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Try not to puke while playing 'Wipeout' in VR next year
Wipeout might be one of the most ill-suited games for virtual reality, featuring high-speed races with brilliant flashing lights and neon streaks -- but it's coming to PlayStation VR anyway. Wipeout Omega Collection will get a free VR mode in early 2018, Sony announced during tonight's PlayStation Experience pre-show. The VR update includes all modes and tracks in the base game, 3D audio support, plus exclusive ships and interiors. Puke bags are not included.
The best PlayStation 4 games
There's a big reason why the PlayStation 4 is the best-selling console: It has a smattering of games that you can't play anywhere else. Think: blockbusters like Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, Horizon: Zero Dawn and Bloodborne. But even if Indiana Jones simulators and massive open worlds where you hunt down robo-dinosaurs aren't your thing, there are still plenty of exclusives to pick from. Whether it's the best baseball video game franchise, a choose-your-own-adventure horror or an engrossing social simulator/JRPG hybrid, there's a lot to play on Sony's latest console. And then there are games from massive third-party publishers like Activision and Ubisoft, along with quirky indie offerings to round out the selection.
Sony slashes prices on the year's biggest games ahead of E3
If you can't make it to LA this weekend and next week for the open-to-the-public E3, Sony still wants you to have a good time at home. In addition to a week of free access to multiplayer gaming sans a PlayStation Plus subscription (and a $10 discount on said subscription), Sony has slashed the prices on some of the biggest games from this year. Horizon Zero Dawn, MLB: The Show 17 and Nioh have all been marked down to $40, while The Last Guardian and Uncharted 4 from last year are now $20. The European PlayStation store is offering similar deals.
'Inside' wins big at the 2017 BAFTA Games Awards
The annual BAFTA game awards were held at London's Tobacco Dock last night, celebrating the best software and creative, talented individuals from 2016. Playdead's quiet, thought-provoking Inside was easily the most successful, picking up the awards for artistic achievement, game design, narrative and original property. Fellow indie Firewatch took home best debut game, while Virginia was recognised for its music and That Dragon, Cancer won the game innovation category. Four-player frenzy Overcooked also had a good evening, winning the best family and British game awards.
How 'The Last Guardian' uses gameplay to tell its story
Like with many ambitious works of art, it's fair to say that the reaction to The Last Guardian was pretty divisive. While many recognized last month's PS4 exclusive as a brilliant achievement, it is undoubtedly a game that bears the scars of its troubled nine-year development. Yet, despite its archaic controls, The Last Guardian achieves something that few games manage - it makes the player genuinely care about an AI companion. In a bid to explore how director Fumito Ueda achieved this, YouTuber Mark Brown has dissected the game mechanics of The Last Guardian in the latest video of his game design series, Game Maker's Toolkit.
The best games of 2016
The year is nearly over, and I don't think I'm alone in saying that I'm ready to leave behind the dark, twisted fantasy that is 2016. No matter your political persuasion, social status or country of residence, you'll have felt disquieted by events at some point this year. The sheer scale of 2016's failings allows for such blanket statements. Natural disasters, mass shootings and political events have left me buffeted by wave after wave of anxiety. Because of this never-ending cycle of unease, video games have been more important to me this year. Of course, they're always a form of escapism, but in 2016 they've had to function as a kind of digital cocoon. Gaming has been a place to retreat. A moment of respite. Whether passing the minutes on a mindless clicker or puzzle game, losing myself for hours in grand strategies and sport sims or taking a long weekend to head out on a fantastic adventure, gaming has helped me. A lot. Perhaps that's why I've been reacting to game delays with all the composure of a YouTube commenter. And, God, the delays have come thick and fast.
'The Last Guardian' gets its own companion book
While 2016 hasn't been the best year for the world at large, it's certainly been a brilliant one for video games. As well as giving us excellent titles like Overwatch and Uncharted 4, 2016 has also seen the release of two games that many thought would never see the light of day - Final Fantasy XV and The Last Guardian.
What 'The Last Guardian' creator learned from 'No Man's Sky'
The video game world is vastly different now than it was in 2007 when Fumito Ueda and his team began working on The Last Guardian. Nintendo dominated the hardware market with the 3DS and Wii while the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 trailed in console sales by millions. Assassin's Creed, BioShock and Mass Effect debuted, kicking off a fresh round of long-running AAA franchises. Today, we have the Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PS4 Pro, and Nintendo is attempting to rebound from slow sales of the Wii U. Day-one patches are normal, pre-order DLC bundles are standard practice, we're on the ninth Assassin's Creed and, sometimes, indie games are indistinguishable from AAA titles. This is the brave new world that Ueda will release The Last Guardian into on December 6th. Over the past nine years, he's kept an eye on the video game industry and he knows that the market is volatile. He knows that the industry has changed. Fans are used to a constant barrage of information, trailers, screenshots and interviews about upcoming high-profile games. Sometimes this marketing strategy works out just fine. And sometimes, No Man's Sky happens.
