Stellar Blade director “grew up too poor to afford” a PS1, but when he finally got one in college, Ridge Racer and Final Fantasy inspired him to make games
Wholesome content warning
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Stellar Blade director Kim Hyung-tae was inspired to start making games by PS1 classics like Ridge Racer and Final Fantasy after being “too poor” to afford a gaming console as a child.
In PlayStation’s latest entry in the ‘Stellar Blade - The Journey’ video series (timestamped here), Hyung-tae talks about his gaming origins, which apparently began with a PS1 in college and ultimately led to him directing one of PS5’s biggest releases of 2024.
“I grew up too poor to afford a gaming console, and only when I became a college student could I finally purchase PS1,” he said. “I enjoyed playing games like Ridge Racer and Final Fantasy, and this ignited a strong desire in me to create games like this.”
To see Stellar Blade then become one of the hottest new releases of the year, particularly in thePS5 exclusivescategory, it quite wholesome indeed.
“In Korea, there are not many opportunities to create console games, so there is a strong desire to make good games for global users. When Stellar Blade is released, I help it becomes an example that South Korean developers can developer a console game.”
We still don’t know how reviews for Stellar Blade will shake out, but the demo has been pretty popular.Austin’s time with the demo left him with a “tentatively good feeling” about the game, whilesome other folks spent so much time playing it that the developers said they felt a bit “scared” by the response-and rightfully so.
Only time will tell if Stellar Blade joins the ranks of thebest PS5 gamesof all time.
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After scoring a degree in English from ASU, I worked as a copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. Now, as GamesRadar’s west coast Staff Writer, I’m responsible for managing the site’s western regional executive branch, AKA my apartment, and writing about whatever horror game I’m too afraid to finish.
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