on May 29 and 30, respectively.That leaves just under two weeks between the demo and the game's mid-June launch, though it's doubtful you'll need much time to decide that it's quite a game.
Report: Gravity Rush demo falling to European Vitas on May 30
You'll forgive us, but every little drip of information about when we can play Gravity Rush is positively thrilling. Knowing that the game doesn't arrive until late June (ugh), we were totally psyched to see UK retailer GAME reporting a demo arriving on PSN on May 30.Yes, that does mean we'll likely see a demo here in North America as well, it's just a question of when. We've reached out to Sony to find out (as well as to confirm the EU demo date) and will update this post as soon as we hear more.In the meantime, might we suggest rewatching the mesmerizing trailer for Gravity Rush just above? That's a pretty thrilling journey for a little apple!
