When we first saw Carrion back in 2018 (and again at E3 2019), it introduced us to Phobia Game Studio’s visceral “reverse horror game” and immediately became a disgusting novelty that I couldn’t wait to see more of.
I got to sit down with it at Gamescom 2019, and was glad to find that Carrion isn’t just a disgustingly delightful upending of the horror game, but a uniquely clever action-platformer.
Insomniac Games has sent a message to fans following the announcement that Sony Interactive Entertainment has purchased the developer.
“Today we announced that Insomniac has a new home,” says Insomniac CEO Ted Price. “It feels more like a homecoming though. We’ve collaborated with Sony for more than 20 years–spanning all four PlayStation consoles, 20 total games and six franchises. We still work closely today with many of the same Sony teammates as we did when we released the original Spyro the Dragon in 1998.”
The Spyro, Ratchet and Clank, and Resistance franchises have all been exclusive to PlayStation consoles, including last year’s Marvel’s Spider-Man. The only outlier is Sunset Overdrive, an Xbox One exclusive from 2014.
“The decision to join forces with Sony extends far beyond familiarity,” the message continues. “Our studio vision is to create experiences that have a positive and lasting impact on people’s lives. As we look ahead to our future, we know that joining the WWS family gives us the best opportunities to fully achieve that vision on a much larger scale. Further, we believe that Sony shares a similar vision to positively impact players’ lives, their employees’ lives and the games industry at large.
“So today merely marks the beginning of a new chapter in our studio’s growth and evolution. We’re excited to put Insomniac in the best position to deliver fresh experiences for our fans for many years to come. Our structure and approach will remain intact across both Burbank and Durham, NC studios, and we will continue to cultivate our unique culture.
“It’s been a crazy ride for sure. Now, we’re ready for the next phase of our journey, and can’t wait to explore new worlds with our Sony family and loyal fans.”
Sony recently explained why it decided to buy Insomniac, with Sony Games chairman Shawn Layden saying, “We felt that this was the time to formalize the relationship.”
The regular PS4 controller features a time-tested design, but sometimes the black color scheme can seem a little boring. Thankfully, Sony has introduced a number of colorful alternatives over the years, and they show no signs of stopping. Four DualShock 4 controllers with new eye-catching color schemes will be rolling out on October 1 for $64.99 each, but you can preorder them now. Here’s what they look like and where you can get them.
Groundhog Day: Like Father Like Son was one of the more unusual games that we saw at Gamescom this year. After all, the entire premise is unusual – a VR game based on a 25-year-old movie which in itself has a very “rinse and repeat” video game premise. But video games are a twisty medium, and here I am, with a PlayStation VR headset strapped to my head, playing Groundhog Day.
The premise is smart. Phill Connors Jr spent his life in his father’s shadow; no matter what he lent his hand to, his perfect father was of course already a master of it. So he does what any rebellious young person does and moves from Punxsutawney to Pittsburgh, leaving behind his mother, his brother, his high-school girlfriend, and the gold-tinged memory of his (presumably late) father. Something brings him back to Punxsutawney, he gets stuck in the Groundhog Day loop, and the game begins proper.
A demo for NBA 2K20 is now available on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. You can download it to begin creating and testing out multiple MyPlayer builds, which you’ll then be able to take into the full game once it’s released in a couple of weeks time.
It’s an unusual demo, letting you explore a character creator more than the on-court action. You can adjust badges and attributes to create different player archetypes, and once you’ve done enough tweaking you can hop into a rematch of last season’s NBA Finals between the Toronto Raptors and Golden State Warriors, to test out how your MyPlayer handles.
2K recently dropped a new trailer for NBA 2K20’s career mode, giving us a glimpse of what your MyPlayer will be up to during the upcoming game’s story mode. Idris Elba, Rosario Dawson, Thomas Middleditch, and Ernie Hudson star in the basketball drama, along with NBA superstar–and occasional actor–LeBron James.
