Sony and a select group of developers unvailed a carefully cropped set of games in development for the PS4 at their announcement last night. They wanted to make sure they had some new games, some big names, and genres for every kind of player. Sony also revealed a gigantic list of developers making games for Sony's next-gen platform. Well... It wasn't a list so much as a screen crowded with logos.
The list included gigantic publishers like EA to small developers you may not have even heard of before. For many of them we can at least make an educated guess about what they might be doing: There's a decent chance Warner Bros. Interactive plans to bring the next Batman: Arkham game to next-gen consoles, or might have a Mortal Kombat sequel in the works. Not every studio is that predictable, though. Some of the developers on that list just shipped their newest game, others don't have a franchise that would automatically make the generational leap. Even if we assume that every upcoming project we know about is coming to PS4, we still have no idea what these guys are up to:
Splash Damage:
Brink developer Splash damage has seemingly steered clear of console game development since their last game was met with less than warm reviews. According to their website, SD is currently working on Dirty Bomb, a multiplayer-centric PC FPS current in beta, and an unannounced project. While it certainly isn't impossible that Splash Damage would look to next-gen consoles to expand Dirty Bomb's audience, the fluidity of the game's release plan don't allow for the bombastic presentation you'd expect for a next-gen console title.
Rebellion Studios:
UK developer Rebellion isn't exactly the type of the studio you expect to see on a list of developers given early access to a next-gen dev kit. Though they scored a moderate hit with their Sega-published Aliens vs Predators shooter, much of their catalog doesn't have the pizazz to generate buzz amongst early adopters. After their most recent console titles Neverdead and Sniper Elite V2, it's pretty hard to say just what they're going to bring to the PS4 table.
If we had to guess, it would make sense if the studio was making some kind of licensed title for large publisher. In addition to AvP, Rebellion contributed to games based on Star Wars and Judge Dredd. More to the point, they've worked with a fair number of publishers with properties waiting to be utilized.
Level-5:
Earlier this year Level-5 released one of the most visually-stunning games ever with Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch. And that's the point: They just released that game. We could assume that Level 5 is making another RPG for PS4, but that's cheating.
Though Level-5 has an immense following in Japan and a growing fanbase in North America, the studio has said their most popular franchise, Professor Layton, is coming to a close after the upcoming Professor Layton and the Legacy of Civilization, which is coming to 3DS in Japan later this month. There's no Level-5 franchise that has the global popularity that we can point to and say: "That's the game!"
Of course, all of this is predicated on the fact the studio is working on a game meant for global release, which may not be the case considering not every developer's logo featured the English language.
Rockstar:
By far the most tenuous developer on this list, we already know Rockstar's working on GTA V. That doesn't mean that GTA V is the reason Sony's on that list. In fact, there's some reason to indicate they're committed to making something else.
Rockstar has said they've created GTA V for the PS3/Xbox 360 hardware. While it wouldn't be a bad idea to expect an eventual PS4 port, releasing that instead of new PS4-era game just doesn't seem like Rockstar's style. Whether it's a sequel or completely new idea, Rockstar developers are in a room somewhere working on something to usher in the next generation their way.
Double Fine:
Double Fine chief Tim Schafer said Sony came to him looking for advice on how to make the PS4 more developer-friendly. You know he's making something new for the PS4. You just know it.
The studio's high-profile project, their Kickstarter-funded "Double Fine Adventure," isn't headed to consoles. At least right away. In recent history the studio has taken to putting out unique downloadable game experiences. The one thing we've come to expect is that prefer to make the games we won't expect. It also seems like a safe guess that Double Fine next-gen title released near launch would headline PSN's downloadable/streaming-only library.
What do you think these guys are going to make for the PS4. Let us know in the comments!