You’d think Push Square Towers would still be aflutter with chatter about the PS5 Pro, but frankly there’s only one thing dominating office conversation: why isn’t UFO 50 launching on PlayStation this week? The fictional retro compilation – which documents the catalogue of an 80s game developer that never existed – is attracting rave reviews, and has been on our radar for eons now.
Created by Spelunky maker Mossmouth, with talent from a ton of titles you no doubt recognise – like Downwell – this bundle features 50 games from a variety of genres, spanning everything from sports to platformers to full-blown JRPGs. All of the games have an 8-bit aesthetic, and the developer insists these aren’t minigames or microgames, but meaty experiences that could have been flogged on cartridges in their era.
As it so eloquently puts it: each game has a title screen, credits, and tons to do. Yes, some of these experiences are arcade affairs, and thus smaller in scope – but overall you’re talking 50 full-scale retro-style games, all in one package. Some titles even feature local multiplayer, including co-op and versus options – depending on the experience.
“According to the story of UFO 50, the games were all created by a fictional 80s video game company that was obscure but ahead of its time,” the official blurb reads. “Some games are sequels to other games in the collection and various characters appear in multiple titles as part of a shared continuity.” You can jump in and out of any game as you please.
Unfortunately, there’s been no word on a PS5 port at all, and the title will launch exclusively on Steam this week. It’s currently rocking a 91 on Metacritic based on 10 reviews, which is a really impressive number. We sincerely hope the indie evangelists at PlayStation are moving heaven and earth to get this game on the platform, because we’re not sure we can wait for this much longer.