Life has a funny habit of making chumps of us all. In the same month that Sony made Days Gone free to download and play for PlayStation Plus subscribers, we learned that the game's planned sequel had been cancelled.
The timing of it all feels like a particularly callous cosmic prank. As I write these words, there are thousands of gamers out there currently experiencing the unique emotional whiplash of enjoying Sony Bend's open-world Zombie game for the very first time while simultaneously dealing with the fact there may never be a follow up. It's like getting halfway through your soup starter only to have the waiter come over to tell you the chef has pissed on your chicken.
As you've probably heard by now, Bloomberg released a fascinating report last week examining the way Sony is currently handling AAA titles. In a move that has already been met with extreme criticism from all sides, it seems Sony's current strategy is to focus on games it knows will be a success. One casualty of this approach is that SIE Bend Studio's pitch for Days Gone 2 was rejected. We are, however, getting a remake of The Last Of Us and yet another Uncharted sequel. Yippee.
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For the record, I really didn't like Days Gone when I played it. I felt like it was a fairly generic open-world game with a predictable story and characters I desperately wanted to punch in the face.
With that said, there were moments of true brilliance. The undead Freakers that roam the land and come at the player in one mindless wave of hunger is legitimately terrifying. The freedom to approach these encounters in multiple ways made for some inspired set pieces, too. Depending on how well you're able to keep your head when hundreds of decaying monsters are clawing their way toward you, it's possible to get really clever with the combat. Whittling down the ravenous crowds to nothing using your wits and a handful of bullets was never anything less than deeply satisfying.
It's also an incredibly pretty game. While the things you're asked to do within the open world are usually sinfully boring - especially considering there's supposed to be danger and death around every corner - it was still a joy to explore on the back of Deacon's motorbike. If anything, the many shortcomings of Days Gone made me more excited for the inevitable sequel.
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I was eager to see Bend learn, improve, and come out with a killer PlayStation 5 follow-up. That's unlikely to happen any time soon now, if at all. That's not to say Bend won't have taken valuable experience from Days Gone. I've no doubt that the studio will bring any lessons learned into its next project, but I would have liked to see those lessons applied to an actual sequel.
With last week's news, it's undeniable that the presence of Days Gone in April's lineup of free PlayStation Plus games now has an unexpected sting to it. This obviously wasn't anyone's intention and certainly wasn't by design, but there's a cruel irony in knowing that Bend's open-world zombie game has reached so many new players at a time where its future has never looked more unsure.
Featured Image Credit: SonyTopics: PlayStation 5, Feature, GAMING, Days Gone, PlayStation Plus