The next three PlayStation 5 exclusives on Sony’s first-party docket are MLB The Show 21, Returnal, and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart – a baseball simulation, a bullet hell roguelike, and the long-awaited successor to Insomniac Games’ mascot platformer property. The previous three, in case you’re curious, were Destruction AllStars, Sackboy: A Big Adventure, and Demon’s Souls – the latter two were launch titles alongside Astro’s Playroom and, yes, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales. Before that? Ghost of Tsushima.
I’m sorry, but this emerging narrative that Sony is obsessed with only the biggest of its brands does not align with reality – at least not right now, anyway.
I’ve read Jason Schreier’s excellent Bloomberg report on the current status of PlayStation’s first-party, and I think it’s important I stress from the outset that I respect his work enormously. He’s an honest and excellent journalist, and I’m not for one second disclaiming a sentence of his report – I believe implicitly that there are employees at Sony, both past and present, who are disgruntled with occurrences unfolding internally.
But while it’d be easy for me to jump aboard the outrage wagon and launch loaded expletives in the direction of Geordie gaffer Jim Ryan, I think it’s important we take a more measured look at what’s actually going on. Personally, I’m not sure how you could accuse a company that spent almost an entire generation developing Dreams as being risk-averse and focused entirely on blockbusters – and Schreier’s article even references it, alleging that the firm failed to put any marketing muscle behind it.
Be that as it may, the game still exists, has won countless awards, and, according to developer Media Molecule, will continue to be expanded on. Meanwhile, the article also reveals that Sony Bend – after some turbulence, clearly – has now been given the go ahead to make something original; London Studio is staffing up for a “brand new, next-gen IP”; Santa Monica hasn’t been shy about recruitment for its next project, outside of God of War Ragnarok.
Now it may well be that all of these franchises are juggernaut titles, thus perhaps confirming the idea that Sony is “obsessed with blockbusters”. But from what we know so far it sounds like many of them are new IP – would anyone describe, say, Ghost of Tsushima as risk-averse? Because obviously this was a blockbuster in the richest sense of the word, but I personally wouldn’t describe it as safe.
Ever since the Bloomberg article was published, I’ve noticed there’s a narrative online that Sony is abandoning the diversity of its portfolio, but that’s just not what I’m seeing in reality. I understand that cinematic sandboxes may not be to your personal tastes, but to suggest that every game PlayStation publishes fits that blueprint is a gross misrepresentation of the types of titles the company’s releasing.
The announcement of a next-gen PSVR headset also feels at odds with the picture being painted. Virtual reality is an exciting technology, but it’s still a fledgling industry, and it demands original software support in order to succeed. You could describe a title like, say, Blood & Truth as a “traditional” blockbuster, I suppose – but again, this would be reductive, as it ignores all of the innovations that the Lockstock-style shooter had to invent in order to work.
I understand that the Bloomberg article is focused on the people rather than the projects: it’s arguing that PlayStation is bleeding talent as a result of its focus on juggernaut software. And there’s no question we’ve seen evidence of that, most recently at Japan Studio. But while, as I’ve written previously, the studio’s output did diversify PlayStation’s portfolio – be honest with yourself and tell me how many copies of the No Heroes Allowed franchise you purchased.
The thing is, even if it’s true that franchises like Gravity Rush have been canned, that doesn’t make a title like Returnal any less of a bold bet – it may not be to your tastes, but it just doesn’t. I understand that PlayStation’s ethos is built on the likes of Vib-Ribbon and PaRappa the Rapper, but the dynamics of the industry have changed, and I feel like the existence of Stray and Bugsnax have supplanted the need for first-party productions of this nature.
Is it a shame? It is – but I’m still not seeing this emphasis on risk-averse first-party productions that are being touted. Perhaps a future awaits for PS5 where it’s all Uncharted and God of War and The Last of Us for the next five years. But do you honestly believe that’s what the platform holder’s portfolio is truly going to look like? I don’t – perhaps my faith is unwarranted, but looking at the next-gen console’s current slate of software, I’m seeing what I’ve always seen: a compelling mix of original and old IP spanning a range of different budgets and genres.
Comments 173
I love No Heroes Allowed! 😅
How is MLB The Show 21 a PS5 exclusive when it’s on Gamepass?
@Poskito We found the No Heroes Allowed fan in Comment #1! FML!
I completely agree but it's still hard to see Japan Studio gone. We will have to see how Sony's stratey plays out, What MS has in budget Sony has in richness of it´s IP. As Bend studios say they don't have Microsoft infinite coffers so they have to be more careful about what projects they fund. That said I'm very interested in what both Bend and London are working on.
@Angelus3K It's still a first-party game funded and developed by Sony, but feel free to remove it and it doesn't change anything in the article.
I'll admit that I'm an optimist by nature but, you know... I'm feeling optimistic about future PlayStation games
Support for stuff like Kena Bridge of Spirits, the Pathless etc say no.
Sony cant afford to release AAA month after month from either their first party studios, or by buying up timed exclusivity to 3rd party releases. Its just not realistic to assume thats all they will focus on.
If it were true, the future would be remarkably generic and the gap between releases would be sparse. And Shuhei wouldn't be heading up a Playstation indies initiative either
Excellent article. And I agree. This generation has just started. And it's probably fair to see Xbox has been running rings around Sony PR wise the last few months. Gamepass is fantastic value if your are into it. I prefer to buy and own my games. But whatever floats your boat. Also Xbox's commitment to backward compatibility has to be lauded. It's great to see them doing it.
We all know Sony excells at developing games. I mean in the last year alone we have had GOT and LoU2. Two phenomenal games. Just goes to show how all this negativety has manifested itself against PlayStation after coming out with 2 amazing games. Sony could really use public figure to communicate with fans much better. I think they got this aspect down. We wouldn't be seeing half as much negativety.
No more titles like Puppeteer or Gravity Rush is a blow to my faith in Playstation, and I really don’t give a fig about The Last of Us.
Sony has Insomniac and that’ll mean I get a PS5 eventually, but I’m still wary of their recent moves.
To be honest, I wouldn’t care if Sony themselves only funded big blockbusters, as long as they didn’t also block or force change to the more niche (usually Japanese) output I like. Unfortunately they have been doing so for years now.
PSVR is what keeps me from not hating their safe proclivities, that has garnered them a huge but dwindling amount of goodwill from me.
not really interested what is or isn't an exclusive for Sony, first party wise they're doing an okay job, making lots of polished stuff, lots of RPG-lite action adventure type games, do whatever you like Sony
goof article, needs better title. “Soapbox: Media Framing that “Playstation is Obsessed with Blockbusters” is wrong (or BS)”.
Too long until Kena comes out...
@stevie85 You are absolutely right on the PR front, it amazes me that the negativity towards Playstation been able to grow when surely the best PR there is, is simply to point at the recent slate of exclusive software:
Last of Us 2, Dreams, Astrobot, Miles Morales, Nier 2, Persona 5 Royal, FF 7 Remake, Ratchet and Clank, Destruction AllStars, Ghost of Tsushima, Sackboy, Demons Souls, Iron Man VR. Thats just the last 12 months.
