As spotted recently by Gematsu on Twitter, Sony filed a new trademark for Knack in Japan on March 17. As is the case with trademark filings more often than not, this doesn’t necessarily suggest that a new instalment in the series is in the works, but it does indicate that Sony could still have plans for the property. Then again, companies filing and renewing trademarks to protect their intellectual properties isn’t exactly an uncommon occurrence.

If a new Knack game were indeed in development, it would be interesting to see how its production would be handled, seeing as SIE Japan Studio, the studio that made the first two games, has been shuttered. Its replacement, Team Asobi, seems to have an ambitious new project of its own in the works- which doesn’t exactly sound like Knack.

But Sony insists that Japan still remains an important part of the brand’s market strategy. In a recent interview with Game Informer, PlayStation Studios boss Hermen Hulst reiterated that Japanese development and Japanese games are “still part of who [they] are”. In addition to highlighting the expansion of Team Asobi and the continued work of Gran Turismo developer Polyphony Digital, Hulst also said that Sony is investing in external Japanese development, and that that remains “a core part of the PlayStation identity.”

“We’re building out Team Asobi under Nicolas Doucet, so we’re actually investing in that team,” Hulst said. “People forget sometimes that we have Polyphony Digital, which is a team in two locations. We are investing in our external development group out of Tokyo as well, and that’s a team that has obviously worked with the likes of From Software and Kojima Productions. So we are very invested in Japanese development and Japanese development is something that we love… I think it’s such a core part of the PlayStation identity that I can’t ever see us shy away from Japanese or even Asian development.”

Interestingly enough, some recent leaks have claimed that FromSoftware is working on a new Soulslike IP exclusive for the PS5, with development support being provided by XDev. You can read more on that through here.

Sony has seen massive success in the industry over the last decade with its first party output. The likes of The Last of Us, Uncharted, God of War, and Horizon Zero Dawn in particular have enjoyed widespread critical and commercial success, and it’s become abundantly clear that Sony’s first party developers now have a template that they follow for their releases. In a new report by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier, more light has been shed on that, and apparently, it’s a lot more than just a template- it seems to be a focused drive coming from the higher ups at PlayStation.

According to Schreier’s report, Sony has shifted its development focus to prioritize blockbuster AAA releases from studios such as Guerrilla Games, Naughty Dog, and SIE Santa Monica Studio. Those games can cost tens of millions of dollars, but their success proves to be well worth the investment. That, however, has come at a cost, with the report explaining that Sony is no longer greenlighting smaller, more experimental projects at all, with their full focus being on the more large-scale blockbuster releases.

Sure enough, the recent closure of SIE Japan Studio is an example of that. Last year’s Dreams, Schreier points out, was a game with immense potential (as its widespread positive reception would tell you as well), but fell by the wayside thanks to a clear lack of marketing and focus by Sony (though it’s worth mentioning that Sony does seem to be investing more heavily in Media Molecule right now). What’s more, it seems even a Days Gone sequel was cancelled as a result of Sony wanting to focus on the sureshot successes.

Sony’s “fixation” on AAA projects has allegedly also caused unrest at many first party studios, including at SIE Bend Studio, who were initially assigned to work on a new Uncharted project under Naughty Dog’s supervision. Many at the studio who were unhappy with the arrangement ended up leaving, and the studio was eventually taken off the project, and now seems to be working on a new game.

In the same report, Schreier also talked about a remake of The Last of Us, which is in development at Naughty Dog, with Sony’s Visual Arts Service Group (VASG) in San Diego having started out as lead developers before being relegated to a support studio. Read more on that through here.

