Sony seems to nail another AAA PS5 exclusive after Sherlock investigation

After a Sherlock-style investigation, it appears that Sony has set its sights on a AAA PS5 exclusive venture with Ballistic Moon. Seemingly, it is working on a PlayStation Studios game called 'Project Bates.'

Sony has seemingly nailed down another PlayStation Studios-produced AAA PS5 game. After some investigations, it seems Ballistic Moon — made up of former Horizon, Until Dawn, and Heavy Rain alumni — is preparing a new exclusive PS5 game.

Ballistic Moon working with PlayStation

Ex-developers of Until Dawn, Horizon, and more are allegedly working on PlayStation exclusive

You may never have heard of Ballistic Moon, but we promise you this is one of the most enticing stories of this year. Over on ResetEra, a user named Toumari (aka Sherlock's long-lost cousin) put together a compendium of evidence of the developer that appears to attach the UK-based team to a AAA PS5 exclusive. Starting at LinkedIn, the team noted that it was working on an Unreal Engine 5 game with "a new game with a world-leading publisher."

Later, when a Ballistic Moon tweet showcased Nicole Miners in mo-cap for the game, it turns out she has listed the game as a 'Project Bates' that is being published by none other than Sony Interactive Entertainment. The Ballistic Moon website is actually pretty devoid of details on this game, other than it is quite sexy. If the game is a third-party exclusive, it is being handled by new-look XDEV — one of the most underrated PlayStation Studios that had a hand in Detroit Become Human, Sackboy: A Big Adventure, and Destruction All-Stars.

Ballistic Moon tweet ahead of potential Sony game

Then you have the actual talent at the studio. Director Joshua Archer has worked on Horizon Zero Dawn and Until Dawn, the founders Neil McEwan, Chris Lamb, and Duncan Kershaw have Heavy Rain amongst many others on the docket. As for the game this team is working on, it's obviously in early development and should be narrative-driven — with the latter nugget being the one to make us excited in this day and age.

The team is expanding and moving soon, so there is some kind of major financial backing here (thanks, PushSquare for that bit of information). So, what do you think of his news? Is it interesting to see Sony potentially teaming up with third parties to create narrative experiences? Let us know in the comments!

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Written by Kes Eylers-Stephenson

Editor Kes is our resident expert in PlayStation and Sony news. He writes about PS5 exclusives like Horizon, The Last of Us, God of War, and Death Stranding 2 using experience from years of playing PlayStation games. He also covers PS Plus and trophy news, as well as his favorite games — The Witcher 3, Assassin’s Creed, and some indie gems — before an evening swim.