Meanwhile on Xbox...
So i think you are absolutely right that they really need to get hiring some communication specialists
We'll just have to wait and see what happens. The PS5 just released last fall, let's give it some time.
@get2sammyb haha just yanking ya chain. Great article though.
The problem is there's not really much in the way of communication. Sony definitely needs to do a better job at being transparent about what's going on, since when they don't do that stuff like the Bloomberg article is seemingly putting the words in other people's mouth and it just paints a bad look on them when things are probably supposed to be a lot better than they seem.
I am still bummed about Japan Studio though. They may not have made a lot of major hits that clicked with the mainstream but their games added a lot of variety to the types of games in the PlayStation library
You say PlayStation 5 exclusives but some of the games you listed are also playable on Ps4 like MLB The Show 21, Sackboy: A Big Adventure, Miles Morales & Ghost Of Tsushima.
But if we don't run headlong into a patchwork quilt of "Playstation is Doomed" scenarios and attack Sony for losing "The Optics" how are we gonna stop Sony from repeating last years debacle of falling to MS by releasing a $600 console with no back compat, with no launch titles, that got delayed and lost Sony the whole gen like we all knew was gonna happen? /s
Again, I'm willing to bet every game you listed as an example was greenlit under the old hats like Layden. We won't see what kind of things Ryan is willing to greenlight and enforce until maybe 2023 at the earliest. The current games' quality and diversity do not matter when it comes to evaluating Ryan's vision of PlayStation, but you can look at his decisions. All you have to do is look at Ryan's decisions and see that it absolutely aligns with the theory that PlayStation is becoming more and more reliant on blockbusters rather than niche, more experimental exclusives.
Feels a bit like Sony's internal studios are focusing on Blockbusters, but they are getting other developers to build their more diverse titles. Might be their strategy.
5. I’ve purchased 5 entries in the No Heroes Allowed franchise. The three psp games, the PS mobile one and the PS Vita game. The only one I didn’t get was the VR game because VR scares me.
I even bought the Badman stickers for Paint Park on Vita.
I love the Yu Nama series. I wish they would do more with it but they won’t. Why? Because studio Japan is gone.
@get2sammyb "Perhaps a future awaits for PS5 where it’s all Uncharted and God of War and The Last of Us for the next five years."
You left out Horizon Forbidden West. And Spiderman 2.
(Somebody at that company once hinted S2 - a full blown sequel - was in development.)
https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2020/06/insomniac_has_much_of_peterrs_story_left_to_tell_for_marvels_spider-man_2_on_ps5
Sony is a big company, big companies should focus on big AAA games as they're the only ones who can afford a multimillion $ 3 year development cycle. Let the numerous indies and 3rd parties make stuff like Concrete Genie and Knack. I'm all for Sony marketing those games and even throwing those devs a few $ but Sony should focus on games only Sony can make, let the others make the rest.
Bang on, Sammy.
I don't read Schreier very often, but I'm aware he's very good at what he does.
This time it seems like he's chasing the story a little bit.
The Jaffe videos from the weekend put a lot of this stuff in to context very nicely, and this article does the same.
First Party Studios make the big games.
Third party make the quirky stuff.
And Sony have always had good third-party relationships.
Naughty Dog will make a new ip
Santa Monica will make a new ip
Guerrilla Games is supposedly making a multiplayer thing
Insomniac - Not sure what they'll do after Spider-man 2
Sony bend - New ip
Suckerpunch - Pretty sure After Ghost 2, there will be a new ip
Media Molecule - heck I know
Polyphony - well, they ain't changing anytime soon lmao
Asobi - will remain small
London Studio - VR games
Will San Diego make more MLB after the deal with xbox?
Pixelopus - small games
San Mateo: they're a support studio
XDEV - they're a support studio
My point is. Still new ips and still smaller games
@RBMango Layden left at the very end of 2019, so presumably he also was involved in not greenlighting Days Gone 2 and okayed The Last of Us remake at San Diego. 🤷♀️
All these studios report to Scott Rohde anyway, who is still at the company doing the same job.
It is certainly sad to lose the smaller IPs, but I feel like Sony still invests in Indies and new games and it's too soon to judge this PS era! To be fair it's probably safer to release a sequel to Days Gone than doing a new IP, sales wise.
Honestly I wanna see Sony Bend do something new instead of Days Gone 2. It's the right decision. I mean some sci-fi openworld wouldn't hurt. I wouldn't even be surprised if blockbusters are released at a faster rate this time round, because it the end Sony knows it's the games, games, games!
.. couldn't agree more with this article... it just feels like people want to pigeonhole each console "XB = games as a service, PS = AAA blockbusters, Ninty = indie / on-the-go"
It's ridiculous... PSVR2 is going to be a total indie/wacky/new IP fest...
Every console is offering something different, but within a similar framework (so equal amounts of cross-platform / indie titles on all consoles)...
Unfortunately some IPs die, some developers disband / go under / some good IPs simply aren't viable any more...
I've yet to see a killer new title to make me want to buy an XBSX - but I'm sure it's coming (in a year or two) - with all the studios MS are swallowing up...
In the meantime, I can't get enough of the PS5...
xD
@Sakisa you buying a ps5 for one developer?
@RBMango You may be right. We may be still seeing Shawn's games.
@TheArt Yeah. I feel Days Gone is redundant when there's the last of us. A sci-fi (although there's Returnal) or a fantasy rpg like the witcher/es is something sony hasn't really done much.
Also a horror game, so idk what happened with Kojima, but it seems sony missed him on that.
@get2sammyb I'm not as familiar with Rohde's position. Where does he fall in the PlayStation executive hierarchy compared to someone like Herman Hulst?
Wouldn't describe GoT as safe? It's basically AC Japan done by a dev that isn't Ubisoft. That game was safe as houses and took zero risks whatsoever.
@LiterallyDoNotCare London studio actually making a Aaa new ip.
An honest journalist in the 21st century? Surely such a thing doesn’t exist 🤣
@LiterallyDoNotCare Spider-Man and Ratchet mean a lot to me.
Diversity is what strong 3rd party is for. Sony has a bunch of big AAA games they sprinkle on top.
They do not need to carry the PS5. Access to the most popular games will do that.
@Shigurui That's so reductive and ignores the challenges of designing, creating, and marketing a brand new intellectual property that costs 100s of millions of dollars to make.
If they wanted something safer, they'd have made another inFAMOUS — or, alternatively, told Sucker Punch to make a new Uncharted game.
Absolutely correct. I've been repeating this a bit too much this past two weeks. The online outrage is mostly fabricated, dramatised or completely untrue.
It's like certain people and gaming press have an agenda or a goldfish memory....or both!
There are more reasons you can add to this that would further point the opposite way the media is.
