Report: Concept Art Emerges for Deviation Games’ Cancelled PS5 Shooter
PlayStation’s recent gaming output has been significantly marked by numerous unsuccessful attempts to establish live service titles. The company greenlit more than ten such projects, most of which were eventually terminated for one reason or another. Among these was a collaboration with Deviation Games, a studio newly formed in 2020 by veterans of the Call of Duty franchise.
A year after its founding, the studio announced that a new IP was being developed in collaboration with Sony Interactive Entertainment for an exclusive PS5 title.
Unfortunately for the project, within another year, reports emerged that Jason Blundell, a co-founder and COD veteran, would be departing the studio. This immediately cast doubt on the game’s future, and fears were confirmed in 2023 when industry insider Colin Moriarty reported the cancellation of the studio’s debut title. Adding a final nail to the coffin, last year saw Deviation endure a round of layoffs that ultimately culminated in the developer’s complete closure.
Throughout its development cycle, no official details of the project were ever released, except that it was a new IP. However, rumors indicated it would have been a multiplayer shooter, an unsurprising fact considering the team’s background with the COD franchise. Now, two years after the title’s cancellation, we can confirm these rumors, as we have discovered several pieces of concept art detailing the game’s aesthetic, and offering a glimpse at the weapons we could have wielded in-game.
Deviation Games’ Cancelled Shooter Unearthed
These illustrations originate from the portfolio of an artist who worked at Deviation Games. A 2020 timestamp found in one of the file names suggests they were created during an early conceptualization phase of the game. Upon viewing the concept art, it’s immediately apparent that the game would have been set within a futuristic sci-fi genre, as denoted by the weapon designs and the cosmic illustration, which, according to its file name, was conceived as a concept for a start screen.
The majority of the images feature various weapons, including pistols, rifles, and even a futuristic gauntlet labeled “Power Glove.” Notably, some weapons, like the pistols, appear with two different cosmetic variants. It’s also worth noting the highly detailed diagrams for these weapons, which might have indicated a planned high degree of customization for each. We also see a design for a character named “Berserker,” who we presume was intended as a playable class. This leads us to consider whether the game might have leaned into a hero-shooter model, much like the approach attempted by the short-lived Concord.
While it’s certain we’ll never see this game finished, a very similar vision might yet come to fruition. Not long after he departed from Deviation, it was reported that Jason Blundell was establishing a new PlayStation studio, bringing along some of the former Deviation team. This was officially confirmed in March of this year with the announcement of Dark Outlaw Games. Still, fans of the shooter genre will have to wait a considerable amount of time before seeing any official reveals from this new studio.
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