Move over “International Pickle Day,” May 16 has a new number one claim to fame: it’s the launch day for Humanity! Better yet, it’ll be available on Day 1 as part of the May PlayStation Plus Game Catalogue’s lineup, available at no additional cost to PlayStation Plus Extra and Deluxe members.

Whether players own a PS5 or PS4, are a PS VR2 or PS VR or TV-only gamer, want to craft their own levels or just sit back and enjoy some action-platforming and puzzle-strategizing, this year May 16 is going to mean more than just “National Piercing Day.”

Check out the gloriously quirky Launch Date Announcement video below.

What did I just watch?

Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) wanted to announce Humanity’s launch date with a trailer that truly reflects the game: fun, a bit weird (in a good way) and starring an adorable lil’ Shiba Inu. Oh, and importantly: clearly, undeniably Japanese.

What better way to do that than to recreate the wild – and brilliant – Japanese PlayStation ad campaigns of the original PlayStation and PlayStation 2 era?

Ok, but what type of game is it?

In Humanity, players control that glowing Shiba Inu, placing commands on the ground for a giant marching horde of people to follow. Make them turn, jump, float through the air, swim, climb, etc., all to reach the goal (or goals) in each stage. The game gradually introduces these mechanics and more, combining them with each other and new elements to ramp up the challenge the further players go.

Curious to know more? Be sure to check out the gameplay trailer from February’s State of Play.

So why the doggo?

Well, why not? The dev team explored a couple of different interface approaches, from a more simple, generic cursor to having one of the humans take the lead. But considering the relationship between dogs and humans in real life and the story the developers wanted to tell, it just felt natural. If the humans in the game have lost their own will, mind, and soul, who would they want to follow without questioning it? A dog! When the devs tried it out, everything clicked.

What’s the pupper’s name?

It doesn’t have one – the shiba in the game is the player! They wake up as a Shiba Inu with no memory of what happened before, including their name.

Why PlayStation Plus Extra and Deluxe?

Of course SIE want as many folks as possible to enjoy Humanity’s 90-plus stage single-player Story Mode, but the most exciting part of launching into PlayStation Plus Game Catalogue is it guarantees a massive audience for the game’s robust user-generated content features: a tonne of players will be out there creating, sharing, and playing each other’s custom-built stages, right from day one.

Whoa, is that a boss fight?

That’s right. Humanity’s Story Mode stages run the gamut along the action-puzzle spectrum, from lean-forward platformer-style “action” levels that will test players reflexes, to lean-back “puzzle” head-scratchers where players might even put the controller down to think something through – and everything in-between. The game is constantly introducing new mechanics, and mixing and matching them with everything learned so far to make it always feel like a fresh, new challenge.

So what is next?

There’s a lot more Humanity to talk about – the narrative-based single-player Story Mode, optional VR compatibility (PS VR2 or PS VR), unlockable rewards, details on the super-intuitive Stage Creator, and all the crazy-amazing stuff people made and shared in User Stages during the limited-time demo, etc.

So keep an eye out for more info and videos in the coming days leading up to May 16, which this year is not just “National Barbeque Day,” but Humani-Tuesday!

To find out more about the features available to players in Humanity, head to the PlayStation Blog, and learn more about PlayStation membership plans here.