Summary
In recent times, no platform has defined itself more on the merits of strong stories than Sony’s exclusives. If the game falls in this category, there’s a pretty good shot that the story is going to be worth paying attention to.
Whether it’s adaptations of big Marvel IPs or strange but wonderful visions of the apocalyptic future, Sony’s exclusive game stories run the gambit. As a note, some of these games have made their way over to PC by now, but every entry was exclusive to Sony on launch.
The rogue-like genre is unforgiving with a near-saturated market where gamers need something new to be truly drawn into the experience.Returnalstood out from the crowd by being one of the biggest budget attempts at the genre, and it told a great story to accompany it.
Returnaltells the story of an astronaut stranded on a mysterious and eldritch planet full of horrifying creatures. What begins as a quest for escape turns into a twisty descent deep into the psychology of the protagonist Selene asshe attempts to break the cyclethat resets her every time she tries to escape, with some of the most audacious story twists seen in a rogue-like.
For as long as video games have existed, gamers have wanted an open-world game where they can inhabit the role of a samurai in feudal Japan, andGhost of Tsushimamay be the most perfect evocation of that fantasy ever conceivedwhere players can embody whatever build they so desireto wreak vengeance.
Set during the Mongol Invasion of Japan in 1274, gamers play as Jin Sakai, a fallen samurai who begins to adopt the dishonorable but ruthlessly effective persona of The Ghost to drive off the invaders, isolating himself from the rigid samurai honor code in the process. It’s a great story inspired by Kurosawa films that’s appointment playing for any fan of the genre.
While Naughty Dog may be best known forThe Last Of Usgames these days, they made their first major splash in the gaming space with theUnchartedseries, particularlyUncharted 2, which is widely considered to be the best of the series and is well knownfor shaping Naughty Dog’s future thereafter.
Taking clear inspiration from Indiana Jones films,Uncharted 2follows perennial adventure Nathan Drake on a quest to find Marco Polo’s treasure from his doomed voyage to China. It’s a simple story, but a rollicking good time full of big characters and delicious Hollywood setpieces.
By the middle of the 2010s, theGod of Warseries had gained a reputation as being exceedingly over-wraught with it being nothing more than over-the-top Michael Bay-style action. Santa Monica Studio seemed to take that as a challenge because 2018’s rebootGod Of Warsingle-handedly redefined the entire franchise in one fell swoop and becameone of the greatest stories ever told in the franchise.
Gamers resume the role of Kratos, but now, he has made a quiet life for himself in the world of Norse mythology and wants to do little more than look after his son Atreus after the death of his wife. However, his reputation reaches the ears of the treacherous Norse gods, and soon Kratos finds himself forced into doing what he does best: killing gods.
Many gamers have fond memories of the originalSpider-Man 2game for the PS2, and this 2018 refresh of the entire series is a clear and loving tribute to open-world web-slinging where players can spend hours just navigating the massive map of New York andbeating up the rogue’s gallery of villains.
Marvel’s Spider-Manfollows Peter Parker several years into his Spider-Man career as his life is rocked by the emergence of a new supervillain called Mr. Negative. What follows is a classic-style superhero film full of big setpieces, twisty plot moments, and a surprising gut-full of pathos in the game’s final moments.
Hideo Kojima is well renowned for crafting some of the greatest, and most complicated, stories in gaming. His narratives aren’t for everyone, but their sheer idiosyncratic nature makes them appointment playing because gamers are guaranteed to see something entirely new.
InDeath Stranding, players take control of Sam Bridges, a courier in a post-apocalyptic version of America that has been ravaged by a series of supernatural disasters where dying is no longer the end of life as we know it. The game turns into a mighty pilgrimage westupon the game’s many different vehiclesas Sam is tasked with reconnecting the world, and it’s a surprisingly heartfelt tribute to human connection.
JapanStudio, led by Fumito Ueda, changed the entire gaming world with the release ofShadow of the Colossusin 2005. Clearly inspired by the tone and style of Hayao Miyazaki’s films, Ueda’s masterpiece has one of the most famous attempts at meta-narrative commentary ever made that inspired many games that came after and is sure toredefine the culture again should a sequel arrive.
Gamers play as Wander, a boy who is trying to revive Mono after she has seemingly died. Wander is tasked with slaying sixteen massive Colossi to do it, but it becomes increasingly clear as the game moves on that Wander may not be the hero he first seems. To say more is to spoil one of the most elegant plot twists ever made in a game narrative.
Since its release in 2013, some have criticizedThe Last of Usas not bringing anything substantially new to the table when it comes to game narratives. While in some ways that is true,The Last Of Usexcels where no game had before, delivering performances, atmospheres, and a narrative that has made indelible history in the gaming space.
Players take control of Joel, a smuggler in the post-apocalypse who is tasked with ferrying a girl called Ellie across the United States, as she seems to hold the secret to curing the cordyceps virus that ravaged the world andturned many of its inhabitants into horrifying monsters. However, as Joel and Ellie bond on their journey, they are forced into a series of catastrophic decisions that conclude in one of the most memorable conclusions in recent memory.
