Mercenary Kings On PS4 In April; Teslagrad Announced For PS3, Vita

Perhaps to help compensate for a weekly PlayStation Network update that still hasn’t properly rolled out just yet, sony has revealed two pieces of gaming news on their official blog this morning, one giving an official launch date to Mercenary Kings on the PlayStation 4 and the other revealing upcoming PS3/Vita platformer, Teslagrad.

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, PlayStation platforms continue to be the place to be for indie gaming goodness, as highlighted by today’s two featured games on the PS Blog.

First up is Mercenary Kings, shown above, the latest game from the team at Tribute Games, perhaps best known for their work with the Scott Pilgrim vs. The World video game. That particular title was a fantastic send up to beat-em-ups of the past and Mercenary Kings looks to be an equally fitting “Tribute” to over-the-top run-and-gun gems like Contra or Metal Slug.

According to today’s announcement, Mercenary Kings will arrive on the PlayStaiton 4 on April 1.

“In this action-packed adventure, you must choose between Empress and King, two members of the elite squad known as the Mercenary Kings,” said Tribute Writer Yannick Betzil. “Dropped on Mandragora Island, you’re tasked with one mission: rescue the brilliant Dr. James Neil from the forces of C.L.A.W. (Cyber Loyalist Active Weapons) and prevent them from using the Mandrake Formula to conquer the globe.”

C.L.A.W.’s tongue-in-cheek acronym (Letters selected before choosing words that make any sense) should give you a good idea of what to expect once Mercenary Kings finally arrives on April 1.

Next up is Teslagrad, the newly announced magnetic platformer heading to PlayStation 3 and the PlayStation Vita later this year.

Rain Games’ Eduardo Garabito pulled back the curtain on this little beauty just this morning, explaining the Teslagrad “is a puzzle platformer with action elements, where magnetism and other electromagnetic powers are the key to go throughout the game, and thereby discover the secrets kept in the long-abandoned Tesla Tower.”

New platformers are always a welcome sign in my book, doubly so if they look as lovely as Teslagrad is shaping up to be.

“Some of the first elements of Teslagrad that jump out at players are the hand-drawn, lovingly animated characters with an aesthetic reminiscent of classic cartoons,” Carabito continued. “And of course, Teslagrad is much more than that! We’ve put our heart and soul into every corner of Tesla Tower, and we’re really looking forward to all of you exploring Teslagrad for the very first time, either on PS3 or PS Vita.”

Look for it later this year.