Hi everyone! Its a pleasure to be back here to make another Astro Bot-related reveal.Play VideoIf you have been following Astro news as of late, then you know Team Asobi have been hard at work on a brand-new game coming out on September 6. The game features over 50 planets, new powerups, lots of enemies, secrets and PlayStation-infused characters to collect. And it also features a DualSense wireless controller turned into a living character and helping Astro on his mission.Today, it is an immense pleasure to announce that you will be able to charge into Astros new supersized adventure along with the cool new DualSense wireless controller Astro Bot Limited Edition.We know many of you were hoping for this after seeing the game trailer. So, we quickly asked our lovely bots to engineer this beauty and tada! No, no, Im just kidding; it had been in the making for some time, carefully crafted by the amazing teams at SIE. And what splendid work they did.The controllers design features Astros signature blue accents on the handles and buttons, carved-in, sci-fi lines as well as the trademark playful pair of eyes on the touch pad. It is a true work of art, and we could not be happier with the end-result at Team Asobi.With this dynamic addition to your set-up, a supersized space adventure awaitsStarting Friday, August 9 at 7am PT in the U.S. and 10am local time in the U.K., France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Austria, and Portugal, players will be able to pre-order the DualSense wireless controller Astro Bot Limited Edition through direct.playstation.com, as well as from select retailers. Pre-orders will also be available through select retailers in other global markets on the same day. The DualSense wireless controller Astro Bot Limited Edition will be available in limited quantities for $79.99/ 79.99 / 69.99 / 11,980 and will launch on September 6, day-in-date with the launch of Astro Bot. I will take this chance to summarize some of the cool things this new Astro Bot game does with the DualSense wireless controllerFirst, as many of you expect from an Astro game, you can feel the surfaces that Astro runs and slides on, from grass, sand, metal to more squishy textures or water. That was already the case with Astros Playroom, but we have increased the number of textures you can feel through the controller.Next, we doubled down on the adaptive triggers combined with haptic feedback, by tying them tightly to Astros new powers. For example, when using Barkster, the bulldog Jetpack, you can feel the thruster ratting against your finger in synch with the animation, giving a very dynamic and immersive feeling. Every new power up has been given that same special treatment so you will be able to experience various expressions through your fingers.Finally, given the number of enemies and boss battles we added to this new adventure, it was important to work on battle and impacts by combining all of the above. Whether its stretching, pounding or pummeling hard surfaces, there are many new types of impacts that can be experienced in Astro Bot.And of course, we could not finish this post without mentioning the Dual Speeder, one of Astros most recurrent gadgets, allowing him to fly into various planets. The Dual Speeder makes full use of motion control, adaptive triggers and haptic feedback. Here is a piece of very early concept art and how it looks in the final game.Thats all from us! Well be back soon for more news around Astro Bot. Until then, please tell us in the comments what you think of this cool DualSense wireless controller Astro Bot Limited Edition!Astro Bot is out on PS5 on September 6, we are waiting for you all to join Astro for his first big new adventure.Team Asobi out.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is an upcoming RPG and the first release from French development team Sandfall Interactive. The games unique design combines fantasy and the French historical period of Belle Epoque. Currently, the stylish game is slated for a 2025 release on PS5, check out the reveal trailer if you havent already.Play VideoTo get a deeper dive into whats going into this promising game, I spoke with Guillaume Broche, founder & creative director at Sandfall Interactive about the games unique approach to classic, turn-based RPG gameplay, classic inspirations, and even the unqiue game title itself.Whats in a name?One aspect of intrigue for the game is its title, so I asked Broche about the inspiration behind it.Clair Obscur refers to the real-world artistic and cultural movement in France in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, says