Sackboy: A Big Adventure will be one of several first party titles launching alongside the PS5 next month. While the game is coming to PS4 as well, obviously the newness of the new console has put a lot of eyes there. One thing people have been talking at length about is the DualSense controller with its multiple features such as haptic feedback and adaptive triggers. The developer of Sackboy found that to be something of a challenge, but a fun one.
Speaking with Gamesradar, Creative Director Ned Waterhouse talked about the challenge implementation of DualSense had for the studio. It wasn’t because it was difficult to do, but it was on the fun side of trying to parse together how to implement the haptic feedback for certain actions and what they should feel like. It sounds like they had a lot of fun just playing with various ideas.
“So what we wanted to get through with the DualSense – and I feel we’ve achieved it – is this sense of tactility; that extra connection to your Sackboy; and, with that, that sense of increased immersion,” says Waterhouse, giving us but a small amount of insight into the ways that the PS5 controller will reflect the substance of the world back through your fingertips with its unique haptic rumble support. “You end up having lots of arguments in the studio about: ‘What does it feel like to slide across a plank of wood? Is that what landing on a tea tray feels like? Come on, pop this balloon and tell me if that’s the same as popping a real balloon?’ As game designers, it does present a unique challenge, but it’s been one that’s been great fun to design for. And I think that, you know, the haptics in particular really enhance your connection to your Sackboy, and thus the game.”
Sackboy: A Big Adventure is set to release on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 on November 12th. You can check out the details on the game’s special edition through here.