Gamescom is in full swing right now in Cologne, Germany, leading to some big news today coming out of Sony‘s press conference. Resistance fans got a surprise with the announcement of Resistance: Burning Skies, a PlayStation Vita title in which players take on our planet’s Chimeran invaders in an independent story focusing on an all new character.
Burning Skies slots into the narrative of the overarching series, set just before the events of Resistance 2. Players step into the shoes of Tom Riley, a firefighter. It’s not clear yet where his adventure will take him or what his ultimate goal is, but it will all unfold entirely within the borders of the United States.
The game will of course take advantage of the Vita’s twin thumbsticks in a way that previous portable Resistance games, which went to the PlayStation Portable, couldn’t. The full range of features wasn’t revealed, but the press conference demo of the game revealed that some of the game weapons’ alternate firing modes can be controlled using the device’s touchscreen. There’s also a brand new cover system that allows players to lean out and peer around corners by tilting their device.
Burning Skies marks the first confirmed Resistance game for Sony’s PS Vita. Nihilistic Software is handling the development, a studio that is probably best known for its work on PlayStation Move Heroes and Conan.