Broche. It influenced the games artistic direction, and also refers to the overarching world of the game.Expedition 33 reflects the Expedition group led by the protagonist Gustave to destroy the Paintress, says Broche. The members of Expedition 33 are the protagonists of the game, and players will get to know each member of the Expedition in their journey. For years, the Paintress has painted a number on her monolith and erased everyone of that age in an event known as the Gommage, and each year a new Expedition ventures out to try to destroy her and stop the cursed cycle.Other characters, such as the mage Lune, the genial warrior Sciel, and the young explorer Maelle are also part of the team, and youll be learning a lot about them and their histories throughout the game.Respecting the classicsIn the reveal trailer we got a glimpse of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33s eye-catching graphics. Broche explains that the graphics are one of the focal points for the developers.There hasnt really been any attempt at making a turn-based RPG with high-fidelity graphics for a good while, he says, and that left a deep hole in my gamer heart. We took it upon ourselves to make something to fill that void.Broche doesnt hesitate to tell us about the many classic games that have served as inspiration for this effort from both a visual and gameplay standpoint.At Sandfall Interactive we all have a love for JRPGs like Final Fantasy, the Tales series, Lost Odyssey, and Persona with its awesome UI, rhythm, and dynamic camera, he says. We all have a lot of nostalgia and love for these kinds of games, but also want to see something fresh done with the genre.In terms of narrative, we also took inspiration from a French novel called La Horde du Contrevent, which is a fantasy novel about a group of explorers traveling the world, says Broche. In general, stories about venturing into the unknown despite incredible risks, like the anime/manga Attack on Titan, have always been very appealing to me.One thing that sets Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 apart from the games that inspired it is its implementation of real-time elements into turn-based combat.We were inspired by action games like the Souls series, Devil May Cry, and NieR, and their rewarding gameplay was something we wanted to bring into a turn-based setting, says Broche. When you play those games, you have to learn the attacks, timings, and weaknesses for each enemy encounter, and we wanted to translate that challenge into a new genre.Getting into the rhythm of battleCombat is one of the elements that Broche and his team are most proud of, so we discussed some of the unique mechanics they implemented and the inspiration behind them.The battle system is what we call reactive turn-based, he explains. You can take time during battles to establish your strategies, but during the enemys turn, you will have to react in real-time to dodge, jump, or parry enemies to trigger a powerful counterattack. You will also be able to increase the effectiveness of your skills by mastering attack rhythms. Players will also be rewarded for their skillits even possible to do a no-damage run if you master all the enemies patterns.I kept thinking about ways to make turn-based battles more engaging, Broche continues.The attack rhythm system is a mix of different inspirationswe wanted to make something fast paced to fit the vision we had for battle. As soon as I finished the first prototype of the defense system, I knew it was something special.Broche also dives into what players can expect when they jump into the game themselves.Id say dodging and parrying are the most common things players will need to get to grips with as they play, says Broche. The timing is pretty important, but the payoff is always really rewarding. Also, you can aim your ranged weapons at enemies toohitting exposed weak points to do some extra damage, for example. Expedition 33 features some huge boss battles too thatll really put players skills to the test. And, just like any great RPG, you can also build your character to take advantage of different things in battle, including these real-time mechanics. Were all looking forward to players finding out more about how the game feels as we work towards the games launch next year.Finally, I asked if Broche had any messages for future players.Were glad to see so many fans are excited for the world of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33! As our first title, were thrilled with the reception weve seen so far and we cant wait to show more in the lead up to launch next year.

