We all know that the PS1 is a goldmine when it comes to classic RPGs, but it's a shame that more of them aren't available on Sony's current system, the PS5.
This was a point that was put to Working Designs founder Victor Ireland when he recently spoke on the Retro Hangover podcast. Ireland – whose company localised a bunch of classic RPGs for Western audiences back in the day – was asked if there were any plans afoot to get those versions onto PS5, given that they were previously made available on PSP and PS3 via a collaboration with MonkeyPaw Games.
"We're trying," replies Ireland. "It's an anniversary thing. We're trying to get it done. Please write [to] Sony and say you want it because we have been trying."
It was then pointed out to Ireland that it seemed "crazy" that Arc the Lad was included in Astro Bot, but the games aren't currently available to download and play on PS5.
Ireland responds by saying conversations are taking place and that there's an effort to get as many Working Designs RPGs onto PS5 as possible:
We're trying to do as many Working Designs ones as we can. And we're offering all of them. So yeah, please write [to] Sony and say you would like them as a fan. And the offer's there, the talks are there, they're productive. We'll see what happens. Because it was available one time, and then it went away, so it just needs to be converted over so it works on their newer stuff. And that's not a technical hurdle, that's a business hurdle.
So hopefully, if they get enough people saying, 'I want this.' I know it's out there online because I see posts online that are saying, 'oh, this is the month Alundra gets added to PlayStation Plus.' And I'm like, 'not this month. It's like, not happening this month because they haven't talked to me.' So I know it's not happening. But absolutely, it is the goal. We have been working on it for quite a while. And yeah, I mean, it'd be great. It's an anniversary sort of season. So yeah, it'd be a perfect, perfect time to get that stuff back up.
Working Designs was responsible for bringing a series of RPGs to the West, including Arc the Lad Collection, Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete, Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete, Vanguard Bandits and Alundra, as well as non-RPG titles such as Thunder Force V, Elemental Gearbolt, RayStorm and Silhouette Mirage.