Silent Hill and Gravity Rush creator Keiichiro Toyama has shared some details of the upcoming debut game from his new studio, which will be a horror-themed action-adventure, aiming for a 2023 release, that will appeal to Toyama's fans.

Toyama's Bokeh Game Studio was founded on August 13 and announced publicly in December. Speaking with IGN Japan, the acclaimed developer explained that he is working on “an action-adventure game that will appeal to fans of my previous work”. He explained that the game will include “battles and story elements” in the kind of richly authored worlds you might recognize from his games at Sony’s Japan Studio and Konami.

When pressed on whether this new title will lean more toward the horror themes of Silent Hill and Siren or the cuter anime-styled paranormal setting of Gravity Rush, he explained, “If anything, this will be more of a horror-oriented game. But we will focus on making this a broader entertainment experience, rather than a hardcore horror game.”

While Toyama has been a first-party Sony developer for the past 20 years or so, he said that this new game will be a multi-platform release. “We are developing with PC as the lead platform, but we hope to release the game on as many console platforms as possible,” he said.

[caption id="attachment_2456458" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Bokeh Game Studio founders Junya Okura, Keiichiro Toyama, and Kazunobu Sato.[/caption]

The new title is being developed by a “fairly large” team, and Bokeh cofounder and producer Kazunobu Sato explained that they are still in the early stages of development, with an estimated target release date of 2023. “We’re just entering prototype development, and development will probably take nearly three years. So we hope to get this game into your hands in about three years from now.”

Regarding the studio’s foundation, Toyama explained that a combination of remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic and turning 50 prompted him to think about his future, and to answer the beckoning call of independence. He turned to longtime collaborators Sato (producer on the Siren series and The Last Guardian) and Junya Okura (lead level designer on the Siren and Gravity Rush series, whom Toyama credits with giving shape to his gameplay ideas), and the three Japan Studio colleagues set up Bokeh Game Studio together, with Toyama as Creator, Sato as Producer and Okura as Game Director. They initially considered creating smaller mobile games, before eventually building up a team of “mostly veterans” to increase the scale of their ambitions.

“I took a lot of inspiration from genDESIGN,” said Toyama, referring to the studio founded by Ico creator Fumito Ueda, who was yet another Japan Studio alumnus. “Ueda told me so much about his experiences that it inspired me to follow suit.”

While Bokeh’s first game may be a way off, Sato and business development manager Yohei Hart (also ex-Japan Studio) promised that the studio’s newly launched Twitter account and Facebook account will show peeks behind the curtain as the team progresses with development. “When you work at a major studio like Japan Studio, there is a limit to what you can share publicly, so now that we are free from those restraints, we’d like to take the opportunity to share as much as we can … so that the audience can see how the game comes together over time,” explained Sato. “We hope it might help people to not forget about us.”

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Daniel Robson is Chief Editor at IGN Japan – and (full disclosure) also worked for a spell at Sony’s Japan Studio. Follow him on Twitter here.

Silent Hill and Gravity Rush creator Keiichiro Toyama has shared some details of the upcoming debut game from his new studio, which will be a horror-themed action-adventure, aiming for a 2023 release, that will appeal to Toyama's fans.

Toyama's Bokeh Game Studio was founded on August 13 and announced publicly in December. Speaking with IGN Japan, the acclaimed developer explained that he is working on “an action-adventure game that will appeal to fans of my previous work”. He explained that the game will include “battles and story elements” in the kind of richly authored worlds you might recognize from his games at Sony’s Japan Studio and Konami.

When pressed on whether this new title will lean more toward the horror themes of Silent Hill and Siren or the cuter anime-styled paranormal setting of Gravity Rush, he explained, “If anything, this will be more of a horror-oriented game. But we will focus on making this a broader entertainment experience, rather than a hardcore horror game.”

While Toyama has been a first-party Sony developer for the past 20 years or so, he said that this new game will be a multi-platform release. “We are developing with PC as the lead platform, but we hope to release the game on as many console platforms as possible,” he said.

[caption id="attachment_2456458" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Bokeh Game Studio founders Junya Okura, Keiichiro Toyama, and Kazunobu Sato.[/caption]

The new title is being developed by a “fairly large” team, and Bokeh cofounder and producer Kazunobu Sato explained that they are still in the early stages of development, with an estimated target release date of 2023. “We’re just entering prototype development, and development will probably take nearly three years. So we hope to get this game into your hands in about three years from now.”

Regarding the studio’s foundation, Toyama explained that a combination of remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic and turning 50 prompted him to think about his future, and to answer the beckoning call of independence. He turned to longtime collaborators Sato (producer on the Siren series and The Last Guardian) and Junya Okura (lead level designer on the Siren and Gravity Rush series, whom Toyama credits with giving shape to his gameplay ideas), and the three Japan Studio colleagues set up Bokeh Game Studio together, with Toyama as Creator, Sato as Producer and Okura as Game Director. They initially considered creating smaller mobile games, before eventually building up a team of “mostly veterans” to increase the scale of their ambitions.

