With E3 just a hop away, Sony is likely finalizing announcements for their press conference. It's been a little while since I've written a blog and I'm feeling that a modest contribution to N4G's content is never a bad thing. So here are some things I'd like to see announced at E3. I'll break it into news for 2015 and 2016, as well as niche and megaton announcements. Keep in mind, I won't be discussing things we already know about much, but rather what they could throw at us that are currently unknown.
2015:
Since we're halfway through the year, it takes a lot to be realistic about what's coming in the next six months. For 2015, I suspect we'll see...
"GOLD" PULSE ELITE HEADSET
This one's a bit left field, but it would be surprising for Sony to not announce an improved headset. The pricing of the headsets don't make too much sense right now where the Pulse Elite's only advantage over the Gold wireless headset is the bass feedback. The quality of the build leaves a lot to be desired too.
POWERS: SEASON TWO AND OTHER SHOWS
Sony's television studios are about as prolific as every other where a series releases a new season every year around the same time. I know it's earned a decent following since its inception, so I would not be surprised to see it return at E3. Even then, Sony mentioned "PlayStation Original shows", I emphasize the "s" at the end of "show". I'm sure Sony didn't mean for Powers to be the only thing to watch for PlayStation owners.
BLOODBORNE DLC
Who wouldn't want this? Since its announcement (and with FromSoft possibly working on Dark Souls III), gamers have eagerly anticipated Bloodborne's expansion. With good reason, too. I imagine they will work with Sony to get the DLC out of the gate so they can go full steam ahead on other projects.
GRAVITY RUSH 2:
Who knows when we'll hear about it or what platform(s) it would even release on? At the very least, PlayStation All-Stars may have done for some of Sony's franchises what Super Smash Bros. 3DS/Wii U (also known as Smash 4) did for Xenoblade Chronicles and that's increasing awareness of their games. It's a bit meta, but it does function as a useful advertising tool. That said, thanks to Smash 4, Xenoblade Chronicles and Shulk are better known. According to VGChartz, (yes, I know) the game sold better on Wii than 3DS by about 100,000 copies, but consider that you can download 3DS games which isn't exactly an easily obtained figure. The Wii's sales are purely physical, so it's entirely possible that the 3DS version outsold it. Anyway, I digress. My point is, Gravity Rush likely isn't a franchise Sony wants to give up on. All-Stars had your legacy group (Sir Dan and Parappa to name a couple), but Kat doesn't exactly have a legacy. Not yet. Her only game was on a great device that's struggling to make a name for itself in this industry. Sony also offered it for free via the Instant Game Collection. Obviously, they want more Gravity Rush and they know we do too. If you've played it, you'll likely agree.
VITA HD COLLECTIONS OF PLAYSTATION 2/3 TITLES
Inevitably, we will be hearing about remasters for Sony's platforms at E3.
2016:
RESIDENT EVIL: OUTBREAK FILES 1 & 2 HD REMASTER
Operation: Raccoon City wasn't good. At all. The main games with co-op haven't been stellar either. Sure, Outbreak had its gripes from players, but the scenarios and level of involvement were awesome in an online setting. The PS2's online definitely hurt the game more than help it, but it would be so grand playing through these scenarios with friends. No, they weren't perfect, but each scenario could've played out in such intense ways. Why not revive it? Capcom has been going for the easy touch-ups (REmake and Resident Evil Zero, which already have good-looking renders rather than giving Resident Evil 2 and 3 the complete overhaul). We could do better.
GRAN TURISMO 7
With three Forza entries on Xbox One once Forza 6 is released and an alleged release of GT7 sometime this year or next on PS4 (I'll push this into 2016 because this game alone would take away the "sparse" connotation they gave their holiday lineup), Polyphony Digital has their work cut out for them. They can't simply let Microsoft take all of the racing game fans. Driveclub didn't make the splash it could have, which left PlayStation gamers with a hole in their libraries. Sure, there's Project CARS, but Sony doesn't have their own racing sim on PS4 yet. I understand they want to take their time and make it right, but the clock is ticking and if they have ANY hope of this game releasing this year, it will be at E3 and not the PlayStation Experience.
THE NICHE...
