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Hey, everybody! Sid, Kristen, and Brett are back this week to discuss their top games of 2025, both in terms of hours played and the ones they can’t stop thinking about. This episode also includes a spoiler-filled Ghost of Yōtei interview with Sucker Punch Creative Directors Jason Connell and Nate Fox.

Stuff We Talked About

• Holiday Cards 2025 — Celebrate the holidays with festive cards from our studio friends and developers. See if you can find your favorite characters getting into some yuletide shenanigans.
  
  
• Marathon new features and updates — Get detailed information on all the changes and updates made to Marathon ahead of its March 2026 release. Extract all the data and be prepared to run as a squad or solo.
  
  
• Saros developers reflect on Story Trailer — The Housemarque team breaks down the new story trailer, going over the emotional throughlines of the title, working with seasoned actors to bring the vision to life, and more.
  
  
• Helldivers 2 update —.Blast into some mandatory holiday cheer with the Festival of Reckoning on December 18. Enjoy limited-time access to a host of stratagems and other themed goodies.
  
  
• PlayStation Blog GOTY 2025 Winners — The votes are in, and it’s time to see what the community’s top picks are for 2025.

The Cast

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Last week, we asked you take off and share your best moments in Microsoft Flight Simulator using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here’s this week’s highlights:

Akkan_Vader shares a birdseye view of their plane above a sprawling city

TheSkinnyRage shares their plane taking off into the night

Akkan_Vader shares their plane on the tarmac ready to take off

Search #PSshare #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this week’s theme, or be inspired by other great games featuring Photo Mode. Want to be featured in the next Share of the Week?

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Unforgettable stories and characters, outrageous combat, and some hilarious mini-games – the acclaimed Yakuza / Like a Dragon series has a massive following for all the right reasons.

With Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties’ launching on PlayStation 5 February 12 next year – and to celebrate the franchise’s 20th anniversary, with the first game Yakuza launching on PS2 20 years ago this month – it’s only fitting to mark the moment with some of the developers who know these hard-hitting titles best.

So we sat down with Executive Producer Masayoshi Yokoyama, Chief Director Ryosuke Horii, and Chief Producer Hiroyuki Sakamoto to talk about their thoughts on the series’ 20th anniversary, its journey so far, and the upcoming Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties. 

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Where to start? It’s a familiar mantra to those of us who have ridden into the lavish landscapes of Ghost of Yōtei’s Ezo. With a rediscovered home behind, and a world filled with revenge, myths and secrets ahead, it’s proven a wonderful dilemma to have. And every corner explored, each tale told, and duel won leading to further questions, one of which kept recurring throughout: how did this all come together? To answer, we reached out to ask two people who can speak to Ezo’s secrets best: the game’s creative directors Jason Connell and Nate Fox. 

Sitting down with them, and a whole game to unpack, came the now-familiar refrain: where to start? The answer to that: begin at the end. 

A word of warning then: this interview strays deep into spoiler territory. First, mark every member of the Yotei Six off your list, and discover every hidden corner of Ezo. The following chat charts game design choices, key side missions, the game’s conclusion and more. 

Spoilers below

Note: This version of the interview is condensed for clarity and brevity. The full conversation will be available on PlayStation Podcast later today. 

PlayStation Blog: The game’s final duel is a battle with Lord Saito. It really feels like it’s all been leading up to this moment, not just for Atsu, but also the player and that Saito throws practically every challenge you’ve learned to face at you in one single duel. Can you tell us a bit about how you approach the mechanics of this fight?

Jason Connell: We wanted the ending to be an emotional moment, one that brought together all of her journey of overcoming trauma. And it’s both about kind of figuring out that there’s something better to live for, but also to kind of celebrate the ways that the player has, through their efforts, kind of improved Atsu, made her more capable. And in Ghost of Yotei, that’s about mastering weapons, becoming more confident, more capable. And so, Saito himself will attack you with every weapon that you will need to counter with weapons that you’ve learned throughout your journey. This is a chance to celebrate your mastery and understand how to counter and deal with that. Ultimately, in the final battle, where it’s Katana versus Katana, it’s bringing it back down to that simple sword that your father forged in celebration of his two children, and that’s the weapon that you finished the battle with. 

The Storm Blade story. It’s a fascinating one in so much that it reveals the fate of Jin Sakai. Can you tell us about how you approach the creation of this mission? Is there any concern about talking about the protagonist of the previous title in Ghost of Yotei, or confirming a relatively sad end to such a beloved character?

