PS5 GAMES PREVIEW
sittingbelowanactivevolcano,
andgiganticicyspiresreaching
intothesky.Enoch’s
environmentsdemandtobe
seen,anddestroyed.
Lurkingintheseareasare
moredevolvedandevolved
humans,andalsoEnoch’s
wildlife.We’veseenandfought
thesmallerarmouredwolf-like
creatures,butthereare
elementallychargedsix-storey
beastsprowlingthewildsof
thisalienworldtoo.
RAPID-FIREROLEPLAY
TheRPGsideofOutriders
complementsitsshooting
neatly.Takeonmissionsand
you’rerewardedwithgear,guns,
andupgrades.Aswediscover
inourhands-onit paysto
completeside-quests,asthe
weaponsandXPweearnensure
we’rewell-armedwhenan
electrically-chargedmini-boss
requirestakingdown.
Side-questsaretiedtothe
mobilecaravanyou’repartof,as
thegame’sexplorativestructure
seesyoutrundlingaroundthe
worldsigningstragglersupto
yourcause.Eachwaiforstray
willoffernewquestsand
challenges,butwhiledialogue
treesenableyoutodigdeeper
intoa character’sbackstory
yourchoiceswon’taffectthe
outcomeofthegame.
Outridersis RPG-light
andgunplay-heavy,andour
hands-onrevealsitsblend
oftraditionalthird-person
shootingandpoweredattacks
deliversa solidexperience.The
onlyrealquestionmarkhanging
overit layswithitsPS4and
PS5skews.Thiscouldbeoneof
thefirstgamestodemonstrate
howbothconsolegenerations
canexistalongsideeachother.
SquareEnixis heavily
marketingOutridersasa PS5
release,andwesuspectallthe
next-genupgradeswillbe
applied–raytracing,SSD
loading,3DAudio–sowillyou
holdoffbuyingit forPS4or
double-diponPS5? hileRainbowSixSiege is into its
fifthyearandgoingso strong
weexpectit’llbebringing
cross-genmultiplayertoPS5, this co-op
spin-offwilloffersomethingdifferent
setin thesameuniverse.
It’sbasedonthemultiplayer shooter’s
Outbreakeventfrom 2018 (inwhich a
Russianspacecapsulecrashes to Earth
releasinganalienparasite),but the full
gameis aiminghigherthanthe source
material.Witha storycampaign for up to
threeplayers,Quarantinewilltask you
withfightinganalienmenacethat’s
turningthepopulationintozombie-like
creatures.Thefirst-personteam shooterwill see you take on the role of one of 21
Operators from Siege.
Leaked details suggest San Francisco
and New York as locations. Given the
franchise it’s is spun from, tactical play
will be paramount, with custom loadouts,
weapon mods, and classes (Assault,
Recon, and Support) enabling your squad
to best the parasitic zombies. Missions
called Sabotage, Escort, Disruption, and
Hunt show the game isn’t abandoning its
online multiplayer roots.
Quarantine is coming to PS5 as well as
PS4, suggesting we’ll get a spruced-up
visual feast for our next-gen console, but
won’t leave our current-gen pals behind.RAINBOW SIX QUARANTINE
Invading PS5 at launch?
PubUbisoft Dev Ubisoft Montreal ETA Octomethingofa surprise hit for
Ubisoft,Siegehasremained an
immenselypopular,fresh-feeling
teamshootersinceitslaunchin 2015.
It’shadplentyofupdatesin that time,
whichhaveincludedbrand-new features,
maps,andcharacters,andthe publisher
is remainingcommittedtokeeping that
goingbybringingthegameto next gen.
Siegeputsa bigemphasison
team-basedco-op,withtwosquads
ofoperatorsgoinghead-to-head in
asymmetricalmultiplayer.Each small
maphasbeenmeticulouslydesigned toprovide interesting areas for
engagement, as an attacking and a
defending team compete in various
missions such as bomb defusal or
hostage rescue. The attacking team must
breach and clear, while the defenders get
time to set traps to repel the attackers.
The idea is as simple as they come but
executed to perfection by Ubisoft. There’s
a certain purity to it that ekes out the
best from players, giving each team the
tools they need to create encounters that
could prove to be some of your fondest
memories playing on PS5.RAINBOW SIX SIEGE
Continue the fight on next gen
PubUbisoft Dev Ubisoft Montreal ETA TBCS
Will we have had
enough of quarantine
by the launch?A refreshed Siege on
next-gen hardware?
We’d bet on it.The prospect of this with ray-traced
lighting makes our mouths water.
UNCHARTED 5
Nolan North has said he
wants to return to the
role of Nathan Drake and
fans certainly want a new
game, but Sony has been
quiet about the future of
this franchise. That said,
rumours of a new San
Diego studio set up to
make a sequel or a
spin-off are still circling.
RATCHET & CLANK
A new entry in the
comedic sci-fi shooter
series could be locked
and loaded on PS5. While
we’d love developer
Insomniac to get straight
into that Marvel’s
Spider-Man sequel, a
return to the studio’s
roots in a colourful
ray-traced Ratchet &
Clank adventure would
hit the spot.
CALL OF DUTY:
BACK OPS 5
We know there’s a new
Call Of Duty coming at the
end of this year, and that
some internal strife
means Treyarch could
be back earlier than
expected with a new
Black Ops entry. We
expect Activision’s annual
shooter to shine on PS5,
but also release on PS4.
KNACK 3
Yeah, go on then, we’re in
for more Knack. Imagine
all his little blocky parts
dancing to ray-traced
reflections and physically
based lighting. As the old
saying goes, ‘it’ll be third
time lucky’.BEYOND GOOD
& EVIL 2
This ambitious adventure
takes Ubisoft’s open
world template and
makes it an open
universe. Travel
seamlessly from a bar in
a city on a planet and into
orbit, then to a new
planet, and down onto its
surface. Includes talking
space ape pirates for
extra weirdness.
FINAL FANTASY VII
REMAKE (PART 2)
Given it took almost
the entirety of PS4’s
lifespan to make Part 1
of FFVII Remake, can we
expect the next chapter
to be released only on
PS5? Probably not.
Square Enix has said
production is easier now
the core of the game is
up and running. But we
wouldn’t put it past this
dev to get ambitious for
its next entry, which
could take time.053