Moving into the niche territory, I'm going to mention some awesome titles that are less known, but really need to happen. I have no real expectation of a time table, so any time between this year and next is fair game. So for niche games, I think I'd love to see...
DARK CLOUD 3
DAAK CLOWD SURI, GAIZ. DAAK CLOWD SURI. NUFF SAID. Level-5 needs to come back and do right by gamers, fans and newcomers to the series alike. This series made those of us who've played it jump for joy, especially at how great Level-5 has been with improving the series. The first one was touted by some as a "Zelda killer" much like Killzone was treated as a "Halo killer". We can argue about which one is superior, but if we're honest with ourselves, the first Dark Cloud was disappointing if you compared it to Zelda. Fun, but it didn't meet that hype. Not even close. The second game vastly improved upon the mechanics and combat of the first. Imagine the depth of a Georama on PlayStation 4. Yikes. But I should also talk about getting people on board with the series...which brings me to my next game(s) on the wishlist.
DARK CLOUD COLLECTION
Piggybacking my last game on the wishlist, it makes no sense to not have this happen, especially if Sony wants to revive the franchise. They may not wish to do so at all and this is extremely wishful thinking, but never say never. If any company would be willing to revive old games, regardless of sales potential, it's Sony. Such a collection may be more fit for Vita given its audience, but if they want to make Dark Cloud 3 massive, they need PS4 gamers on board; alternatively, they could put it on Vita to inspire Vita-only gamers to pick up a PS4. Oh, but what if you have neither and only have a PS3? Hmmm... Y'know what, Sony? I GUESS THE ONLY THING THAT CAN BE DONE IS TO RELEASE IT ON PS3, PS4, AND VITA WITH CROSS-SAVE FEATURES. Hint-hint, wink-wink.
CHILD OF EDEN: MORPHEUS EDITION
This would probably give me an intense, beautiful seizure where I drop to the ground, foaming at the mouth as I laboriously utter the words, "worth it". A game like Child of Eden would definitely complement Morpheus and Morpheus would hopefully earn this title some recognition. I can't imagine how vivid and insane it'd be at 120fps
THE MEGATON ANNOUNCEMENTS...
This is where it gets fun. What could Sony announce that would make many of us drop brown bricks? Well, for starters...
A PLAYSTATION EXCLUSIVE KICKSTARTER PROGRAM
Yes, yes, a thousand times YES! If Sony could secure exclusives by having gamers launch an app from their consoles and pledge a certain amount to fund a game's development, why WOULDN'T you be all over that? It's genius and would really help support the industry.
EA ACCESS ON PLAYSTATION 4
And why the heck not? Sony wants to prove they're for the gamers (and so far, I'd say they're doing okay in this regard), but giving us choice would be awesome. Some of us don't want PlayStation Now and wish we had backwards compatibility (we can thank x86 for taking that away from us). I personally haven't played much of EA's titles since Burnout: Revenge and the early Fight Night games on Xbox 360, but never rob your consumers of choice just because you want to lock that market down. It scares me to think about what Sony would be doing if they had no competition at all. To that, I say keep fighting, Xbox.
AN EXCLUSIVE PLATINUM GAMES TITLE
Bayonetta 2. Scalebound. I think Sony needs to set up a contract with Kamiya and make it happen. No, we don't need Metal Gear Rising 2 to be a PlayStation exclusive. Something new. Unless of course, Rising 2 would only happen if Sony funds it, a la Bayonetta 2. I'd like for it to be something new, but given the sensitive nature of what's happening over at Konami, this game has some failure potential. Again, a new IP would suffice.
HIDEO KOJIMA MORPHEUS HORROR GAME
We can't call it Silent Hills since the onus is now Konami's to bear. Kojima can't create a game with that name unless Konami contracts him, and I highly doubt that's happening...so let's call it "Hideo Kojima Morpheus Horror Game". If P.t. was any indication, the man really knew what he was doing. The procedurally generated enemies really made the demo since the experience was never really the same. I've gone through P.t. without being bothered by the apparition and times where I get turned around and I'm staring death in the face and freaking out. People often complain that horror games have no longevity, but that's the ultimate solution. Not only that, but Kojima has expressed a desire to make a game so scary, it could kill. Whether he meant it or not remains to be seen, but VR is the medium to deliver that experience. Although, it may not be possible; Spencer did in fact debunk any talk of Silent Hills exclusivity...but he didn't debunk Hideo Kojima's horror title. Hopefully we'll have answers, but I'd say if this project survives, given Kojima's relationship with Sony, it would be difficult to imagine Sony never getting anything out of it.
