What’s up, gamers? Happy June!

As always, I hope you’re doing well, staying hydrated, and trying to enjoy the weather. I don’t know where you all are located, so I’m going to wrongfully assume that the weather is nice where you’re located.

It’s game time.

Wednesday brought us the coveted PlayStation Showcase that many, myself included, have been waiting for. According to many industry members and insider leaks, this was the big showcase that would supposedly deliver some big news. It’s come and gone, but did it do what the rumors said it would?

Well… I don’t know.

Many of these showcases have me boomed since I’m always hoping for something, and then we get 15 minutes of random games I’ve never heard of or nothing I look forward to. I remember the days where Sony would announce these showcases, not meet fan expectations, and then, moving forward, put fair warnings ahead of time for future showcases, detailing what fans could expect. I didn’t have many expectations going into this one, but the result was serviceable with a few different tidbits that stuck out for me personally.

I think Sony played it safe and looking back at the showcase, it showed the company’s push into live-service more than anything, which I think is a miss. Nothing first-party was shown except for the big boy (more on that in a bit), which is where many fans drew ire since a lot is going on behind the scenes, such as Ghost of Tsushima 2 and many heavy hitters. Fans wanted to see that, but I feel like there’s no winning because if they get a small snippet, they complain it wasn’t enough, but if nothing is shown, they also get mad.

I don’t know, I think this was a decent showcase, but that’s because I only wanted one thing, and I got it at the end.

Let’s talk about what caught my eye, starting with the elephant in the room.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Seems like a GigaBanger

Insomniac Games has been relatively quiet since announcing the sequel to 2018’s mega-hit Marvel’s Spider-Man, unless you follow them on Twitter and see the studio’s replies to fans inquiring about the state of the game (trust me, there are some dank replies). With a rumored release date of Fall 2023, we haven’t seen or heard anything regarding the sequel, which I’m sure made some fans nervous.

The silence was broken during the showcase when Insomniac closed the show with a hefty serving of what players can expect in the upcoming sequel. Kraven the Hunter opened up with a bit of exposition explaining how he ends up entangled with the Web-Head(s), followed by the trailer going ballistic with Peter donning the notorious symbiote and an angry tone from the legendary Yuri Lowenthal, aka Sasuke Uchiha from Naruto‘s English dub. 

We get views of both Spider-Men in action, with Miles stepping up to the plate after his solo outing, Peter in his symbiote, combat, stealth, and set pieces aplenty, with a later set piece reminding me of a portion from Uncharted 4. The symbiote combat was so cool, channeling the days of Prototype, and probably one of the best representations of the monstrosity I’ve seen in-game, as Pete probably murdered a few people during the opening segment. Miles has a few new tricks up his sleeve, and the brief snippet of powers shown has me pumped for his portion.

It’s most certainly going to be a wild outing, and with this title seemingly targeting a darker tone, I can’t wait to see the final product come this fall. That said, I am a bit gutted that there will be no co-op since this game seems ripe for it, but never say never like Ghost of Tsushima randomly adding the random multiplayer portion after launch.

Also, Web-Wings? W design choice.

I am having bad writer’s block right now, mostly because if you played the first two Insomniac entries, you know what to expect. But I’ll be damned; I was screaming in my room watching the above trailer unfold. Really good stuff, and yet again, another reason why we let Insomniac Games work in silence.

Hopefully, that doesn’t age like milk.

Bungie Has Taken Up Running and Geometry Class at the Same Time

I couldn’t think of a better heading for this section, so forgive me.

Big rumors started swirling about the Halo and Destiny veteran studio’s next outing, with signs pointing to Bungie rekindling the fires of their older title: Marathon. The rumors turned out to be correct, with a big reveal dropping during the PlayStation Showcase, with Marathon being the studio’s next outing, the first in quite some time.

The trailer is pretty neat; it doesn’t give away too much, but aesthetically speaking, it looks nice, reminding me of the days of Mirror’s Edge: the futuristic art style. Funnily enough, I thought to myself, what if this was a Destiny 3 reveal since nearly most of the assets in the trailer look familiar from what we’ve seen in Destiny for the past ten years. Alas, it wasn’t, and Marathon is coming back, albeit quite differently.

