In a recent episode of his podcast, Gerstmann spoke about having heard of a new Ape Escape game. While noting that it isn’t yet close to release, he has reported that the title has been under development for almost a year.

“So yeah, some other folks have kind of said that they also heard that Ape Escape is being made. I don’t think this game is close to being out or anything like that, but I guess it’s been almost a year since we started talking about Ape Escape.

“Who is making it? That’s a good question. My understanding is that it’s an external studio. You know, because people were immediately like, ‘Oh, Team Asobi is making it.’ My understanding is that an external team has been working on that. What do they make… Penny’s Big Breakaway. Evening Star. I heard that they were working on it.”

Further in his podcast, Gerstmann revealed that he had been hearing about the Ape Escape game being developed by Evening Star since at least February earlier this year.

“You know, not necessarily the most corroborated, multiple-source thing, but that is what I heard about an Ape Escape game. And I heard that, well, gosh… I mean, I was asking people questions at DICE this year about this Ape Escape game. So that was February. So, there you go.”

VGC has reported that this seems to be part of a larger push at Sony to bring some of its older franchises to a new audience. The company recently did something similar with its Everybody’s Golf series, which got a new entry last year by Bandai Namco, dubbed Everybody’s Golf: Hot Shots.

Sony’s plans might revolve around experimenting with bringing back some of its smaller-scale franchises by licensing them out to external studios. The company has previously also attempted to bring back the MediEvil franchise with a remake in 2019.

It is worth noting that Ape Escape has a larger fan following, since it was also one of the first titles that would make full use of the twin analog sticks on the at-the-time new DualShock controller. The original was released in 1999 and was the first PlayStation game to explicitly need a DualShock controller.

In gameplay terms, players were tasked with catching monkeys across a variety of stages with a net along with other tools. The net itself was the star of the gameplay, since players needed to flick the right analog stick with precise timing to successfully capture the monkeys.

The moment-to-moment gameplay of the original Ape Escape offered a blend of 3D platforming and puzzle-solving challenges, with players often needing to figure out unique ways to sneak up on particularly intelligent monkeys before being able to grab them with a net.

The last mainline entry in the franchise was 2005’s Ape Escape 3 on PS2. The level “Apes on the Loose” in 2024’s Astro Bot is also based on the franchise.

That’s right, developer Evening Star and publisher Private Division have shadow-dropped Penny’s Big Breakaway. Along with the announcement, a new gameplay trailer was also showcased at the aforementioned Direct, offering more glimpses of the game’s power ups and the temporary transformations you’ll make use of, the unique and colourful worlds you’ll be exploring, its Story Mode and Time Attack Mode, and more. You can check out the trailer below.

Penny’s Big Breakaway is available now on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC. The game is being sold at a price of $29.99.

Die Gute Fabrik, based in Cologne, is working on a new story-driven game and wants to “push the boundaries of what games can be”. Meanwhile, Evening Star in Los Angeles, which last worked with Sega on Sonic Mania Plus, is working on its own unannounced 3D action platformer utilizing their proprietary Star Engine.

Then there’s Piccolo Studio, known for Arise: A Simple Story, and is currently developing “a unique new IP”. Finally, Quebec City-based Yellow Brick Games, comprised of industry vets who’ve worked on Dragon Age, Assassin’s Creed, Rainbow Six, and more, is working on an “ambitious” new action RPG, and wants to create “rich, interactive worlds” with “emergent systems”.

As you may have gathered given how little we know about all of these projects, they’re all confirmed to be in early development right now. At the earliest, they will begin launching in Private Division parent company Take-Two Interactive’s fiscal year 2024.

Private Division also has a publishing agreement in place for the next game developed by Moon Studios, the developers of Ori and the Blind Forest and Ori and the Will of the Wisps, while internal studio Intercept Games is currently working on Kerbal Space Program 2.