This is not to say there are no areas to keep an eye on with Sony, there is! But there were the previous generation and the generations before that. But lately, they have been completely blown out of proportion and no, we are not seeing another (early) PS3 era...not by lightyears!
If it wasn't for Sony we would hardly have any big blockbuster games. Nintendo take to long, microsoft practically nonexistent. What a stupid article again, some just want Sony to fail, why?
I agree. When I read about the "outrage" over 1st party - I thought there was something said by Sony recently to change course to do that. Turns out, it was all circumstantial evidence mostly.
@Sakisa that's not true at all ? sony has showed off many indie games for ps5 , a big example is that cat game stray they showed off.
"I’ve read Jason Schreier’s excellent Bloomberg report on the current status of PlayStation’s first-party, and I think it’s important I stress from the outset that I respect his work enormously. He’s an honest and excellent journalist"
No, he's not. An interview that was given right after it clearly showed that his reports weree fabrications that had nothing to do with reality.
He exaggerated some parts and straight up lied in others. Zero credibility when it comes to Sony. There is a clear pattern with Bloomberg.
@4kgk2 a AAA VR game?
@Juvenlast Not only that, but several people were treating several rumours as facts.
@Sakisa I just don't think getting a console for 2 games is worth it. It's a waste of money if you ask me. It's why I never got an xbox last gen.
@munstre Yes, of course, but still. Hermen "Hulk" is another one, and Shuhei is in charge of indies. At least from first party, we will see if this is true or not.
I think at this point we're entering into "overthinking" territory. It's really not as serious as seemingly every game site is making it out to be. There will still be plenty of games for every taste regardless no matter who makes them.
Sony can make bigger games that take more time, but you will need more studios to make the dryness less dry.
So when are studios like Housemarque and Bluepoint getting acquired?
I know they are supporting that Dev that left Stadia with her new studio.
What about that studio of blizzard veteran devs?
F' Bloomberg! They're obviously batting for team xbox. I'd much rather have Sony's ip portfolio than xbox's... Maybe Bloomberg should write an article about that?
@twitchtvpat what’s not true? That Japan Studio is basically gone which was a major studio I cared about? Because that is true.
Indie scene...Xbox and Nintendo have me covered there with gamepass and portability respectively
I don't see how Tsushima is risky. It's an open world game with a focus on exploration, combat and stealth - which describes most modern big sellers either to a tee or partly.
So what's the risk, exactly? The feudal Japan setting? Because only some big wig living inside a bubble would possibly be removed enough from the gaming community to think people don't like that.
I loved Tsushima, but from the moment I saw it announced I figured it'd be a hit as long as they didn't jump the shark big time.
@Gaia093 @Shigurui @Kirbyboy92 Idk, I feel like a company that'd been pumping out Infamous-only games for almost a decade switching to a title set in 13th century Japan is kind of taking a risk.
@LiterallyDoNotCare no a normal aaa game.
@naruball What follow-up interview are you referring to? Because if it's the one with Jeff Ross, you might want to check what he tweeted: https://twitter.com/JakeRocket/status/1381361227247550467
Jason Schreier's reporting is accurate.
@LiterallyDoNotCare What dryness? Isn't pretty much every hardcore gamer complaining they have a huge backlog? Way too many great games to choose from these days.
@LiamCroft No, it's not. Read the comments below.
@naruball I have and they don't support your point that Schreier's reporting was inaccurate or full of lies. Jeff Ross spoke of how he appreciates the work Jason Schreier does and wishes there were more like him. Don't attack the journalist and their reporting.
the current games coming out are based on decisions made years ago when the work started on them. we will start to see sonys change in direction in a few years time as it takes years to make games
@4kgk2 damn. Well I guess no more vr support from 1st party studios. Probably asobi's fate too.
Yeah, while I don't like where playstation seems to be headed, right now playstation has all the game from small console exclusive indie to exclusive AAA games, it's too early to see the result of this strategy.
@get2sammyb Whilst I don't disagree with you, I also wonder whether a Lot of those 'new' IP's were part of the Shawn Layden era and now under Jim Ryan, some of these projects would not be funded.
Certainly not going to say that H:ZD may not of been funded for example, but you also have to consider the developer and the 'success' of their Last game. Killzone wasn't a massive success - considering it was also used as a Launch bundled game so Sony have a Decision - decide to allow Guerilla to explore a new IP or push them for another Killzone.
It just seems to me that Sony are looking more at the 'risk/reward', analytics etc. Why spend money making a game that may not bring in new gamers to your eco-system and maybe not even break even? They can spend that money on 'blockbusters' or even take a punt on a 3rd Party Dev - purchase some 'exclusivity' - timed or otherwise - on the more 'risky' titles. Deathloop, Project Athia, Ghostwire: Tokyo and even Returnal don't 'look' like the 'typical' commercial AND critical successes - not like a Spider-Man or Last of Us - but offer 'diversity' without so much of the risk.
It also seems like IF certain studio's wanted to make a 'new' IP, Sony would support them. Its like they have to earn that 'freedom' with success and if the game doesn't deliver the ratings and sales, the Studio will be 'back' to doing what they were doing before or at best, not having the budget/freedom to make what they really wanted...
It does seem like Sony will still take chances and still bring 'new' IP's to its customer base. Maybe we will see more of the 'risky' titles being 3rd Party instead of 1st Party.
Another reason to 'focus' on the 'big' name franchise at this point is because they are 'recognisable'. I don't really want to bring MS into the conversation, but if they have all these 'known' IP's coming to Game Pass, having follow ups to the 'biggest' franchises on PS4 on PS5 is bigger than having a lot of games that people have no experience of, no history with etc.
I hope that Sony will still allow for creative freedom but at the start of the PS5 generation are focussed on bringing the big name titles to PS5 sooner to boost the install base. I hope they are thinking that the PS5 will be a 'better' purchase option with these big names already on it and once those games are released, will switch to bringing more diversity from its first party studio's.
We are in a turning point and generation of consoles that the agenda will be dictated by media and the corporation's behing them..the business model is changing and their big bet is to change gamers as well to fit their plans.
@get2sammyb Changed your tune from last week huh?
"They're putting all their eggs in their biggest sellers, as simple as that. God of War, Spider-Man, Uncharted, The Last of Us, Horizon. It's all-in on these franchises now it seems."
"Naughty Dog or bust it seems at Sony these days."
My issue with Jason Schrier is that he is a good journalist on the whole, but when he is challenged, he gets really overly defensive and generally blocks the individual who raised the challenge rather than debating or clarifying
@naruball
The dryness will be after GoW's Ragnarok. Xbox will start to look appealing when this happens. Obviously sony won the generation already in terms of consoles sold, but looking at what each studio is at development, after GoW's, I see 2022-2023 very dry for sony.
2024-2027 will catch up again.
Just basing this off AAA games taking 4-5 years to make.
So yeah, they need more studios. They should have 4 AAA games each year. That's the sweet spot for me.
This is for games with the ps studio logo I mean. It seems they lost Kojima.