Nate Fox: I would say about a year or two into production, we had some ideas of where that might be and how we might be able to honor that character. We always knew it was going to happen. But then when we started placing it in the world, we just found this wonderful spot that really felt like it could be his spot, you know, and we could celebrate all aspects, whether it’s the tree or the Pampas grass or

Hello, Proxies! Greetings from the Zenless Zone Zero dev team. I’m Zhenyu Li, the producer of Zenless Zone Zero. As our exploration of Waifei Peninsula deepens, the culminating chapter of Season 2 finally sheds light on long-buried secrets. I am excited to share that Zenless Zone Zero Version 2.5 “To Be Fuel for the Night” will arrive on December 30, bringing abundant content, optimizations, and rewards.

Unraveling the secrets hidden within the Hollow’s expansion

During past battles, the legendary Qingming Sword resonated strangely deep within the Lemnian Hollow, implying its primordial power has a profound connection to the Hollow. After borrowing this strength to overcome formidable foes, Ye Shunguang now faces the inevitable cost of wielding such extraordinary power. Meanwhile, mysterious white flowers — previously seen only within the Hollows — have begun blooming in Failume Heights, casting a foreboding shadow over the district.

Amid the rising tension, Zhao of the Krampus Compliance Authority arrives with alarming news: the Lemnian Hollow has expanded. Proxies will join Ye Shunguang and Zhao to venture into the ruins of the Lumite Mine to investigate anomalies, delve deeper into the conspiracy of the Exaltists, and face the ultimate battle in Waifei Peninsula.

Rise of Void Hunter Ye Shunguang

After forging countless cherished memories with Ye Shunguang and fighting alongside her to awaken Ye Shiyuan, Proxies will once again join forces with this young senior disciple of Yunkui Summit. As the game’s first dual-form Void Hunter, Ye Shunguang, an S-Rank Honed Edge Attack Agent, can unleash fluid strikes and explosive burst phases with the Qingming Sword, delivering intimidating attacks that can make a significant impact in intense battles.

A familiar Agent accompanying us on this adventure is Zhao. D

Today, we reveal how your votes shaped the PlayStation Blog Game of the Year awards for 2025. This year’s voting saw nearly 1.5 million votes cast across the awards’ 19 categories, with your choices, and your choices only, deciding which games would earn the coveted top spots and accompanying trophies. 

As with every year, the awards are a chance for you to help highlight the experiences that made your gaming year, and by extension, the creatives who have crafted those games. And as with every year, there was an abundance of titles to select from, leading to some tough choices. 

Before we dive into the category winners, a thank you to all the creators whose collaborative work has brought PlayStation players so much enjoyment the world over these past 12 months. 

And without further ado, the games which received the most player votes in each category are… 

Best New Character

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It’s once again time to come a’Reckonin’ o’er the hill and vale, Helldivers–the Festival of Reckoning’s upon us*! This is a time to reinvigorate our hearts with a commitment to spreading peace and Managed Democracy throughout the galaxy, and we’ve got a special celebration lined up to help.

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Fast versus slow. This varying approach to depicting zombies in film, television, and video games has been going on for decades. The Zekes in World War Z are known for their speed and relentless aggression, stacking on top of each other in a frenzied bloodlust to seek out their next meal. But as we pondered this concept, we found ourselves asking, “Why not both?” The idea of transforming gameplay with Walkers became the crux of our partnership with AMC to bring a crossover episode of The Walking Dead into World War Z.

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Inhyuk Park here from Project Cloud Games and it gives me great pleasure to share more details on our team’s unique approach to The Relic: First Guardian.

But first of all, I have some very exciting news. Alongside publisher Perp Games, we are excited to announce that The Relic First Guardian will launch on the PS5 on May 26, 2026. 

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“I wouldn’t go in there,” warns traveling storyteller Ugetsu, as Atsu approaches two large and looming wooden doors. “Because you may not return.”

It’s a caution many Ghost of Yōtei players loved to ignore. As the trigger point for revered side-quest The Spider Lily General, that ominous gate is the start of a haunting mythological adventure that lingers long in memory after its completion. Only fitting for a game that launched so close to Halloween.

I spoke to Creative Directors, Nate Fox and Jason Connell, to find out the inspiration and secrets behind The Spider Lily General, and how they felt about the optional quest’s popularity. But, similar to Ugetsu, I must warn you – there are spoilers ahead. You might want to play this mission before venturing any further…

The quest’s origins

“The Spider Lily General was actually one of the earliest missions in the game and one of the first Mythic Tales we created,” reveals Jason. “It came from one of our designers and writers, and we dissected what makes a great Mythic mission, how they’d look and feel.”

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