With PlayStation Productions creating the recent Uncharted film and the soon-to-be released TV series of The Last of Us and Twisted Metal, it’s a safe assumption that they’ll have more projects on the way in the near future. Before the beginning of their movies and shows, an opening animation plays similar to that of Marvel Studios, DCEU films, or that always-catchy Twentieth Century Studios intro. 

The Playstation Production opening animation can be seen in the video below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qQssqOmBZw

In a blue hologram-like aesthetic that matches the default backgrounds on PlayStation consoles, still images of Aloy, Nathan Drake, Jin Sakai, Joel and Ellie, Kratos and Atreus, Astro, Ratchet & Clank, and Sackboy show while ominous, almost-futuristic music plays before the PlayStation logo appears. It’s quite a nice intro to their movies and TV series that showcases some of their biggest modern IPs. It celebrates their many iconic characters and gets audiences excited about the possibilities of what other adaptations may be in store.

There is something, however, noticeably absent from their opening animation, and that is representation from many of PlayStation’s classic titles. None of PlayStations beloved mascots from the PS1 or PS2 eras are present. Jak & Daxter, Ape Escape, Parappa the Rapper, Sly Cooper, and MediEvil, among a handful of others, seem to be missing from this seemingly celebratory opening animation. Even the PS3 era’s InFamous and Resistance don’t get the recognition as the more modern titles. Yes, the God of War and Ratchet & Clank series began on the PS2, but both have newer installments on current-generation consoles. 

What could these absences mean? Could Sony be ignoring these titles more than fans have thought? If they’re getting so little attention that their recognizable protagonists can’t even show up for a movie studio logo, then that could potentially be a soft confirmation that fans may have to wait even longer, or forever, for new games in these series. Sony might no longer deem them as important enough to give them attention. It could also imply that they have no intentions to adapt video games outside of the ones showcased in the animation. Either way, it’s a huge bummer for fans of those franchises who may be looking forward to the next games in their respective series or to see them on the big screen. 

That being said, Sweet Tooth isn’t featured in the opening animation, but a Twisted Metal TV series is being adapted for the streaming service Peacock. Because of this, nothing can be ruled out. It seems there may not be much of a reason that games were excluded from this opening animation. Perhaps they focused on modern characters because they’re more relevant. This is still a strange decision because they’re missing an opportunity to showcase their long history of great stories. Plus, Astro is by no means as recognizable as Sly Cooper. One would think characters old and new would be present to attract long-time fans and newcomers. 

If Twisted Metal proves anything, it’s that franchises not shown could still show up in the future. It’s still disappointing for gamers who have been PlayStation fans since the 90s or early 2000s to not see some of their favorite characters appear in this brief video that feels like it’s meant to celebrate PlayStation games. Who knows? Maybe it’ll subtly change as time goes on like the Marvel Studios logo.