The recent PlayStation video about the "simulated" technology in development, discussed between AMD and Sony engineers that will power the PlayStation 6 was interesting from a geek point of view. But from a gameplay perspective, there is - IMO - no need for a PlayStation 6 for another few years. Especially with the limp Xbox is-it-isn't-it launch . June 2026 Update : The latest snippet of gossip for Sony's next-gen systems is a modular/external drive that will connect to both devices. Allowing installation on the portable of physical games, and reducing the cost of the PS6 by making the Blu-ray an accessory (like the PS5 Slim). I prefer the idea of a dedicated dock on the PS6 that connects the next Portable to your entire PSN library, and they'd better make it work as an extra controller, but I'm sure there are practical benefits to the extra drive. That should also boost sales of PS4 and PS5 physical games, especially on the second-hand market, as folk...
Ratatan, a modern Patapon, funded!
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The PSP's Patapon (one of the handheld's top 10 all-time highlights) from Pyramid represents some of the most fun anyone can have with a portable. Rhythm-actioning your tribe into battle, with a series of increasingly fiendish drum beats, along with the strategic element of picking the right troops for the fight, Patapon was unashamed fun. But after a trilogy of stellar PSP releases (all still available on the UK Vita's PSN for around £6.50 each), nothing.
September 2025 Update: Ratatan will hit early access on Steam this month, with the console versions arriving sometime next year.
July 2025 update: At the recent BitSummit indie game event, Ratatan won top prize, the VERMILLION GATE AWARD.
Update: Ratatan's Kickstarter has come to an end with over £1.2 million raised, ensuring, if all things go well, a great new experience for gamers in 2025.
First, it was a hellish shame there was no Vita edition with touchscreen support, and second, very few people took up the series' genius ideas and marched further with them. The closest was a PS4 remaster. Fortunately, now we come to Ratatan, a spiritual successor, fully funded in its opening hours on Kickstarter (which I have to say I'd largely forgotten about as a source of games).
Conceived by Patapon's original developer, Hiroyuki Kotani, Kemmei Adachi and Ph Studio, with Red Art Games handling physical releases, Ratatan deserves great success. Ignore the drunken mumblings of the team (gameplay from 4:20 in the video) and enjoy the amazing scope of the Ratatan tribe on a big screen, and their infectious singalongs (reminds me of the Gremlins, a bit).
The great news is the game was funded in its first hour, currently sitting at £550K of an £110K original goal, and is roaring its way through stretch goals. It has passed the console stretch, but there's no word on what platforms that would include, has to be PS5 and Switch at a guess.
Estimated launch is April 2025, so don't get too excited just yet, but Ratatan could and should be huge - congratulations to the team on their efforts so far.
Currently playing on my Vita/PS3/PS4/PS5
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