I used to be completely set against unlocking more than one Platinum trophy for a single game, which can be done by playing through a different version of a game you already know very well to completion. The marked increase in remasters and remakes over the last few years, as well as PlayStation 5 versions of PlayStation 4 games, means that several titles from very recent memory are now available to be played to 100% all over again.
However, due to the constant issue that is free will I have changed my mind and am now open to unlocking the previously shunned ‘double-Plats’. This is mainly because I am more and more aware that I am depriving myself of updated experiences with games I have already roundly beaten the first time around. This week I want to run through the first five games I will be achieving another Platinum for, and if you’re a trophy hunter like me, feel free to play along with me and use my suggestions to unlock easy Platinums of your own.
Maneater
My game of 2020 and one of the first PS5 games I played when finally getting the console, I have almost completed my second playthrough of Maneater to 100% and I still love it just as much on the second go as I did last time.
Playing as a shark with a hunger to eat everything from living creatures to car licence plates, Maneater sends you out into a satirical world packed with things to eat and social commentary to laugh at. The world, while not trying to be one of the best looking games in existence, carries a real charm, and the frequent narration by Chris Parnell adds subtle backstory and gentle comedy into the mix.
The game is incredibly easy to Platinum, and aside from a little late game grinding it would be possible to 100% without intending to.
Prototype 2
I bought and Platinumed Prototype 2 within the weekend that it originally launched on PlayStation 3 back in 2012, and what a game it was / is! The original Prototype game from 2009 was for a time, my favourite ever PS3 game, and the sequel delivered everything it promised in its trailers and so much more on top!
You play as Sergeant James Heller who is driven to track down and kill Alex Mercer, the protagonist of the first game, following the deaths of his wife and daughter during the outbreak of the Mercer virus in Manhattan and its suburbs. Heller is infected by the virus by Mercer himself, and as a result is capable of more abilities than the others the virus corrupts. With gloriously grotesque new powers like tendrils, as well as a main character whose anger issues could rival early Kratos, Prototype 2 is as easy to Platinum as it is satisfying to carve up the military with a sword which used to be your arm.
Ghost of Tsushima
The grind to Platinum for Ghost of Tsushima is much more time consuming that it is difficult, but with the right amount of motivation can be done easily. The standard edition and the Directors Cut for PS5 have separate trophy lists, so if you were so inclined as to force your way through all those interminable fox dens and haikus again then you would be able to claim two Platinum trophies for your trouble. The main question that hangs over that statement though is do you really want to?
Life is Strange
I am massively looking forward to the upcoming Life is Strange Remastered Collection, not just for the incredible stories they tell but also because I’ll be able to Platinum them all over again. I loved the first game as opposed to the love / hate relationship I had with Life is Strange 2, and of all the characters we’ve been able to play as with the franchise, Max is certainly the best of them.
Life is Strange: True Colours (yes I insist on spelling it that way) is not out yet at time of writing so playing as Alex may change my mind but I have seen the awfully cringeworthy air guitar scene on Twitter so she’s already on the backfoot for me.
Murdered Soul Suspect
A great game for Halloween and an incredibly easy Platinum, I wasted no time in burning through Murdered Soul Suspect when it dropped on PS3 in 2014. You will have almost certainly seen this game in virtually every PSN sale for as little as £2 (down from its usual £16) and as soon as it drops back down to this price in the inevitable upcoming Halloween sale you can be sure I’ll be downloading and replaying it immediately.
The gameplay sees you playing as a recently deceased private detective , who is killed in the game’s opening cutscene, working to solve his own murder and uncover the mystery surrounding the town of Salem. That town really can’t catch a break in games like this.. The puzzles aren’t anything to write home about and aren’t particularly challenging. As a result of this, surprising nobody, that makes it exactly the type of puzzle game I gravitate towards!
A lot of the time required to Platinum Murdered Soul Suspect is wrapped up in having to find 100% of the collectibles in a single playthrough, but after playing through it once for the story there are dozens of YouTube guides to help you find everything on the map, as the game gives you no assistance whatsoever in this task. I remember that I thoroughly enjoyed the experience seven years ago and so I am (dead) keen to jump back in when Spooky Season 2021 rolls around next month!
What are your thoughts on double-Platting a game? Which games have you already done so for, and which do you think you will in the future? Let me know in the comments, and thank you for reading. Catch you again soon!
