"The Future of gaming"
After a one week delay, Sony and Playstation finally unveiled the PS5 today. With the reveal came a slew of new IPs, sequels to PS classics like Spider-Man and Horizon Zero Dawn, and an array of indie games. With any new console announcement, there was certainly a lot to be excited about. Of course, there's always a little bit of bad to go with the good. So, let's get right into it. What hit the mark, and what failed to launch?
The Good:
It's fitting that the first new game announcement for the PS5 came from Insomniac Games and the reveal of Spider-Man: Miles Morales, the sequel to the award-winning PS4 classic, Spider-Man. Showing off Miles Morales first is appropriate to the times and was an important show of support for Black Lives Matter. But fans of the original game also made it known that they wanted to see the sequel feature Miles and his unique powers, and it seems like Insomniac has delivered. With a "Holiday 2020" release date, it appears that Spider-Man: Miles Morales will be a PS5 launch title.
Sony also unveiled a brand new entry in the stable Playstation franchise, Ratchet & Clank, with Rift Apart. Although I've never played a single Ratchet & Clank title, the franchise is a Playstation mainstay, and the latest sequel looks fun and like something I would possibly play. Unlike Spider-Man, a release window was not announced.
One indie title that caught my eye is a game called Stray. With incredible looking graphics, it seems like you play as what the title suggests, a stray cat. Not much else was detailed, but this was one of the few games that appeared to show off the PS5's enhanced graphics.
Of the many indie titles announced throughout the stream, the one that made me lean forward was Kena: Bridge of Spirits, an action-adventure game from brothers Mike and Josh Grier and their Ember Labs team. For one thing, Kena looks gorgeous on the PS5. The use of magic through her staff and its ability to change into what she needs it to be depending on the encounter also got me excited. No release was given for Kena: Bridge of Spirits, but the game will also be released on PC after a short time as a PS5 exclusive.
Perhaps the most exciting announcement besides the console reveal itself was Horizon II: Forbidden West, the much-anticipated sequel to Horizon: Zero Dawn. HZD is easily a Top 5 all-time favorite game of mine, and I was really hoping this would show up, and luckily, Sony saved the best for last. Forbidden West seems to continue Aloy's story from Guirella's entry-title, as she heads to America's West Coast to uncover more about her past, the machines that now roam the Earth, and if the planet is once again in Danger from HADES. Once again, no release date has been announced.
Getting to see the actual Playstation 5 console after months of waiting was undoubtedly a treat, and we also got some specs on the console, even if a lot of them had already been leaked.
One massive complaint leveraged at Sony when the PS4 Pro launched was its lack of 4K UHD Blu-ray player, despite the console being a 4K device. Luckily, that has been remedied in the PS5. Also announced with the PS5 is Ray Tracing, which is a rendering technique that makes the lighting in video games look incredibly believable and realistic. The PS5 will also have a high-speed Solid State Drive, and come in two different models: a physical media edition and a digital-only edition.
While I already know that I'm getting the physical media edition, having the option to get one without the disk drive is a smart move on Sony's part. It's no secret that consoles aren't cheap, but having a digital-only option will undoubtedly have a lower price point and help Sony sell more consoles.
Finally, the console itself is sleek and curvy and will be a welcome addition to my media center. The change of pace with making it white is also a nice touch, though I'm sure there will be a black edition too.
The Bad:
Indie titles. This opinion is more biased than others, but I'm mostly a AAA title player only when it comes to games. One, I don't have time to devote to indie titles; two, they don't interest me. That being said, today's PS5 reveal stream focused heavily on these games, and it may not have been the best decision if the point of this reveal was to get people to buy the new console.
Gamers are dying to see just what the PS5 can do, and while yes, we got some AAA titles scattered throughout today's event, the focus on subpar looking games, at least in the graphical sense, games was a bore, and not the best way to showcase the Playstation 5. Yes, Sony and Playstation have always done a fantastic job featuring indie titles, I don't know if today was the day to do it.
Are we supposed to be impressed by this?
Noticeably absent were two significant sports franchises from EA, FIFA and Madden. Sony elected instead to feature NBA 2K21, and it almost made the "ugly" section if I'm honest. Led in by a player from the Pelicans, all we saw was the guy dribbling and doing a dunk. No actual in-game play, and graphics that made the guy look like he had a plastic leg. Not exactly an "and one" with this reveal.
The Ugly:
It is now June 11th. On June 10th, 2013, I had pre-ordered my PS4: Launch Edition on Amazon at the $399.96 price point. Not only did Sony not announce a price point for the PS5 today, but they also mentioned nothing about a potential release or pre-order date.
I understand that we are currently going through some tough times in the world, but even pre-COVID, looking back once again at the PS4 release, Sony had announced the price point over a year before the console's launch. It has heavily been rumored that Sony is playing "price chicken" with Microsoft, and is holding off on a price until one has been announced for the Xbox Series X.
Simply put, this is unacceptable. Many people spend their hard-earned money on these consoles and games, and this close to release (less than six months is a reasonable estimate), not even having an estimated price point is ridiculous. Gamers want to start saving. Not only do they(we) have to save for the console, but you also have to factor in what games you're going to buy as well.
Verdict:
The new consoles are coming. Both Sony and Microsoft have both said there shouldn't be a delay despite concerns with COVID. There was a lot of excitement surrounding this event today, and for the most part, it delivered. I think the reveal showed something for everyone, even if it didn't fully highlight the PS5' hardware capabilities enough. Needless to say, I'll be picking one up if I can get a pre-order in.
How about you? Did you enjoy today's event? Will you be picking up a PS5 or an Xbox Series X? Let us know in the comments or shoot us an email.
