PlayStation Critics Choice sale: here are our picks, but what are yours?

By Kes Eylers-Stephenson,

Look at you, with your limited pennies to throw at a game. Don't worry though, chum, we are also as penniless as a writer and have you covered with the dirtiest deals from the PlayStation Store's Critics Choice and Games Under 15 sales.

The PlayStation Store is currently running two sales: one for Critic's Choice and the other for Games Under 15. We have awesome sales pages for the EU and UK, as well as North America. The pair of sales will basically cover most of your need for early February, until the scary onslaught of games.

Of course, we want to hear from you! So leave a comment for a chance to be a part of the Community Picks article that releases next week.

Kes — Kena: Bridge of Spirits

Kena: Bridge of Spirits is something quite special indeed from first-time developer Ember Labs. A young spirit guide finds an abandoned village in the woods and must uncover the mystery in order to prevent a great darkness that is brewing. It is a simple concept, but one very well executed. The art style, the combat, and the story are all really well managed. The eventual tale that unfolds is surprisingly touching. I reviewed it for the site back when it was released last year, and I stand by what I said: “Less than halfway through my time with the game, I knew I was in love with what Ember Lab had created.”

That love still persists, and I am yet to attempt a second run-through on the second hardest difficulty. Combat is surprisingly really similar to God of War, where the difficulty is high and the enemies unique. That gives it a satisfying edge that I wasn’t expecting when I started playing. However, I would say it is let down by the underlying feeling of movement, which frankly feels like gliding around. It overcomes those issues with style and panache, though. It was one of my favourites last year, so 30% off is what I feel would be a fair deal for Kena’s heartwarming adventure. Ignore Sean below, too — he is a callous man.

Kena: Bridge of Spirits PS4 & PS5

This product entitles you to download both the digital PS4™ version and the digital PS5™ version of this game.

Kena: Bridge of Spirits is a story-driven action adventure set in a charming world rich with exploration and fast-paced combat. Players find and grow a team of tiny spirit companions called the Rot, enhancing their abilities and creating new ways to manipulate the environment.

Kena, a young Spirit Guide, travels to an abandoned village in search of the sacred mountain shrine. She struggles to uncover the secrets of this forgotten community hidden in an overgrown forest where wandering spirits are trapped.

Find the Rot
Timid and illusive spirits scattered throughout the forest. They maintain balance by decomposing dead and rotting elements.

Key Features
• Build Your Team: Find and collect Rot to gain powerful abilities, make discoveries, and transform the environment.
• Explore: A forgotten village and a strange curse. Draw on the power of the Spirit Realm to restore this once-majestic world.
• Fast-Paced Combat: Spirits have become corrupt, trapped and unable to move on, challenging Kena at every turn.

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Sean — The Long Dark

Oi, you. Ignore what the other two are saying and buy The Long Dark; I promise you won’t regret it. The Long Dark is a survival game that pits you mainly against the freezing conditions of the North Canadian wilds. Sure, there is some local wildlife that you’ll need to fend off, but largely, the cold, hunger, thirst, and energy levels are your real enemy here. Flying high in the sky with Dr Astrid Greenwood, your plane goes down thanks to a strange storm. Once you awake, you find that Astrid has gone missing, and with little-to-no gear, you set out across the frozen and rugged Canadian wilderness to find her, scavenging food and gear as you go, creating campfires to stay warm, and finding shelter in the middle of whiteout blizzards.

It’s often quite a lonely experience playing The Long Dark, and because of this loneliness, it has this unique atmosphere and feels that I am yet to experience in any other game. Sure, everything is out to get you, and the game is gruelling, but the smallest of wins can feel like monumental victories in The Long Dark, and that’s because everything is a gamble. Do you risk journeying to that one cabin that’s really far away with all your gear? Or do you stop every so often to try and find shelter to warm your bones and hope a bear doesn’t sniff you out? The game puts you in a perpetual tug-of-war scenario against yourself, and I love it for that.

The Long Dark

The Long Dark is a thoughtful, exploration-survival experience that challenges solo players to think for themselves as they explore an expansive frozen wilderness in the aftermath of a geomagnetic disaster. There are no zombies — only you, the cold, and all the threats Mother Nature can muster.

STORY MODE

The episodic story-mode for The Long Dark, WINTERMUTE, includes four of the five episodes that form WINTERMUTE. Episodes 1+2 were given a complete overhaul in December 2018, as part of the Redux Update: new mission structure, story beats, dialogue, animations etc.

