(Bloomberg) -- Sony Group Corp.’s PlayStation has become famous for releasing bleak, bloody games such as The Last of Us and God of War. But this fall, the gaming giant is going in a different direction — betting big on family-friendly games.

Later this year, PlayStation will publish two marquee titles: Astro Bot, a colorful platformer, and LEGO Horizon Adventures, an adaptation of the sci-fi Horizon series that transforms the robot dinosaurs into Lego constructions. Astro Bot will be exclusive to PlayStation 5, while LEGO Horizon Adventures will also come to PCs and to the Nintendo Co.’s Switch.

It’s a stark contrast from previous holiday seasons, during which the console manufacturer typically spends hundreds of millions of dollars on big exclusives such as Spider-Man and Ghost of Tsushima that tell adult-focused stories. But with some major titles delayed and fewer projects in the pipeline due to a pivot to “service” games that went awry, PlayStation will look to bolster holiday console sales by reaching a new audience. The PlayStation 5, released in 2020, has so far sold 54 million units.

Journalists played demos of both new games at a recent preview event in Los Angeles. LEGO Horizon Adventures, which offers cooperative multiplayer gameplay and simple controls, adapts the somber events of Horizon: Zero Dawn into a kid-friendly package. Players can dress up their characters as hot dogs. They can also pick up and hurl other Lego characters, watching them break apart in creative ways. 

Astro Bot features a captivating suite of 3D-platforming stages inspired heavily by Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros. titles. A demo of the game showed off several worlds, each with unique mechanics. One level transformed the eponymous robot’s hands into massive, elongated fists. Another allowed the bot to turn into a dog and barrel through enemies and obstacles. 

Team Asobi, the Japanese studio behind Astro Bot, previously focused on PlayStation VR games.

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