Foamstars Scrubs Up A February PS Plus Release Date

Foamstars, Square Enix's upcoming 4v4 foam-party shooter, now has a confirmed release date of February 6. Not only will the game be launching for PS5 and PS4 consoles in a busy month, but it'll also be available through all tiers of Sony's PlayStation Plus subscription service until March 5, after which the game will cost you $30.

Beyond the news of its upcoming launch, Square Enix has also detailed the first year of seasonal content for the game. Similar to other live-service games, new cosmetics, playable characters, maps, and modes will be added to Foamstars, and each season will have an optional premium pass available for $6. Purchasing the premium season pass instantly unlocks new characters and gives players the chance to earn seasonal cosmetics.

On launch day, Foamstars will kick off with three multiplayer game modes--Smash the Star, Happy Bath Survival, and Rubber Duck Party--and there will be three maps per mode. Finally, Foamstars will also launch with Challenges, and optional missions with big rewards to earn once you're done cleaning up the competition on a map. The game also has a PvE flavor to its game modes in case you're looking for some action outside of the Bath Vegas multiplayer arenas, as Squad Missions will see you face an onslaught of Bubble Beasties in a series of randomized waves.

Originally revealed during the May 2023 PlayStation Showcase, Foamstars might look like a challenger to Nintendo's Splatoon series but it does have its own distinct identity once you scratch beneath its clean surface. There's an emphasis on manipulating foam to control the battlefield, as you can soak the arena to gain a high-speed advantage and master each character's Superstar skill to take out the opposition.

"Are 3D morphing maps and hero shooter elements enough to entirely differentiate Foamstars from Splatoon? Maybe not. But having played a few rounds of Foamstars, the foamy chaos on display was undeniably endearing, and it'll be interesting to see how an audience responds to the tweaks Foamstars has made, however minor, to the tried and true Splatoon formula for different platforms," Chris Morris wrote in GameSpot's Foamstars preview.