The Last of Us Part 2 surpasses Spider-Man sales

The Last of Us Part II has eclipsed Marvel's Spider-Man to become the fastest-selling PlayStation exclusive in Sony's history with more than 4 million copies sold worldwide.

"The Last of Us Part 2 represents large scale innovation in gaming with a great blend of excellent gameplay mechanics and masterful storytelling," Eric Lempel, senior vice president of worldwide marketing for Sony PlayStation, said in a statement. "We strive to bring you unique, engaging experiences."

Neil Druckmann, vice president of Naughty Dog and director of The Last of Us Part II said:

“We are so immensely grateful to the millions of fans around the world that have played The Last of Us Part II and shared their experiences with us over the last week. We set out to tell a new kind of story, one that deals with difficult themes and would challenge you in unexpected ways. Hearing how the experience has resonated with so many of you and witnessing the type of thoughtful discussions it has sparked has been so incredible. We’ve also been so inspired by your creativity – whether it’s your gorgeous Photo Mode shots, jaw-dropping gameplay GIFs, or the songs you’ve recorded using Ellie’s guitar.

The Last of Us Part II was made possible thanks to the efforts of the hundreds of talented and passionate developers here at Naughty Dog. We can imagine no greater honour than seeing that same passion mirrored by the people playing it. Thank you for helping us reach this amazing milestone.”

Not only is The Last of Us Part II one of the greatest video game sequels ever made, Ellie is an openly gay female protagonist and I, for one, can't wait for HBO's live-action adaptation.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order extended gameplay demo

Further to E3 earlier this month, EA has released an extended gameplay demo for Respawn Entertainment's upcoming title set in a galaxy far, far away... Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.



"Order 66 has been executed. Once, staying alive meant hiding your abilities. Now, you must embrace them. Use the Force to manipulate your environment, master lightsaber combat, explore dangerous terrain, and remain one step ahead of the Empire."

The extended gameplay footage shows Cal Kestis (Cameron Monaghan) and his droid sidekick, BD-1, commandeer an AT-AT in a manner mixing God of War and Uncharted gameplay mechanics.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (affiliate link) is released this November on PS4 and Xbox One for console-owning fans.

Are you excited for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order? Does it evoke the original Dark Forces? Let me know in the comments below.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order gameplay demo at E3

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is a highly-anticipated video game from Respawn Entertainment. During this weekend's EA Play at E3, a gameplay demo in partnership with Xbox was released. The upcoming title deftly mashes Star Wars tropes with Tomb Raider and Uncharted.



Game director Stig Asmussen is famous for God of War 3. Set between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is a character-driven story with an unbalanced protagonist, Cal Kestis (Cameron Monaghan), who veers between Jedi and Sith in a fashion worthy of Anakin Skywalker. During the 14-minute demo, it's revealed Forest Whitaker is reprising the role of Saw Gerrera from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Star Wars Rebels.

Kestis' companion is the cutest droid since BB-8 rolled across the sand dunes of Jakku in The Force Awakens. BD-1 will aid you in your quest to unlock blast doors and much more. Kasumi Shishido worked with Lucasfilm's Doug Chiang, drawing inspiration from Pixar's Luxo Jr. and existing Star Wars staples. BD-1 looks far better than that hairdryer thing from The Rise of Skywalker. Where's my BD-1 desktop buddy, Disney?



Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (affiliate link) looks like a welcome antidote to Star Wars Battlefront II and should satiate fans on Xbox One and PS4 this November. This'll keep me occupied on Xbox One X before Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

Kratos returns in God of War for PS4 this April

Sony has another PlayStation exclusive hit on its hands with the upcoming God of War for PS4 this April. Previews suggest first-party studio Santa Monica has outdone itself. So, in anticipation of the latest instalment in the franchise, here's my God of War 3 review for PS3, which I never got around to publishing on this blog, in all its gory glory...

God of War 3 is more Return of the Jedi than Return of the King. For gamers (myself included) who remember playing Greek myths on the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, this is a wonderfully upscaled version of those ambitious 8-bit titles from the eighties.

Bayonetta, a darling of critics everywhere, left me cold [I've since become a huge fan in the intervening years and now own the original and Wii U sequel on Nintendo Switch]. Therefore, I was pinning my hopes on God of War 3 to reignite my thirst for the visceral hack and slash genre popularised by Dungeons and Dragons (D&D), Golden Axe and Devil May Cry.

It may be worth pointing out that I've never played PlayStation exclusive God of War or its first sequel - something I plan to redress once the remastered God of War: Collection is released [Never did get around to it. Because Mass Effect trilogy.]. To use a filmic analogy: I was about to watch Return of the Jedi without ever seeing Star Wars or The Empire Strikes Back. However, I had it on good authority that God of War 3 could be played without any prior knowledge.

Olympian video games have enthralled me since Gift from the Gods graced the Sinclair ZX Spectrum in 1984. Despite the generation gap, both Gift from the Gods and God of War 3 are epic revenge fantasies wrapped in the trappings of Greek mythology.

The player is plunged into the action as Kratos battles the undead to defend a female titan scaling Mount Olympus - much to the chagrin of the Gods. The frenetic pace, sweeping camera angles, aping Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and surround sound, induced a migraine and I was forced to put down the controller after only a few minutes of gameplay! This isn't a negative. It's symptomatic of an overwhelming opening sequence that the Clash of the Titans reboot would be envious of.

Death-dealing has never looked more picturesque than it does in God of War 3. The game's aesthetic is most reminiscent of BioWare's Star Wars: The Old Republic. To be honest, I'd, incorrectly, assumed that it was a BioWare release. It doesn't take a huge leap of imagination to see Kratos, himself, as a Sith Lord!

Much has been made of the visceral violence in God of War 3: from decapitating limbs to beheadings, in all of which you play a pivotal part. But, it's mostly operatic in nature and didn't disturb me as much as Resident Evil Code: Veronica - that game was the stuff of nightmares.

However, it's not exactly 'family-friendly' and I'd politely suggest thinking twice about playing this alongside a family game of Wii Sport Resorts! It's worth pointing out that amongst this melee, there's sexual content, too. The camera doesn't pan away, and you could find yourself fielding awkward questions from younger gamers.

This is the third act and has a satisfying conclusion, unlike most trilogies. For those of us who haven't played the previous instalments, there's now a compelling motivation to do so. But, I can't imagine that the franchise will end here. It's too lucrative and the PlayStation needs exclusives. However, I hope that the developers will allow Kratos to retire with dignity and serve up something fresh, exciting and worthy of the mantle.

By turns breathtaking and awe-inspiring, I was still left wondering if there could have been more imagination and less regurgitation applied to the development of such an auspicious title.