Topic: Next Playstation Showcase/SOP

@Th3solution I’m totally with you about giving a game enough time after it releases for any hype/hate to subside and then you can just go in and form your own opinion without all the prior noise. Cant wait to hear your thoughts on some of those huge open-world blockbusters though 😉

Didn't see the state of play, but seen a couple of trailers in all the 4K goodness. I thought Saros and Wolverine looked sick. Glad they were not shy in showing off the gory combat for the latter. Defo my kinda thing.

Gotta be time for Ace Combat 8 (with full VR support) Shirley?
I was replaying AC7 VR missions today and they just so awesome.
Chocks away!

I've just convinced myself that (because Sony surely like money) they will have found a way to get Nathan Drake into another Uncharted game.

They must have learned by now that user trends seem to veer towards displeasure when a popular franchise moves away from a beloved protagonist. And I know there is the sentiment that doing endless sequels is not really great. But at this moment in time, it kind of feels like the gaming world needs a classic, much loved character to get another run out on the PS side of things. And Drake is probably the only one that can provide that comfort food to build bridges for those that felt however they felt about other games.

Giving people Nathan Drake might also make people more likely to move on and maybe, just maybe, also buy Intergalactic to judge it on its own merits, too (as a new IP) Because people are still genuinely hurt on the internet about TLoU2 and that still seeps into all kinds of other things. I literally saw people arguing about TLoU2 this morning on a steelbook reddit 🙈

I don't necessarily think that the people that got so enraged by the game (or leaks) are right to have done so, and I definitely don't agree that those hurt feelings should have led to the tirade of hate. But feelings were hurt, it can't be denied, and maybe the only way for people to move on from that is to be placated to via another popular franchise.

I didn't really know where to put this. So I will now predict that Uncharted gets announced around the game awards and in time it will turn into a state of play etc etc.

@Ravix I was really confused by your comment placement until I saw the last section. 😂

I too think an Uncharted is in the works and I think there’s a small possibility it gets revealed at the Game Awards.

Where I disagree is that Naughty Dog will concede and make a Nathan Drake focused Uncharted to please the masses. And maybe what you’re saying is just his presence in the game rather than being the main protagonist; I think his having a cameo might happen but my gut is that ND is the kind of studio to follow their own select vision, critics be damned, and it seemed from UC4 that Drake was to be put on the shelf indefinitely.

All that said, I think the next Uncharted will be A) not done by Naughty Dog and B) have a different protagonist. It will likely have familiar gameplay and narrative style to the original series though. I could be very wrong and we might get Nate returning and I wouldn’t be sad about it either way.

Nathan Drake's story is over. But I also kind of associate him with the IP as a whole, so I'd prefer a different action-focused IP.

Intergalactic looks like it could be cool.

I just REALLY want them to move on from The Last of Us now.

@Th3solution @Ralizah

Oh, I too agree that Drake is over and done with, and tied up with a nice bow. But maybe the landscape of the world needs him now more than ever, and that could be the kind of thing to actually make them screw up plans of passing the torch and just slapping him back in the action. It would 100% be about fan service and not story integrity, but I kind of want to see a game come out that people don't instantly jump on and moan about. I'm sick of the grifters and the hatred, and it is a cheap way to move away from that, but it would at least be a nice break from it at the same time.

I'd happily play as daughter Drake, but I don't think many people can handle another round of absolute bile from the "gaming community" and the industry itself doesn't need that, and maybe this is enough to convince them to roll out the big man one last time.

Plus they are trying to sell a movie franchise based around Nathan Drake (and Sully) not his daughter, nor his brother. So that may factor in, too.

It feels like it woild be the smart decision, and Sony needs a few of those to add up for 2026 and 2027. Wolverine being one of them that should appease a lot of people. But the hate for Intergalactic, an all new IP (crazy right?) is very real. So maybe, just maybe they need to do themselves a PR favour this once.

@Ravix ND is no stranger to courting controversy in recent years, so I don't really see them doing that.

