It sounds like Sony’s upcoming State of Play – widely expected to be broadcast on 24th September although still technically unannounced – could bring news of an “even less exciting” remaster than Horizon Zero Dawn, which leaked on ratings board the ESRB’s website earlier today.
Speaking on his Game Mess Mornings podcast, ITK snoopster Jeff Grubb said: “There’s some other remaster in the works that will be even less exciting – and it’s definitely not Bloodborne. State of Play, right? It’ll probably get announced there.”
Exactly what he’s talking about here is unclear: obviously the comparison to Horizon Zero Dawn, which has generally been negatively received, will send alarm bells ringing. In a poll earlier today, a whopping 57% of Push Square readers said they have no interest in a remaster of the Guerrilla open worlder.
It’s worth noting that “even less exciting” in this context is entirely subjective – if it’s a game you like and want to replay, then that won’t apply to you. Still, the abundance of seemingly unnecessary remasters on PS5 does appear to be getting a little out of hand. Grubb reiterated that, despite it being Bloodborne’s tenth anniversary next year, he’s heard nothing to suggest there’s anything happening with that series.
He did attempt to contextualise why these remasters are happening, though: “The reason the teams want to do them is because they’re bringing in new employees all the time, and having them get accustomed to their process and engine is useful. So in between games, new staff are going to come in and work on these remasters. And that’s going to get them ready for the next real big project.”