“I took a lot of inspiration from genDESIGN,” said Toyama, referring to the studio founded by Ico creator Fumito Ueda, who was yet another Japan Studio alumnus. “Ueda told me so much about his experiences that it inspired me to follow suit.”

While Bokeh’s first game may be a way off, Sato and business development manager Yohei Hart (also ex-Japan Studio) promised that the studio’s newly launched Twitter account and Facebook account will show peeks behind the curtain as the team progresses with development. “When you work at a major studio like Japan Studio, there is a limit to what you can share publicly, so now that we are free from those restraints, we’d like to take the opportunity to share as much as we can … so that the audience can see how the game comes together over time,” explained Sato. “We hope it might help people to not forget about us.”

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Daniel Robson is Chief Editor at IGN Japan – and (full disclosure) also worked for a spell at Sony’s Japan Studio. Follow him on Twitter here.

Move over PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, Kentucky Fried Chicken has announced its KFConsole - a VR-ready, Intel-powered PC capable of 4K, Raytracing, gameplay up to 240fps, and a Chicken Chamber that will keep you chicken warm as you game. No, we aren't kidding. This KFConsole was technically first unveiled a day after the PlayStation 5 reveal event, and although many thought it may just be a fun marketing joke by KFC, the KFConsole is very real.

The console wars are over.

Introducing the KFConsole. #PowerYourHunger pic.twitter.com/k7AM6g61Ip — KFC Gaming (@kfcgaming) December 22, 2020

The KFConsole's case is built by Cooler Master, and the patented Chicken Chamber is perhaps its marquee feature. "Never risk letting your chicken go cold again thanks to the patented Chicken Chamber," The description reads. "Utilising the systems natural heat and airflow system you can now focus on your gameplay and enjoy hot, crispy chicken between rounds." The KFConsole is housed in a custom Cooler Master NC100 chassis and includes an Intel Nuc 9 and an Asus powered GPU that can be swapped out. It also has two Seagate BarraCuda 1TB SSDs that have "PCIe NVMe speeds that are 6x faster." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=kfconsole-images&captions=true"] The release date and pricing of the KFConsole have yet to be given, but hopefully they won't be as tough to find as the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. KFC has been working its way into the hearts and minds of many with not only its food and the KFConsole, but also with its official KFC dating sim and its Lifetime movie that stars Mario Lopez as Colonel Sanders. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Move over PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, Kentucky Fried Chicken has announced its KFConsole - a VR-ready, Intel-powered PC capable of 4K, Raytracing, gameplay up to 240fps, and a Chicken Chamber that will keep you chicken warm as you game. No, we aren't kidding. This KFConsole was technically first unveiled a day after the PlayStation 5 reveal event, and although many thought it may just be a fun marketing joke by KFC, the KFConsole is very real.

The console wars are over.

Introducing the KFConsole. #PowerYourHunger pic.twitter.com/k7AM6g61Ip — KFC Gaming (@kfcgaming) December 22, 2020