EPISODE ONE - “DO NOT GO GENTLE”

Bush pilot Will Mackenzie (player character) and Dr. Astrid Greenwood are separated after their plane crashes deep in the Northern Canadian wilderness in the aftermath of a mysterious flash of light in the sky. Struggling to survive as he desperately searches for Astrid, Mackenzie comes across the small town of Milton, where he begins to understand the scope of this quiet apocalypse.

EPISODE TWO - “LUMINACE FUGUE”

Mackenzie’s search for Astrid takes him deeper into the savage Winter wilderness. A mysterious trapper may be the key to finding Astrid, but can he be trusted?

EPISODE THREE - "CROSSROADS ELEGY"

In the aftermath of events in Milton, an enigmatic stranger rescues Dr. Astrid Greenwood (player character) from near death. Facing the blizzards of Pleasant Valley, Astrid must bring all her skills as a doctor to bear on the survivors she encounters. But will she find Mackenzie, and get closer to the mystery that's taking them to Perseverance Mills?

EPISODE FOUR - "FURY, THEN SILENCE"

A murderous gang of convicts has captured Mackenzie. Desperate to escape one of the darkest corners of Great Bear Island, he must somehow survive his fiercest enemy yet. Can Mackenzie recover the Hardcase, continue his search for Astrid, and also save the innocents caught up in this deadly confrontation?

The first four episodes of WINTERMUTE represent approximately 30 hours of gameplay. Episode Five is included in the price of the game, and will be unlocked for free as they are released.

SURVIVAL MODE

Survival Mode is the free-form, non-narrative survival sandbox that has been honed over nearly three years in Early Access.

Survival is your only goal, and death your only end. Make your own survival story with every game.

NO HAND HOLDING

The game challenges players to think for themselves by providing the information but never the answers. You have to earn the right to survive.

PERMADEATH

When you die in Survival Mode, your save is deleted. Every decision matters. [Note that WINTERMUTE does not feature permadeath.

CHOOSE YOUR EXPERIENCE

Four distinct Experience Modes let you find a challenge level you are comfortable with, such as Pilgrim Mode, which is meant to be quiet and pensive, all the way to Interloper Mode, where only the most experienced survivors have a chance to last a week. If none of the four Experiences suits you, use Custom Mode settings to tailor your Survival Mode game to your specific tastes.

Features the music of Sascha Dikiciyan.

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Luke — Nexomon: Extinction

I picked up Nexomon: Extinction recently having finally finished up the original, and it's amazing how much of an improvement the monster-taming sequel is in almost every way. Creature designs feel a little weaker than in the first game — not you, Heliwurm, my lad... you are perfection incarnate — but more or less everything else feels like a step up, from much clearer guidance on things like capture chances and evolution levels to deeper systems that let you power up your partners' stats with crafted boost items that can buff whichever stats you like.

While the first game was still pretty good, you don't need to have played it in order to jump into Extinction and have a good time. The sequel is set 1,000 years later and although there are some pretty neat callbacks for those who have played the original to enjoy, the story itself is presented in a relatively self-contained manner, so you're free to dive right in with the stronger of the two titles. If you're in the mood for a Pokémon-style adventure that's bright, bold, and genuinely funny, Nexomon is one of the better alternatives to Nintendo's monster franchise out there, so check it out!

Nexomon: Extinction

Nexomon: Extinction is a return to classic monster catching games, complete with a brand new story, eccentric characters and over 300 unique Nexomon to trap and tame. The world is on the brink of extinction as mighty Tyrant Nexomon fight for dominion over humans and monsters. Join the Tamer's Guild and begin an epic journey to restore balance before all hope is lost…

Begin Your Journey – Leave the orphanage you grew up in, choose your first Nexomon and start your life as a tamer.

Explore a world teeming with Nexomon – Trap and tame 381 Nexomon from nine elemental types, with powerful evolutions.

Join the Fight – Tyrant Nexomon roam free and the Tamer's Guild is stretched to the limit, can you change the tide of the battle?

Battle Trainers and Tyrants – Step up and take on would-be challengers and dangerous foes in beautifully animated turn-based battles.

Discover Diverse Regions – From arid deserts to freezing tundra, navigate challenging environments and manage their effects on your Nexomon.

Immerse yourself in the world of Nexomon – Uncover secrets, stumble upon side-quests and encounter a raft of eccentric characters.

Train hard to become the greatest – Dynamic difficulty will see the world around you get more challenging as you progress, as even defeated tamers come back stronger than before and ready to battle again!

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What do you think of our picks? Let us know in the comments below, along with your choice of game for the community picks article next week!

Written by Kes Eylers-Stephenson

Editor Kes is our resident expert in PlayStation and other gaming news. He writes about exclusives like The Last of Us and God of War, PS Plus news, and his favourite games — The Witcher, Assassin’s Creed, and explosive racers — before an evening swim.