PS5 launch could mean a new 'God of War' or 'Shadow of the Colossus'
What games could launch with the next-gen console?
Sony Interactive Entertainment has revealed a second batch of details and features included on the new PlayStation 5, which will release late in 2020. The update primarily revolved around key hardware improvements, but the PS5’s headlining game release might have also been teased, and it could involve one of Sony’s signature exclusives, God of War.
A Wired article Tuesday broke down the boosts in performance and improved Dualshock controllers with haptic feedback Sony has planned for its next-gen console. But there was only a single mention of a specific game that will leverage the PS5’s newly announced capabilities.
Bluepoint Games, a Texas-based indie developer, revealed it is cooking up a banger for the PS5. The studio is best known for leading acclaimed remasters of Shadow of Colossus, Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection, and the God of War Collection for PS3. Bluepoint president Marco Thrush told Wired fans of the console should be prepared for another surprise from the developer once the PS5 hits shelves.
What game could define the PlayStation 5 when it launches?
“We’re working on a big one right now,” he said. “I’ll let you figure out the rest.”
Thrush didn’t say anything about what the game could be, or its release date. But based on Bluepoint’s past releases, it’s possible to make an educated guess.
It could be a complete God of War bundle
Back in 2009, Bluepoint ported God of War and God of War II to the PS3 as the God of War Collection. The series has since grown to include God of War III, Chains of Olympus, and Ghost of Sparta, Ascension, and most recently the critically acclaimed God of War. Bluepoint could round up all of the franchise’s releases into an epic, must-own collection of the signature PS exclusive.
The lead developers of God of War, Sony’s Santa Monica Studio, also dropped a big hint it was working on some kind of follow up to the mythology-based game in June. It posted a job opening for a “Senior Combat Designer” that requires applicants to have “knowledge of God of War (2018) and be able to speak in depth about the combat system, mechanics, and enemies.”
Bluepoint and Santa Monica could once again team up to release the definitive 'God of War' collection.
Bluepoint and Santa Monica collaborated to bring the God of War Collection to the PS3. Tuesday’s PS5 teaser and this Santa Monica job listing could be signs that a massive God of War collection is underway. This might seem like an ambitious undertaking, but Santa Monica might have already laid the groundwork for it with its 2018 release.
God of War game director Cory Barlog told Kotaku most of the time spent on last year’s game was dedicated to complicated logistics like constructing the game’s engine from the ground up, and other labor-intensive mechanics. Bluepoint could once again team up to port all of the past God of War games to this engine and optimize it for the PS5’s graphical capabilities.
However, Bluepoint could do the same for Shadow of Colossus.
It could be a definitive Shadow of Colossus collection
Bluepoint made waves when it published all of Naughty Dog’s Uncharted games as a single PS4 collection. Sony even bundled the release with a console. Bluepoint could do the same for Shadow of Colossus and Ico, another action-adventure game Shadow of Colossus is loosely based on.
Bluepoint could take advantage of its recent work on 'Shadow of Colossus' to remaster 'Ico' as well.
Both titles were developed by SCE Japan Studio and Team Ico and released exclusively on the PS2 in the early-to-mid 2000s. Shadow of Colossus is considered the spiritual successor to Ico, and both were remastered and released as a bundle for the PS3 in 2011 by SIE Japan Studio.
Bluepoint could try its hand at recreating this two-in-one feature for the PS5, which Sony could then sell as a Shadow of Colossus bundle as it did for Uncharted.
This would be a relatively simple release, as most of the work would be spent refining Ico, while Shadow of Colossus would only need graphical tweaks to make the most out of the PS5. It wouldn’t be as an ambitious release as a God of War collection, but the series’ vast landscapes and monolithic beasts would look stunning with the PS5’s juiced up graphics.
Gamers will need to wait until the 2020 holiday season to get any solid answers about what the PS5’s headlining game release could be.
The PlayStation 5 will be released late in 2020.