@naruball It is the age in which we live. Investigative journalism has been overtaken by clickbait and opinion pieces. And people don't think critically enough to differentiate those from actual journalism.
One of the reasons I appreciate PushSquare so much. They tend to do investigative reporting rather than rumor mongering. And SOAPBOX is clearly labeled so everyone knows it is opinion and free to be disagreed with.
@get2sammyb "the challenges of designing, creating, and marketing a brand new intellectual property that costs 100s of millions of dollars to make"
For me, this is the issue. A new IP might not be as safe, but when it's just as costly, and those costs need to be recouped, then they treat new IPs as blockbuster releases. Hundreds of people working on one title, for 3+ years, usually under strenuous conditions to meet the high standards of quality expected from these titles. And thus, the cost to the humans involved in making the games sets in.
Sony, more than any other company, has set an extremely high bar for what the standard is, and it's not really something they can walk back on now. Their audience expects it.
I agree completely, even if it’s sad about Gravity Rush. Returnal is by no means a safe bet and a very unusual launch title. I’m really looking forward to reading about it when it launches. And I’m certainly sure we’ll all get our weird Sony games as time goes on.
I dont see why this "story" still has legs. It isnt a legitimate problem. There are plenty of studios, to fill in the gaps, that platform/game devs leave. Sony can make a GoW or tlou, and others can and have made great games like deadcells, undertale, hades, etc.
Is the "problem" that sony, themselves, arent developing these type of games?
@somnambulance if I don't see a Returnal's tv spot commercial, we know the game will be crap.
I feel like Sony honestly has a lot of good stuff in store for us. It all will start with Returnal coming out at the end of this month. I expect that game to review well and even be Housemarque's best selling game.
You then have Ratchet which Sony is going to promote like crazy. Then Kena(Timed Exclusive) Sony will definitely put some muscle behind that.
I wouldn't be surprised if by the end of the year we hear about Sony buying Housemarque, Bluepoint and surprisingly Ember Lab depending on how good Kena is.
I expect we will hear about Bluepoint's next game soon, their will be a State of Play for Ratchet, and then a State of Play for updates on Sony's games and possibly some new Announcements, especially with Deathloop being pushed back again.
I have full faith that we will have a exciting year for Sony/Playstation. It's just that it won't start until Returnal comes out.
@PhhhCough still has legs because sony is radio silent
Just Stop listening to the background noise and let Sony be Sony! The PS3 made some big mistakes What Sony do they fixed it within that generation! Microsoft had 7 years to fix Xbox One. They never did it.
When you are laying down 100's of millions of dollars You better get it right! Big blockbuster games Need that attention and focus on them. There are many great smaller games they are finished faster and need less time and attention because of scale. I can't see the future and I see no reason to worry and doubt today.
Had the pleasure of meeting PS5’s diverse lineup at a charity do once. It was surprisingly down to earth, and VERY funny.
Fair opinion piece. Common sense and pushing back negativity that get the clicks is brave on the Internet.
The reality is Jason main focus is his personal agenda and selling his books.
@LiamCroft Sure, sure. You can believe whatever fits your narrative.
Anyone who paid attention to what he said during the podcast knows there is a huge discrepancy between the report and what he said. Hence all the comments below pointing out the inconsistencies. But let's stick our head int the sand and ignore those.
I see it.
Seriously, most people don't care about the small games that sony makes.
Nothing wrong with more blockbusters that will get us excited.
Even when there are showcases people tend to point out the blockbusters and ignore the rest.
It's just being realistic.
With that said, they should not forget their old fans and should delight with remakes of old hits too.
I mean, there are a lot of publishers/developers out there making small projects. That is not what Sony needs to do.
@Juvenlast I agree with you, but disagree about Pushsquare. They're not much better. It's been pointed out to them several times, especially about the clickbait titles, and they (most Liam, Sammy not so much) get super defensive about it. Not very professional in my opinion. But hey, at the end of the day, proper journalism means nothing to most gamers. They instantly believe most rumours and treat them as facts before they're even confirmed by official sources.
I dont have a problem with new blockbuster IP while sequels have their place i would like new AAA IP from sony as well
@Medic_Alert
Disagree. Jeff rightly pointed out that reacting to this sort of negativity you can't win.
It's the damn if you do damn if you don't. Someone doing things right doesn't need to shout it from the rooftops.
@LiterallyDoNotCare i think you are off base suggesting things will dry up. Lets look at the slate from launch of PS4. I will mainly focus on FP exclusives for previous years, hence no Nioh, Persona etc:
2013: Killzone Shadowfall, Knack, Resogun, Playroom
2014: Infamous Second Son, Little Big Planet 3, MLB 14, LOU Remastered
2015: Bloodborne, The Order, Until Dawn, God of War 3, Nathan Drake Collection, Gravity Rush, Journey, Tearaway Unfolded
2016: Uncharted 4, Ratchet and Clank, MLB 16, VR launch
2017: Horizon Zero Dawn, Gravity Rush 2, Playlink titles, Knack 2, Gran Turismo Sport
2018: Detroit Become Human, Astrobot (VR), Firewall Zero Hour, God of War, Spiderman, Shadow of the Colossus
2019: Days Gone, Medieval, Death Stranding, Blood and Truth
2020: Dreams, Last of Us 2, Ghost of Tsushima, Iron Man, Miles Morales, Demons Souls, Sackboy,
2021: Destruction All Stars, Returnal, Ratchet and Clank, Horizon Forbidden West, Oddworld Soulstorm, Kena Bridge of Spirits, plus stuff like Stray, Bugsnax, Deathloop, Ghostwire Tokyo etc, little devil inside
2022: God of War Ragnorak (no way its coming this year), Gran Turismo 7, PS VR 2, possibly the Last of Us Remake if they develop it to release alongside TV series and/or an Uncharted game to release alongside the movie, Wild (possibly), Babylons Fall (platinum games,possibly), Project Awakening (Cygames, possibly), Final Fantasy 16, Forspoken (2 year exclusivity), maybe Granblue Fantasy: Relink
2023 - probably Spiderman 2
2024 - Jade Raymond game, New Naughty Dog game, New Sucker Punch game (doubt either of these will come out sooner)
On top of this, many studios have expanded. We know ND are working on LoU Factions 2. We know Guerilla are working on an unknown FPS, Insomniac are a hive of productivity so bet they have something else lined up.
Then there are strong rumours around a Metal Gear Solid remake from Bluepoint games, a Silent Hill game, and an exclusive from Remedy.
I think its way WAY to early to be accusing Sony of a dry spell. And they are bound to be backed up by an array of 3rd party content. Assuming M$oft dont buy everyone in existence.
I think it's too early to tell what Sony will focus on going forward.
With COVID basically delaying anything and everything under the sun, Sony is just trying to make sure these 1st-party already-in-development games get released sooner rather than later - blockbuster or not!
