Published , by Shack Staff
Published , by Shack Staff
Sony has taken heat for PlayStation being somewhat absent during big events in the past, but the company responded with an excellent showing during the PlayStation Showcase for September 2021. We covered the event extensively and, when it was all over, tasked the Shacknews staff with choosing their favorite moment or announcement. You can find their picks below, but we're also looking to hear what your favorite announcement was. Be sure to weigh in via the Chatty thread once you've seen our picks.
Before starting off, I'd like to start off with an "IT'S STILL REAL TO ME, DAMMIT!" anecdote. On Sunday, I watched All Elite Wrestling's All Out pay-per-view. For months, it had been rumored that Bryan Danielson (the former Daniel Bryan) would be popping up at this show. The end came, they did the big tease, the lights went out, and we got... Adam Cole of NXT fame. That was really cool, but it wasn't Bryan Danielson. Then a few minutes passed and they basically said, "LOL! Just kidding, here's Bryan Danielson, for reals." I got the fun of an unexpected reveal alongside the actual reveal that I originally came for.
That was the vibe I got from Insomniac Games on Thursday. When Insomniac's logo popped up next to Marvel's, I thought, "Here we go! The Marvel's Spider-Men game I've been waiting for!" Instead, I got... Marvel's Wolverine! Holy crap, that's really cool! It's been over a decade since I got a good Wolverine game. As much as I loved the announcement, though, it wasn't Spider-Man 2.
Then a few minutes later, Insomniac said, "LOL! Just kidding, here's Marvel's Spider-Man 2, for reals." It was everything I asked for from our E3 2021 Shack Chat. It's a story that centers around both Peter Parker and Miles Morales, promising to do justice to both characters. But, what could possibly be bigger than putting both Spider-Men in a single game? Put them up against Venom!
Insomniac can do no wrong right now, especially with them coming off GOTY contender Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart. I cannot wait to see what they do with Wolverine and the Spider-Man sequel, which promise to be very different Marvel experiences.
The reveal for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 was the one announcement during the PlayStation Showcase that made me stand up out of my seat and start yelling uncontrollably. The original game, as well as Miles Morales, are two of my favorite games of the past decade. My dream for the next game was that we could control both Miles and Peter, and it looks like that’s the direction we’re heading in!
Now, let’s talk about those villains. The narration from Kraven is just spot-on. We haven’t gotten a great Kraven story outside of comics in a long time, and I’m hoping Insomniac can deliver one. Venom is my all-time favorite Spidey villain, so of course I was losing my damn mind at hearing and seeing him at the very end. Not to mention, he’s being voiced by Tony fricking Todd! Insomniac is not only PlayStation’s new golden child, they might be my favorite developer working today.
I grew up in the renaissance era of Wolverine during the reign of the anti-hero in comic books and other media and he still holds a special place in my heart. It’s been over a decade since everyone’s favorite Canadian berserker got the solo spotlight in a game and I am here for it. Insomniac has done an incredible job with their work on the Spider-Man franchise and I would be shocked if they didn’t come through and make an epic game for Wolverine. Really hoping that slapping Cyclops like a punk-ass is the “you can pet the dog” of this game.
I literally cheered my way through the God of War: Ragnarok reveal trailer. What an excellent bit of marketing. It nailed all the beats I needed to know going in: the state of the relationship between Kratos and Atreus, the mission they will be going on, and that it will include throwbacks and references to the first game. I cannot wait to see what the team at Santa Monica has created. I hope the story is as gripping and emotional as the first one. Sign me the heck up for this.
The best PS4 game is finally headed to PC (and PS5, I guess). Now I can experience the story of Randy Uncharted and his brother 90210 searching for pirate treasure with no compromise! As an added bonus, we also get Lost Legacy. The only shame is I have to wait until some unannounced time in 2022.
Sony hit it out of the park with this showcase, and I’d be comfortable picking any number of games as my favorite. I might change my mind depending on when you ask me. Right now I’m jacked for Gran Turismo 7, but 10 minutes from now it’ll probably be God of War: Ragnarok, and 10 minutes after that, Marvel’s Wolverine. There are just so many good things coming to the PlayStation that choosing one is difficult.
Choose one I shall, though. Gran Turismo holds a special place in my gaming heart. I had so much fun playing the original in 1997 and that game is the reason I enjoy racing games at all. Even if it’s just the nostalgia creeping in, I can’t wait to sit on my sofa and enjoy Gran Turismo 7. Right now, I’m more hyped about that than anything else I saw today.
There’s a period of my life where I fell out of games for a while. My folks and I didn’t have the money for the new systems and we never had a PC that was strong enough to run the new stuff. That was around the time Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic came out. I missed out on a lot of stuff, but that was the one people told me about frequently.
I’ve since gone back and checked out a lot of Xbox and PC games from that era, but I still never got around to KOTOR, so this is kind of rad. It sucks a bit that internet culture has told me all about those characters and the story arc, but getting to actually experience it first hand in a format that hasn’t aged like milk sounds fantastic. I can’t wait to see more of what Aspyr is doing with KOTOR, given their efforts on ports of other classic Star Wars games.
Sony had their PlayStation Showcase today and they brought with them some interesting reveals. That being said, with so many moments, Project EVE looks like an interesting action game that I could have a fun time with. The graphics look great as well. I also am looking forward to seeing more from Deathloop. I remember seeing Deathloop shown at E3 a few years ago and thought that was one of the games of the show. Lastly, Star Wars: Knights of the old Republic getting a remake is great to hear. I remember playing Knight of the old Republic on the Xbox. Hopefully it doesn’t go the way of other Star Wars games, announced and had fans loving it, and then killed in development.
I wrote in my Cortex post this week that I would not get my hopes up for Spider-Man 2 because it seemed too early for the game and I was partially right with a 2023 release date being confirmed, but man, am I happy to be wrong! Of course its great getting new looks at Peter and Miles but hearing the voice of Kraven got me excited. I’ve wanted the character to get his respect as a formidable opponent for a while now and I think showing off Venom at the end is a misdirect, as Kraven may be hunting down the web-crawlers and donning the Black suit after succeeding!
We still have the symbiote being used by Norman Osborn on Harry so there’s plenty of directions they can take this next story. Also who’s making this tech for Peter? We see him rocking the Iron spider-like arms on his back at one point which makes me wonder if there will be some visits to Avengers tower in the future!
There you have it, our picks for the best announcements and moments from the PlayStation Showcase 2021. What we'd love even more than those reveals, though, is to hear what your favorite moments were and why. What did you see that made your PS5 purchase worthwhile, or put you on a path to buying one? What surprised you, and what did you expect?