With the discharge of Astro Bot final 12 months, the world obtained a reminder of simply what number of beloved first-party franchises PlayStation was chargeable for in its glory days – and the way few of them are nonetheless alive at present. Whereas Sony itself appears all in favour of pursuing little past a handful of mega-franchises from its greatest studios, it is apparently more and more prepared to license out these sequence to different publishers: notably Bandai Namco, which introduced new Patapon and All people’s Gold video games throughout the Nintendo Direct for March 2025.
First we noticed Patapon 1+2 Replay, a remastered assortment of Sony’s two beloved PSP rhythm technique video games. Patapon helped type the height of Japan Studio’s repute for delightfully offbeat video games, and it was among the many extra well-liked components of that lineage, spawning not only one, however two sequels. There’s little else prefer it to this present day – apart, in fact, from designer Hiroyuki Kotani’s non secular successor, Ratatan, which is because of launch in 2025.
Patapon 1+2 Replay is ready to launch throughout PS5, Change, and PC on July 11 courtesy of Bandai Namco, and that is not the one Sony sport the writer’s dealing with. Bandai Namco additionally introduced All people’s Golf: Sizzling Photographs at present, which additionally due out on PS5, Change, and PC someday this 12 months.
All people’s Golf was as soon as often called Sizzling Photographs Golf in North America, however no matter title you acknowledge it by, it is a cute, accessible golf sport with roots going all the way in which again to the PS1. This one is maybe a good weirder comeback than Patapon – right here now we have a brand-new entry in a Sony-published sequence that obtained a brand new entry as 2019 with All people’s Golf VR.
Bandai Namco kicked off this complete factor with the discharge of Freedom Wars Remastered earlier this 12 months. That Monster Hunter-style action-RPG was as soon as a PS Vita unique and sure, a first-party PlayStation sport. There hasn’t been any formal announcement of a partnership between Sony and Bandai Namco, however clearly the 2 firms have labored out some mutually helpful IP agreements.
As a lot as I am confused by all this, I am largely simply glad that different publishers are prepared to present us the smaller IP revivals that Sony’s unwilling to. There’s already some Bloodborne copium within the ether as the results of all this, however what I would like are Sony’s biggest obscurities. After these years, please: sickos like me are demanding a brand new Tokyo Jungle. You owe it to the world, Bandai Namco. Let that little Pomeranian stalk the streets as soon as extra.