Honestly, Sony is one of my favorite companies (in general) so I'm pretty biased. But this may be a good thing for Sony. What's the one thing that lights a fire under a company having a lot of success (besides obviously losing profit)? Bad PR. Even if the PR is exaggerated, it might be a great opportunity for Sony's division-heads to prove not only is our portfolio diverse, but we fund a lot of variety across various budgets. Bring on the games though. I'm not bothered enough by any of these gaming soap opera stories anymore, I just want to play really amazing experiences, life is too short. The only soap opera I watch now is basketball/Football. Don't have room for the Sony vs. MS vs. Nintendo industry gossip anymore.
I actually play video-games, and Sony has been making good stuff. Honestly, I'm more annoyed at MS's "Buy-up the industry" approach because it has monopolistic connotations from my limited POV. But at the end of the day, if Xbox has some exclusives amazing stuff to play, I'll just buy one lol...
Sony doesn't want to fund smaller games but would rather make a deal for time-exclusivity. I'm fine with Sony focusing on AAA game because it's rare to find games with such quality, but If it means that they will only focus on their existing IPs and stop being experimental then it won't be long till we have a Gears, Forza and Halo scenario for PS.
Sony will be alright.but some of the stuff lately has not been good.i still wish jack Trenton and shawn layden was there.sonyvis having a identity crisis.its not the same sony i grew up with back in September 9 1995.word up son
So SONY have bought out some AMAZING Exclusives last year for PS4 and PS5 and a few promising Exclusives are coming out in the next few months(unlike NOTHING for you know who) and people on the Internet(mainly gaming sites and the haters) are moaning all the time??? Hmm, ok. Keep moaning and I'll keep playing
@BrainHacker thats spot on exactly what i was thinking. Microsoft do the same thing crank out new forza new halo new gears they have studios whos sole aim is to make those games thats it
Give me a sly cooper collection.a resistance collection.max payne 3 remake.and a dead space collection.and red dead redemption remake.word up son
@Rob_230
I fixed it for you. At least for games people care about. I only play the AAA games dude. I have finite time. I won't waste my time with indies. I rather play and platinum triple A games.
2021: Returnal, Ratchet and Clank, Horizon Forbidden West, Kena Bridge of Spirits (not triple A, but looks nice).
2022: God of War Ragnorak (no way its coming this year), Gran Turismo 7, possibly the Last of Us Remake, Final Fantasy 16, Forspoken (this is before ragnarok).
2023 - probably Spiderman 2 (nope)
2024 - Jade Raymond game (doubt it), New Naughty Dog game (maybe), New Sucker Punch game (maybe)
It just seems mid 2022- mid 2024 looks like it will be dry.
I don't care what the studios do as long as it isn't a 3rd person adventure game. I'm starting to get a little burned out on those.
This article comes across like it made up a problem that doesn’t exist.
Jim Ryan's a geordie??
@LiamCroft
Its the way Jason is spinning it. For instance 'Bend is the ND of the North
Are you telling me it's a negative? Its a compliment.
Jason clearly spinned that as a derogatory term which is crazy
@BloodNinja absolutely! The only concerning developement has been the great exodus of Japan studios, and the poor communication (but only if compared to the early PS4 days). Everything else seems well in playstationland, considering we're in an early console cycle. I don't get why people get worked up; most of the time the community is whining about "too many indies, too little AAAs" and that sort of bs. Back in the early ps4 psplus days, we got fantastic brand new indie titles and people were complaining. Then people got bargain bin AAA games that many in the core community played already, but yeah main thing AAA. Now we're seing a somewhat more balanced approach that seems to work for most, so I guess people are just looking for the next thing to get worked up over.
This was definitely how I felt, too. I can't look at Returnal and think this is standard AAA blockbuster fare.
There are a some things from the past few months that I'm really upset about: the downsizing of the Japan Studio and the refusal to put classic games on the PS5.
But I felt like I was the only person who read the Bloomberg article and didn't see anything worthy of note. Days Gone 2 not getting greenlit made sense and The Last of Us Remake is probably years away from being released.
@stevie85 "i prefer to scam myself and pay 70 dollars for every game"
@LiterallyDoNotCare People still rely on TV adverts?
@get2sammyb great article. I'm glad I'm not the only one who can't see why these Nostradamus doomsday preachers are gathering around Sony screaming "it's the end".
Some people just like to jump on whatever is trending and apparently the end of Sony and the diversity of their IP is the hype at the moment.
Sony have been developing the PlayStation brand for over 25 years. I'd like to think they know what they are doing.
@Agramonte Some diversity from their 1st party would be nice. I'm not saying they are all the same, but it is becoming too clear that they want as many games as possible to be 3rd person action adventure games. As great as some of them have been, there's a point where too much of even well polished games that are very familiar begin to lose their luster regardless of the quality. Miles Morales is a pretty good game, but other than his Venom powers, it felt like I was playing Spider-Man all over again. The magic that was there in the latter portion of the PS3 generation and a lot of the PS4 generation isn't quite there anymore, when they surprised you. Sure, they are making new IPs this generation, but again, most of them will likely be 3rd person action/adventure games instead of an extremely diverse catalog like they used to have.
That's one of the biggest things that drove me away even though I had a PS5 before I purchased a Series X about a month ago. I'm not coming in here to be a fanboy or anything. Just stating what I believe to be one of Sony's biggest problems right now that doesn't have anything to do with communication. This is coming from somebody who thought last year was one of their best years for any console generation, but sitting back and seeing what has been coming out and the fact that it's clear that things are quite what they used to be internally, the more I see the fact that there are real issues with Sony that people want to ignore because they are at the top and continue to get free passes for caring more about the bottom line than anything else. They'll be fine, but it's not like they don't deserve at least some of this backlash.
I dunno, I see what you’re saying about the last few and next few releases but it feels like a more recent strategy change that we will maybe feeing in the next 12-24 months
I understand your point of view, but one of the reasons I always loved Playstation was not just because the console had amazing blockbusters AAA games, but incredible smaller games too. I loved Gravity Rush 1 on Vita, then I bought 2 on PS4 and the game is a masterpiece. I don't want to own a platform that lives ONLY with blockbusters titles, I want the same I had on PS1, PS2, PS3 gen. A diverse catalog with incredible games for all tastes.
If Playstation isn't anymore about that, then I'll just migrate to PC, isn't a hard choice.
@Alpha_Pulse Sony didn't know what they were doing on PS3, took some time for them to get back on track. Microsoft didn't know what they were doing with Xbox One and look at them now.
I just hope to not see again the same mistakes we saw with PS3.
@Grimwood What's your definition of blockbuster?
TLOU2 had a massive budget, $100m. Was hyped to hell and back. Sold something like 4m copies in three days. And had critical praise.
I'm not sure you get much more of a blockbuster than that.
@somnambulance no man. It just says to me that sony doesn't believe Returnal to be on the level of Gow or DaysgONE
It has been nothing but fear-mongering... They say they "don't care" about niche games, but then we see something like Sifu (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FQ1YO3Ks2U) being shown in on their most recent State of Play (along many other niche indie titles that many of users here have shown some disdain to, figures... and don't give that crap "we love indies", when most of you don't).
