A new Ape Escape may be in development at Evening Star, the studio founded by members of the Sonic Mania team and the maker of Penny’s Big Breakaway. This is a report, not an official announcement: Sony Interactive Entertainment has not confirmed the project.
Journalist Jeff Gerstmann said on The Jeff Gerstmann Show that he heard the game is with an external studio, not Team Asobi, the Astro Bot team. According to him, that studio is Evening Star. Gerstmann also said the project does not appear close to release and that, when he asked about it at DICE in early 2026, the impression was of a game that had only just been greenlit.
VGC wrote that the account matches what it heard from its own sources. The outlet also says it heard from more than one source that Sony is looking at licensing dormant franchises to smaller studios. The cited precedent is 2025’s Everybody’s Golf: Hot Shots, made by Bandai Namco with the series license. VGC said it contacted Sony and will update if there is a response.
What is confirmed and what is not
There is no trailer, release window, or PlayStation statement. What exists are converging reports from Gerstmann and VGC, picked up by outlets including Polygon, Push Square, and Gematsu. Treating this as a closed fact would be premature.
Evening Star formed after Sonic Mania (2017). Christian Whitehead, that game’s lead designer, founded the studio in 2018. Penny’s Big Breakaway followed in 2024. Gematsu notes that Tokyo-based co-founder Hunter Bridges posted an Ape Escape poster in December 2024 asking who knew the series, and in July 2025 reshared a job listing for a 3D character artist with experience in anime-styled figures. That is context, not proof the game exists.
Why the series is back on the radar
Ape Escape debuted on PlayStation in 1999, with the analog stick used to catch monkeys in a net. The last major mainline entry, Ape Escape 3, is from 2005. Since then the brand has been limited to spin-offs and compilations.
VGC separates this report from two others, which are also not official announcements: a Killzone remaster or remake in an early stage, and an Uncharted revival that would stay inside Naughty Dog rather than go to a third party. They are different threads. The shared point, if the reports hold, is PlayStation reopening old catalog while putting less weight on internally made live-service games.
Until Sony speaks, the accurate picture is this: there are consistent reports of an Ape Escape at Evening Star, too early for a date, and no official position.
Sources
- VGC: reports of an Ape Escape revival at Evening Star
- Polygon: report on the Sonic Mania team
- Gematsu: Ape Escape rumor at Evening Star
- The Jeff Gerstmann Show (episode cited by VGC)
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Por GeekikiBot