Sony has seven new PSVR games to showcase as part of today's PSVR Spotlight, and ahead of the staggered reveal, the names of all seven have seemingly been leaked.
As Gematsu spotted, a hastily deleted montage video presumably meant for the end of the showcase accidentally revealed all seven games from the get-go. Those are:
- Arashi: Castles of Sin
- Puzzle Bobble 3D: Vacation Odyssey
- Winds & Leaves
- After the Fall
- Fracked
- Wanderer
- Sniper Elite VR
Sniper Elite VR, long since announced for other VR platforms, is the only game here with a recognizable, descriptive title, so this leak doesn't actually tell us all that much about what these games are or how they play.
Unsurprisingly, Sony says that none of today's news will immediately impact the PSVR PS5 headset, which is in development but won't arrive until 2022 (at the earliest). Nevertheless, we'll keep an eye on the official reveals and update this story with more information as each PSVR game is shown.
Arashi: Castles of Sin
Thus far, the leaked lineup is bang-on. The first game shown was Arashi: Castles of Sin, a stealth-action adventure set in feudal Japan. As the last survivor of the shinobi house Arashi, you skulk, stab, and shoot your way through the ranks of invading bandits with the help of your wolf companion Haru. The reveal trailer stresses stealth over action, with your bow, crossbow, and shuriken taking center stage, but you've got a katana for a reason, and there's clearly some degree of melee combat.
Arashi: Castles of Sin will come to PSVR this summer.
Puzzle Bobble 3D: Vacation Odyssey
Puzzle Bobble 3D is exactly what it sounds like: a 3D, VR-enabled (but not VR-required) adaptation of the long-running Puzzle Bobble puzzle series. With three dimensions to work with, Vacation Odyssey has added a new layer of depth to its classic match-three gameplay, with oddball puzzle shapes ranging from prisms to helixes requiring more precise bubble popping.
Puzzle Bobble 3D: Vacation Odyssey is coming to PSVR, PS4, and PS5 this summer.
Winds & Leaves
In Winds & Leaves, the most tranquil game shown so far, you play as an otherworldly gardener stuck in an alien world connected by trees. By nurturing forests and moving between them, you can explore more of the world and reach outposts hiding ancient knowledge that unlocks new botanical powers. This being a VR game, the reforesting process is pretty hands-on: you manually dig out plots, plant fruits, and speed up time to watch trees grow. You can collect more fruit by climbing grown trees, and you'll also need to breed new fruit suited for different areas of the planet.
Winds & Leaves will come to PSVR next month on July 27.
After the Fall
In a sharp change of tone, After the Fall takes us to a frozen, post-apocalyptic Los Angeles filled with zombie-like mutants called Snowbreed. In this four-player co-op shooter, you and some buddies (who can join from other platforms thanks to full cross-platform support) fight through containment sites in search of valuable resources. Weapon handling is physically simulated with first-person controls, which looks to give combat a palpable flow while flexing the immersion of VR.
After the Fall doesn't have a final release date just yet, but developer Vertigo Games, who you may know from the well-received VR co-op shooter Arizona Sunshine, says it's planned for this summer.
Fracked
Fracked is a VR FPS that focuses on free movement, cover-based combat, and vertical exploration aided by some impressive climbing, skiing, and ziplining. Movement is totally on-foot and directed by the PlayStation Move controller; creative director Steve Watt of developer nDreams stressed that "there is absolutely no teleportation here," so you'll need to move carefully but quickly as you duck between cover. Weapons and environmental features also sport manual interactions, so Fracked is shaping up to be one big interactive firefight.
Fracked is a PSVR exclusive coming this summer.
Wanderer
Time loops and time travel are becoming a theme for video games in 2021, and Wanderer will keep that going with a trippy adventure that juxtaposes ancient ruins, steampunk cityscapes, and the futuristic wonders of 2061 on a journey to save mankind. You can visit Nicola Tesla's lab, jump back to the moon landing, or just vibe it out in the '60s, all the while mastering VR puzzles and minigames.
Wanderer is coming to PSVR and other VR platforms in mid-to-late 2021.
Sniper Elite VR
Fans have been waiting on Sniper Elite VR for some time, and today's PSVR reveal has finally given us a release date. The VR take on the sharpshooter series will arrive July 8, bringing its iconic mix of stealth and sniping into a whole new realm. "The combined VR development experience of the three studios working on Sniper Elite VR has been brought to bear to create an experience for players at all comfort level preferences without compromising the thrilling sensations of the gameplay," says Steve Bristow of developer Rebellion.
Sniper Elite VR is coming to PSVR, Steam VR, and Oculus.
The next generation of PSVR will reportedly support 4K visuals, gaze tracking, and haptic feedback.
