| 19 | Tom Clancy
Music plays an essential role in bringing the world of Horizon to life through your speakers. From working with stellar composers to fostering the creations of our own Sound Designers, we take great care in mixing atmospheric sounds, beautifully-written lyrics, and stunning voices to amplify the storytelling our teams create. Since we launched Horizon Forbidden West back in February, we’ve seen so many wonderful stories of people enjoying the tracks that bring so much drama and life to the game, immersing themselves into the world and joining Aloy on her captivating journey – and we are hugely grateful!
With this in mind, we’re excited to announce that the music of Horizon Forbidden West is now available for pre-order in physical formats. A comprehensive collection of over 130 tracks will come to CD this holiday season for $49.98*, while two editions are arriving for vinyl lovers. The Essential Collection, featuring some of the most iconic themes and tracks from Aloy’s journey west, is available for $39.98*. The Deluxe Edition, an extensive, 6-disc set covering the breadth of the musical landscape of the Forbidden West – from the choral serenity of Plainsong to heightened combat against Tiderippers and more – is a must for fans and collectors alike, priced at $169.98*. Both vinyl editions are expected to ship in spring 2023.
Pre-order the Deluxe Edition vinyl: https://horizon.lnk.to/6LP
Pre-order the Essential Collection vinyl: https://horizon.lnk.to/2LP
Pre-order the CD collection: https://horizon.lnk.to/6CD
To celebrate, today I want to highlight one song on the soundtrack that is particularly dear to us, because it was originally written by one of our very own Sound Designers, Lovisa Bergdahl. “In the Flood” was not originally written for the sequel, but Lovisa’s live demo convinced us that it would carry the game’s opening perfectly! She then teamed up with one of our composers, Oleksa Lozowchuk, to co-produce the track which now graces the opening sequence as Aloy gallops into the West (performed by Ariana Gillis). Lovisa’s original version can be enjoyed after completing the game, during the end credits.
We are incredibly honored and excited to debut our first ever music video for “In the Flood (Lovisa’s Version)”! Watch as Lovisa showcases the song to stunning shots of Aloy and the world of Horizon:
“What would Gotham be without Batman?”
It’s a question that feels almost sacrilegious, but is one Gotham Knights answers in thrilling detail – developer WB Games Montréal exploring what happens to a city stripped of its iconic protector.
As shown in the first preview back when the game was first revealed, instead of taking on the mantle of the Caped Crusader, Gotham Knights puts you in the spandex-clad shoes of Batman’s protégés in single player or two-player online co-op. Play as Batgirl, Nightwing, Robin, or Red Hood as they join forces to mourn their mentor and keep the city safe. One will become the Defender of Gotham by the game’s close, but it’s up to you to choose which character that should be as you experience their journey of grief, duty, and… weightlifting. There’s a lot of gym work going on in the Belfry.
Nightwing is definitely a gym fanatic. Harley Quinn doesn’t give him the nickname ‘Nightbutt’ for nothing.
After visiting the WB Games Montréal studio for two hours of hands-on play, it’s fair to say that decision won’t be easy. The hands-on showcased a few areas of the game at different points in the story. Firstly, a look at the start of our crime fighters’ journey as they’re reeling from the loss of Batman and picking up the mysterious work he left behind, and then jumping to a few hours in for the start of Harley Quinn’s villain arc (and then later still for her boss battle), offering a better look at the powers these superheroes can wield.
You can switch between the four playable characters with a quick trip to the Belfry, aka Gotham Knights’ central hub, and while they all share a core control scheme when it comes to melee and ranged combat prompts, Gotham Knights does an admirable job of infusing each hero with their own distinct personality and unique abilities.
Batgirl is a hacker specialising in one-to-one combat, with a fluid approach to movement and disarming enemies that feels not dissimilar to classic Batman. Armed with tech abilities such as overcharging enemy weapons for bioelectrical damage or using AR mode to hack into nearby devices, her combat feels powerful and precise, a testament to Bruce Wayne’s training that she’s honed into her own style.
Nightwing can be your support figure with abilities that buff allies, but he also excels in acrobatic beatdowns and pinballing between enemies during battle. Playing as Nightwing is a more frenetic experience; he thrives when taking down large groups of enemies with lightning-quick movements, getting in before they can hit back – as well as the aforementioned Nest power that provides a defence bonus and healing to friendly figures for stronger teamwork.
Then you’ve got the younger Robin – a master of stealth, utilising sneak attacks and pouncing from above, while completing the quaternity is Red Hood, an aggressive gunfighter who dishes out justice in a rain of bullets.
Red Hood dominates with his twin pistols, but isn’t shy about delivering a hefty blow with his fists in closeup combat. Both his ranged and melee abilities are enhanced with spectral, otherworldly powers thanks to his backstory of coming back from the dead.
These differences are made all the more
Innovation is king when it comes to video games, especially when reinventing a beloved franchise. Developers are challenged with balancing what fans loved about the series’ origins while modernizing the experience and providing surprising gameplay enhancements that players didn’t even know they wanted. Few developers understand this task better than Santa Monica Studio, which reimagined Kratos’ mythological melee in 2018.
The sequel God of War Ragnarök launches November 9. This new entry is poised to deliver more of the satisfying combat introduced in God of War (2018), including Kratos’ trusty Leviathan Axe and the Blades of Chaos, increased verticality in combat, versatile shield options to customize play, a host of new mythical beasts to battle, and more.
Ahead of God of War Ragnarök’s release, we invited talented game developers from PlayStation Studios and third-party studios to reflect on God of War (2018)’s impactful combat. These creators dive into everything from Kratos’ crunchy, boomeranging Leviathan Axe to the intimate camera perspective, while also sharing their personal perspective on what makes for satisfying melee combat.
