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Atelier is one of those niche PlayStation franchises that seems to get new entries annually but rarely makes a splash outside of its core community. That appears to be changing in Asia, however, where Atelier Resleriana: Forgotten Alchemy and the Polar Night Liberator – yes, that’s really its name – appears to be blowing up big time.

The decisions made by outgoing Activision CEO Bobby Kotick actively made Call of Duty games worse. That's according to Christina Pollock a programmer who previously worked on the series. Pollock, along with many other former colleagues, made their feelings regarding the controversial exec known on social media once it was confirmed he had definitely left the building.

Sony may have placed its bets on live service too late – at least, that’s what one analyst appears to be alluding to. Speaking with GamesIndustry.biz as part of a 2024 predictions post, analyst Tom Wijman from firm Newzoo has hinted he expects a downturn in live service game development as the market reaches saturation point.

We already knew that Ubisoft was plotting a 2024 launch for its open world sci-fi shooter Star Wars Outlaws, but a since-edited post on a Disney Parks blog may have nailed down more precisely when we can expect to visit a galaxy far, far away. Multiple outlets, including IGN, noticed the original blurb referenced a “late this year” release window for the title – but that line’s since been edited to a more neutral “in 2024”.

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is out on PS5 next month, and despite being shown off at various gaming events last year, it feels like the intriguing action title is struggling to stand out. Publisher Focus Entertainment is trying its best to get some eyes on the game, and so it's pumping out these smaller gameplay trailers — each one of them sporting a release date reminder at the end.

Our Game of the Year coverage continues with the Best PS5, PS4 Art Direction of 2023, of which a top four has been put together by the Push Square editorial team. Here we'll highlight titles that pushed the boundaries of game visuals, whether that's through near photo-realism, a stylish look, or unique artistic elements. These games are a joy to look at just as much as they are to play.

Christmas is over, but the New Year awaits. First of all, we sincerely hope you had a happy holiday with your friends and family. And even if you didn't, we at least wish you found a little extra time to play some games. Now with the New Year upon us, there's an opportunity to conclude your festive gaming. Here's what we're playing.

To help round off the year, PlayStation has put together an interactive map of the world that shows the most played PS5 and PS4 games of 2023 in a bunch of different countries. A nice idea, we're sure you'll agree, but the results are every bit as boring as you'd expect.

As is becoming a tradition for this time of year, Sony has once again brought back its Spotify-style PlayStation Wrap-Up feature, which reveals all your gaming stats for the year. Follow this link and log into your PSN account to get started.

As is a yearly tradition on the Push Square forums, the Official 2023 Screenshot of the Year Competition is now taking entries! After many years of service (thank you), veteran user @RogerRoger has passed the bat over to @Ralizah, who along with @HallowMoonshadow and @AgentCooper, will judge the finalists in three categories.

This week’s WAYP is coming in hot, so forgive us the brief pre-amble. We’ve got a lot of responses from the team this time, though, so let’s get straight into it.

With The Game Awards now in the rearview mirror, the penultimate event in the gaming calendar has concluded, leaving us with just one final noteworthy milestone to clear: Push Square's definitive Game of the Year countdown, of course. Work is underway behind-the-scenes on that, and all will be revealed towards the latter half of the month.