John Tones
WriterI've been writing about culture for twenty-something years and, at Xataka, I cover everything related to movies, video games, TV shows, comics, and pop culture.
Nobody understands fans. Before the State of Play, where PlayStation kicked off its 2025 announcements, the most consistent rumor was that gamers would see the first images of a hypothetical remake or remaster of God of War. This project has been long awaited, as accessing the classics of the franchise on today’s platforms is impossible. Or maybe something from Resident Evil 9. No one said, “I hope PlayStation announces a game no one’s heard of that will change my life.” The public wants franchises, sequels, and remakes.
Remakes and reboots dominate the market. Like it or not, the video game industry thrives on repackaging. It makes perfect sense, given that its foundation lies in technological evolution. Every few years, a generational hardware change lets players enjoy new games and revisit old ones with fresh updates. What’s the PlayStation 5 if not a reboot of the PlayStation 4 with improvements? Why shouldn’t the same thing happen with games?
The death of the mid-range. Space Marine 2, a mid-budget game, perfectly captures the spirit of those releases that always existed in the industry but stalled around the PS4 generation when budgets skyrocketed. From then on, the industry split games into AAA (or, at best, strong AA) titles or indie-developed products. There’s still a range of budgets, of course, but a dip in sales can sink a studio quickly. To minimize risk, developers choose the safest bet—the common denominator.
The franchise culture. It’s not just video games. In an age where culture is “consumed,” and video games, movies, and TV shows are merely “content,” it’s no surprise that the 10 highest-grossing movies of 2024 were all sequels or remakes. The same trend applies to video games. People don’t want new ideas. For $100, they prefer a title they know, one with few surprises but guaranteed satisfaction.
A State of Play of rehashes. PlayStation’s first State of Play for 2025 featured sequels, remakes, and reboots: DLC for Stellar Blade and Lies of P, a Days Gone remake, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, a new Onimusha, Monster Hunter, Five Nights at Freddy’s, and Borderlands, among many others. And yes, we’re cheering for a new Shinobi, but we also recognize that we can’t call it an overused franchise. Besides, a 2D brawler is a niche product, and the Shinobi brand is mostly an excuse. The same can’t be said for a new Sonic Racing.
The best? The unknown. It’s understandable that PlayStation leans on these kinds of announcements, and even that fans would feel let down when a three-generation-old remake isn’t announced. But for me, the highlight of the event was the new IPs: the deeply personal roguelite Saros, the explosive futuristic blockbuster MindsEye, the insane mix of DOOM and Cyberpunk 2077 in Metal Eden, the grotesquely stunning Tides of Annihilation, the visual brilliance of Dreams of Another, the cool stop-motion of The Midnight Walk, and the still-enigmatic apocalypse of Hell is Us.
Options for everyone. Of course, some of these releases will be great, others average, and some forgettable. But without question, all the images that made me think, “I have to try this,” belonged to new IPs. The boldness, innovation, and creative drive were there. The industry isn’t suffering from a crisis of ideas—it’s suffering from its own habits, which keep originality and innovation from thriving. That’s the future we must fight for.
Image | Fabian Albert (Unsplash)
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