While the Dynasty Warriors franchise is known for its electrifying 1 vs. 1,000 musou action, Dynasty Warriors 9 Empires adds some more strategic and tactical elements to the gameplay, forcing gamers to not only outfight their enemies, but to outthink them on the battlefield. And while the full game launches February 15, the free demo is available for everyone to download right now on both the PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4!

I’m excited for fans in the West to finally get a chance to play Empires and experience the thrill of the evolved castle sieges we’ve added to the gameplay. We’ve been working hard on this title the past few years, so to make sure everyone gets the most out of the demo, I wanted to take the time to breakdown what you can expect, as well as provide some quick combat tips to help your training.

The demo features both Invasion Battles, where you must capture enemy castles, and Defensive Battles, where you must defend your castle from invaders. But watch out, the Castle Sieges in this demo are set to a higher difficulty level than in the final version of the game (where you can set the difficulty to your liking), so there is definitely a learning curve, whether you’re on the offensive or defensive side of the attack. Don’t worry, though, as we’ve included tutorials throughout the demo to help every virtual warlord out there come to grips with the new features as quickly as possible.

Speaking of warlords, the demo stages can be played with a selection of familiar officers from the Dynasty Warriors series or with a Custom Officer of your own creation! Edit Mode, a staple part of the Empires entries, will allow you to create your own officer, with a wide range of in-depth customisation options available. Custom Officers that are made in this demo can be carried over to the full game at launch, so I hope you enjoy creating your dream characters and taking them into battle. Whether you’re creating a historical figure, a celebrity, or even just yourself, I am certainly excited to see what creations the community comes up with and can’t wait for everyone to share pictures of their favorite officers on social media.

But before you storm Twitter with pics, it’s time to storm the battlefield! To help in your first attack, check out these helpful hints …

Catapult to Greatness

Catapult Bases will be set up across the battlefield, and it’s important to seize these locations as soon as possible. These bases will automatically attack the other enemy bases on the map, so prioritizing their acquisition will give you an advantage at overthrowing opposing forces.

Ability to Lead

Make the most of the Accompany and Secret Plan abilities in battle. Approaching an allied officer on the battlefield and selecting the Accompany command from the D-Pad will

We are now just a few months away from the release of Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin, which releases on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 on March 18.

In preparation, Square Enix have just revealed an action-packed final trailer for the game, which includes tons of new info on the story, characters and more!

Check out the new trailer here:

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We’ve also got our hands on some additional information about the game, with a deeper look at some of the monsters Jack and his comrades will face off against, the areas they’ll explore, and some of the various combat styles you’ll have them master in their quest to defeat darkness.

You’ll have noticed some of the incredible monsters Jack and the team are up against in the trailer, here’s a closer look at some of the game’s truly terrifying Fiends.

Kraken

“You dare brandish your blade at the Kraken!? You forget your place!”​

The Fiend of Water, Kraken attacks ferociously with long tentacles and rush attacks. It uses abilities that steal buffs, and water-element attacks that make use of the surrounding environment.

Lich

Last week, we asked you to look around for some curved moments in your favorite games using #PSshare #PSBlog. From disk-like suns to round sword swings, here are this week’s highlights: 

bombeard shares Selene facing a circular fallen structure in Returnal.

Gamography_ share’s Jin’s katana against the setting sun in Ghost of Tsushima.

Alien_K121 shares Emil’s smiling mask in NieR Replicant.

AhmadYuanda_1st shares a formidable pose under the eclipse in Dark Souls 3.

mnaxer shares Cloud’s full sword swing in Final Fantasy VII Remake.

Mitch_Loan shares a round neon entrance in No Man’s Sky.

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: Mystery
SUBMIT BY: 11:59 PM PT on January 26, 2022

Next week, we’re feeling mysterious. Share shady characters, objects of intrigue, or anything that feels like a mystery in the game of your choice using #PSshare #PSBlog for a chance to be featured.

Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection launches January 28 for the PlayStation 5 console — and we could not be more excited to begin the adventures anew! It’s been an incredible journey remastering Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End and Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, and we hope you have an awesome experience in your own adventures at home.

We’ve come a long way since we first unleashed Drake, Chloe, and their cohorts into the world, and we’re thrilled that our foray into harnessing what the PS5 has to offer are these two single player adventures in one titular collection. The Remaster sees not one standalone adventure, but two – and as detailed in our previous PS Blog post, both leverage PS5 and DualSense wireless controller features and include graphical updates to make Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection feel truly cinematic, and blockbuster in scope.

Putting together this trailer at Naughty Dog was an exercise in revisiting favorite moments and sharing what we loved about the franchise and ensuring that those moments came through in the cut so players new and returning would be reeled into the world of Uncharted. Whether this trailer evokes nostalgia to jump back into the games, or intrigue in playing for the first time, we hope you enjoy:

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When we collectively look at the arc of how we at Naughty Dog developed the Uncharted series over the years, Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End and Uncharted: The Lost Legacy are truly special for so many reasons. For example, U4 helped us achieve a substantial improvement in almost every aspect of our animation. Our

Over the holidays, I caught up on my backlog thanks to the Apple TV+ offer for PS5. For me, one of the highlights has been Servant, a psychological thriller from the mind of director M. Night Shyamalan. 

This Friday, Servant enters its third season on Apple TV+, with new twists unravelling the minds of the Turner family. Ahead of the season premiere, I caught up with (fellow Pennsylavannian!) M. Night Shyamalan to dive into the mind behind the madness. 