Unsurprisingly, James is once again the top-rated player in 2K’s latest. If you want to see how the rest of the top 20 stacks up, you can find the full list here. NBA 2K20 is finally adding the WNBA this year, too, with 12 teams available to use in the Play Now and Season modes. Some of the league’s standout players have been scanned into the game, as well as animations and play styles fans will expect to see from the women’s league.
If you’re interested in NBA 2K20 and the demo has just whet your appetite, it launches September 6 for PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC. GameSpot has all the details on pre-order bonuses and what’s included in the Digital Deluxe and Legend editions. You can pre-order it now at the following links:
PS4 standard edition — $60
Xbox One standard edition — $60
Switch standard edition — $60
PC standard edition — $60
PS4 Digital Deluxe edition — $80
Xbox One Digital Deluxe edition — $80
Switch Digital Deluxe edition — $80
PC Digital Deluxe edition — $80
PS4 Legend edition — $100
Xbox One Legend edition — $100
Switch Legend edition — $100
The products discussed here were independently chosen by our editors. GameSpot may get a share of the revenue if you buy anything featured on our site.
With Sony and Marvel’s deal to share Spider-Man on the big screen abruptly coming to an end, we’re now faced with a future where Peter Parker’s next solo movie will presumably not take place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Luckily for Sony, they just kicked off a cinematic universe of their own with last year’s smash hit, Venom, so there’s already a place for Spider-Man to land. Given that a sect of fans have already promised to boycott Sony over the split with Marvel, it’s in Sony’s best interest to turn lemons into lemonade as fast as possible and get to work on a Spider-Man and Venom crossover.
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There’s an old Wile E. Coyote cartoon where he gets in a racecar to chase after the Road Runner, and as he’s speeding along the car begins to fall apart piece by piece until he’s left holding nothing but a busted steering wheel. That’s what it feels like to play Decay of Logos, an open-world action-adventure RPG that strongly invokes The Legend of Zelda but becomes increasingly unstable the longer you play, until you’re just thankful to see the credits roll. Whether it’s the choppy framerate even on an Xbox One X, equipment that disappears from your inventory, glitches that make you unable to dodge, jump, or swing a weapon, or the whole thing crashing entirely, you’re never more than a few minutes away from something that will hinder or completely shatter your enjoyment of a game that otherwise has a lot of potential.
The news that Spider-Man might be leaving the Marvel Cinematic Universe has, unsurprisingly, caused much dismay and disappointment amongst superhero movie fans. Marvel Studios parent company Disney and Spidey rights-holders Sony are in dispute over the financing of future movies featuring the web-slinger. While most actors involved within the MCU have remained quiet on the issue, there’s one MCU star who has expressed his opinion–Hawkeye actor Jeremy Renner.
Renner posted the same image on both Twitter and Instagram, stating, “Hey Sony Pictures, we want Spider-Man back to Stan Lee and Marvel please, thank you.” The issue isn’t quite as simple as that–Sony has owned the movie rights to Spider-Man since Marvel sold them in 1999, and this dispute is over each studio’s financial stake and whether MCU producer Kevin Feige will continue to be involved with Spidey films. Nevertheless, Renner’s post has struck a chord with fans, with over 1.5 million likes on Instagram, and more than 40,000 retweets. Check it out below, and see if you can make sense of the bizarre hashtags that Renner has included:
Shortly after the story of the dispute broke, Sony responded with a statement. The studio claimed that many of the reports have “mischaracterized” discussions between the studios, and expressed “disappointment” that Feige would no longer be involved, laying the decision at Disney’s feet.
Of course, the big question remains about the future of the character in the MCU. Spider-Man: Far From Home was the official end of the MCU’s Phase 3, setting the stage for what’s to come from the universe of films. With Feige no longer being involved, it’s possible that the Spider-Man franchise could instead exist outside of the MCU.
Sony has already been building a non-MCU Spider-Man universe thanks to the film adaptation of Venom, as well as the upcoming Morbius movie, in which Jared Leto stars as the titular living vampire. Sources told Deadline that there were already two more planned Spider-Man films starring Tom Holland as the web-slinger, with director Jon Watts expected to return. For now, an extended cut of Spider-Man: Far From Home will hit theaters on August 29.