Ex-Sony Exec Says PC Ports of Old PS5 Games Are Almost Like Printing Money

Sony has bringing many of its older games to PC, and some PlayStation fans have been wondering why.

Initially, games such as Horizon Zero Dawn and God of War saw decent sales. However, the excitement seems to be waning, as evidenced by the underperformance of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. It’s important to note that this title faced significant problems at launch.

In a conversation with Sacred Symbols+ (subscription required), Shuhei Yoshida revealed that while he was head of PlayStation Studios, he advocated for an increase in our own game releases on PC platforms. However, such a move didn’t align with Sony’s corporate strategy at the moment.

As the company’s outlook has evolved, it has begun to recognize the potential for distributing its products on platforms like Steam.

I shared: “Launching on PC offers numerous benefits: it taps into an untouched audience who don’t own consoles, particularly in areas where console popularity is low. The goal here is to cultivate new fans for a specific franchise. When the next game in that series arrives, these fans might be enticed to buy a PlayStation.

He went on to say: “It also generates extra revenue since converting a game for PC is significantly less expensive than developing an entirely new game. In essence, it’s similar to making money effortlessly. This additional income allows us to fund new projects as the costs of games have risen.

In the course of our conversation, Yoshida admitted that in certain regions, personal computers outshine consoles as the go-to gaming device. Consequently, achieving triumph in this industry necessitates catering to this platform.

He emphasized that the PC game market in China is vast, while the console market is still developing and relatively small. To tap into markets such as China, it’s essential to launch games on PC platforms. Therefore, I think PC releases help access a previously untouched audience.

Some gamers argue that Sony is weakening the allure of PlayStation by offering games on PC as well. The question arises: Why would someone buy a PS5 if they can play the same games on Steam? Yoshida pointed out that many games often arrive on PC years after their console debut, which means those who own consoles may have already experienced the content before it’s ported over.

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2025-02-20 00:07