Here’s a quick excerpt, with Shyamalan describing what he enjoys about working on Servant:

“You know, making movies every two years is a kind of an isolated, lonely thing. And this is not that and I love that aspect of it, having a kind of a film school together with people that I respect and love and, I could just follow whatever interests I have. So it’s become almost like a little mini studio, where I see a film, for example, in a film festival and I go “Wow, who shot that?” and I go “Oh, this is her name. She’s a filmmaker who lives in Sweden and does this,” and then I call her up, talk with her and go “Wow, I really think you’d be great for the show I’m doing. Would you come to Philadelphia and direct an episode?”

Check out the full interview below. 

Listen in via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, RSS, or download here.

PS5 console owners can enjoy six months trial access to Apple TV+ for no additional cost. Click here for full details, terms, and Frequently Asked Questions.

In 2021 there were a lot of fantastic experiences that many PlayStation fans enjoyed, such as Returnal, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and Deathloop. As the new year is in full swing, we’re pleased to bring back the PlayStation 2021 Wrap-Up report, celebrating your gaming achievements on PS4 and PS5.

Starting today through February 20, PS4 and PS5 users* can access and share their PlayStation 2021 Wrap-Up report, with stats such as the number of games played, earned Trophies, playtime on PS4 and PS5 titles, and more.  

Here are a few of the stats from my 2021 wrap-up report:

You can also view stats achieved collectively by PlayStation players from around the world in 2021, including the most popular weapon in Returnal, total number of wrecks in Destruction AllStars, and the percentage of players who have met Kit in Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart.

A code to download four free avatars will be available to both PS5 and PS4 users who access their PlayStation 2021 Wrap-Up report. For more details, you can visit the PlayStation 2021 Wrap-Up page.

*Users need to have a registered PSN account in their region, be age 18 years or over, have played games on a PS4 or PS5 console for at least 10 hours between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021. Users who have not consented to the collection of “Full Data” from their PlayStation 5 system settings, may be unable to participate in the Wrap-Up campaign.

Users located in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Australasia, India, and Russia, who have not consented to the collection of “Additional Data” from their PlayStation 4 system settings, may be unable to participate in the Wrap-Up campaign.

We’re getting ready for the continuation of Aloy’s story, a journey which will be filled with a storm of threats and dangers. But thankfully, she’ll be joined by old friends and exciting new allies. 

Join us as we sit down with our talented returning cast, featuring Ashly Burch as Aloy, Lance Reddick as the enigmatic Sylens, John MacMillan as Aloy’s loyal friend Varl, and John Hopkins as the affable Oseram warrior Erend.

And get a sneak peek at two of the new characters in Horizon Forbidden West’s expanding cast: Noshir Dalal as the Tenakth warrior Kotallo and Carrie-Anne Moss as the mysterious and secretive Tilda.

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Aloy will get to know these characters and many more as she strives to stop the red blight and save humankind. Enjoy this behind-the-scenes snapshot now, then venture into the Forbidden West on February 18!

The next chapter of Aloy’s story begins on February 18, and she’ll face a storm of new threats: a world-ending blight, Regalla and her rebels, Sylens and his machinations… plus many new dangers that have yet to be revealed.

But as she ventures into the frontier of the Forbidden West, Aloy won’t face these perils alone. She’ll be joined by companions both fresh and familiar, including stalwarts like Varl and Erend, along with new allies like Zo, Alva, and Kotallo.

Today we’re proud to present our new story trailer, which offers an exciting peek at what lies in store for Aloy and her friends as they venture into the Forbidden West.

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On top of that, we’re thrilled to show you our new key art, pitting Aloy’s crew against Regalla, her rebels, and some of the most dangerous machines the west has to offer. It also features Sylens, Hekarro, the Chief of the Tenakth tribe, and Tilda, a mysterious new character with a special connection to the ancient past.

Can Aloy and her companions overcome the dangers of the wilds and the sins of the past to save a dying planet? Get a glimpse of their epic journey now, then discover the answer on February 18!

“As you ascend from your shelter after the long long years, a brave new old world awaits you. A world inhabited with nasty and vile creatures. A world with no other human soul to be seen. A world with nature in its reigns now. A world that’s about to get even worse.”

This is how Dysmantle begins. The world might be getting worse, but the team at 10tons wants you to be able to  relax and enjoy it.

Post-apocalyptic survival games are usually dark and grim, but we wanted to do something different. If you are tired of starving to death in a bleak landscape, you can start Dysmantling! Your basic action is to tear down everything you see. Might be you need a bigger hammer for that sweet radiator you found, but eventually you’ll get them all.

In true post-apocalyptic fashion, you’ll have to sometimes run or fight for your life.

In addition to dismantling everything, there’s a lot more you can do. You can fish, farm, explore, fight, craft, build, hunt, cook, and even tame animals. You can build a completely satisfying and relaxing post-apocalyptic life inside Dysmantle.

Personally I enjoy fishing in real life. And there are many opportunities for that in Dysmantle, too. You’ll obviously need a fishing rod first. There are a few additional items you can craft, but after that it’s mostly about finding the best locations. After reeling catches in, you can cook up powerful items with the rarer fish. 

No trolling allowed – either on the internet or with a fishing line…

In addition to fishing, you can also tame animals (which isn’t a skill yours truly possesses). In Dysmantle you can befriend the animals running around the wilderness with the skill Animal Friend. Each skill level makes the animals less and less afraid of you, and also unlocks some new interaction features.

You can also craft animal treats to feed the animals. Once fed, you might find you’ve become quite popular with the animals as they follow you around. You can expand your selection of animal treats, and can lead a whole flock wherever you fancy.

These are just two of many post-apocalyptic leisures you can do in Dysmantle. There’s also local co-op, so you can enjoy all these activities with a friend. Maybe you both have a following soon.