Speculation about Bloodborne rises up once again after being featured in PlayStation’s 30th anniversary video. Read on to learn more about the latest information about the game and PS5’s latest update.
PlayStation 30th Anniversary Ends with a Bang
Ending the Anniversary Trailer with Bloodborne
Widely popular PS4 exclusive Bloodborne was featured in PlayStation’s 30th anniversary trailer, captioned with a phrase, “It’s about persistence.” Though other games are also featured in this video, fans are more vocal about speculating about a Bloodborne remaster or sequel.
Set to a creative rendition of the song Dreams by The Cranberries, the anniversary trailer showcased PlayStation’s most popular and beloved games such as Ghost of Tsushima, God of War, Helldivers 2, and more. Each video game clip has captions, pertaining to their overarching theme. For example, Final Fantasy 7 has the caption “It’s about fantasy,” while Resident Evil has “It’s about fear.” However, the appearance of Bloodborne and the “It’s about persistence” phrase at the end of the anniversary video sent fans into a frenzy.
Despite the lack of solid information about Bloodborne before and after the release of the anniversary trailer, it did not stop fans from speculating that PlayStation is about to release Bloodborne 2 or a remaster with 60fps and updated graphics. However, this is not the first time fans have speculated about this game. On August 17, PlayStation Italia’s Instagram account posted iconic locations in the game, prompting a similar reaction from avid fans, though no official announcement has followed.
While the anniversary trailer ends with Bloodborne, it might simply reference the game as one of the PlayStation’s most difficult games, requiring persistence from players, rather than a hint of any new updates.
PS5’s Latest Update Allowing UI Customization
To celebrate PlayStation’s 30th anniversary, Sony also released a new update for the PS5, featuring a limited-time PS1 boot-up sequence and customizable themes inspired by past consoles. The update includes themes for the 30th Anniversary and PS1 to PS4, allowing PS fans to relive the nostalgia of their PlayStation experience throughout the years.
With this update, PS5 owners can customize the home screen’s design and sound effects based on previous consoles. After downloading the update, simply head over to PS5’s Settings and select the option “PlayStation 30th Anniversary.” From there, you can choose the “Appearance and Sound” option to change your PS5’s home screen background and sound effects to your preferred PS console.
Fans are quite pleased with this surprise update, especially with the return of PS4’s user interface. However, they are quite disappointed that it is only available for a limited time, and some are even willing to pay just to make this update permanent. Meanwhile, others are speculating that it might be Sony testing the waters to integrate a full catalog of UI customization to PS5 in the future.
Sony Developing a New Handheld Console
The round of speculation did not end with PS5’s latest update. On YouTube last Dec 2, Digital Foundry corroborated the claims made by Bloomberg about PlayStation’s upcoming handheld console during its Digital Foundry Direct. On November 25, Bloomberg wrote an article claiming that Sony is developing a handheld console for PS5 games. Though still in its early stages, the gaming giant is planning to penetrate the portable gaming market successfully dominated by the Nintendo Switch.
“We actually heard about this handheld some months ago from a couple of sources specifically,” according to Digital Foundry’s Senior Staff Writer John Linneman. “We’re not in the business of leaking things, but it’s interesting that this finally, sort of, started to make its rounds because it just sort of confirmed what we had seen and heard off the record.”
The panelists also discussed that Microsoft and Sony dipping into the portable gaming market right now is a logical decision as “smartphone gaming is just a thing” now. Meaning that their upcoming handheld devices can coexist with mobile devices.
Though Microsoft is upfront about their interest in developing a handheld gaming device, Sony is tightlipped regarding this. Despite Digital Foundry’s corroboration, it might take years before we see portable devices from Microsoft and Sony as they need to make affordable yet graphically superior handheld consoles to compete against Nintendo.
On the other hand, while Sony and Microsoft are still developing handheld devices, Nintendo appears one step ahead of the portable gaming competition. Shuntaro Furukawa, Nintendo’s president, announced on Twitter(X) last May 2024 that they will reveal more information about Nintendo Switch’s successor “within this fiscal year.”
Sources:
Bloomberg: Sony Working on Handheld Console for PS5 Games to Rival Switch
Digital Foundry: DF Direct Weekly #191
