By Julian Tack
The highly anticipated live stream had fans eagerly awaiting new game announcements, with pricing, and release date for the next generation consoles. Sony delivered on all fronts, along with a few other surprises that continue to demonstrate why the Playstation has been outperforming every other console.
Kicking off the event was a reveal trailer for Final Fantasy XVI. The beloved JRPG has a brand new installment coming exclusively to Playstation in 2021. Another huge game announcement was Hogwarts Legacy, a new open world RPG set in the Harry Potter universe. Viewers learned that they would be able to create their own wizards and explore Hogwarts next year on all current and next gen consoles. Five Nights At Freddy’s made a surprising return with a creepy cinematic announcement trailer for Five Nights At Freddy’s: Security Breach. This classic indie horror franchise is utilizing the PS5’s hardware capability to enhance the overall experience. The game will be released exclusively for Playstation later this year. Jim Ryan, Head of SIE, ended the show with “one more quick look”. That quick look ended up being an announcement for God of War: Ragnarok. The continuation of the highly acclaimed franchise is arriving in 2021 exclusively to PS5 and PS4.
Prior to the release date and pricing of the PS5 consoles, Sony unveiled the Playstation Plus Collection. The Playstation Plus Collection is a group of games that PS Plus subscribers can download and play at no additional cost. As long as you have the online service, you can play: God of War, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, Batman: Arkham Knight, Battlefield 1, Until Dawn, Bloodborne, Fallout 4, Mortal Kombat X, Ratchet & Clank, Days Gone, Detroit Become Human, Infamous: Second Sun, The Last Guardian. The Last of Us Remastered, and Persona 5. This is the perfect deal for new Playstation users or owners of the console that never got a chance to experience specific games the console had to offer. The PS Plus Collection will be available on launch day.
The PS5 and PS5 Digital Edition will cost $499.99 and $399.99 respectively. Both will release on Nov. 12 in the US, Japan, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, and South America. They will be available to the rest of the world on Nov. 19. Its competitor, the Xbox Series X, also costs $499.99 while the digital edition console, Xbox Series S, is priced at $299.99. However, it’s worth noting that the specs for the Series S are significantly lower than the Series X while the only difference between the Playstation consoles is the disk drive.
Photo credit: AnandTech.com
One factor that held the Xbox One back was the lack of exclusives. While the PS4 had heavy hitters like God of War, Spider-Man, and Horizon Zero Dawn, the Xbox One offered Halo 5 Guardians, Gears 5, and Sea of Thieves. Barring the Forza and Ori franchise, every other Xbox exclusive was hit with mixed receptions and mediocre sales. PS4 exclusives on the other-hand broke sales records and hit critical acclaim numerous times. God of War for example won Game of the Year at the 2018 Game Awards. GamesRadar reported that Playstation’s latest exclusive Ghost of Tsushima is currently the fastest-selling original game on PS4 with 2.4 million copies sold in the first three days of release. Unfortunately for Microsoft, Sony doesn’t appear to be slowing down. PS5 is launching with Spider-Man Miles Morales, Demon Souls, and Destruction All Stars just to name a few. PS5 owners will also be getting the God of War, Horizon Zero Dawn and Final Fantasy sequels next year. To add insult to injury, 343 Industries announced recently that Halo Infinite will no longer be launching with the Series X on day one. Without the consoles flagship title, Xbox’s Yakuza: Like A Dragon, Gears Tactics and Tetris Effect looks poor in comparison.
The PS5 showcase pleased many fans as well as drew the attention of millions of gamers around the world. Its brand new game announcements, exclusive titles, and consumer-friendly PS Plus Collection prove that play truly has no limit.
