OBSERVER: SYSTEM REDUX

Bloober Team’s CEO Piotr Babieno reveals why the old feels like new on PS5

Amid all the PS5 games you can play at launch, one has worked its way up our most-wanted list. Bloober Team’s Observer: System Redux is a remake of the cyberpunk cult classic starring the late Rutger Hauer.

Using all of PS5’s tricks, including ray-traced neo-noir environments that seem more alive than ever before, this reborn adventure feels a good fit for Sony’s new launch.

“Observer is a very important title for us,” says Bloober Team’s CEO

Piotr Babieno. “Beyond being a very successful game, it let us apply many of the lessons we learned from Layers Of Fear to build a visually and narratively powerful title that really appealed to fans of [the] cyberpunk and horror genres.”

DEAD SET

We’ve known for some time that PS5’s tech would perfectly suit horror gaming. Its 3D audio and lifelike, near photoreal, recreation of shadows and light adds extra depth to Observer’s setting and storytelling.

“Cyberpunk stories and worlds have so much opportunity to tell stories with tiny details,” continues Babieno. “By harnessing the power of the next generation of consoles, we can really pack in those small touches that draw players in to a more immersive experience. We left a lot of ideas behind when shipping the original game and going back meant we could implement more in the way of side-stories and gameplay. You could say new technology helped us more fully realise the world of Observer in Observer: System Redux.”

It’s not simply a technical overhaul; Bloober Team is adding more cases for hard-boiled neural police detective Daniel Lazarski to become embroiled in. Errant Signal, Her Fearful Symmetry, and It Runs In The Family reveal more of the game’s 2084

“PS5 OFFERS MORE WAYS TO SCARE PEOPLE THAN ANY CONSOLE BEFORE.”

dystopia and add to its thoughtprovoking themes, as well as to its length – these three quests alone add a hefty 25% more content.

You solve murders in the usual way, gathering clues and interrogating suspects – but when that fails you can hack into victims’ memories and relive their experiences. While the twisted recollections you enter display Bloober Team’s horror expertise, even outside these trips the game’s world feels threatening. The rain-soaked city literally drips with tension.

“Atmosphere is very important in psychological horror games, and in cyberpunk games as well, so when combining the two, we have to get it right,” shares Babieno. “We are creating more than a sense of dread and a gory environment; lighting is what we use to draw attention to or away from key moments. With greater control over the lighting effects, we can use subliminal cues to tell stories that put you on the edge of your seat and really make those super-scary moments stand out.”

UPGRADE YOURSELF

PS5’s tech enables Bloober Team to immerse us in Observer’s oppressive world more deeply than ever. “We wanted to include 4K, 60fps, ray tracing, HDR, global illumination, new models and animations, and as much else as we could for the new consoles,” says Babieno, who reveals new gameplay, including improved stealth, has been added.

Babieno explains why PS5 is a perfect platform for Observer’s return: “Next-gen graphics are more convincing, so what you’re playing just feels more real. Faster loading times means there are no longer places where immersion is broken by a loading screen and the DualSense lets you feel your surroundings. All in all, next gen offers more great ways to scare people than any console before.”