THE LAST OF US 2
Very optimistic, but Naughty Dog isn't a company to sit on its laurels for long. The fine people at the studio pride themselves in being prolific and Uncharted 4 will be out before then. At the very least, they could talk pre-production.
VALKYRIA CHRONICLES ON PS4
Three games, an anime, characters with appearances in Project X Zone, and characters appearing in Dengeki Bunko Fighting Climax. There is no way in the hollowed halls of Valhalla that SEGA wants this series to die out. It's among their better-received titles in recent memory They may be shifting focus, but if Sony funds this, it could and should happen. Since the first game came to PS3, 2 came to PSP, and 3 came to PSP and was never localized, I think it would be a grand idea to release a remastered collection with supra-PS3 artsy visuals on PS4. You get those people who skipped out on PS3 last generation as well as those who never owned a PSP and just about everyone outside of Japan can finally play 3. Best part? Trophy support, something none of the games had before. Hopefully, that'd sell well and set up nicely for a fourth installment on PS4.
RELEASE WINDOW FOR EPIC UPDATES
Something we often overlook is that E3 is not limited to gaming--electronic entertainment is, after all, an incredibly broad term. What would the updates be? Besides DLNA and some other stuff, I don't really know, but surprise us, Sony. The big updates so far have been grand, but you're the creative minds, we're the consumers.
CUSTOM THEMES
Do it, Sony. The fact that the PS3's slogans were "Play B3yond" and "It Only Does Everything" and the PS4's is "Greatness Awaits" isn't exactly one would call conducive for consumer goodwill. PS3 had custom dynamic themes and I think I speak for a fair share of us when I say, "I'm not paying $1.99 for a bloody butter theme". I get that they're trying to be encompassing of our interests by throwing up random, generic stuff like that, but instead of toiling over what themes to add and searching for as many ways to get money out of consumers as possible, just let us do us. You can't possibly give us everything we want in the store, so give us free reign over that. Of course, keep making themes, but let us make the stuff that you can't or won't make.
THE LAST GUARDIAN COMES OUT RIGHT AFTER SONY ANNOUNCES IT
It won't...but it would be awesome. Let's face it, if Andrew House said, "The Last Guardian will be available on PlayStation 3/4, the moment I finish this sentence", that still wouldn't be too soon. You had time to pre-order it when his sentence began.
So this would be my perfect E3. It won't happen, but if even 10% of my desired titles show up on this list, I can honestly say I'm excited. Of course, that depends on what 10% they choose. You've probably read this, realizing I didn't mention any indies. I don't dislike indies, but I feel like they should occupy no more than a 5-7 minute montage of indies coming to PlayStation, not take up 2-3 minutes for a single trailer. You also probably noticed I didn't talk too much about multiplatform titles. That's because I wanted to focus on exclusives.
So that's what I'm dreaming of. What are you thinking about? As always, feel free to agree/disagree/contribute in the comments and most importantly, thanks for reading. I get long-winded, but I like to explain myself. To compensate, please enjoy some images from some of the games I mentioned:
CHEESE-ITZ RICE
Not quite "Zelda Killer", but definitely a time sink in the best possible way.
The Last Guardian...to the gate halting an A+ E3
No vaccuum sounds in my house. Not this time, Kaz.
Perhaps the greatest masterpiece of the last generation
Fear the Old Blood
I'd be disgusted too if not enough people played my game.
Do you need a quick and easy way to check Payday 3 Server S
Pay Microsoft for a Gears game.
Well I think we all know there's a new model with a 1TB coming. Probably right in time for E3. I predict a $50-75 price drop on the current model of PS4 with 500GB.
