Skylanders: Swap Force

Having had a look at the Winter Keep level in Skylanders: Swap Force, today we’ve got some hands-on with Cascade Glade. Not only that, but we've also moved from the PlayStation 3 to the PlayStation 4.

Our initial look at the Cascade Glade level was back when Activision announced Swap Force to an excited crowd in New York’s Times Square. Now we've leaped from that initial look to a hands-on with the PS4 version.

As you can see in the PS4 Swap Force video, things have improved somewhat. Not only is this rendered at a higher resolution, but the density of scenery and amount of detail and movement marks this out as a next generation game. Whereas elements in the environment were decorated with textures on flat polygons previously, here it is clear that an additional level of depth is available to developer Vicarious Visions.

You also see this in the 'Magic Moment' when you bring figures into the game. Extra attention has been paid here to make the connection as strong as possible between toy and in-game character.

What is something of a shame is that the DualShock 4's motion controls aren’t being used – not even in controlling the binocular view that we see in the demo – or that the extra horsepower hasn’t been put to use to bring more players into the fray. Regardless, this is still the best looking version of Swap Force by some way.

We also need to wait to see whether Activision will offer a Dark Starter Pack – which is effectively the pro version of the game with extra limited edition figures – on the PS4. Many early adopters of Sony’s new console will be keen to get the top-tier version of the game, so it would seem prudent to marry these up at retail. There's still no firm news on that, though.

As we approach the game’s launch in October, there will no doubt be plenty of information regarding the next generation version. That the PS4 game is a launch title is a big deal, and we can't wait to see more.

Are you hoping to purchase Skylanders: Swap Force alongside your PS4? What do you think of this next generation footage? Let us know in the comments section below.