Category: Video Games

This is the latest guest column from Push Square, the voice of the PlayStation community, offering passionate, in-depth coverage and insight into the world of Sony. Its goal is simple: to keep you informed, engaged, and part of the conversation surrounding all things PlayStation.

Sony sparked discontent among the PlayStation fandom in February this year when it said during an earnings call there’ll be no sequels or updates to “major existing franchise titles” on the PS5 before March 2025. With the platform holder keeping its content roadmaps close to its chest, the comments were largely taken out of context and many assumed this would be a lean year for the company’s new-gen console.

While it’s true this has been a fairly quiet year for PS Studios, it’s been anything but light on the games front. At the time of writing, my three Game of the Year frontrunners are Astro Bot, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, and Metaphor: ReFantazio and the PS5 is the only platform where you can play all three. Other possible contenders for awards include Silent Hill 2, Helldivers 2, and Black Myth: Wukong – all console exclusives.

There seems to be a sentiment on social media that a game doesn’t count unless it comes from a wholly owned first-party studio, but PlayStation has done a particularly good job of working with partners to keep its portfolio packed this year.

Stellar Blade is a great example. It collaborated with Korean developer Shift Up to help bring the NIKKE: Goddess of Victory creator’s console debut to market and in my opinion is another game in contention for an end of year gong. Rise of the Ronin, a similar partnership with legendary studio Team Ninja, may have received a cooler critical reception but it’s currently ranked 17th in IGN’s ongoing Game of the Year user poll, proving it was a hit with fans.

The nauseating number of remakes and remasters may not be to everyone’s taste, but it’s easy to forget The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered launched this year and tagged a 90 critical average on aggregators Metacritic and Open Critic. And while many rolled their eyes at the rumours around Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered, a $10 upgrade fee and re-recorded dialogue and motion capture mean it’ll almost certainly attract positive reviews as well.

Of course, not everything PlayStation has touched this year has turned to gold. Its complete misreading of the market with first-person shooter Concord – a competent albeit uninspiring affair – will go down in history after getting axed after two weeks. And yet for all the talk of its live service initiative stumbling, it launched the fastest-selling game in PS Studios history with Helldivers 2, an online co-op smash that, despite benefitting from a simultaneous PC launch, has outpaced juggernauts like Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 and God of War Ragnarok.

It’s been a quietly colossal year for PS5 then, and you get the sense the best is yet to come. The company’s largely kept its blockbusters close to its chest but 2025 should see the release of Ghost of Yotei and Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, with Marvel’s Wolverine waiting in the wings. These are the “major existing franchise titles” the Japanese giant was referring to in that aforementioned investor call.

Many may still argue this has been a light year for PS5 but the catalogue of content Sony has amassed paints a very different picture. The most exciting thing is that it’s successfully filled the time while its first-party teams continue to cook. A huge second-half to the generation now awaits.

Sammy Barker is the Editor of Push Square. He’s been living and breathing the wonderful world of PlayStation for decades now – and has the tattoos to prove it. You can find him on @_get2sammyb.

Pokémon developer Game Freak has reportedly suffered a significant hack resulting in the leak of stolen data that includes codenames for 10th generation Pokémon games and even the Nintendo Switch 2.

As reported by Nintendo Life, data leaked includes the codename of Nintendo’s next-gen console (reportedly “Ounce”), the codename of the unannounced 10th generation Pokémon game (reportedly “Gaia”), and the codename of the announced Pokemon Legends: Z-A (“Ikkaku”).

Neither Nintendo nor The Pokémon Company have issued a statement on the leaks. IGN has asked both for a comment.

The codenames for two versions of the 10th generation Pokémon game are part of the leak (“K” and “N”), which may relate to Nintendo’s intention to release it for both the Switch and its successor as a cross-gen title. According to Nintendo Life, “Ounce” is mentioned as the target platform.

A Pokémon game codenamed “Synapse” is also reportedly mentioned. This unannounced game is said to be co-developed with another studio, with some claiming it is some sort of Pokémon MMO.

Elsewhere, source code for DS titles Pokémon HeartGold, SoulSilver, Black 2, and White 2 have reportedly leaked, resulting in stolen unused assets for Pokémon and even game music emerging online.

This Pokémon leak rekindles memories of the infamous Nintendo ‘gigaleak’ of 2020, which revealed previously unknown canceled games, prototypes, source code, development tools, and internal communication as part of what was at the time the largest leak of internal video game information ever released.

Nintendo has yet to reveal its next-gen console, dubbed Switch 2 by the community ahead of an official announcement. Last month, alleged prototype images of the Switch successor emerged online. Nintendo has yet to comment on the images.

What we do have are developers saying they plan to release their upcoming games on the Switch 2. When Switch 2 does eventually come out, Nintendo expects to have plenty of stock available, which in turn will hopefully combat scalping.

As for Pokémon, Pokémon Legends: Z-A has a vague 2025 release window, with Nintendo saying it’s coming to “Nintendo Switch systems.” That phrase sparked speculation that Pokémon Legends: Z-A is also coming to Switch 2.

Fans are set for one of the longest breaks between major Pokémon releases in the franchise’s history. With no mainline entries releasing this year, nor any news of a remake, the Pokémon Trading Card Game on mobile will be the biggest series release in 2024.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.