Next - I think we're going to see more morpheus. I think the fact that they've been so quiet on that front lately that the reason is they're shoring up something interesting to display and possibly announce (though I predict a late 2016 release). So I doubt we'll see a pricepoint but a vague release window.
More games (exclusives ie: Uncharted, God of War and/or Ni No Kuni 2) more timed exclusive DLC for 3rd party titles (Looking directly at Call of Duty and somehow I suspect Fallout 4 DLC - maybe some very exclusive content) .
We're also likely to see some remasters (Original Uncharted series?)
@Billy,
I disagree. I consider myself a very critical and frugal gamer, so I'm quite selective in my interests. That said, I liked the first Gears of War, but the rest didn't really meet my expectations. I don't think PlayStation gamers are hurting for Gears. Personally, I found Uncharted 2 and The Last of Us' multiplayer modes to be much more fun. Different strokes, I suppose.
@Crazay,
A price drop is possible, but I think they're going to be doing restructuring. They could drop the price of the 500GB model or, to reduce consumer confusion with configurations, just do away with the 500GB and release the 1TB at $400.
I think we'll see a price for Morpheus, but I think that whatever they announce will be a huge turnoff. It's an accessory and Sony would do well to remember that those almost NEVER do well. It has to be a steal for consumers or it won't take off. It also needs exclusive content and lots of it. They can't give you a steep price with no games. They also can't make it affordable with no games because then there's no point to owning one. It'll be an uphill battle, for sure.
More games would be great, but unless it's reviving an incredibly old but loved franchise or new IPs, I don't really care to hear about some of the other stuff. Ni No Kuni 2 would be grand, but I'm more about Dark Cloud 3. Uncharted 4 isn't out yet, so I'd rather not hear about another one right now. If they do, I imagine it'll be a remastered collection or Vita game. Let's just get Uncharted 4 out first. God of War I think we'll hear about, but honestly, I can live without God of War for another 5 years. I can't speak for everyone, but the repetitive combat has finally taken a toll on my patience for it following God of War III.
As for exclusive DLC, I think they should either secure new IPs developed by third parties or collaborate and make forgotten franchises happen. Fund either Shenmue 3 or a new Onimusha, y'know? I don't care for exclusive DLC because all that does is give you a more complete version of a game which you'll undoubtedly need to pay for, timed or otherwise. In the best case, they make new IPs, revive forgotten ones, or collaborate with third parties to bring either of the aforementioned scenarios. Devil May Cry 5 would be welcome.
Yes, remasters are inevitable. I expect to hear about two or three. I've come to be okay with them, but don't take up more time than you need to with demonstrations. Just mention it in a passing breath, upload gameplay to YouTube or PSN and be done with it.
Also, something I forgot to mention in the blog: increase online storage. It's terrible.
i want a classic revival.. i dont care about the uncharteds last of us and others.. they have to revive an old JRPG if they want me to go crazy.They have a massive library of games that are just waiting to be brought back to life.
So far this is PS3.5, apart from Bloodborne.
It's going to be a Platinum PlayStation headset with Pulse technology, it was speculated by insiders that they have been working on a pulse headset and i would assume it'll be called Platinum not Gold pulse.
I want to see GG's new ip, Media Molecule's, SCE Bend's ect.
Anouncement of God of War IV.
Confirmed Morpheus Titles as well as No Man's Sky, Rapture and SOMA confirmed for Morpheus as well.
PS Home on PS4 announcement, why not?
Resistance Collection that includes psp offering "Retribution" on PS4.
Ratchet & Clank reboot gameplay with 3D support, more 3D support on PS4 in general. More info on Let it Die and Deep Down.
I've been overly impressed with PS4 thus far and i love every single PS4 exclusive so far. I know i will get 12345543478 disagrees but i enjoyed the less popular of the PS4 exclusives as well - i enjoyed knack and found it to be pleasurable in an old school PlayStation way and i enjoyed the gadget/crystal building process with contributions from friends who've played the game. I love The Order and do not need to defend that wrongly judged game. I thoroughly enjoy my time with Shadowfall's sp and mp and i liked the larde open maps and gorgeous visual, the Owl rocked!
This isn't "ps3.5" there are a plethora of geat games waiting to be played.