I’m learning about this as I type, so bear with me. The original Marathon was part of a trilogy in what appeared to be very similar to hit 90’s games like Wolfenstein and DOOM: 2-3D first-person shooters, with Marathon finding a home on Macintosh. 

The new Marathon is completely switching gears and will be a PvPvE extraction shooter, which is quite disappointing. PvPvE extraction shooters have become the rage as of late, as everyone seemingly wants a piece of the Escape From Tarkov pie, with Sega working on Hyenas and many more games like Hunt: The Showdown and The Cycle floating in and out of popularity.

I don’t typically enjoy those games because they’re not fun, and the more that surface, the more they feel like trend-chasing design choices. That said, I knew nothing about Marathon before, and the announcement that the next iteration would be PvP has killed almost any excitement I would’ve had. 

In an interview with PlayStation, Game Director Chris Barrett had this to say (spoilers, it won’t make single-player fans happy):

“Marathon is designed from the start as a PvP-focused game and won’t have a single-player campaign. Instead, with the PvP experience as our foundation, we’re creating opportunities for player-driven stories to unfold, stories that are integrated with the overarching game narrative. We’re building a world full of persistent, evolving zones, where players create their own journey with every run they take. That might mean an unforgettable firefight against another crew vying for the same loot, or a last-second extraction while beset on all sides.”

PlayStation Blog

I don’t know about that one. Sure, those genres of games have moments you want to share with friends, but they lack the narrative focus that only single-player games, or games that feature a single-player narrative, specialize in. There are only so many moments that have held me over in multiplayer games for years versus overwhelming single-player moments like “Would you kindly?”

I think this gets a little worse when, during the same interview, the team mentions that they’ll be bringing themes from the original title into this one, which will most certainly get lost in translation.

There also comes to question the state of Destiny and how that might impact Marathon. I’m no expert, but from what I’ve seen on Reddit and Twitter, the current state of the game’s PvP segment has fans begging for help, with said portion dry on content as maps flow in checks notes never (I could be wrong on that). Let’s not forget; Gambit is a dedicated PvEvP mode that’s been an afterthought for years, which I wouldn’t surprised if Marathon takes a few notes from the mode and plays out similarly. This has me extremely worried unless Bungie’s been holding back the extra Destiny assets for Marathon.

Will I write Marathon off? No, but I don’t think many liked what they heard, myself included.

However, one thing that made many happy, me included, was Cayde 6 making an appearance in the grand conclusion of Destiny 2‘s Light and Darkness saga, The Final Shape. I couldn’t tell you how it happens, and I honestly don’t expect that information to be revealed whatsoever in the upcoming expansion (since Lightfall was woefully absent of cohesive narrative direction, plus I know nothing about Destiny 2). There is a showcase planned for August, where Bungie will go over all the details regarding the properties of the final shape.

Get it?

It’s a geometry joke…

Snake is Coming Back… Should We be Worried?

One of gaming’s worst-kept secrets for some time, the Metal Gear Solid series is making its return, as Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater officially debuted during the PlayStation Showcase.

I’ve only played a few of the entries in this iconic series, but from what I’ve heard, Snake Eater is the one everyone loves. This is the one that launched the series to otherworldly heights, as Naked Snake is on some sort of survival mission in the darkest corners of the jungle. I’ve wanted to play this one for some time, but it’s been unavailable due to a rights issue (it was due to a licensing issue regarding historical footage). I’m excited about this, although no timetable has been shared regarding when we can expect Snake to return.

Remake aside, let’s get juicy and wave the red flag here, starting with the game’s name.

Metal Gear Solid Delta, or Triangle, is supposedly a name change made by Konami to signal this being a remake, which makes sense unless you’re like me and remember the longstanding war Konami had with MGS mastermind: Hideo Kojima.

Quick recap.

Hideo Kojima is the Big Boss (shoutout to all the MGS fans), aka the brain behind the series, having been hired by Konami to write and direct the first entry. After many years and entries, we’re talking nearly 30 years, there was a massive fallout between both parties, as Kojima packed his bags and left to do his own thing (link to a decent recap of the events).

End recap.

The name change alone seems like a slight to Kojima, the brains of the operation unless you count the delta symbol as a triangle for three sides meaning it’s a fancy way to say 3… Maybe too much? Aside from that, this is a double-edged sword, as it’s a remake, and it’s from Konami, whose last Metal Gear Solid outing was Metal Gear Survive. Who knows what the hell they were cooking up with that?