Well fortunately I think it’s fair to say that we will probably get one. it’s likely on the way in one form or another. The big question is when we will actually get it and what form it will take. obviously, a blue point style total remaster or remake of Bloodborne really isn’t necessary. they could really just unlock the framerate and I think most Bloodborne players would be happy with that. but as Jim Ryan confirmed in an interview with GQ Magazine earlier this year, Sony is working on more PC ports of their first party games like Days Gone and potentially God of War. With all of the efforts those ports will probably take, it’s at least somewhat likely that the Bloodborne patch is taking a backseat to those endeavors for the time being. Surely there’s nothing wrong with that but it still seems like less of a task to just give the game a PS5 patch unlock the framerate and let It be. So, what’s the hold up?

Well, it’s also fair to assume that FromSoftware is probably working on other things right now perhaps Elden Ring, so releasing a patch for their game from several years ago might not be very high on their priority list at the moment either. And also, let’s not forget the rumors that swirled around the internet last year about the PC port of Bloodborne which would seem to make sense with Jim Ryan’s agenda for PlayStation’s IP at the moment. Perhaps they don’t want to release a patch for Bloodborne right now as a way to avoid distracting from all of the bells and whistles that would come along with a well-done PC port. I would personally be a little puzzled by that perspective, but it’s possible.

If that is how they view the situation then perhaps they’re just waiting to get that PC port out, see how well it does, and then optimize the PS5 version after. In my personal opinion if they’re going to pick and choose which one of these things, they do first they should stick with patching the game for the PS5 first since that’s where PlayStation’s most loyal fanbase is, But Sony may be looking at it from a different direction. if they were to release a big PS5 friendly framerate patch for Bloodborne just a few months away from a PC port that could potentially siphon excitement away from that release and that would mean less money for Sony and the long run. So, if they’re looking at it from that perspective, I guess it could make sense to just wait a while before they do anything to Bloodborne as it currently stands and get it out on PC first.

There’s also the sticky situation of Sony and blue point reportedly still circling each other when it comes to a merger or a purchasing of Bluepoint Games. This is likely a big deal for them and it will take some time to get to the bottom of what exactly the terms of that purchase will be, and I could understand if they were waiting for that to be done so they could give the job of releasing a PS5 patch for Bloodborne to Bluepoint who now is eminently qualified to handle IP that FromSoftware originally made.

And of course, what I consider to be the most logical theory is that Sony is just waiting to put out a PS5 version of Bloodborne and sell it as such. This version would of course have 4K visuals, 60 frames per second, or at least something close to those specs, and it would definitely feel much more like an actual PS5 game as opposed to an optimized PS4 game that just runs better on PS5. The line between what those two things are is getting pretty blurry this generation, but I think Sony may be trying to draw a very clear one between Bloodborne on PS4 and PS5. if there is a Bloodborne 2 coming down the pipes later on in the generation, it would make sense to have a PS5 version of Bloodborne available to everyone as well, as that would make a nice duology collection even later in the generation kind of like what we saw from Quantic Dream with Beyond: Two Souls and Heavy Rain. Many PS4 gamers who didn’t have a PS3 bought that collection and that was how they played those older games. Sony could be eyeing a similar solution to the problem of PS5 owners who sat the last generation out but would still like to experience Bloodborne one and a potential Bloodborne I that truly takes advantage of their new expensive hardware.

Whatever Sony is planning to do with Bloodborne, when it’s all said and done there will likely be a way to play the game on your PS5 that takes advantage of that hardware to some degree. Whether that is through a patch for the PS4 version that just makes it run a little better or a fully-fledged PS5 version that feels like a PS5 game is anybody’s guess at this point, but I would be shocked if we got through the next couple of years and didn’t see one of those two solutions. All PlayStation gamers need to do now is just enjoy Bloodborne the way it is as they wait.