By the way, Sifu is being made with the support of Sony and Epic. Yea...
@LiterallyDoNotCare Can’t say I disagree, but Returnal looks more appealing to me that GOW and Days Gone. I think Sony may know it’s their first niche new IP game for PS5 and they don’t know what to expect yet.
@Angelus3K I think if you look at the game besides the US that is a niche game in Europe in the the Netherlands the biggest games seller does not even have it for sale.
So what? Only Sony is playing it safe? Every major developer is doing it... Let's see:
@BowTiesAreCool That’s the biggest takeaway from all this for me
@Rob_230
THIS! And guess what - I have been telling some PS Communications Managers to hire me - even mentioning (respectfully) the challenges they have been facing. You would be surprised to see how small their comms team is. I have 10 years of experience as a publicist / communications expert, and fully bilingual, which it would be an asset for them. But hey.. they keep ignoring me
Maybe one day, but I genuinely believe they need more PR help, no doubt about it
@naruball
Jason:
"If he said that Bend was never going to become a ND support studio, he was making an overstatement about decisions that'd be made over his head in the first place.'
Confirmed Jason source is from above. Jim Ryan?
People complain that Sony is going mainstream and then i read so many people saying im not paying €70 for a new IP. 🤪
Sony still has a lot of different kind of games no too little monetization so if have too pay a tenner extra too support so be it.
Risky games maybe be great i have them all and i will buy Returnal just too support them. But everyone is complaining here but risk needs too pay off and if everyone keep complaining about Japan Studio and in the end does not buy them who are you kidding.
I bought all FP games except Miles Morales becaus i already have Spiderman. And i cant wait too those more special games but that wont happen because they dont sell. And now we lost them.
The biggest joke this generation was Demon Souls everyone was going mental over it and now they dont get it. 😅 👍
@Flaming_Kaiser its "to" not "too".
As a Nintendo fan, you get used to trash talk, Wii U games ported on Switch was a massive talking point. Some of that flack was from people who post on here. but when you've got ace games and a great platform, you'll get the last laugh.
But PS5 feels different to me, I just think I'm looking at a PS4 Pro+ as it mostly boasts about PS4 games with better graphics, load times and ray tracing, next year games are still coming out for PS4 and it's finally getting a game that looks like it can only run on PS5.
I wasn't impressed how PS4 turned out, by the PS5 or what Sony have been doing as a business, I'm nowhere near wanting to buy a PS5 right now.
It's never too late for Sony to fix that for me, but for others, damage is done, xbox doesn't care about exclusives and I think it's going to work out for them.
Someone speaking sense. Article sums up this whole nonsense.
@spcspc hey good luck with that. Sounds like you have great skills - and most importantly - a passion for the business, which is sometimes lost in game companies i fear. Keep going. I often look at the playstation careers website to see if there is anything i could do. Hopefully with remote work being more common these days!
@Rob_230
Thank you! I made sure to not only highlight the challenges they are facing but most importantly, i made sure I shared some of the potential solutions on the same email I sent them. I really feel passion is underrated - wish they could give me an opportunity. For sure they do know about me cause they have checked out my Linkedin profile... but no luck yet. We shall see! Thank you for your wishes
@get2sammyb - Reductive? Wind your neck in dude. If you think GoT is anything other than an AC clone you played a different game.
For the record GoT is by far my favourite Sony exclusive from last gen but unlike you I see it for what it is. A box ticking, by the numbers AC clone with better combat.
There was no risk with that game. AC fans have been asking for AC Japan for years and Sucker Punch delivered it before Ubisoft. It was always going to print money.
Using past games that were greenlit under previous managers at a very differently organized company isn't a good defense against Schreier's claims. He's reporting on the current direction of the company and the future it's set in motion, not the straggling results of the previous administration that have still been trickling out.
And using games like Returnal are not suitable argument against the claims either. That is not a title made by Sony, it's a third party indie they picked up the publishing duties for. It may be "exclusive" due to the nature of the publishing arrangement, but it doesn't speak to the direction and future of Sony's own efforts at all.
This article comes at the same time as another article on the same front page is all about Sony's tentpole blockbusters going mobile. I don't think we need to read too far beyond your own pen to get the impression that Schrier's pretty on point. We could have told him that a year ago, though.
They need a sequel to The Order: 1886. Come on Sony.
returnal has a different kind of problem. it is a AA game disguised as a AAA game and has the $100 (CAD) price point to match. sorry, but no. that can not and will not work.
now we see sony wanting to remake "remasters" that are only 7 years old haha... last of us 1 remastered is the last game on earth that needs to be remade. nobody asked for it. i never once saw a comment on any social media channel or news site that was adamant on a last of us remake. yet, sony seems keen on this? that is the most risk adverse thing i have ever seen from sony. going back to the well on an uncharted remake? again... why? we have the remastered collection already and it looks and plays fine relative to the true classics from the ps1/ps2 era (which are in desperate need of a remake by comparison). i just hope those rumours turn out to be false but nothing would surprise me at this point.
@Shinnok789 Hitman is published by their developer, IO Interactive, not Ubisoft.
@EVIL-C Right you are, removed it. Thanks!
@Porco Couldn't agree with your comment more. I think it's a far 'safer' Sony we see today with reports like these. A few years ago Sony would have greenlit a Days Gone sequel in a heartbeat with the numbers it sold (I've read 4 million-ish).
I think it's an insult to Playstation to suggest that they've not changed. They're greenlighting a remake of The Last of Us over a sequel to a much fan loved and well selling IP, simply because the remake might sell a bit more? This is the most risk adverse version of this company by far, and honestly, it's far more boring.
I don't get this obsession with what Sony is doing. If they are going to continue giving me games like HZD,GOT,GOW,TLOU, and other new IPs, I'm glad that they will continue on the same route, we have indie developers for smaller games that continue to impress us with games like hollow knight and such. we don't need Sony to focus on those kind of games, the single player blockbusters are what they good at and they should continue doing it, or who else will develop the kind of games Sony does? every other company are most likely going the online, battle royal route, let Sony continue doing what they do best.
Why is Pushsquare always sussing to Bloomberg and always praising their articles lol
@LegacyRXT Hey if that's how you feel. I very rarely pay full price for any game these days as I have such a backlog and other commitments. In the last 2 years alone. I think I bought 3 games at Full price. So that seems pretty good to me.
What's wrong with buying games? Gamepass is great and all. And I can see value in having it. But I like to collect games. that's how I've always done it and how I more than likely always will. Even if Sony come out with a similar service. I can still see myself buying the majority of games I want to play.
Sony should just keep doing what it is they they are doing. Maybe make a little more obvious effort in light of recent Xbox efforts, but they should just keep on making great games.
