2021 has been a great year for indie games, thanks in large part to the focus they received during E3 and other major presentations this year. This month was no exception, as Sony's 2021 PlayStation Indie Spotlight event took place on August 5 and brought forward a handful of big announcements, new trailers, behind-the-scenes talks with developers, and even some game reveals. Here's an overview of the most important news for any PlayStation users who may have missed it.
Firstly, Hades' developers gave fans a closer look at the game's origins and reiterated that Hades will be coming to PS4 and PS5 on August 13, as previously announced. Sony then revealed that the open-world exploration game A Short Hike will likewise come to PlayStation consoles sometime this autumn. Beyond that, no specific release date has been provided as of yet. Both indie games were met with high critical acclaim when they were initially released; Hades was crowned Game of the Year in 2020, and A Short Hike won a couple of titles at the 2020 Independent Games Festival Awards.
Axiom Verge 2, which was delayed to the second half of 2021 this May, also got some time in the spotlight as developer Tom Happ revealed an all-new gameplay trailer as well as a second fully explorable map for the Metroidvania game. Described as a "Breach world," the new map will interconnect with the game's overworld. Developers compared it to making two games at once, given the size of the Breach map. Additionally, Phobia Game Studio's horror experience Carrion was confirmed to be coming to PlayStation consoles later this year. Carrion describes itself as a reverse-horror game, putting a unique spin on the genre by placing players in the role of the monster, making its way through a facility and killing every human in its path. Those weren't the only reveals and previews released during the PlayStation Indie Spotlight, though.
On the official PlayStation blog - where the rest of August's reveals can likewise be found - Night School Studio's co-founder Adam Hines discussed the previously-announced sequel to Oxenfree, a supernatural indie game initially released in 2016. Much like its predecessor, Oxenfree 2: Lost Signals will revolve around a robust dialogue system that focuses heavily on narrative. Developers hinted that time travel will once again play a prominent role, though the game's teaser trailer provided little in the way of concrete gameplay details. More will likely be revealed as an official release date approaches. For now, it's been confirmed that Oxenfree 2 will be headed to PS4 and PS5 consoles when it does come out. It will also be available on PC as well as the Nintendo Switch.
Rather than bringing back characters from the first game, Oxenfree 2: Lost Signals instead follows the story of Riley Poverly. According to developers, Riley's tale is one of grappling with the reality of post-adolescence and the consequences of her life choices. Riley returns to her hometown of Camena, also the setting of the first game, to take up a job as an environmental researcher. From there, her investigation of Camena's unnatural electromagnetic waves leads her straight into the exploration of its supernatural mysteries. Reportedly, Oxenfree 2: Lost Signals will allow players to finally discover the full story of the game's setting.
During the PlayStation Indie Spotlight, Alientrap Games revealed its mythical crafting adventure, Wytchwood, which comes to PS4 and PS5 in the fall of 2021. The game features a 2D storybook-esque art style and is heavily inspired by Grimms' Fairy Tales, allowing players to explore a narrative-filled world and encounter NPCs inspired by characters from classic fables. Art designer Ariane Laurence describes Wytchwood as a "fundamentally chill game" focused primarily on exploration and collecting spell ingredients despite providing players with the opportunity to resolve conflicts. Fans of Skyrim's alchemy system will likely enjoy what Wytchwood has to offer. Players take up the role of the mysterious old witch of the woods, brewing enchantments and casting judgment upon the game's colorful cast.
In particular, it seems as though Wytchwood aims to offer a substantial deviation from other recently popular games that include crafting such as Valheim. Whereas many titles revolve around survival and building, Wytchwood uses its crafted spells as a means to interact with the world of the game instead. Snagvine spells can keep enchanted plants from moving, Soporific Potions will put characters into a deep sleep, and perhaps even the dead can be brought back to life with the right combination of magic ingredients. It sounds as though there will be plenty of opportunities to explore Wytchwood's story in unique ways once the game releases.
Lastly, PlatinumGames' creative director Hideki Kamiya - who also directed Bayonetta - gave Terra Cresta fans a look at the next entry in the series during the PlayStation Indie Spotlight. Sol Cresta is described as a neo-classic shooter game. Moon Cresta and its sequel Terra Cresta were initially released in the '80s, and though PlatinumGames has teased the existence of Sol Cresta before in the form of an April Fools' joke, it's only just been confirmed to be releasing on the Nintendo Switch, PS4, and PC. More details about Sol Cresta's gameplay were additionally outlined on PlatinumGames' official blog, where director Takanori Sato gave a closer look at the inner workings of its gameplay mechanics, particularly its unique approach to formations.
As a sequel to a 36-year-old game, Sol Cresta aims to bridge the gap between classic free-form docking and shooting arcade games and modern technology, capturing a feeling of nostalgia while offering an innovative gameplay experience. Much of Sol Cresta revolves around combining and reconfiguring ships to change attacks, introducing a three-fighter "dock-and-split" system to bring a new twist to classic vertical shooters. It will be the final chapter of the Terra Cresta series and will be releasing at some point in 2021. No concrete release has been provided beyond that, but all the same Sol Cresta still managed to set itself up as one of the largest announcements to come out of the PlayStation Indie Spotlight.
Source: PlayStation, PlatinumGames
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