The Legend of Dragoon was one of those games. It was a game that surely didn’t eclipse the Final Fantasy series in terms of sales or critical reception, but it still managed to cultivate a sizable fanbase with its excellent take on the JRPG format. The Legend of Dragoon didn’t go too far outside of the box conceptually, but it was rewarded for its tight execution and somewhat more realistic story than most other JRPGs of the time. The game was praised for its artistic elements like lush backgrounds and detailed character models, and even given compliments for some of it’s more inscrutable battle system elements. The reward went far beyond just positive critical reception though, as the game would sell astoundingly well in both the US and Japan, which was extremely rare for a JRPG of any type at the time. So, given all of that, what happened? Why did this game launch to such success and then just kind of cease to become anything else? What the hell happened to The Legend of Dragoon, and where is the sequel?

Nowadays it’s not a secret that The Legend of Dragoon is a bona fide classic. This isn’t for no reason, either. It was a game that combined interesting characters, some reasonably deep story threads, and a handful of fun twists on the JRPG format. For instance, the time-based attacks. Hitting the right button at the exact right moment can keep a combo going and increase the damage you deal, while messing it up can have the opposite effect. Once you mastered the attacks, you would soon notice your SP going up. Once you use that to become a dragoon battles would intensify significantly as you were now far more powerful and had access to new attacks in this form. The dragoons themselves could also be leveled up, and once you mastered that, achieving special attacks once all three of your characters’ dragoons were all leveled up was yet another layer to achieve and master.

This combat system was made all the more intricate with the standard elements and status effects that you would see in typical JRPGs. Between battles, the game had lots of towns and dungeons to explore. These areas are perhaps one of Dragoon’s most underrated features, as they are so intricately designed and brimming with personality and intrigue at every turn. Some of the pre-rendered backgrounds would even have motion like glistening water or blowing wind or scrolling layers. These effects were subtle but also made the worlds that they represented feel so much more alive. Again, it might not blow your socks off by today’s standards but at the time, there really weren’t very many games nailing it like The Legend of Dragoon was.

All of this of course is what makes its complete lack of a follow-up all the more puzzling. The Legend of Dragoon was made in-house at Japan Studio by many of the people who are still around in PlayStation today, albeit now in much higher management focused roles. A sequel has not been made but that’s apparently not for a lack of trying. Shuhei Yoshida has actually gone out of his way to admit that a Legend of Dragoon sequel was in pre-production fairly shortly after the original one came out in a PlayStation Blog, although he had left Japan studio and thusly wasn’t entirely privy to all of the details surrounding its cancellation, he does confirm that it did exist at one time in some form. So why the cancellation? Well, there could be a ton of reasons.

Video game developer like Japan Studio rarely sat on their laurels, so there is plenty of reason to believe that they just got interested in the new handful of projects that they had planned, including titles for the upcoming and hotly anticipated PlayStation 2. Also, given that Yoshida left the studio to head up other departments within PlayStation, perhaps it just didn’t feel right moving on with the series without him being present. Or, given that Final Fantasy had dominated the market with 7, 8, and 9, by the end of the PS1’s life, it’s entirely possible that they felt out-gunned by the folks over at Squaresoft who seemed to be locking up a bigger and bigger chunk of the market with each Final Fantasy release. As much as I understand that last one, I really hope that’s not it though, as I feel like that would have been a huge misread of the market. JRPG fans often owned everything they could get. Even if it took them some time, they would have gotten around to The Legend of Dragoon 2.

That said, outside of a standalone soundtrack released in 2000 and a very brief manga series later on that same year, Legend of Dragoon would stay as it was. A video game franchise that was left behind all too soon, and became shockingly obscure to those outside of its cult following despite how great its one game was. Sony would get a clue as to how popular the IP was when the game was released on the digital storefront of the PlayStation 3. To this day, it’s one of the better-selling games they ever did that with. And that’s saying a lot given that Resident Evil, Crash Bandicoot, and Metal Gear Solid are also on that same storefront. But alas, after all this time the fact that we haven’t gotten a sequel is sort of its own omen as to whether or not we ever will. As is so often the case in situations like this, the longer we go without a sequel to The Legend of Dragoon, the less likely it is that we will ever get one. As demand and popularity continues to slide for the game, and the JRPG genre continues to grow and change without it, there is less and less of a reason for anyone to pick it up and dust it off with a brand-new game. But I’ve certainly been wrong before, so at the end of the day, only time will tell.