Visions of Mana, an upcoming action-RPG from Square Enix releases August 29 on PS5 and PS4. It features a thrilling action combat system, where you take on hordes of monsters with weapons, spells and a host of awesome abilities. Its fast-paced and tests both your reflexes and strategy.At the heart of the experience are the Elemental Vessels. These tools, imbued with elemental power, allow you to perform incredible actions in combat from freezing time to dishing out damage with style. Whats more, equipping them to one of the five playable characters will change the characters class, opening up all new options in the heat of battle. See some of them in action here.Play VideoIn that presentation, we revealed three of these Elemental Vessels, representing Earth, Light and Darkness. For this accompanying blog, we asked Visions of Manas producer Masaru Oyamada and director Ryosuke Yoshida to reveal a little more about each and the combat system as a whole!Capturing the (elemental) spirit of the Mana seriesWhile Visions of Mana is intended to be a fresh start for the series, with no prior experience needed, the team still wanted to capture the series very distinct identity through the combat. But what defines the combat of a Mana game?Masaru Oyamada (producer)From the start of the series, the Mana games have featured multiple weapons and magic spells for the player to wield as well as enjoyable RPG character growth systems. So, it was important that people feel those elements strongly in Visions of Mana too!Ryosuke Yoshida (director)One of the most important elements of Mana games is that feeling that youre interacting with the elementals (spirits that control elements like wind, fire or darkness).Thats at the core of the design of Visions of Mana and something that was really important to me. Its such a vital part of that distinctive Mana series identity, and if the battles didnt capture it, there would be no point to the game at all!In Visions of Mana, we focus the flow of battle around the use of the Elemental Vessels potent weapons infused with elemental magic. These artifacts use the Elementals powers to manifest mysterious primal forces, such as trapping the foe in water bubbles or pinning them in the air with wind blasts.The effects they create can also be changed in various ways through the players actions, which creates a fun dynamic where it feels like you are interacting with the Elementals as you fight.Getting to the core of combatThe combat in Visions of Mana is very fast and fluid. Youll have consider lots of different aspects, from positioning to the abilities you unleash, but youll soon be able to take down foes in spectacular style.Theres a lot of amazing powers to use in combat, especially when you start using Elemental Vessels, but before they could get into that, the developers had to make sure the basics of battle were rock solid.Ryosuke YoshidaWhen we were thinking about how to design the battle system, we didnt just look at the combat in isolation. Instead we tried to make it something that tied closely into the overall concept that was decided for the game.Central mechanics like switching between three party members in battle, using ring menu and shortcut bindings are inspired by elements from past Mana games. However, I had a strong desire to put more weight on switching between different characters during combat.One way we did this, for example, was through the Elemental Vessels and the gameplay options they offer. You have a party of three characters and can equip each one with a different Elemental Vessel that manifests different effects. Its possible to follow up after you use one of these effects by switching and using a different elemental power to create an even more potent compound ability.In this way we create motivation and benefits for the player to switch between different characters in battle.That said, we took care not to make it so important that switching became compulsory. To that end, we avoided creating enemies that cant be defeated unless you jump between characters.Elemental VesselsAs mentioned, the Elemental Vessels are central to both combat and traversal in the game. These artifacts, bestowed on the player by the eight elementals over the course of the game, offer you new ways to get around the world, and special powers to use during battles.This was a core focus for the game and sits at the heart of the experience. Naturally, that meant it was something the team were very careful to make as satisfying and exciting to use as possible.Ryosuke YoshidaI felt it was very important to have a consistent feel across the whole game, with a design that tied both the battles and the exploration to the core concept of interacting with the elementals as sentient beings.The tools that let us realise this concept practically are the Elemental Vessels.Masaru OyamadaThe Mana series has always featured eight distinct elementals with each embodying one of the core forces that shape the world. Naturally then, there would be eight vessels that house each of their powers. We came up with lots of interesting ideas for different objects to use, but ultimately aimed to create designs that would best capture the interesting aspects of each elemental.Vessel of Earth: Gnome ShovelIn the video, we show three Elemental Vessels: Earth, Light and Darkness. Producer Oyamada and director Yoshida offered some insight into the creation of these vessels and the associated abilities.OyamadaThe concept for the Vessel of Earth was defense. When used, it surrounds the player in a solid, rocky shield that protects against attacks.YoshidaIt took a little trial and error to get right though! Originally, it created a gigantic wall of earth which would protect the player from attacks. Unfortunately, we found that summoning a huge barrier into the battle area obstructed the players vision. Plus, enemies attack from multiple angles anyway, so it didnt really protect them at all. So, we switched the current idea, where the vessel creates a dome-like shield out of semi-transparent rocks!Vessel of Light: Lumina LanternOyamadaThe concept behind this one was reflection. Using the Lumina Lantern, the player can link enemies together with rays of light, reflecting the damage from one enemy to another!Vessel of Darkness: Shade SightOyamadaThe idea behind this vessel was gravitation. When the elemental is unleashed, it creates a black hole, which draws in enemies.YoshidaOur battle director innocently brought up that he was curious about what would happen if there was a lake or river close by and suggested the water should be sucked up along with the enemies. However, there arent many battle areas which are next to lakes in the first place, and if we were going to do this, it would have created a heap of problems, such as when would the water come back!So, understandably, we soon abandoned that particular idea (laughs).Class actsEquipping an Elemental Vessel to a character changes their class, giving them new abilities, weapons, and even costumes. Every vessel can be equipped to every character, which makes for a lot of variety regarding how you customize your party.YoshidaWe came up with the specifications for the different weapons and classes alongside those of the Elemental Vessels.We did so because we knew from the start that future balancing would be needed to ensure that none of weapons and actions paired with the vessels would break the system.This meant that by the time we reached the prototyping stage, all the vessels basic effects were already decided and we could focus on the final balancing between the classes. Not only that, but we could also make up for any areas where a class was less distinct by adding unique abilities and altering their parameters.OyamadaOnce we decided that there would be eight different elements, we designed ideas for each characters classes based on combinations of the different Elemental Vessel effects and weapon types.Of course, these still went through changes over development. For example, we originally went with more of a succubus-style appearance for Careenas darkness-based class, but our character designer Haccan proposed a great idea which swayed us in a different direction. I think this turned out great and captures her cheery personality too!Visions of Mana releases August 29 on PS5 and PS4. The game is available to pre-order now at the PlayStation Store.

