We may still be mourning the loss of E3, but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the odd evening out with the people who put it in an early grave. In the (very) early hours of this morning, PlayStation hosted its first State of Play of the year, digging deep into games that have been on our release radar for some time now and a couple of new ones that weren’t. That means previews of Rise of the Ronin, Metro Awakening VR, and the opportunity to spend some quality time inside the eccentric mind of PlayStation’s poster boy, Hideo Kojima.
Those sensible enough to succumb to a bit of shut-eye while PlayStation’s slate of announcements was going down, don’t fear. We’ve done all the watching for you — and compiled it into a handy list which you can browse at your leisure… or right now. No time like the present.
State of Play February 2024
Helldivers II
The evening commenced with a new trailer for Helldivers II and it’s got about as many rad gear-up sequences, laser guns, and title cards as you’d expect. A whole bunch, in other words. If that’s all the convincing you need to pick it up, you’ll be able to do so come 8 February 2024. If you’ve got a PS5, that is.
Stellar Blade
Taking up nearly six minutes of the event’s precious forty-minute runtime was an extended look at Stellar Blade and it gave us some real Final Fantasy vibes. Players fill the shoes of Eve, a remaining survivor left on the post-apocalyptic version of Earth that Shift Up has cooked up. It’s got some pretty cutscenes, and interesting DMC-like combat and hits the PS5 on 26 April 2024.
Sonic x Shadow Generations
Remember Sonic Generations? It’s getting a makeover because that’s all Sega knows what to do with the Sonic franchise at this point. We’re not complaining, though. The remaster is bringing with it current-gen graphics and oddly enough, Shadow the Hedgehog as a playable character. News is still scarce, aside from the vague Spring release window and a release on PC and both current- and last-gen consoles.
Zenless Zone Zero
Take a good look at the rather short trailer for the Zenless Zone Zero because that’s all you’re getting out of the creators of Genshin Impact for the time being. We know it’s “in development for PlayStation 5,” and will probably appeal to the weebs of the world, but that’s about it.
Move aside Splatoon, Foamstars has arrived
While Xbox gamers are getting hold of titles like Starfield as day-one launch titles (though in hindsight that might not be the flex they thought it was), PlayStation is getting a Splatoon knock-off by the name of Foamstars. Considering Splatoon’s stature in the cutesy FPS realm, we’ll give it its fair day in court when it launches next week, 6 February on PS5 and PS4.
Dave the Diver and… Godzilla?
Famed ‘indie’ title Dave the Diver is finally taking the plunge and coming over to PS5, and it’s bringing with it a Godzilla DLC because why the hell not? Dave the Diver caused some controversy at The Game Awards, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t an excellent title deserving of another release. Speaking of, that’ll be happening sometime in April, with the DLC following in May.
V Rising
After what we can only imagine was a successful launch on PC a couple of years back, V Rising is coming to PlayStation in all its top-down, vampiric glory. We don’t exactly know when, but it’ll arrive before 2024 is over. That’s something.
Silent Hill: The Short Message
Honestly, we thought a riot was about to break out in the livestream’s comment section when Silent Hill: The Short Message turned up on our screens and didn’t simply have a ‘2’ attached to its name. It didn’t take much to quell the crowd when it became apparent that this was a short, free-to-play title designed to help newbies fall in love with the universe. It helped too that Konami had something else hidden up its sleeve…
Silent Hill 2
Yup, the Silent Hill 2 remake hasn’t been forgotten and will be coming… sometime. We got a brief glimpse of the combat system that’ll be in play, before being greeted with a tantalizing “In development for PlayStation 5 message.” It was almost worth it though to see James pulverize, shoot and generally scrape through a host of familiar enemies.
Judas
We’re simple beings. Tell us that Ken Levine — the creator of Bioshock — is involved in the creation of a new Bioshock-looking game, and we’ll be on board before you finish talking. And after seeing Judas’ story trailer, we knew our blind faith had paid off — even if there isn’t a release date in sight. It’s a first-person shooter that’s about to have us questioning society and social media. We can’t wait.
Metro Awakening
As excited as we are for a continuation in the Metro world in the form of Metro Awakening, it’s marred ever so slightly by it being a PSVR 2 title. Still, for the people who can afford the hefty entrance fee, it looks like it’s going to be a good time when it eventually releases later this year.
Legendary Tales
Legendary Tales is another PSVR 2 title, this time coming from Urban Wolf Games. You’re quite literally put in the shoes of what appears to be a knight in medieval times. If that isn’t enough to convince you of its apparent awesomeness, it’s loaded with swords, bows, magic and skeleton soldiers. You won’t have to wait long, either, with an 8 February release date.
Dragon’s Dogma 2
When it comes to a Dragon’s Dogma trailer, we expect one thing: dragons. Capcom didn’t disappoint and has delivered in spades in the long-awaited sequel. It’s not only dragons, though, with the trailer showcasing the game’s extensive rouge gallery comprising the sort of beasts Hagrid might own. It’ll be arriving on 22 March for PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.
Rise of the Ronin
Now we’re getting to the big stuff. It was finally Rise of the Ronin’s turn in the spotlight, and it brought with it a more extensive gameplay overview rather than a regular old trailer. We’ve been excited about this one for a while, considering it’s made by the people who have been making stellar ninja experiences since Ninja Gaiden arrived on the scene. The trailer didn’t do anything to dissuade us from picking this one up on day one, which happens to be 22 March 2024.
Until Dawn
As it turns out, those rumours of a Until Dawn refresher were right. It’s officially official now and we can build up our excitement without the worry that it was all an elaborate hoax. It’s the same story that launched on the PS4 all those years ago but has been “rebuilt and enhanced” for the PS5 and now, PC. There isn’t a release date attached, but we know it’s landing in 2024.
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
Norman Reedus returns as Sam in Kojima’s Death Stranding 2, now titled On the Beach. It’s promising a walking experience more grandiose than The Lord of the Rings and a new companion in the form of a talking puppet clipped to his belt. No, that wasn’t a joke. We’d be wary of watching all nine minutes of footage shown off here if spoilies are a concern. A couple of minutes should be good enough to build enough hype for the 2025 release date.
One More Thing…
Is an event even worth watching if Hideo Kojima doesn’t manage to wiggle his way in and start making some over-the-top promises involving some new, game-changing tech? Okay, he doesn’t do that often, but he did last night, announcing Physint, a totally-not-Metal-Gear title in the action-espionage genre that’s part game and part… movie? We don’t fully understand it either, and that’s sort of the point. Put this one at the back of your mind for now. Something tells us it’ll be a while before Kojima talks about it again.