Following the departure of several high profile figures in quick succession and reports of Sony beginning to de-emphasize the Japanese market, it was recently confirmed by Sony that SIE Japan Studio was being wound down as a development studio. Now, the influx is continuing, with more developers either being let go or moving on.

The latest in that long list of names is Gavin Moore, who was the creative director of last year’s PS5 flagship launch title, the Demon’s Souls remake. Moore confirmed recently via his Twitter page that after over two decades at Sony, he is now moving on. “Time to seek out new and exciting opportunities,” he wrote, though did not elaborate.

Moore had been at SIE Japan Studio since 2003, where he worked on the Siren series, was the creative director on Puppeteer, and most recently, on Demon’s Souls. Prior to that, he spent six years at SIE London Studio, where he worked on the PS2 open world shooter The Getaway.

After 24 years at Sony and 18 of those in Japan, yesterday was my last day at #JAPANStudio. I will miss the great creative spirit and camaraderie of the studio that was a huge part of my life. Time to seek out new and exciting opportunities!! pic.twitter.com/XOW0XytYd4

— gavin moore (@GavinmGavin) April 1, 2021

On face value, Sony continues to maintain the stance that, contrary to reports, it’s not de-emphasizing the Japanese market– but troubling developments over at SIE Japan continue to suggest otherwise. Recently, major creative talent left the studio in a flurry, with Silent Hill and Gravity Rush creator Keiichiro Toyama being chief among them- and now, another major figure has departed.

Teruyuki Toriyama recently took to Twitter to announced that he will be leaving SIE Japan Studio at the end of December. In case you aren’t aware, Toriyama has been an important figure on the production side of things for several major SIE Japan games in recent years, including the likes of Bloodborne, Astro Bot Rescue Mission, the recent Demon’s Souls remake, and more.

Toriyama hasn’t joined his fellow former SIE Japan leads at their newly formed Bokeh Games (or at least he hasn’t made any such announcement yet), but he’s yet another talented individual who’s departed from the studio. One has to wonder what’s going on over there.

[Notice]
I will be leaving SIE WWS JAPAN Studio at the end of Dec. To all the users who have supported JAPAN Studio so far,thank you so much! I will continue to take on the challenge of creating new game IPs in my new company, and I ask for your continued support. #JAPANStudio

— 鳥山晃之 (Teruyuki Toriyama) | Thirdverse (@teru_toriyama) December 24, 2020

Why wouldn’t masses and masses of gamers be interested in new developments for those games? As a result, every single morsel of information that has surfaced about the possibility of these two franchises making any sort of comeback has been understandably scrutinized. This is a good thing, as the only thing worse than not getting a fitting revival of either franchise is spending a lot of time under the false belief that we are. So let’s take a close look at the current state of the rumor mill with these games.

The first rumor we’ll dive into is the claim that Bluepoint Games is currently hard at work on a remake of Metal Gear Solid. On its face this doesn’t seem to be outside of the realm of possibility at all, as Bluepoint has been at the helm of many great remakes and remasters, in fact, I think it’s safe to say they are basically the gold standard of that sort of thing. The Shadow of the Colossus and Demon’s Souls remakes were excellent titles and it would make sense that they go for something even bigger and more meaningful next, which something like Metal Gear Solid would certainly be. This rumor comes from a source that has gotten things right (YouTube Channel: Moore’s Law Is Dead) in the past, but the correct prediction that everybody is pointing to as a source of the leaker’s credibility is the sequel to 2018’s God of War, which isn’t exactly the spiciest prediction I’ve ever heard.

