Sony’s recent PlayStation 5 showcase unveiled a lineup of games that are set to release for the system. Games such as Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, Demon’s Souls Remake, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and Horizon Forbidden West stole the show while showing off the power of the upcoming next-generation console. Although these games look fantastic, they do little to truly make the PS5 a must-buy at launch. As of right now, this showcase showed that the PS5 has no killer apps for its launch date while also failing to make a strong case to buy the system right away. Hardcore fans may feel otherwise, yet for the more casual audience, there isn’t much to take away from this.
The first major unveiling was the reveal of Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales which sees Miles embrace his spidey powers in his own adventure. It’s no doubt an exciting reveal since the original game was an incredible success and our 2018 Game of the Year, but this has been met with mixed reactions. At first, many believed it to be a full-blown sequel yet it’s actually a standalone expansion similar to Uncharted: Lost Legacy and Infamous: Last Light. This shouldn’t take away from the game’s potential but on the other-hand, it isn’t something to necessarily write home about in order to push systems. The Miles Morales expansion is sure to have new and exciting features with possibly around eight hours of gameplay. It does beg the question, though, is this enough to warrant a purchase of a brand-new console?
It can be assumed that the launch-day lineup will include both Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart and Demon’s Souls Remake. As a longtime fan of Ratchet and Clank, this is incredibly appealing and enticing for the system. I must say, though, I didn’t feel that the recent PS4 remake did the series justice as it should have. From its linear level-design to essentially feeling like a C-grade Pixar film, there is plenty to be wary about. The gameplay may be fun here, but it can still have a few of the missteps seen before which hurts it from being a title that makes your mouth water. Not only this, the Ratchet and Clank franchise has not been a platform seller for quite sometime. Its heyday was back during the PS2-era and faltered a bit during that of the PS3 due to more highly-acclaimed titles such as Little Big Planet, Infamous, Uncharted, and The Last of Us. On top of that, the PS4 only had the 2016 from the franchise. There just isn’t enough momentum behind this or fanfare to make this feel like someone has to buy the PS5 from the start.
In regards to the Demon’s Souls Remake, if you aren’t a fan of the Soulsborne style of games then odds are you won’t be too hyped for this. Of course fans of the PS4’s Bloodborne or From Software’s Dark Souls are going to deep-dive into it since this is where the developer found its roots. This is a fantastic launch title to have but it is fairly niche. Although the fans are passionate and vocal online, this does not represent a vast majority. Most players are unable to finish these titles and are generally turned off from this specific genre. Although it does show off the power of the PS5, it isn’t enough to really sell the system to a more general audience.
Horizon Forbidden West may be the saving grace that the platform needs. It’s ambitious and would have loads to offer for players. With it being a newer, critically-acclaimed IP, it is exciting enough to have customers rush out to pickup a PS5 console. Yet, there isn’t a firm release date that’s been announced which could hint at a 2021 debut rather than that of 2020 meaning it wouldn’t make it out for launch. Compared to the Nintendo Switch which launched with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, this does look a bit more bare. As of right now, would this be enough to make customers rush out and buy a new system? Or rather, is this going to have gamers waiting around a bit longer for something more enticing to launch? The current slate of games do look to be quite special, yet they don’t feel like enough to make fans push their current systems to the side in favor of these newer ones.