Sony unveils new exclusive Panopticon

Sony Japan has unveiled a new game called Panopticon, and the first trailer is live now on the Sony Japan website. The site also promises a full reveal of the game on 21 May, but aside from that details are scarce. No platform has been specified, and the trailer is all CG so it could be PS3, PS4 or Vita.

The trailer shows off an Orwellian future society where human beings appear to be constantly data monitored and watched. That fits with the name of the game, as a Panopticon is a building designed to let a select group watch other inhabitants without being seen. Think 'the Big Brother house'. Later on in the trailer--in what seems to be a flash-forward--we see anime-style heroes battling it out with a giant monster.

Given that the reveal is on 21 May, it could be a PS4 spoiler for Microsoft's next Xbox announcement. Alternatively, and perhaps more likely, it's the big new PS Vita game that was mentioned last week by Sony Europe's senior business developer, Shahid Kamal Ahmad via Twitter. Panopticon's teaser does suggest co-op creature-smashing, so it could well be a substitute Monster Hunter game to help boost sales of the handheld in Japan.

More details on Panopticon are due next Tuesday. For now, here is the teaser trailer.