Sony has just outlined ambitious plans to release titles on PC and mobile and offer live service games as PlayStation 5 developer competes with wealthy rivals.
Sony, whose studios are recognized for single-player console games such as Spider-Man and God of War, has announced ambitious plans to release titles on PC and mobile, as well as provide live service games with continuously updated play.
“You should think of collaborations on the game development side first and foremost, but it’s also not unthinkable with our PlayStation Productions efforts that we explore opportunities,” PlayStation Studio head Herman Hulst said of the FromSoftware investment.
Hulst, whose office is in the Netherlands and who took over the post in 2019, oversaw the growth of PlayStation Studios to 19 studios by bringing on Nixxes, a business that converts console games to the PC, and Savage Game Studios, a maker of mobile games.
According to the report, Sony’s recent transactions reflect the fundamentals of their development, including the $3.6 billion acquisition of Bungie, the studio behind the multiplayer “Destiny” franchise, which Sony owns outside of its PlayStation Studios Network.
The company’s other ventures include a minority position in FromSoftware, whose action role-playing game “Elden Ring” has sold more than 16.6 million copies. “Further investments in areas that will reinforce the extension on to PC, on to mobile, and into live services, that’s definitely a possibility for us,” Hulst stated to Reuters.
Sony is additionally producing a growing number of game adaptations, With this year’s Uncharted movie grossing over $400 million internationally and a TV series based on The Last of Us franchise from its Naughty Dog studio launching on HBO next year.
A job advert spotted last April revealed that PlayStation was opening a new business unit to adapt its “most popular franchises” for mobile, those being PlayStation’s most popular franchises by sales are Gran Turismo, God of War and Uncharted.
And last year, Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan stated that PlayStation was planning to bring “a whole slate” of games to PC, bringing more hope that we will be seeing future developments regarding this.
However, given the grand scope of the transformation targeted by the gaming business, analysts expect further dealmaking from Sony. “I think that they’re still going to add studios,” remarked Serkan Toto, founder of the Kantan Games consultancy. Additionally, Jim Ryan, the president of Sony’s gaming division, has expressed concern about the $69 billion mega-potential deal’s effects on PlayStation players.
Toto cited the popularity of online games like Epic Games’ Fortnite when he said, “If Sony can pull off what they accomplished with single player experiences but (as) multiplayer experiences across platforms, on the PC, on consoles, and maybe even on the phone, then all bets are out.”
Although PlayStation has long had a presence in the PC and mobile markets, neither has received the same amount of attention as the company’s core console business. However, it appears that the console manufacturer aims to ramp up development and, hopefully, inspire something grander.
