Gaming
Serene exploration adventure Submerged announced for PS4
Earlier today, indie development studio Uppercut Games announced their first console title – Submerged for the PlayStation 4, an exploration-adventure game that puts players in a mysterious, abandoned city that has been flooded and overgrown.
According to Ed Orman, one of the founders of the company, Submerged focuses on a pair of siblings, Miku and Taku, who have arrived in this strange place via boat and are trying to find shelter. Taku is wounded so players must take control of Miku as she uses her boat and telescope to scour the city for supplies. As the game progresses, players will gradually discover many secrets within the city and how it came to be, as well as who Miku and Taku are and what led them there.
The game is being built with the Unreal Engine 4 and the studio have brought in BAFTA Winner Jeff Van Dyck to provide the musical score; previous work of his include the soundtrack for Alien: Isolation.
It sounds like Submerged will involve plenty of exploring, platforming and puzzle-solving, making it ripe for enthusiasts of the genres. While the studio itself only has a few titles to its name, the initial founding trio (composed of Orman, Andrew James and Ryan Lancaster) have experience working on such titles as Bioshock and XCOM.
However, Orman describes Submerged as ‘serene,’ and that there will be no fail states. This means that the game will be all about the journey and the personal experience rather than the challenge. This is not necessarily a bad thing as similar titles such as Journey have received positive acclaim, but it does mean that its story, world and characters will need to be top-par if that is what its focusing on.
Submerged will be released for the PS4 later this year.
New World Interactive, the developer of the Insurgency series of tactical first-person shooters, has laid off an unknown number of employees as part of Embracer Group’s comprehensive restructuring plan.
Saber Interactive, which acquired New World in 2020, told Eurogamer that the studio had not closed. However, it confirmed an unknown number of layoffs.
Embracer says it is “actively working to fill existing open roles” with impacted employees and will provide severance packages. “Saber also assures that development will continue on Insurgency: Sandstorm, as well as on unannounced future projects,” it said.
Over 900 employees were laid off in an “agonizing” but “necessary” process. As always, we hope all victims recover.
Sony wants non-console owners to access its content beyond its PlayStation-walled garden. This strategy has been slowly implemented: the company has commissioned TV and movie adaptations of its biggest franchises, ported select software to the PC, and launched a mobile gaming division.
In an interview with Nikkei, head Hideaki Nishino explained how this strategy can boost console sales: We want to use movies and dramas to get non-gamers to try PlayStation games. Sales of The Last of Us increased during the live-action drama.
When HBO’s adaptation aired, our The Last of Us content skyrocketed, so we can understand its impact. As a PlayStation fan site, we support this strategy because we want to reach as many people as possible, so if Sony can appeal to non-console owners, that’s a win-win.
More PlayStation users is better, in our opinion.
PowerWash Simulator is one of this month’s PS Plus Essentials, but before you start scrubbing, check out the PS Store. The game has been well supported on PS5 and PS4 with free DLC packs based on Square Enix titles since its release at the start of the year.
Free Final Fantasy VII and Tomb Raider expansions let you clean Croft Manor and Seventh Heaven. The free DLC packs add 10 levels, and the paid ones add more.
Two more Back to the Future and SpongeBob SquarePants expansions cost £6.49 or $7.99 each. You can then scrub the Bikini Bottom and the DeLorean.
The Midgar Special Pack for PowerWash Simulator was another reason to use the cleaning kit. “It doesn’t add much, but getting close to FF7’s props and environments is fun. It offers a fresh take on the beloved title that will please both sides of this collaboration.”
Have you tried the latest PS Plus Essential game?
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