With Sony’s recent joint acquisition of Evo, a lot of PlayStation fans are remembering the company’s history with fighting games, and joking about the ill-fated time it tried to make its own. PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale is a 2012 platform fighter released for the PS3 and PS Vita, and was intended to be Sony’s answer to Super Smash Bros. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out that way. Due to some odd character picks and a near-universally criticized super meter mechanic that was the only way to win matches, the game flopped. Shuhei Yoshida confirmed in 2013 that PlayStation All-Stars had sold over a million copies, which was not enough to justify a sequel.
However, that doesn’t mean the core idea is bad. A PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale 2 could work (though a new name would probably help). Whether this game attempts to continue in its predecessors footsteps by making the platform fighting genre work or goes for something more traditional, it can immediately take steps to improve its presentation, content, and mechanics based on feedback from the previous title. A good first step is including characters and franchises that will turn some heads.
Astro Bot
An obvious choice for a new PlayStation All-Stars is Astro, the little robot from The Playroom, Astro Bot Rescue Mission, and Astro’s Playroom. Astro has become something of a mascot for Sony’s recent platforms, representing the features of the PlayStation 4, PlayStation VR, and PlayStation 5. Astro’s Playroom was already a massive celebration of PlayStation’s history, chock full of old hardware and cameos by plenty of old games associated with PlayStation, so Astro would fit All-Stars like a glove. He could even replace Toro the cat as a more recognizable PlayStation mascot character, though it would be best to have them both around for different markets.
Astro would bring his arsenal of platforming tools and vehicles to bear during battles, able to attack enemies with his spinning attack and ball form, and take to the sky using a downward laser blast and fly forward with a hang glider. Astro could bring his minigun to bear as either a special attack or an item, and his super(s) could involve summoning the bosses from his games, or even the giant Big Brother robot from Rescue Mission. And of course, Astro would bring Easter egg-filled stages and music from Astro’s Playroom along with him. These alone would be worth having Astro in the cast. All in all, if a PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale 2 were to ever happen, including Astro and his robot buddies is a no-brainer and easy crowd-pleaser.
Soul Sacrifice
It was never the primary place to play the fighting game, but PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale came out on the PS Vita during its first year out in North America. Kat from Gravity Rush was the original representative for the portable system, but now that her series has migrated to PS4, the Vita is left as an odd gap in PlayStation history with few exclusive characters and franchises to draw from. Fortunately, 2013’s Soul Sacrifice provides a solution. The strange action-RPG hunting game could represent the Vita handily, even if its upgraded digital version might be going away soon.
The unnamed Sorcerer played as in missions will serve PlayStation All-Stars well, bringing with them a huge variety of magical attacks and a mechanic that will allow them to sacrifice their own health to use stronger abilities. From summoning a flaming spear to transforming into a boulder, the Sorcerer will be full of visually interesting tricks. And that’s not the only thing that will look good; the Soul Sacrifice stage will be full of the twisted monsters and creepy architecture that defines its home game. It may not be a game anyone is asking for nowadays, but done right, no one will be able to deny that it holds a place as the Vita’s representative.
Crash Bandicoot or Spyro the Dragon
The first PlayStation All-Stars had some glaring third-party omissions of characters who have represented PlayStation in the past. Whether it be Solid Snake or Cloud Strife, characters already in Smash, it felt like the third-party fighters who were present were just marketing whatever was currently coming out instead of providing fanservice. There were two absences that were felt more than the rest however: Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon, two 3D platformer icons who were almost Sony’s mascots in the PS1 era, were missing from the cast.
Crash and Spyro would make incredible additions to PlayStation All-Stars 2’s roster. Crash Bandicoot fans have already been wondering if Crash will make it into Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, so there’s already plenty of groundswell for him to come back in a fighting game. Spyro’s return is less hurried, but there are still plenty of fans eagerly waiting for his next game to be announced. If only one of these PlayStation icons could get into All-Stars 2, it would probably have to be Crash. Still, with their franchises interwoven together, it would be great to see them both duking it out.
Legend of Legaia
Back in the PlayStation 1 days, Sony was a major player in the realm of RPGs. Tons of famous and cult classic Japanese RPGs came out for the PS1 and PS2 platforms. While Sony’s self-styled “Final Fantasy killer” RPG was The Legend of Dragoon, it wasn’t its only published effort in the genre. Presuming that Final Fantasy will get a seat at the next PlayStation All-Stars, the role of Sony’s own RPG can fall to Legend of Legaia.
Legend of Legaia would translate perfectly into a fighting game because that’s what it was always meant to emulate. In it, instead of the usual “Fight” command, players can build a string of attacks using up, down, left, and right inputs. Certain strings would result in special moves called "Arts," and players also have the option of summoning monsters to use magic as well. This system is begging to be translated into a real fighting game, and one of the three protagonists, Vahn, Noa, and Gala, would get the chance to show off their stuff. They already have various special and super attacks in their home game, but for something extra flashy, they can summon their associated Ra-Seru to launch a vicious magical assault. It would be great to see Sony’s old RPGs back on modern consoles, and Legend of Legaia’s appearance in a modern fighting game could be the spark it needs to return.
Bloodborne
Of course, a discussion of PlayStation’s star franchises cannot end without bringing up Bloodborne. FromSoftware’s 2015 masterpiece is in the running for many as the best Souls-like it has ever made. As Sony owns the rights to the franchise, more can be done with it even as FromSoftware moves on to other projects. While everyone wants a Bloodborne remaster and a PC port, the Good Hunter’s appearance in another game would sate them for a little while — assuming that’s even the fighter Sony would pick.
Bloodborne is rich in characters, settings, and music inspired by gothic and Lovecraftian horror. Whether Sony chooses the player Hunter and the citizen-filled streets of Yharnam, Lady Maria and her Astral Clocktower, or Gherman and his field of flowers, any character and stage combination would work. At any rate, PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale 2 would be massively enhanced by Bloodborne’s presence, if only for its masterful aesthetic.
PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale 2 is rumored to be in development for the PS5.