If you spend any time on your PlayStation 3, then you know that the PlayStation Network has on offer some of the best exclusive downloadable titles currently available. Back in 2009, Sony announced the Pub Fund, an investment initiative meant to continue to foster amazing development in for the PlayStation Network. Its first product to market was the very well-received Burn Zombie Burn! Sony Computer Entertainment America has just unveiled its plans for the future of this program, and they are pledging another round of serious investments to some very promising titles.
Available in the presser on the following page, SCEA has announced “a three-year, $20million dollar investment plan to support the development of PlayStation®Network exclusive games across [the] network of first-party studios as well as financial support for the Pub Fund.” Games such as Joe Danger and the aforementioned Burn Zombie Burn! have been shining beacons for the program, and with this new round of investing SCEA is looking to achieve even more success with upcoming exclusives. Some of the upcoming titles to grace the PlayStation Network include:
- Eufloria – a real-time strategy game focused on space exploration, with bio mechanical elements at play as you grow various plant-like creations to wage war against enemies. The visuals are reminiscent of Everyday Shooter, though it has elements of conquest with “no space marines in sight” as the developer so eloquently put it.
- Okabu – from the creators of hit iOS game Rolando, where you take control of cloud-riding heroes and work through puzzles to save your peaceful civilization from the industrialized enemies called Doza. Also, it’s been dubbed one of the cutest games ever made.
- PAYDAY: The Heist – Think of this as your chance to play the bad guy from all those Hollywood heist flicks. You and three other accomplices (AI or human via online multiplayer) attempt to get a big “score” as you partake in six different kinds of heists; think bank robberies, prisoner extractions, armored car/truck hijackings, etc. The game looks like a retail release – hard to believe it’s the result of the Pub Fund!
- Papo & Yo – This is a surreal title, where you play as a young boy named Quico who is trying to help his friend name Monster – a large, normally gentle creature which turns into a violent beast after eating his favorite treat, poisonous frogs. The game deals with addiction and emotions, and is looking to be a very unique experience.
Brandon Stander, director of PlayStation Networking marketing for SCEA, has stated that they are “doubling down on PlayStation Network software, and under this additional investment over the next three years, we anticipate a steady flow of high-quality titles that can’t be found anywhere else.” We recently spoke with Mr. Stander about this very program in a briefing earlier. Feel free to take a look at the press release in full and let us know your thoughts on Sony’s serious commitment to the world of downloadable titles.