The KFConsole's case is built by Cooler Master, and the patented Chicken Chamber is perhaps its marquee feature. "Never risk letting your chicken go cold again thanks to the patented Chicken Chamber," The description reads. "Utilising the systems natural heat and airflow system you can now focus on your gameplay and enjoy hot, crispy chicken between rounds." The KFConsole is housed in a custom Cooler Master NC100 chassis and includes an Intel Nuc 9 and an Asus powered GPU that can be swapped out. It also has two Seagate BarraCuda 1TB SSDs that have "PCIe NVMe speeds that are 6x faster." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=kfconsole-images&captions=true"] The release date and pricing of the KFConsole have yet to be given, but hopefully they won't be as tough to find as the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. KFC has been working its way into the hearts and minds of many with not only its food and the KFConsole, but also with its official KFC dating sim and its Lifetime movie that stars Mario Lopez as Colonel Sanders. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Legendary Entertainment, who financed 75% of the budgets for both the upcoming Dune and Godzilla vs. Kong, is set to challenge Warner Bros. over its decision to release its entire 2021 film slate onto HBO Max the same day as their theatrical debut. As reported by Deadline (via IndieWire), Legendary was "blindsided" by the Warner Bros. decision and is working on a solution to "preserve its franchise potential" by letting it premiere exclusively in theaters. It is also hopeful that Dune's October 1 release date will fall well past when COVID vaccines are more readily available. Legendary is also reportedly preparing a possible legal case after it was kept out of discussions of this historic move. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/09/09/dune-official-trailer"] As for Dune's "franchise potential," it is in reference to the planned two-part adaptation of Frank Herbert's novel and the first film laying the groundwork for the Dune television series. If Legendary is able to win this battle, it will make Dune's director Denis Villeneuve very happy, as he recently spoke out against Warner Bros. over its decision and said WB has "absolutely no love for cinema, nor the audience here. It is all about the survival of a telecom mammoth, one that is currently bearing an astronomical debt of more than $150 billion." Godzilla vs. Kong may have a tougher time as it is currently is set to be released in theaters and HBO Max on May 21, 2021, but "only if Warner Bros. makes a deal with Legendary that uses as a base the $250 million value established when the film was shopped earlier to Netflix.” [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/03/matrix-4-dune-more-2021-movies-coming-to-hbo-max-ign-now"] Warner Bros.' hybrid HBO Max-theatrical release model will kick off on December 25 with Wonder Woman 1984. In our review, we said it "is a film with a heart full of hope and love; a nostalgic look back to a beloved time that provides escapism from an exceptionally difficult year." [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Legendary Entertainment, who financed 75% of the budgets for both the upcoming Dune and Godzilla vs. Kong, is set to challenge Warner Bros. over its decision to release its entire 2021 film slate onto HBO Max the same day as their theatrical debut. As reported by Deadline (via IndieWire), Legendary was "blindsided" by the Warner Bros. decision and is working on a solution to "preserve its franchise potential" by letting it premiere exclusively in theaters. It is also hopeful that Dune's October 1 release date will fall well past when COVID vaccines are more readily available. Legendary is also reportedly preparing a possible legal case after it was kept out of discussions of this historic move. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/09/09/dune-official-trailer"] As for Dune's "franchise potential," it is in reference to the planned two-part adaptation of Frank Herbert's novel and the first film laying the groundwork for the Dune television series. If Legendary is able to win this battle, it will make Dune's director Denis Villeneuve very happy, as he recently spoke out against Warner Bros. over its decision and said WB has "absolutely no love for cinema, nor the audience here. It is all about the survival of a telecom mammoth, one that is currently bearing an astronomical debt of more than $150 billion." Godzilla vs. Kong may have a tougher time as it is currently is set to be released in theaters and HBO Max on May 21, 2021, but "only if Warner Bros. makes a deal with Legendary that uses as a base the $250 million value established when the film was shopped earlier to Netflix.” [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/03/matrix-4-dune-more-2021-movies-coming-to-hbo-max-ign-now"] Warner Bros.' hybrid HBO Max-theatrical release model will kick off on December 25 with Wonder Woman 1984. In our review, we said it "is a film with a heart full of hope and love; a nostalgic look back to a beloved time that provides escapism from an exceptionally difficult year." [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Netflix has released the first page of a script from Season 2 of The Witcher, and it appears to begin to tell A Grain of Truth - a short story that was featured in The Witcher author Andrzej Sapkowski's The Last Wish. Revealed by Netflix as part of its Witchmas Celebration, the words on this script share many similarities to A Grain of Truth, including dialogue, the manor, and the untimely fate of the merchant and his wife. Geralt's VO, on the other hand, appears to be taken from the short story Something More from Sword of Destiny. [caption id="attachment_2456399" align="aligncenter" width="720"] Image Credit: Netflix[/caption] Without spoiling what happens, this story also includes a man by the name of Nivellen, who is set to be played by Game of Thrones' Kristofer Hivju, and is another hint that this story will be part of Season 2. Netflix's Witchmas has also gifted fans of The Witcher with season 2 set photos, a logo for the Witcher anime movie Nightmare of the Wolf, and much more. The Witcher season 2 is scheduled to be released on Netflix in 2021, and we've gathered everything we know about the upcoming story in one place. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/12/27/the-witcher-season-1-review"] In our review of The Witcher's first season, we said it "is unconventional and messy. It’s failed by its convoluted structure, which ultimately restricts character growth, and prevents the show from having any true sense of depth. This makes for an unsatisfying big picture, but thankfully there are plenty of things to enjoy in its individual components." [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Netflix has released the first page of the script for season 2 of The Witcher, and it appears to begin to tell A Grain of Truth - a short story that was featured in The Witcher author Andrzej Sapkowski's The Last Wish. Revealed by Netflix as part of its Witchmas Celebration, the words on this script share many similarities to A Grain of Truth, including dialogue, the manor, and the untimely fate of the merchant and his wife. Geralt's VO, on the other hand, appears to be taken from the short story Something More from Sword of Destiny. [caption id="attachment_2456399" align="aligncenter" width="720"] Image Credit: Netflix[/caption] Without spoiling what happens, this story also includes a man by the name of Nivellen, who is set to be played by Game of Thrones' Kristofer Hivju, and is another hint that this story will be part of season 2. Netflix's Witchmas has also gifted fans of The Witcher with season 2 set photos, a logo for the Witcher anime movie Nightmare of the Wolf, and much more. The Witcher season 2 is scheduled to be released on Netflix in 2021, and we've gathered everything we know about the upcoming story in one place. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/12/27/the-witcher-season-1-review"] In our review of The Witcher's first season, we said it "is unconventional and messy. It’s failed by its convoluted structure, which ultimately restricts character growth, and prevents the show from having any true sense of depth. This makes for an unsatisfying big picture, but thankfully there are plenty of things to enjoy in its individual components." [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

This week in Red Dead Online, claim tons of free holiday gifts, enjoy festive new decorations, take on the Legendary Bounty for a cult leader, and much more.

This week in Red Dead Online, claim tons of free holiday gifts, enjoy festive new decorations, take on the Legendary Bounty for a cult leader, and much more.