'The Last Guardian' soundtrack is getting a vinyl release
Pumped for The Last Guardian? Yeah, we are too. The long-awaited follow-up to Ico and Shadow of the Colossus stars a young boy and a giant feathered creature called Trico as they explore a world filled with broken, temple-like structures. The emotional puzzle-platformer has an equally distinctive soundtrack -- the work of composer Takeshi Furukawa -- and Sony has dropped a few extra pieces of news about audio in The Last Guardian.
'The Last Guardian' is finally ready
Hold tight Fumito Ueda fans, your wait is almost over. Despite that long quiet period and even a recent six-week delay, tonight Sony Interactive exec Shuhei Yoshida tweeted that The Last Guardian has gone gold. That should put it on track for release December 6th, when everyone can adventure with a giant pet companion of their own. Not counting a Tokyo Game Show near-miss, we last experienced the successor to Ico and Shadow of the Colossus during E3 2016, and found it an "incomplete opus." Here's hoping the extra development time was enough to make everything just right.
'The Last Guardian' is delayed until December
The long-awaited PS4 exclusive The Last Guardian has been pushed back to December 6th. The game was originally scheduled for October 25th, but apparently has more bugs than anticipated. "To ensure that The Last Guardian delivers on the experience that the game's creators have envisioned, we need to take the extra time to work on those issues," President of Sony's Worldwide Studios Shuhei Yoshida told fans through a blog post.
Fear and faith: 'The Last Guardian' is an incomplete opus
"Yes, I worry. All I can do at this moment really is pray." Fumito Ueda has been working on The Last Guardian for almost 10 years, and in just four months time, it will be released on PlayStation 4. At E3 2016, Ueda showed me the fruits of his labor and shared his fears about the reaction to its eventual release on October 25th.
'The Last Guardian' finally arrives Oct. 25th
That pesky bird rodent is almost ready to roam. The long-awaited, long-in-development The Last Guardian will hit PS4 on Oct. 25th. The trailer didn't show us much else (there appear to be multiple giant ratbirds) but the game seems as melancholy and stylish as ever. Take a look for yourself below.
A giant rat bird was the closest I got to 'The Last Guardian'
Well, I got to tease it with a giant pink ball. To promote The Last Guardian, which is very much happening and also very not playable (so far) at the Tokyo Game Show, the team at genDesign hooked up a 20-foot screen with a projection of the lovable / grotesque (delete as applicable) Trico. The feathery giant rodent is projected at fictional life-size, while two hidden depth cameras pick movement of anyone near its cage. We seemed to get the best reactions when the organizers brought out that aforementioned pink ball to catch its attention. It still roars a lot, which only scares the crap out of you the first... twelve times. It's a simple little technical demo that doesn't reveal anything more about the game, but it's better than watching similar gameplay videos again. Hand me a controller.
'The Last Guardian' is a stripped-down sort of beautiful
The Last Guardian needs to be perfect. Fans of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus have been waiting for this, the third game from director Fumito Ueda, since it was announced in 2009. As issues with its production went public and development appeared to slow to a crawl, The Last Guardian entered the misty, nostalgic realm of what if in many fans' minds. Then, Sony opened its E3 2015 press conference with a gameplay trailer of The Last Guardian on PlayStation 4, and those nearly forgotten dreams were suddenly reality. The trailer featured a young, toga-clad boy and Trico, a massive cat-bird-dog creature, as they traversed cavernous, crumbling ruins bathed in brilliant sunlight. Their journey, however, has roots in a prison cell buried in the dead city's tall, grey walls.
An intimate chat with Sony PlayStation's Shuhei Yoshida
Sony PlayStation's Shuhei Yoshida is the best kind of corporate executive. The Worldwide Studios head is affable, open-minded and, best of all, he embraces competition from rivals. I'm speaking, of course, about Microsoft's recent move to partner up with every other company working on virtual reality that's not Sony, of which Shu (as he's commonly referred to) says is no concern. At E3 this week, I had a chance to sit down with the friendly face of PlayStation to pick his brain about making Morpheus more social, embracing crowdfunding to revive cult classics and just what is going on with The Last Guardian.
'The Last Guardian' is still happening and it's coming to PS4 in 2016
The Last Guardian. It still exists and Sony opened its big E3 showcase with footage of a toga-clad boy exploring ancient structures with his giant behaving-like-a-pet Fox-Hawk-Dog beast. Fumito Ueda's beautiful on-off-on-again game is filled with the stylistic licks of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus, but now with the power of PS4 beating behind it. The E3 event finally showed off how the game will play out, with your beastly buddy doing its fair share of destructive creation -- and also coming through in a pinch. The long-delayed title is coming next year. Can you believe it? Check here for everything happening at E3 2015!