Remakes are tricky, and for every Resident Evil 4 and Dead Space, we get The Last of Us Part 1: a remake that wasn’t needed and didn’t do much damage in its new target audience after a poor PC launch. How much will Konami change or rework, especially with Kojima out of the picture (which the publisher would later go on to confirm he wouldn’t be involved)? It gives off Lollipop Chainsaw remake vibes, a cult classic being remade without James Gunn (yes, the Guardians guy) and Suda51. At least the original Snake voice actor, David Hayter, will be present, but still, I’m a bit nervous, and I’m not even that invested in these titles.

Good news though; the original trilogy will be available for purchase this fall. I’m excited as I’m now an adult who realizes the value these titles bring. I hope we get an updated version of MGS 4 at some point, the first mainline entry I played/completed.

For the Love of Everything Ubisoft; Please Don’t Screw Up Assassin’s Creed Mirage

If we’re being honest, Assassin’s Creed hasn’t been good since Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. If we’re being fair, the last good entry in the longstanding franchise was Assassin’s Creed Origins. Special shout to Assasin’s Creed Unity; years after it was released, it was so freaking good.

Assassin’s Creed has been struggling to find its identity in the past few entries, with a shift to similar gameplay tropes seen in The Witcher, massive worlds full of things to uncover, although it did not work out too well, in my opinion. Assassin’s Creed Mirage is being heralded as a return to the old, and by old, I mean where stealth mattered more than your power level.

The PlayStation Showcase showed the Brotherhood their first look at in-game footage, and for once, I felt hopeful. The combat looked visceral and snappy as Assassin’s Creed Valhalla character, Basim, dismantles foes in Baghdad. The art style looked stylish and vibrant as colors popped in the two-minute trailer. I don’t want to get too excited, but it looked good, and my hopium is rising.

Assassin’s Creed as a franchise blows my mind due to the simple nature that none of the games ever succeeded at making me feel like an actual assassin, like how I feel like a hitman when playing Hitman. If Mirage can capture a fraction of that feeling, then maybe Ubisoft will ditch trend-chasing and give the series a meaningful boost of stealth support. Hell, if this goes well, maybe this will inspire future entries to dive deeper into the stealth and ditch the RPG elements, which there are plenty more Assassin’s adventures in the works.

My fan fiction is Mirage is a complete reboot for the series, ditching the Animus and the god conflicts and focusing on telling a natural battle between hidden forces of good and evil. I’m most likely 1000% wrong, but damn, I’d love to be right.

We’ll find out this October, and I beg Ubisoft to please right this ship.

Please.

Alan Wake 2 Looks Damn Good

When the sequel to Alan Wake was announced in 2021, I was pretty stoked because I was now an adult and had conquered my young adolescent fear of survival-horror titles. The showcase gave us our first look at snippets of gameplay, and damn, this looks like it could be very good.

It gave off heavy Evil Within vibes, a series I enjoyed, as the camera shifted to an over-the-shoulder look at the officer before she becomes embroiled in a battle for her life. I have no idea what the context is, as I have yet to play the first game, but I was enjoying what I saw. October is going to be a big month, with Assassin’s Creed Mirage and Alan Wake II battling for gamers’ attention. Alan Wake II will appear at Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest on June 8th, so if anything of depth pops up, I might do a little write or recap.

It can’t be all rainbow and butterflies, can it? Not even 24 hours after the trailer dropped, news broke that developer Remedy Entertainment will only be shipping this game as a digital-only product, meaning you won’t be able to purchase a disc copy. As someone who “game shares,” FBI please don’t come for me, I don’t mind this. The reasoning behind it is trifold, as Remedy wants to prevent gamers from having to download an extra portion of the game, some consoles being disc-less such as the PS5 or Xbox Series S, and this shift to digital also keeps the price at $59.99 for console or $49.99 on PC.

Makes sense.

Conversely, many gamers don’t like the push to digital only, and for good reason. If the network implodes, you lose access to that title you spent your money on. Others enjoy the satisfaction of amassing a shit ton of discs, while others like to sell a game when done. There are many reasons why people don’t like it, and as the saying goes, to each their own.

