PS5 Game Project Athia Slated For January 2022 Release
At the opening of this year's all-digital Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Sony unveiled a few new dates that lay out the future of PlayStation 5 game releases, including the highly anticipated Project Athia from Square Enix. Unlike the so-far murky schedule for major first-party Xbox releases, Sony seems to have its ducks in a row when it comes to its in-house and third-party console exclusives. PS5 owners are looking forward to big sequels to God of War, Ratchet and Clank, and Horizon: Zero Dawn. Signs point to all those games making their debut in 2021, alongside major releases like Hitman 3 in a matter of weeks and Returnal this March.
Players don't have to wait either, as Sony provided a healthy launch lineup of games alongside the PS5. From Spider-Man: Miles Morales to the impressive Demon’s Souls remake and beyond, there's already plenty to do on Sony's new console. For some, the only issue is that most of these games also released on the PlayStation 4, which means they're not taking full advantage of the new hardware. Whether or not that is truly a sensible argument is beside the point that many feel that they're still waiting for the next generation to begin.
At CES 2021, Sony presented a sizzle reel of highlights ofthe PlayStation 5's release schedule. The tail-end of this video labeled the release dates for many of these games, including some that had only been teased in the past. One of the most notable is Project Athia, which is set to release one year from now in January 2022. Developed by an internal Square Enix team that splintered off of Final Fantasy XV's development, Project Athia is described as an open-world fantasy action-adventure featuring a female protagonist exploring a world that isn't her own. The trailer announcing the game debuted at the PS5 reveal in place of an expected Final Fantasy XVI unveiling, but it seems that both games are in the pipeline as of now.
Project Athia may cap off a solid year of PlayStation 5 releases if the rest of the dates from the CES trailer hold water. Sony has several games set up for each quarter of 2021, including both Ghostwire: Tokyo and Stray this holiday. Both Horizon Forbidden West and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart are listed as just 2021, meaning they could slot in anywhere in the year and add to an already strong lineup.
For now, Square Enix fans awaiting more news on Project Athia should look to the summer. The game seems like it could be playing in the same space as the Horizon franchise from the brief description, but it's hard to tell anything of substance from just the one trailer that's available to the public. If the game is truly set for release in January, more details will likely roll out around E3, although it's unclear if anything resembling an E3 will be occurring this year. Regardless, Square will likely have a digital event with a full title reveal, more info about how the game plays, and various other promotional treats.
Project Athia will be available on PS5 and PC in January 2022.
Source: YouTube