“God of War 2018 was hugely inspirational. It took many aspects of action-focused games and merged them to establish a new standard that directly impacted how we approached combat when creating Ghost of Tsushima.
For example, the yellow and red ‘rings’ in God of War that indicated required player actions were highly influential and inspired the blue and red ‘glints’ in Ghost of Tsushima for unblockable/parryable attacks.
Valkyrie boss design was also a huge inspiration for us and had a major influence on the ‘Six Blades of Kojiro’ mission in Ghost of Tsushima, which involved tracking down and fighting duelists across the island. Each duelist had a unique move, but the final duel incorporated all of the various moves of the previous duelists, just like the Valkyries. I will say Sigrun the final Valkyrie kicked my butt more times than I would like, and my secret hope is that Kojiro in Ghost of Tsushima defeated many players in the same way!” – Ted Fishman, Lead Combat Designer, Sucker Punch
“When players use heavier weapons [in Monster Hunter World] that have slower movement and attack speeds, it’s more difficult to hit monsters. An important part of designing combat for us is to create a mechanism that converts the stress of slow movement into a sense of accomplishment when the player successfully hits a target.
There are a number of ways to achieve this, and it is obviously important to have a special move that feels satisfying when you hit the target because of its heavy weight. But what is even more important, is giving players the movement options necessary to precisely position themselves in order to land that hit. These can even be small things such as taking a few steps closer to attack/taking a step back after the att
September has come and gone, and with it some amazing games! Which new release will take the Players’ Choice crown? Vote in the poll below to help decide!
How does it work? At the end of every month, PlayStation.Blog will open a poll where you can vote for the best new game released that month. Soon thereafter, we’ll close the polls, tally your votes, and announce the winner at PlayStation.Blog. PlayStation Store will also showcase some top Players’ Choice winners throughout the year.
What is the voting criteria? That’s up to you! If you were only able to recommend one new release to a friend that month, which would it be? In keeping with our long tradition in the Game of the Year Awards, remastered or re-released games won’t qualify. Ambitious, larger-scale rebuilds and remakes like Demon’s Souls and Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy will.
How are nominees decided? The PlayStation.Blog and PlayStation Store editorial teams will gather a list of that month’s most noteworthy releases and use it to seed the poll. Write-in votes will be accepted.
Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or RSS, or download here
Hey y’all! This week the team sits down with Amy Allison and Mark Lester of Skydance Interactive to chat about The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners – Chapter 2: Retribution, currently in development now for PS VR2.
Stuff We Talked About
- The Last of Us on HBO Max
- Valkyrie Elysium
- A Plague Tale: Requiem
- Destruction AllStars
- The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners – Chapter 2: Retribution (interview begins at 11:17)
- Stellar Blade
- Tunic
- Sly Cooper series
The Cast
Last week, we asked you to spin your gears and share robots, droids, and machines from the game of your choice using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights:
RevolutionAndre shares Kit from Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart in macho machine mode.
sorathluna shares a Slitherfang coiling up in the desert in Horizon Forbidden West.
HomuraChihiro shares the robot from Abzu staring out into an underwater city.
Boargs shares the cat from Stray aboard a floating pallet with a robot that is fishing.
coalabr14 shares a spider bot overlooking some hacking victims in Watch Dogs: Legion.
Ringo_Danshaku shares the mech bunny protagonist of F.I.S.T.: Forged In Shadow Torch.
Search #PSshare #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this week’s theme. Want to be featured in the next Share of the Week?
THEME: Customization
SUBMIT BY: 11:59 PM PT on October 5, 2022
Next week, it’s getting personal. Share armor, weapons, characters, or vehicles you’ve customized in the game of your choice using #PSshare #PSBlog for a chance to be featured.
It’s October, and you know what that means–freaks and frights are abounding! There’s no better time to dive deep into some wildly experimental and stylish survival horror than the Halloween spooky season, and this month’s PlayStation Indies delivers on that front. As for the “freaks”–well, we’ve got a gaggle of very strange creatures and some beastly brawlers straight outta the barnyard. Oh, and a geometric object so terrifying it makes alien apex predators tremble in fear. Let’s take a look at what you can look forward to on PS4 and PS5 this month.
The Eternal Cylinder
The imaginative minds at developer ACE Team (Rock of Ages, Zeno Clash, Abyss Odyssey) have returned with an otherworldly adventure. A majestic planet exists far away in the universe, teeming with strange lifeforms all struggling for survival. Yet even in this harsh environment, one threat looms above all others: the crushing, destructive might of the Cylinder.
You take control of a Trebhum, an odd pack-traveling creature blessed with the power to transform and adapt to environments by eating. Explore four beautiful alien biomes–savannah, tundra, desert, and a freaky mutated infected sector–all while metamorphosing your herd of Trebhums to react to the dangers posed by the environments and other creatures. Grow extra legs to build your stamina, extendable eyes to get a better view of your surroundings, and bloat up your body for extra inventory space. Explore, evolve, and discover the Cylinder’s secrets before it destroys everything.
Release Date: October 13 | Publisher: Good Shepherd | PS5
Them’s Fightin’ Herds
Small, cute animals bring big-time rompin’, stompin’ action in this unorthodox one-on-one fighting game from Mane6. Made by and for fans of the genre, Them’s Fightin’ Herds is a beautifully animated, humor-filled critter combat game featuring character designs from acclaimed animation producer Lauren Faust. These fuzzy, scaly fighters might run on four legs, but they’ve got just as many slick fighting skills as their human counterparts, bolstered by magic energy that can be used for movement and offense skills that are unique to each character. If beating down the barn doors with your local buddies isn’t enough, you can battle hoof-to-claw with friends both on and offline, thanks to smooth rollback netcode.
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