It’ll be interesting to see how the launch unfolds with the news of digital-only seemingly draining the momentum the trailer picked up. Who knows, maybe there’s a chance that a deal will be made, allowing a physical release to happen?

The PS Handheld is Real, and It Looks… Interesting

For those old enough to remember, Sony used to have a foot in the handheld market with a little buddy called the PlayStation Portable. I used to have one of those bad boys, and I enjoyed it, as it had plenty of smaller titles that delivered quality content, like the spin-off Daxter, set between Jak 1 and Jak 2, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, and Secret Agent Clank. All pocket-sized adventures that made the handheld worth the price of admission.

After the PSP, a sequel handheld dropped, the PSP Vita, although I never had one, so I couldn’t tell the big draw with it. Both platforms fell victim to the market, with games taking too long to develop and poor sales, leading Sony to canning them. With the rumors that Sony could get back into handheld gaming, many, myself included, were excited at the thought that Sony might bring back the PSP, or make something that rivals the Steam Deck, meaning you could bring your games on the go.

I don’t think anybody expected what Sony delivered.

Introducing Project Q, or whatever the full name is come launch, a handheld that solely functions as a PS5 extension. You can only play games installed on your PS5, and it practically serves no use outside of your house, meaning this is a glorified Remote Play device, nothing more.

Yeah this is a miss on multiple levels, and I’m going to try and explain why.

Number one, and this is a complaint I have about the PSVR2, you need a PS5 to use this. Yes, it’s been almost three years since the PS5 launched, but some people still don’t have one. My friend just got one the other day, had he had any interest in this monstrosity, he wouldn’t be able to use it.

This leads me to number two; it only serves as an extension to the PS5. Kind of reiterating a point here, but if you don’t have a PS5, this thing is useless. You can only play PS5 games from the safety of your house, at least to my understanding, as no confirmation has been made on whether you can use it off Wi-Fi.

Number three, this thing is absolutely hideous (just being fair).

In conclusion, this is a huge miss, at least from what I’ve read and heard to date. Imagine making a newer version of the PS Vita that lets players play older PSP games or even play backward-compatible games from the reworked PlayStation Plus package. That alone would’ve been a massive win for Sony, but instead, they put together this bad boy and will most likely charge an arm and leg for this.

We’ll find out soon enough what the full details of this package entail, but early impressions aren’t winning me over.

Other Notables

Rapid fire segment to take us home, featuring a notables and my thoughts on them!

• Fairgame$: Watching the trailer, I couldn’t tell if I was looking at the next Watch Dogs game or not, and safe to say, it was not Watch Dogs. This comes from Haven Studios, the group signed by PlayStation a little over a year ago, with legendary head Jade Raymond at the forefront. This is going to be a PvP heist style game, not sure how I feel about it since the trailer echoes Hyenas and Ubisoft edgy vibes, but then again, we didn’t really see much.
• Phantom Blade Zero: The best part of this trailer was watching the opening and realizing how much it looked like Bloodborne only to then realize it wasn’t FromSoftware’s beloved nightmarish Souls-like title. To be fair, it does look pretty interesting, no timetable is attached as of yet!
• Helldivers 2: No idea what this is, but it looks like a tower defense game. The trailer was pretty quirky so I’ll be keeping my eye out on this sequel. It’s targeting a 2023 launch.
• Dragon’s Dogma 2: Alright, I’ve never played the first one, and I don’t even think there’s a way to play it. That said, new information is coming out about the long-awaited sequel, and the first official trailer was good. No release date, but at least it’s in the works.
• Ghostrunner 2: FUCK YEAH, I LOVED THE FIRST GAME. That’s all I got for you, this is slated for 2023.
• Immortals of Aveum: Cautiously on the fence on this once, but the gameplay actually looks pretty good as many developers from Call of Duty and Dead Space have teamed up to work on this EA Original title, meaning this is the publisher’s trek into producing quality single-player titles. It’s running on Unreal Engine 5 and looks like a first-person Doctor Strange title, although the dialogue leaves room to be desired, so time will tell how this unfolds when it magically arrives in July.

---

That’s all she wrote folks. I’m interested to read/hear your thoughts on the showcase, which in conclusion, I thought was okay.

Maybe we’ll get one more before the year closes out, or maybe, Sony will leave us with what it showed.