Ps4 interview about horizon: the frozen wilds and detroit: become human

During the Barcelona Games World 2017 we had the opportunity to interview Mario Ballesteros, senior product marketing manager for PlayStation. He told us about two of the future games that Sony plans to launch in the short and medium term for PS4, and that luckily, we had the opportunity to try at the event: Horizon: The frozen wilds and Detroit: Become Human.

Horizon Zero Dawn: The Frozen Wilds

Apart from the new territory to be explored in the dlc, what playable news can be found with respect to the original game?

Actually the first novelty is that it is not a complement. It is the first mode expansion in the game's history. A story that is almost the most important thing in this game where we also have a very iconic character. With whom everyone I think has felt very identified and has directly put itself in the minds of the players as one of the great icons that Aloy intends to become in what is the universe of ps4. In addition, in the scenarios and their new worlds in which we will go deeper as in the mountains with the snow.

I think people are really enjoying the scenarios. True to them, infinity of photos with great beauty are being shared. I still believe that this will allow us to have more progress in this regard. In the end we talk about more hours of play. To discover a part of the history and some mysteries that we had not known until now. Very oriented to one of the tribes. In this case that of the Banuk. Where it is oriented precisely in that area of ​​the north and where that mystery will have a series of dangers. Let's say, we were already dragging from the main story. We will face them and huge mechanized robots.

Some of them already known, but also many of them new that will appear in this dlc. This will force us to face new weapons, new abilities and new character development. In the end it is what people are mainly achieving with over 100 hours of gameplay on average.

Can you comment on some of the new mechanics or abilities?

They have not been detailed or specified at a technical level. We do not know them at the moment. We will probably not know, or they will leave us with that uncertainty until we can play and discover them for ourselves. I think it is one of the graces of evolving with the character.

What is the approximate duration of the campaign or expansion?

There is no set duration. In the end the duration of any game, not only Horizon is determined by the ability of the player himself. There are players who are having it in less than 100 hours and there are players who are over 100 hours. On average, we are talking about 100 hours of gameplay, which is what the story mode would be like. It is a very complete game, open world, in which we have infinity of submissions and main missions. It will depend on what we like to get into this story, that from what we are seeing, people are fitting in a lot.

The Complete Edition for ps4 is announced for December. Is there any thought of getting more DLC in the future?

Not yet confirmed. Because the objective of launching the first does not mean that it will be the last. The intention is to offer the possibility to new players to enter this new IP in which Sony intends to convert Horizon. It is also a very interesting moment where we really know that everyone will have the opportunity to enjoy more time and a game that this year closes a round cycle.

We released the main game in March and six months later a dlc that promises to be very comprehensive. Guerrilla has always maintained a level of quality above what the game is going forward. It is offered, therefore, a very very appetizing edition because it includes the complete game, all the DLC and all the digital contents already included in the Deluxe digital version. Also, it has an incredible price.

Why is there such a short release of the Complete Edition compared to the original game?

Well, I think that success has always been kept in mind, as has happened in this case. It is also true that a certain phenomenon has been generated with Horizon. Expectations were very high, but have been exceeded by critics and the general public. Above all, consumers are incredibly welcoming to the game. I think in that time we have tried to take a step forward. Agile and fast enough to precisely arrive with a new offer, in that sense, before a more complete edition but also allowing the consumer to enjoy all the content.

And December I think it is a good time too. Precisely because we are on a date of gifts, of playing because the weather allows it during the Christmas holidays. With so many hours of play I think Christmas can be more entertaining.

There is a question that assails many future buyers. In the Complete Edition, will the DLC be included on the disc or in digital format?

From what is known today, yes. It comes on the disk. It is a very technical question that is true that maybe if it came with a download voucher, but what has been transformed is that it joins the DLC with the main game. That's kind of the main message.

Usually when a full edition for ps4 is released, as in the case of Bloodborne if I remember correctly, it included the DLC and everything else on a single disc. The company's strategy remains the same.

Detroit: Become Human

What dates are considered for the exit of the game? Considering that next year the new God of war is also planned to come out.

If with two games for ps4 in a whole year, already the opinion is that of: wow. More than something dangerous I think it is great news and we should even say that there are more games; That surely there are other than these that we are going to launch. It will not be a problem of dates. On the contrary.

In the end it is very good news that we can confirm at least that God of war or Detroit in this case come out in 2018. It will be sought, I think, the best date where not only we, but in general also the entire consumer, have time to play, time to enjoy before that date arrives. If that game is the one that everyone wants to buy and the one that wants to live an experience because they are as eager for God of war as Detroit and I think we still have a lot to know about Detroit.

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Today we have the opportunity to show a demo, which until now in Spain no one had tried yet on ps4. We had seen it at E3 but I think the sensations we hear from people who have tried the game are overwhelming. Realism and above all history. As it puts us precisely into the life of each of the androids protagonists of this story. It is about human relationships and relationships with androids. So I would still say a little calm about the date. It is something that will be confirmed with the good sense of talking about a specific date. So that we all know when it will arrive specifically and not follow rumors or speculation. It is normal for people to look forward to the game.

The supposed downgrade of the demo regarding the first trailer has given a lot of talk online. What can you say about that?

I would base myself more on realism, or rather on the reality of what we are already playing and not on a previous project where perhaps the game was more conceptual and not so close in detail to what the final game would later be. I think that what we should start to value and comment on from the always constructive point of view, is what we are seeing a little and what we are having the opportunity to prove. I insist, it is not a final version either. We should not remain with the whole game going to be like this. There is more information that will be revealed little by little, so there are many things still to be known. We are at the gates of important events in Europe. There will be many new features that I think will make us want to have the game.

Will the decisions we make in Detroit have a short-term effect like other foreplay or will it affect long-term events?

Really here both. The level of magnitude of decisions is very different. Both for the character we are playing with and for the decision itself. So the effect or consequences can also affect both the final development of the game and the short term. This is according to the degree of importance of the decision. Perhaps the consequence may affect, for example, the next minutes or scenes of the game as we go along. But also at the end the accumulation of decisions that we are taking will affect the development of the story and therefore the endings. That is something that I think is also the main asset of this type of game where you are the protagonist. You are the direct of the game and in the end it allows you to have that power and that control of what you would like to happen.

There is also some replayability. It is a game that we are going to be able to share. We are going to be able to talk about the same game, but with different variants. I think it is something we have achieved in previous games. Now with three characters and three stories in which each one has, let's say, the same common origin but then a development where the androids' personality is different. Their motives for rebelling are going to be different. Each one will have a reason through which each player will be more or less identified. Therefore the moral dilemmas are going to have a much more significant effect on the player.

We thank both the Sony team and Mario Ballesteros for the time given and the opportunity to conduct the interview.