@Shigurui It’s not though. The combat is totally different and it’s a stealth game set in fuedal times. Sucker Punch has been doing climbing for a long time too. It’s storytelling, style , and aesthetics are also different. It also don’t Assassination focused, it’s kill and terrorize the entire army focused.
Negativity is only coming from butt hurt journos that like to whinge when they have nothing to write about, Sony will let the releases speak for themselves. I don't see a problem with anything they have been doing in the last 2 years.
@tameshiyaku Agreed on all counts!
@Shinnok789 That's basically the issue. They are following the safer trend. People praised Sony on the last gen because they invested on new IPs and was willing to be experimental.
Maybe it's just really early in this hardware cycle coupled by the pandemic? I bought a PS4 just a few years back and spent the whole time playing the Greatest Hits line of games. I think they'll get better but just looking at the PS4 games of the past, I don't think the current situation shows any kind of pattern.
I agree with you Sammy, I still think Playstation has the most diverse portfolio on the horizon with their slated titles. Just because TLoU is getting a remake does not indicate any creative deficiencies or a willingness to only make blockbusters.
Sony is the one releasing a new IP soon and have released multiple new IP already to start the generation. You look at their past efforts like Dreams and upcoming stuff like Returnal and approving Sony Bend for another new IP after Days Gone and it’s really hard to make that argument with any sincerity.
Furthermore, everyone up in arms about TLoU remake doesn’t even have any insight on what percentage of the dev team is working on that versus other projects. Sony has talked in the past of expanding existing studios to make multiple titles simultaneously, so acting like the full Naughty Dog staff is just working on this now is silly. We can say with pretty good confidence that Factions multiplayer will be out before that, and I bet other stuff is being worked on as well.
I personally think it was a scumbag move by Schreier to leak the remake especially in light of the leak that happened to TLoU2 before it was released. This guy acts like he cares about the well being of studios when he puts out articles regarding crunch time, but has absolutely zero regard for the consequences of a leak that has the public criticizing a game that devs are currently trying to work on and the pressure they must be facing hearing all this outcry while trying to develop it.
@Carl-G And are up talking Xbox, the console with no next-gen games. It boggles the mind.
You know, Xbox has been spending money left and right but it still hasn't translated to profit for them. Neither company can still meet the demand that consumers have and the longer this takes, the more time Sony will have to build a compelling library of games.
In Microsoft's case, they've gone all in. Buying all these studios, spending millions or billions...they NEED to start seeing profit. The thing is, people are still comfortably buying up PS5s when they can. I don't think Sony feels stressed at all.
Besides all this, Sony's official YouTube channel is always promoting the newest indie games for people to sink into. It's not like there are no games to play out there. It's cool that Microsoft is acquiring all these big companies but just how long will it take to see those companies start to release games? All this doom and gloom lately, the negative press, I'd say it's the result of slow news. Nothing like a good console war article to get them dirty clicks.
I actually just put No Heroes Allowed on my VR list a week ago, so jokes on you as it will soon be 1. That's right a WHOLE one.
One small thing: I feel like Ghost of Tsushima was actually a safe bet, as it is nearly Assassin's Creed with samurai, which is something people have been asking for as long as AC has been a thing.
The only risk was in effectively communicating to people what it was.
MLB The Show 21
Returnal
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
Destruction AllStars
Sackboy: A Big Adventure
Demon’s Souls
Astro’s Playroom
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Ghost of Tsushima
Every single one of those is a niche, risky title apart from MLB and Spiderman.
Returnal stars a middle aged, non-sex-object woman. It's also a big budget rogue-like.
Ratchet and Clank is a mascot platformer, a genre supposedly well past it's prime.
Destruction All Stars is an unknown multiplayer car battler.
Sackboy is another mascot platformer starring a character mildly popular 11 years ago.
Demon's Souls was a fringe game when it was released and, though it is more popular now, it's still pretty niche.
Astros Playroom is another mascot platformer with a new mascot.
Ghost of Tsushima is a new IP based on real history and - SHOCK! - it has political themes.
Of the big 3, Sony is probably the most diverse and takes the most risks.
I’ve seen so many articles that are turning this story into a fire fest. It’s nice to see someone writing about it from a logical view. Thanks
@KippDynamite The only one on that list that is truly risky is Returnal. Sackboy to an extent since the popularity of that character isn't what it was when it likely peaked all the way back with LittleBigPlanet 2, but I'll still say the true risky one is Returnal.
Destruction All-Stars is a game I doubt Sony sunk that much money into. Even if you want to say it's a risk, it's likely a pretty low risk.
Ghost of Tsushima was a new IP, but the type of game it is basically the current style of Assassin's Creed. In other words, a very familiar and popular kind of game.
Astro's Playroom is a small game that was free with the system. It was good, but essentially a large demo for the DualSense. Shouldn't really count when it's free, so no risk there.
Demon's Souls is a remake of a game in a series (Souls and FromSoftware style games) that has actually become quite popular. The hype for Elden Ring says it all.
Ratchet and Clank is a series that dates back almost two decades. I mean this in the nicest way possible, but saying that's a risk is a joke. The series goes hand in hand with the PlayStation brand.
I am sorry but I think I missed something. When did the discussion turned to questioning if SIE have been investing in new IPs or not? That was never in doubt. PlayStation excels in that department. The way I see things SIE's problem is the exact opposite, they have more IPs they can properly manage (new and old).
It is understandable that this juggling between IPs and studios that SIE have been doing makes the fans apprehensive. Specially because we can't actually see them do it. I hope that when the curtains open, SIE doesn't drop the ball.
You know what? The worst is all the fake outrage triggered by Jason and the Golden books is just flaming more hate towardsJim Ryan whereas the guy wasn't even in charge at the time.
I know I'll get some fanatics foaming at the mouth because I seem to 'defend' Jim Ryan haha
You can't win either when Jason and the Golden books is questioned and even proven wrong he says he was right then people and journalists go 'oh see? He said he was right so that must be so' haha (typical trick btw)
Point is, stop triggerring hate for no reason. Its only video games, people.
@AK4tywill
"They're greenlighting a remake of The Last of Us over a sequel"
(Official) source? Do you people seriously believe every rumour you read before it's even officially confirmed?
@JJ2 well said
@velio84
you enjoy multiplayer games and want the "all you can eat" experience in gaming - you buy an xbox with game pass and have fun
you want quirky little games - you go down the nintendo way
you want AAA single player experience - you buy playstation
Haven't it been like this for the last 3 generations since like Xbox 360/PS3/Wii
@velio84
I don't think it's that simple. People are complex.
For that matter gamepass doesn't give you the latest big mp games you ll have to buy IN ADDITION.
It s a false issue to try pigeon hole people. Just let it be that everyone is different and has different tastes and habbits. The mistake would be to tell people what they should like or what platform they should like.
@velio84
OK no worries. I get it 🙋♂️
There is just no straight answer. Like I said gamepass is only rental and not necessarily the latest MP game. Likewise I know some people play some xbox franchises for the story.