Hi Everyone,We are happy to share an update on PlayStation Portal launch in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand.PlayStation Portal will be out on 4th September 2024 in Singapore and on 9th October 2024 in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand with suggested retail price (SRP) of SGD 295.90 / MYR 999 / IDR 3,599,000 / THB 7,790.Pre-order for PlayStation Portal will start on 5th August 2024. Please check with your local retailer for details on pre-order.View and download imageDownload the imagecloseCloseDownload this imagePlayStation Portal remote playerPlayStation Portal remote player brings the PS5 experience to the palm of your hand. It includes the key features of the DualSense wireless controller, including adaptive triggers and haptic feedback*. The vibrant 8-inch LCD screen is capable of 1080p resolution at 60fps, providing a high definition visual experience thats expected from the high quality games created by world-class developers.PlayStation Portal is the perfect device for gamers in households where they might need to share their living room TV or simply want to play PS5 games in another room of the house. PlayStation Portal will connect remotely to your PS5 over Wi-Fi**, so youll be able to swiftly jump from playing on your PS5 to your PlayStation Portal. PlayStation Portal can play supported games that are installed on your PS5 console and use the Dualsense controller. It also includes a 3.5mm audio jack for wired audio. PS VR2 games, which require the headset, and games that are streamed through PlayStation Plus Premiums cloud streaming, are not supported.***For more details on PlayStation Portal, please check the product page here (https://www.playstation.com/accessories/playstation-portal-remote-player/).*Haptic feedback and adaptive trigger features are only available when those features are supported by the game being played.**Requires broadband internet Wi-Fi with at least 5Mbps for use. For a better play experience, a high-speed connection of at least 15Mbps is recommended.***Games that require a VR headset (PlayStation VR or PlayStation VR2) or additional peripherals (other than a DUALSHOCK 4, DualSense, or DualSense Edge wireless controller) are not compatible. Games that must be streamed on PS5 using a PS Plus Premium membership are not compatible.

Last week, we asked you journey to the world of Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn and share epic moments using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this weeks highlights:secondcapture shares a detailed look at the back of Nor Vanek, including her tattoos, hair, and gun holsterm_nt_13 shares Nor Vanek leaping upward, leaving behind a trail of purple sparksspec_arc shares Nor Vanek standing in a cave, ax drawnGioWayne86 shares an image looking up at Nor Vanek in a red outfit, ax drawn and in focusHorizon_VP shares Nor Vanek standing in a stone archway that frames a fortress in the distanceVivaceVivianV shares Enki the fox standing to the right of a glowing red obeliskSearch #PSshare #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this weeks theme. Want to be featured in the next Share of the Week?THEME: Games within GamesSUBMIT BY: 11:59 PM PT on July 31, 2024Next week, we turn the spotlight on games within a video game. From sports to cards, or challenges to races, share your favorite characters taking part in an in-game game using #PSshare #PSBlog for a chance to be featured.