Especially considering TLOU Part II endured a very intense hate campaign and still succeeded on all fronts in spite of it.

We just live in an age now where any sort of 'diverse' or not traditionally attractive female lead is going to be used as fodder for hate campaigns. Not every game needs to be for every person. The incel crowd will gladly part with their money when Stellar Blade 2 comes out anyway.

@Ralizah oh yeah, overall and on principle I agree conpletely. But Sony aiming for 15-20 million sales on a Drake Uncharted would definitely tempt me, looking at it from an SIE perspective. They need a BIG win in this new landscape (post live service & upset manchild era)

@Ravix I doubt a new game but I could see the original Uncharted trilogy being remade considering how TLoU got a remake in the PS5 era despite already having a PS4 remaster and Nathan Drake Collection wasn't ported to PC.

@Ravix I follow your logic and can’t disagree — some gaming “comfort food” might help swing the public opinion back on track. But I think you have Wolverine for that, as you mention, and Saros going with a traditional Male archetype hero. Kratos and/or Atreus are out there brewing to, for sure, as well as Spider-Man. We just got Sam Bridges too, a tough and gruff Joel-like.

For me, I really would like a Cassie Drake game. Maybe they will try to compromise and have Cassie have a glow-up and look like a supermodel to help move copies. A better approach would be to make her be a snarky female version of her dad. Witty and clever, adventurous and well-read. Maybe a storyline where her dad gets abducted and she has to go save him. Just don’t give him the golf club treatment or else the fandom definitely will lose their minds.

Lara Croft would like a word with you, sir.

And I say that as somebody who'd love another Uncharted and agrees that it should feature a grown-up Cassie, if not in the playable protagonist role then at least as a major supporting character, to ensure continuity. It's why, as much as I kinda hate him, I was ultimately glad Sam Drake was featured in The Lost Legacy. Chloe and Nadine were brilliant, and would have been more than enough on their own, but Sam's presence towards the end really tied everything together.

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As for last night's Japan-centric SOP, I randomly half-expected to see an exclusive Godzilla game get itself revealed. Toho are reportedly pursuing new licencing opportunities as part of Goji's recent resurgence, so I stupidly got my hopes up.

Sony could do a lot worse than adding that intellectual property to its line-up.

@Werehog Lol, Miss Croft definitely blazed the trail already there didn’t she. Maybe they could put an American spin on the character type, or make her emo or something to distinguish her. But hey, they don’t seem to be making any Tomb Raider games presently, so there’s a void to fill!

@Th3solution There's one in the works, supposedly set for reveal and release next year, to celebrate the series' 30th anniversary. It's why they've been ramping up with the remasters of the classics, to remind folks of the legacy and build hype.

Which isn't to say a new Uncharted starring Cassie couldn't co-exist alongside it. Sony won't really care about splitting the audience. Uncharted is big enough of a draw by itself now.

@Werehog Oh I didn’t realize that a new entry was that close. I know the IP exchanged hands a couple years ago and it seemed like there was enough shake-up that I wondered if we’d see TR for a while. If it all comes through then 2026 is going to be stacked indeed!

But yes, agree that Uncharted, Tomb Raider, and even Indiana Jones now that he’s got a relevant game, can all coexist with the audience being big enough for them all, not to mention each has its own gameplay wrinkles. But in the case of Uncharted, Cassie or Nate or someone else, it is likely to expand toward something more open, is my guess, and become more similar to what TR has been doing. That’s just a hunch though.

A hunch I agree with, if that large central area in The Lost Legacy is anything to go by.

@Werehog The gaming spirits have been following our conversation because no sooner did we discuss the TR game in development, then the front page article popped up yesterday about layoffs at the studio. I hope the game is still on track.

@Th3solution Yeah, I saw. The tragic commonality of layoffs in the industry doesn't make them any less heartbreaking to read about each and every time. Having said that, now speaking as a selfish Tomb Raider fan, I can only hope that Crystal Dynamics are downsizing because their work is nearing completion, and not because the project's in any kind of trouble.