Everybody pretty much knew that we would get another God of War. Especially considering what a hit 2018’s entry into that franchise was. The fact that it was announced was a surprise to nobody. The thing that gives the Metal Gear Solid remake rumor real credibility is the fact that it’s coming from many different sources, not just one guy or gal. It also seems to be a reasonable path for Konami to take with the franchise at this point anyway, rumors aside completely. With Hideo Kojima out of the picture at Konami, making new Metal Gear Solid games a tough nut to crack, and remakes and remasters being as hot as they are right now as a way for publishers with beloved IPs to cash in on nostalgia, The idea of a remake of Metal Gear Solid is not exactly a farfetched one… it actually makes a lot of sense.

The prominent rumor in question today also states that this remake has been in the oven for several years and features mechanics from Metal Gear Solid V. These again, are things that make absolute sense as the controls from Metal Gear Solid V were probably the best part of the game and with how successful Bluepoint games has become, it would make sense that they would have something cooking on the back burner while wrapping up Demon’s Souls for the PS5 launch. If they have shifted their primary focus over to the Metal Gear Solid remake at this point they probably have something else getting started in the background of that. But again the most eye-catching part of all of this is that the source saying these things is not alone, and there are other reasons to think a Metal Gear Solid remake is on the way.

Let’s not forget the infamous tweet from 2019’s October from Bluepoint Games themselves, that seemed to reference multiple beloved games that are ripe for a revival, reading: “A symphony of rumors – not one, but two – return from shadow. A resistance to dart home as black monsters escape twisted hills to wander lands and syphon souls. Filter your candy collections, soft from solid, and be eco-friendly.” Out of all of the cryptic tweets that developers have made that hint at future projects this is still probably my favorite. All at once it seems to reference the Resistance series, Metal Gear Solid, Silent Hill, and maybe even Tenchu unless I’m reading too much into the “from the shadows” part. Some of these are probably red herrings, but it does seem to indicate that blue point has their finger on the pulse of gamers- at least when it comes to which games they would like to see remastered or remade.

But if that’s not enough for you there’s also an odd sound players are discovering in the Nexus of the Demon’s Souls remaster that many are saying is a clip from either Metal Gear Solid menu noises or Metal Gear Rex, but as a guy who has played through Metal Gear Solid probably a hundred times I don’t recognize it myself.  Some are also saying it’s a reference to Elden Ring and not Metal Gear Solid at all. It could also just be a creepy sound that they decided to put in the Nexus, so take from that what you will. Regardless of any of that I do think a Metal Gear Solid remake does make a lot of sense for a lot of reasons for a lot of invested parties. I’d be more surprised if we didn’t get one within the next few years. Whether or not this is the next thing to come from Bluepoint is something I’m less sure of, but I wouldn’t bet against it.

The next tantalizing piece of gossip surrounding beloved Konami IPs, is the claim that Silent Hills is getting revived and put back into production. In fact, we are on the eve of some sort of Silent Hill announcements at the game awards and just a couple of days. Like most gaming rumors this one also started on Twitter and like all things that start on Twitter I’m skeptical of its legitimacy,  but again I can’t help but notice that this it’s not the first time this rumor has surfaced and this is not the only place it has come from. As we at GamingBolt have reported, Kojima himself has hinted at working on a horror and some of the folks from the fabled Team Silent who are now reportedly at Japan Studio under Sony are rumored to be working on the new Silent Hill game.

For these two things not to be related and not to have something to do with Silent Hill seems like more of a stretch than for it to just be true. What exactly the Silent Hill project is is a little bit foggy here than the Metal Gear Solid situation. Some leaks and rumors point to a remake of the first game, while some point to a new Silent Hill game entirely in more of an Until Dawn or Telltale style, while some point to the actual revival of Silent Hills specifically; the game that Kojima was working on before his Infamous falling out with the publishing giant Konami. Speculation on what exactly is going on with Silent Hill has been rampant the past year despite Konami trying to pour cold water on it at one point. More recently, Imran Khan, a long-established former Game Informer writer and now Kinda Funny host, said that he knows the people who are rumored to be working on the new Silent Hill game are in fact working on “something”. The people he’s referring to have worked on Gravity Rush, Siren, The Last Guardian, and lots of other more recent projects in Japan Studio.

