In this week’s news, Geoff Keighley hosts a live hands-on preview of the new DualSense PS5 controller, Google announces new games and features for Stadia, and Ubisoft is panned for a tone-deaf game reveal.
Sony showcases next gen controller
This week, gaming persona Geoff Keighley hosted an exclusive hands-on preview of Sony’s new DualSense PS5 controller as part of the “Summer Game Fest” series. The stream began with a brief side-by-side comparison, showing that the DualSense is physically larger than the PS4’s controller, weighing a bit more and feeling like it has more “heft.” After describing what it’s like to hold and use the controller, Keighley shared slices of gameplay footage of him playing Astro’s Playroom (a free game that will come pre-installed on every PS5) with the new controller. TechRadar criticized the event’s lack of detail in regard to many of the controller’s features, including details on charging, price, or future color variations. IGN noted that the size of the new controller was noticeably larger than it’s PS4 predecessor, with GameRant echoing that sentiment by comparing the controller to an original Nintendo DS.
Google announces 16 new Stadia titles and exclusive deals with Harmonix and Supermassive
Google announced 16 new titles coming to Stadia, the tech company’s game streaming service, during a live stream this week. Titles include FromSoftware’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, a new battle royale-style Bomberman game, and an exclusive from developer Splash Damage called Outcasters. Outcasters, described as a “vibrant and accessible competitive online multiplayer game set in a distinctly stylised vinyl world,” joins Orcs Must Die! 3 as a Stadia exclusive. Three more exclusive games are coming to Stadia from Rock Band developer Harmonix, Until Dawn developer Supermassive Games, and Submerged developer Uppercut Games. The Verge and TheGamer both noted that exclusivity deals with major developers are a major boon for Stadia’s growth as a platform, while Gamesindustry.biz argued that Stadia (and all cloud gaming services) might be better suited to complement traditional consoles rather than replace them.
Ubisoft presentation is criticized amid executive sexual misconduct allegations
Ubisoft unveiled a slew of new video games on Sunday during its Ubisoft Forward event, looking to stir up excitement for fresh titles after several top executives resigned over misconduct allegations. Much of what Ubisoft revealed was already known ahead of the event — details of “Far Cry 6,” which stars “Breaking Bad” actor Giancarlo Esposito, had been leaked two days before. However, amid an avalanche of allegations that range from company wide sexual imposition to former Ubisoft Chief Creative Officer Serge Hascoet being accused of partaking in drugging employees, many perceived the event’s timing as tone deaf. Hascoet resigned shortly prior to the event, which CNBC noted is significant, as Hascoet has been at the helm of Ubisoft’s creative department since 2006. Forbes posted scathing opinion pieces on the event, noting that the media needs to do a better job of not giving companies with a history like this attention. Playstation Lifestyle echoed that sentiment and added that there is a legitimate chance that, “inviting this very controversy might be the point,” for Ubisoft.