I’m going to play everything: January 31, 2024 State of Play Impressions

These are my first, gut impressions of everything shown at today’s State of Play event. I almost never have the opportunity to watch these press conferences with people anymore and I hate vomiting a string of takes on Twitter. This format seemed like the next best thing. Think of it as a react video without my handsome face screaming into a thumbnail. 

Helldivers 2

It’s interesting how much Sony has pushed this Starship Troopers-like (I think it has had a slot in every PlayStation presentation since its announcement). It could be fun in the right circumstances (a stupid comment, all things can), but I don’t have three friends and rarely play games online so this probably isn’t for me. 

Stellar Blade

Holy hell, what a showing! 

The robotic enemies and desert environments makes it feel like a maximalist version of Nier. The Ghost in the Shell and Evangelion influences are also more obvious than they were in past trailers (both good things). Even the boss's life bars look interesting. This presentation firmly moved Stellar Blade from a curiosity to something I’m actively anticipating. Will I be finished with everything from March in time to play it on April 26th? Probably not! 

Foamstars

With the announcement that Foamstars is a free PlayStation Plus game in February, I’m going to probably write more about this later (specifically if it has an identity of its own or if it’s just a worse version of Splatoon). For me, it will live or die based on what their version of Splatfests are. I still like the colors. 

Sonic x Shadow: Generations

I retired from the hedgehog after Sonic Frontiers. Not even the possibility of motorcycles and guns can bring me back.  

Dave the Diver and Godzilla DLC

I really should play Dave the Diver. Everything about it seems addictive and delightful. I’m running out of excuses with them releasing DLC of one of my favorite franchises. Add Evangelion next, please. 

ZZZ (Zenless Zone Zero)

I applied to write for miHoyO a few weeks ago. They mentioned that one of the traits they value during the hiring process is an extreme familiarity with their titles (translation: hitting max level). I assured them that while I haven’t played Genshin since launch, I watch every trailer they release because their character designs are pure bliss. 

I didn’t get the job.

ZZZ is dripping with even more style than anything I’ve seen from Genshin or Honkai. It includes a cute anime girl who is equal parts maid and shark. I am going to be powerless when this finally comes out. 

V Rising

V Rising dropped off my radar as soon as it entered early access a couple years ago. If I had known it had a build your own gothic architecture feature, I would have paid closer attention. 

Silent Hill: The Short Message

I hope this isn’t what Silent Hill f became. The use of cellphones throughout the trailer implies we’re safe (f is supposed to take place in the 1960s) but you never know with Konami. It seems cool and I’m curious what an “official” PT looks like without Kojima. My guess is I will hit credits on this before the weekend. 

Silent Hill 2

Still no release date.

 A new trailer means we’re about to be flooded with a fresh deluge of bad discourse. I predict this round will be about the stiff, sluggish animations and lack of impact the attacks seem to make. 

I also wish the clip of James picking up the pistol happened before the combat montage (but now I’m nitpicking). 

I will continue to give Bloober Team the benefit of the doubt until I actually play it, though. The world is starving for an average Silent Hill.  

Judas

I miss Ken Levine. 

It’s been 11 years since Bioshock Infinite and this certainly looks like a slicker version of that. The character and environment designs are stunning but no release date has me worried we might have some time to wait. Do you think we’ll get Judas or Cloud Chamber’s Bioshock 4 first? Or Metroid Prime 4?

Metro Awakening VR

I’ve only ever played one Metro game and my only vivid memory from it is the radioactive spiders dancing their spindly legs across my face shield. It’s a perfect fit for a VR game. 

Legendary Tales VR

The graphics are grainy and I kind of love it. Until the title appeared, I thought we were getting a King’s Field reboot. It seems like there might be an emphasis on smithing your own weapons? Give me more of that weird VR. 

Dragon’s Dogma 2

I’m already sold on Dragon’s Dogma 2 and I’m done watching any more content of it until it’s in my hands. However, this trailer may have convinced me to specialize in a bow for my first playthrough. 

Rise of the Ronin

Ghost of Tsushima with brutal combat and a muted color palette. February-March is insane this year but I will be saving room for this. It’s rapidly moving up my priorities list and is a serious threat to me not playing Stellar Blade on time. 

Until Dawn Remastered

I don’t need to play it again, but I think I enjoyed the original Until Dawn more than any of its spiritual successors. I also don’t think I need the film adaptation that was announced a few weeks ago. 

Death Stranding 2

I’m a Kojima fanboy. If I’m having a bad day or feeling uninspired, I’ll watch his trailers. This 10 minute behemoth is instantly going in that rotation. 

There’s so much here I hesitate to deepdive until I‘ve finished dissecting it.  I will say that Yoji Shinkawa’s industrial design is the best it’s ever been (the hands as facemasks are perfection). I am so bummed that I’m going to have to wait at least a year for this. 

Lastly, the announcement that Kojima is working on a new stealth IP is exciting–but with serious production not beginning until after DS2 wraps, I’m not going to commit any brain real estate to it until we’re closer to release. That line of thinking only leads to a full replay of the Metal Gear series and I don’t have time for that. 

Overall, a strong showing (or a showing specifically catered to my interests, at least). There’s a Final Fantasy VII event (because, yes, that’s also coming out this month) next week and (I’d imagine) a Nintendo Direct soon after. There’s plenty to get hyped about–even if we’re all working our way through the gauntlet that was last year. (I finished 80+ games and only dedicated 20 hours to Tears of the Kingdom). 

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a Silent Hill game to download and a Death Stranding trailer to watch 30 times.