The rumors for both projects are certainly piling up, and I think that is really the crux of the story here. Rumors about anything come and go from time to time, and there’s nothing wrong with talking about them and letting them have their moment. But if credibility is what you’re looking for then what you really want to see are patterns. Different sources saying similar things. Cryptic tweets from developers, small admissions from staff, and slips from well-connected podcasters are all things that, on their own, aren’t necessarily worthy of intense examination, but once they all start to add up and corroborate each other, then you might have something there. The next step from here is to wait and see what happens at the game awards and do our best to keep our expectations in check until then.

Astro Bot has not seen the sort of mainstream success that other Sony platforming properties like Ratchet and Clank and LittleBigPlanet have, but it’s enjoyed a lot of critical acclaim. Both Astro Bot Rescue Mission and Astro’s Playroom have been received very well by critics and players alike, and there’s been no shortage of people who’re hoping to see more of the franchise soon.

So is an expansion or a sequel to Astro’s Playroom something that Asobi Team at SIE Japan Studio are working on? Speaking in an interview with Edge, SIE Japan Studio boss Nicolas Doucet said that though there’s been a lot of praise for the PS5 pack-in game, there are no plans for a follow-up yet, and whether or not that happens is something that will depend on the plyers.

“At this moment in time, there’s no plan for an extension of Astro’s Playroom, but I think it’s going to come down to the popularity of the game,” Doucet said. “So far we’ve heard a lot from the media, and it’s been very positive, and we’re really, really happy. But a lot of it is going to come down to the consumer experience.

“I think we need to hear from them too. And that’s going to happen post-launch, once the console is in the hands of consumers. But if the character has popularity, and if it proves that people are really having fun, [an extension or sequel] could be one avenue to follow.”

Doucet went on to say that the development team already has a lot of ideas for what to do with a new game (many centering around the DualSense controller and its unique features), before adding again that nothing has been finalized yet.

“In Team Asobi we’re always trying to come up with ideas from technology, and so there are lots of things we want to try and do around the controller,” Doucet said. “And as we make these prototypes, if one of them turns out to be a game idea in its own right, it could end up being a new direction that we take and we’ll run with it. So it could be one or the other, but at this moment in time I don’t really know.”

For what it’s worth, Astro’s developers have teased that the series “will be back soon with more news”, so there’s that.

Meanwhile, Astro’s Playroom is available on PS5, and comes pre-installed with every PS5. If you have PlayStation VR, you can also play Astro Bot Rescue Mission (and you should, because it’s incredible).

Gruelling but fair challenge and Souls games go hand in hand- it’s sort of the defining trait of that subgenre of video games, and as the first game of its kind, that stands doubly true for Demon’s Souls. Many over the years have called for these games to have an easy mode, however, in order to make them more accessible to wider audiences, and a chunk of that crowd was hoping that Bluepoint Games’ PS5 remake of Demon’s Souls would be the first game to take that leap.

That, however, turned out not to be the case, with Bluepoint firmly stating that an easy mode has no place in Demon’s Souls. Speaking recently with The Washington Post, the remake’s creative director Gavin Moore revealed that adding an easy mode to the game was something that Bluepoint Games actually considered. However, seeing themselves as custodians of the 2009 original and its remake (which is a notion they’ve touched upon before), they decided to stick as close to the script as possible, thus dropping that idea.

“This project remakes the work of another development team,” said Moore. “While we’ve made some changes, our core driving mantra has always been to preserve the spirit and intent of the original creators. While we considered and discussed an easy mode, we ultimately decided it wasn’t our place — merely being custodians for this amazing game — to add something that would fundamentally alter its balance.”

Demon’s Souls is available now, exclusively on PS5. You can read our review through here.