This Saturday, Sony will be holding its second Playstation Experience conference, delivering their big keynote speech at 1 PM EST. As such, over the past few weeks the rumor mill has been churning as the internet tries to predict what Shuhei Yoshida has in store for us. In the process, some interesting information has come to light, and some juicy teases have been made. I’ve listed here some things that are shoe-ins, some that are a little less likely, and some Sony first-party titles we haven’t heard about in a while that may make an appearance:
SQUARE ENIX ANNOUNCES FINAL FANTASY VII RELEASE (PC PORT), NO TROLLING PLEASE
The inaugural PSX conference last year was infamous for the “Square Enix Troll.” The Japanese publisher was building up to what seemed like an announcement of the long-awaited Final Fantasy 7 Remake, and fully aware of what they were doing, dropped the news that it was actually the PC version of the original that would make its way to the PS4. At some point.
Of course, in hindsight they were probably stalling for that big E3 announcement. Nevertheless, our hearts have yet to recover.
It’s been a year, and it would be a nice olive branch for Square Enix to actually drop this thing, maybe even make it available as the conference is underway. I feel that it is a given we will hear something regarding this title, as the trophies have surfaced on Exophase, an indicator that a game is ready to go.
PS2 EMULATION IS COMING, OR IS ALREADY HERE
At this point, Sony has confirmed that they are at least “looking into” emulation of their greatest success. But honestly, the buzz had been around before that WIRED article, so why comment now? Well, when you have a big conference just for your most devoted fans, this is the kind of announcement that will drive hype. This feature was part of that survey sent out a while back, so it has definitely been on their radar for a while.
SONY SANTA MONICA HAS…SOMETHING TO ANNOUNCE
Do you have any idea what this image might mean in relation to the creators of the God of War franchise? The studio tweeted this image a few days ago with the cryptic message “Take A Step.” The timing of this definitely means we will be hearing something from Sony Santa Monica on Saturday, but what? Last year, Creative Director Cory Barlog told IGN that a new God of War was in development, and that they would be willing to share more in “a year or two.” Is this related?
DESTINY
For better or worse, Sony has chosen to make their console the “home” of Activision’s big shooter franchises this time around. Destiny has become a juggernaut sales wise, and you can bet Bungie will have some sort of presence at the conference.
At this point last year, players were awaiting the release of the Dark Below DLC, but right now the community is starved for new information. Bungie has done an admirable job trickling out content to keep Guardians playing, but a quick look at Reddit will show that the community wants to know what comes next following the success of The Taken King.
It would not be surprising to get an announcement for the next DLC. If Kotaku’s reporting is to be believed, a full-fledged sequel was planned for 2016. Rest assured, if you were hoping to not see Destiny, prepare to be disappointed.
WHERE IS FAT PRINCESS ADVENTURES?
While some tidbits regarding gameplay have popped up here and there, we still don’t have a hard release for the action-roleplaying spin-off title. Obviously, this is not a marquee title. Nevertheless, Playstation Experience was started to showcase first-party titles big and small.
DRAWN TO DEATH READY?
This is another game that recently got its trophy list. Like Fat Princess Adventures, this is not a huge title, but it is one that will resonate with the hardcore fans. It is also a game we have not heard from in a while. Could a drop during the conference be in the cards?
NAUGHTY DOG’S NEW GAME
A few months ago, voice actor Nolan North seemed to have accidentally confirmed that a sequel to The Last of Us is in the works. Naughty Dog took a step back and publicly stated that the chances for a sequel were 50-50, clarifying that North’s statement was made with regards to a prototype for a sequel (one of many potential prototypes). It seems like a no-brainer that Naughty Dog is working on something concrete now that Uncharted 4 and the end of Nathan Drake’s saga is on the horizon. The question is whether or not they will follow-up on their other surprise smash hit.
The Last of Us was announced at the VGAs in December of 2011, a little over a month after the release of Uncharted 3. Will Naughty Dog share their new game before Uncharted 4 drops?
WHAT IS SONY BEND UP TO?
Perhaps to greatest mystery in the Sony universe: what is Sony bend working on? The last game they put out was Uncharted: Golden Abyss on the Vita. That was four years ago, and since then all we know was that they were working on an inFamous game for the Vita that was cancelled. However, last E3, Shuhei Yoshida teased fans by saying that he had played their upcoming PS4 title and that it both played and looked amazing. He has continued to state how excited he is about their project, never revealing the slightest hint about it. The rumor is that it is an open-world horror game, but that is really all we have to go on, making this one of the most anticipated reveals Sony could make.
MORE INFO ON PLAYSTATION VR
Sony put a lot of effort into pushing VR at Paris Games Week this year. While we would all love to know when it is coming and what it will cost, we might have to wait a little longer. I have no doubt that Sony will talk about their next frontier, but they really have to build the support before they commit to hard numbers and dates.
OH, AND PLEASE LET US CHANGE OUR PSN NAMES
Now, I have obviously left out some big titles. Uncharted 4 will surely make some sort of appearance to coincide with the start of the multiplayer beta on December 3rd. We also might get some new info or footage of Horizon: Zero Dawn. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if these games took a back seat. Despite winning the retail wars of Black Friday, Sony still has a lot of first-party games they’ve yet to deliver on and some studios we haven’t heard from in a while. In addition to Sony Bend and Santa Monica, we’ve yet to hear from Sucker Punch, nor do we know what Insomniac will do with Ratchet and Clank post-reboot.
Look forward to more coverage as the event gets underway this weekend.