It's whatever I wouldn't give any advice haha
@velio84
Many years ago I asked a very good friend of mine what console I should get. I was thinking about the xbox. He said don't do that, they burn haha
That was straightforward. Now it's not anymore.
Edit
To be clear. I think it was the same with xb1 or ps4. Personal tastes and habits. Nothing more.
@get2sammyb Japan Studio + Clap Hanz = Everybody's Golf.
Now we've lost that franchise that has been on PS1 to PS4 to flippin' Apple.
@Axelay71
Because PlayStation has been leader for so many generations, and command arguably the most global audience, weirdly some fanboys don't like that and hate on it.
@Northern_munkey thanks for the headsup.
@Angelus3K Kinda lose any trust in this article when the facts in the first paragraph are wrong.
@ATaco Erm? Sorry to burst your bubble but Game Pass is turning a profit.
@Rash I'm sure one was once planned but was then ditched. I seem to recall reading something about it ages ago?
@trev666 You know that sounds EXACTLY like Polyphony Digital, who I don't think have ever made another game bar GT. Oh and another point about how your wrong is to highlight the fact the studio behind the Forza games is making the new Fable game, which couldn't be any more different if it tried. Microsoft has already, reportedly, stated any of its studios can make whatever they want.
@S1ayeR74 Game Pass is clearly being operated as a loss leader while in its current user acquisition phase - so let’s see some evidence of this ‘profit’ you speak of...
@naruball My backlog is so dry I’m playing Final Fantasy 12. It’s bad right now.
As someone who games on all platforms, I don't mind if Sony focus on blockbuster games.
These are the games I bought the system for after all.
Yes, it was nice to have some niche gems like Gravity Rush, Shadow of the Colossus etc, but I can play similar games on other platforms.
So yes, it may suck if you only game on PS4/PS5, but who doesn't have at least one companion console these days to compliment their main console of choice?
@S1ayeR74 turn 10 make the forza games. playground games make forza horizon and playground games second studio is the studio making the new fable game. 343 make halo and coalition make gears of war
@KilloWertz
Ok, but that goes back to my point. So if 3rd person action games not for them, people can play Disco Elysium or Kena or Life is Strange or Aegis Rim or Neo The world ends with you.
Sony gives free indies every other month on PS+ (And I see people complaining because they are not "Big AAA titles")
For me. When it comes to selection of games, no console beats PlayStation. Sony's 1st party have always only played a small part of that.
That lets Sony concentarate on whatever segment they want in each generation. Just like CodeMasters can just make racing games.
Tons of other publishers/games fill all the other slots.
@trev666 Thank you for confirming my comment, which also makes your original comment inaccurate.
@S1ayeR74 They could easily expand on that game, even if it meant redeveloping the gameplay. So much potential wasted on what could have been a grand story.
This article does make some good points. While I'll be the first to admit Sony has done some stupid stuff recently they do have a varied selection of exclusives. Xbox Series X is an impressive piece of tech but I don't think there is a single worth while exclusive on it yet.
That comparison between Dreams and Roblox was a low blow by Jason Schreier.
As noted above, the author of this article wrote this just a few days ago:
"They're putting all their eggs in their biggest sellers, as simple as that. God of War, Spider-Man, Uncharted, The Last of Us, Horizon. It's all-in on these franchises now it seems."
If anyone is stoking this narrative, it's PushSquare itself. It's possible the author completely changed his mind in the past couple of days, but it's also possible it's all internet drama for clicks. Or both.
@Chief_Forasteiro regardless of those mistakes they are still here and the player base increased from that learning. Console price was right this time round and as far as we know there isn't an issue with the development kit either.
There is no indicator that we should be worried at least for now.The truth is it is too soon to say how well Sony are
doing and anything otherwise is clickbait I feel.
@Agramonte Kena is a 3rd person action adventure game, just like the rest. Don't get me wrong. It was one of my most anticipated games when I still had a PS5, but it's not different.
I don't really have time to comment on anything else right now, as I just had time to check a few things real quick, but I never said that they weren't making great games. It just would be nice if it didn't seem like they were trending in a direction where they only care about the bottom line now, unlike back in the PS3 generation and some of the PS4.
All you have to do to know they don't play it safe is look at TLOU2. Love it or hate it, you can't deny they took massive risks with that.
Omg that's two commentaries from Sammy in a row that I 100% agree with. What's going on in the world. And may I say thank you for standing up to the doom and gloom narrative that all too many youtubers, xbots, and so called game journalists are pushing. Has Sony made some baffling decisions? Yes? Is Jim Ryan a myopic money grubbing punk? Yes. Remember when he was talking about Gran turismo 1 and 2 and essentially said, why on earth would anyone want to play them? They look terrible! Because they still play great and those were great memories in our lives, you *****! And this is the guy running playstation! But I digress. We stand on the verge of an amazingly diverse range of games about to be released. Starting with Returnal, then FF7 intergrade, Scarlet Nexus then Ratchet and Clank, then Solar Ashe, then Kena, then Deathloop, then Horizon Zero Dawn. That is a tremendous mix of games and genres. Normally that would leave me with unbridled optimism for the future. But Sony forgetting they are a japanese company does leave me with some concerns. Especially with things like censoring games. Who would have thought if you wanted to see an uncensored version of a game it would be on Nintendo and not Sony?! Or that Sony would essentially turn it's back on Japan with actions like moving it's headquarters to California of all places. Or essentially closing Japan Studios. Perhaps one of the biggest insults was changing the button commands to the western version. In Japan x is cancel and circle is accept. But for the first time they changed it. That is very messed up imo. Despite all these things, the most important things are the games. And here Sony is still killing it. You may be right that Sony curating unique titles from third party studios can allow them to forgo creating them with first party studios. So the moral of the story is as long as great games keep coming I'm happy. And hopefully all this negative press will light a fire under old Jimmy boy's arse and he will protect our legacy games and start respecting Japan and smaller studios again!
@TheFrenchiestFry Totally agree. Part of what has always made Sony great was the breadth of experiences you could have on the system. There was something for everyone. And they were unafraid to celebrate that part of what made them unique was that they were japanese. They really have always had the perfect mix of games and genres, both big and small, eastern and western influenced. It is a shame that they no longer seem to see the value there. Japan studio has made or assisted with so many iconic playstation games like Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, Bloodborne, Demon's Souls, Ape Escape, The Last Guardian and Gravity Rush 1+ 2. And the list goes on. To me it is absolutely insane they would let all that talent go. Like the more I think about it the more it blows my mind. Japan studio deserved to respected until the end of playstation. Even if a game doesn't sell many millions it still has value. It also attracts gamers who are attracted to more unique fare. I really pray they wisen up in this regard and again start to value their japanese heritage.
@KilloWertz I hear you
I guess this is where they are now. I'll miss Gravity Rush and Puppeteer, but not going to lie - I love big story driven games like TLOU, GOW and HZD even more
As long as you find a system and games that keep you gaming - it is all good 👍
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