As someone who has spent countless hours immersed in the rich and captivating worlds of PlayStation exclusives, I can’t help but feel a bit apprehensive about the direction the company seems to be heading. The success stories like Ghost of Tsushima and Marvel’s Spider-Man are undeniably impressive, but the potential focus shift towards live-service games gives me a sense of déjà vu.
PlayStation faces a significant choice after the disappointing outcome of ‘Concord’: they could persist with their aggressive strategy focused on live-service games, or shift their focus towards standalone single-player titles instead. The recent announcement of ‘Ghost of Yōtei’ hints that PlayStation is currently balancing both approaches. Earlier in the year, Sony President Hiroki Totoki revised their initial plan of having 12 live-service games by 2025 down to only 6, but still expressed a strong commitment to the long-term success of this online model, emphasizing that expanding such services remains Sony’s consistent policy.
Has it been close to a year since the disappointing performance of one of Sony’s live service games? It seems they might be reconsidering their strategies given the struggles Concord represented in their efforts to recapture the success they experienced during the PS2 era. PlayStation thrives when it stays true to its roots and avoids jumping on every bandwagon, and the trend of always-online live-service games appears to be buckling under the weight of its own ambition.
The game titled “Concord” was the decisive factor leading Sony to abandon their pursuit of popular AAA live-service games, as it clearly demonstrated that following trends in today’s gaming market can lead to catastrophe. It’s a case of the pot calling the kettle black, and “Concord” served as the wake-up call for everyone. Sony heavily invested in this project, envisioning it as one of their major franchises, similar to the expansive world of Star Wars, with spin-offs and merchandise. Unfortunately, this grand ambition did not materialize, as “Concord” shut down its servers just two weeks after its launch, ultimately becoming PlayStation’s most significant gaming failure.
Instead of Concord, it’s merely the most conspicuous example of the AAA trend-following bubble’s collapse. Last year, PlayStation reduced its plan to develop 12 live-service games by 2025 down to only 6. What might have led PlayStation to slow down their trend-chasing pace? It appears that Sony’s purchase of Bungie in 2021 didn’t yield the returns they anticipated, as sales for Destiny 2’s latest expansion, The Final Shape, were lower than previous expansions. To add insult to injury, Bungie recently let go of 17% of its workforce this year, suggesting that Sony may have overpaid in their $3.6 billion acquisition of Bungie and are now trying to reduce expenses.
Apart from investing in Concord, Bungie, and other projects, Sony also faced a sudden cancellation of Naughty Dog’s standalone multiplayer game for The Last of Us in December 2023. This decision, as explained by Naughty Dog, highlights the challenges faced by live service titles. They had two options: either specialize in live service games or continue producing single-player narrative games that have been synonymous with Naughty Dog’s legacy. Fortunately, they chose the latter, abandoning their live service aspirations. Here’s hoping Sony does the same and adopts a similar strategy.
In simpler terms, neither Concord nor The Last of Us Online fully encompass the challenges that the live-service sector in the gaming industry has been experiencing lately, but they do offer some understanding as to why the AAA live service market is shrinking. Essentially, AAA live-service games are too expensive to keep up and fail to attract an audience who have already found their preferred game. In essence, it’s like buying a copy of Concord when you can play Overwatch 2 or Destiny 2 at home, which have more features and are available on multiple platforms. It’s a struggle for new live-service games to compete with established ones that come with existing infrastructures. Sony should return to their roots as an innovator in unique first-party gaming experiences, instead of trying to recreate what is already available elsewhere at a cost of $40 for Concord. In summary, the live-service game market is facing significant hurdles due to high costs and audience saturation with existing favorites.
PlayStation consistently excels in offering top-tier exclusive games, such as Ghost of Tsushima and Horizon, among others. Astro Bot, at present, holds the highest rating this year with a remarkable 94 from both critics and players on Metacritic. Not only is Astro Bot critically acclaimed, but it has also sold exceptionally well. In the US, it ranked second in sales for September 7th, surpassed only by NBA 2K25. The UK sales were particularly impressive, with GamesIndustry.biz confirming that Astro Bot is the “highest-selling original platformer IP outside of Mario in the last decade,” selling a full 21% more than Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart.
Looking at the most popular PS4 games reveals an intriguing pattern: many are single-player, first-party titles that have received extremely positive reviews from gamers. Notably absent from the top ten list are live-service games, with exclusives like Ghost of Tsushima and Marvel’s Spider-Man leading in sales with over $10 million each. The message is clear: quality games sell well, and unique games attract new players, which PlayStation has successfully achieved in the past and should strive for again.
What PlayStation doesn’t need is another Concord on its hands. And it’s looking like that could be a possibility down the line with their 5 or so live-service games in development. With the success of Helldivers 2 earlier this year, it’s still tough to determine how committed Sony is to their initial live-service push. According to Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier, Sony’s internal attitude is still very hot on delivering live-service titles; he goes on to state, “PlayStation’s live service initiative was no joke, everybody was like… it’s live service games all round”. According to Schreier, Horizon Online is Sony’s next big live-service gamble, and it’s reportedly coming out before the next Horizon single-player game (Horizon 3). Fairgame$, a heist-based extraction shooter, is another of Sony’s tent-pole online games that they’re betting big on. And then, of course, there’s Bungie’s Marathon project. We have no idea how Marathon development is going at the moment, but considering Bungie’s mass layoffs recently, it may have been slowed and restructured a bit.
Without any recent public announcements indicating a change in their strategy following the failure of Concord, Sony continues to move forward with several high-budget projects with evident excitement. According to industry insiders like Schreier, single-player games such as Horizon 3 might be taking a backseat for live-service titles like Horizon Online and Fairgame$. The recent reveal of Ghost of Yotei offers a glimmer of hope that Sony’s expertise in single-player experiences remains intact, but it’s unclear what the company is focusing on overall. It’s clear, however, that Concord’s financial impact must have influenced Sony to some extent towards live-service titles. Moreover, the continuous staff layoffs at Bungie and the long-term resources needed for online games suggest an unsustainable model at the pace initially envisioned under Jim Ryan’s leadership.
It seems Sony might be focusing on a mix of high-end single-player games from their own studio and live-service titles, though this is just speculation until an official announcement. However, it’s evident that the market for live-service games is becoming overcrowded, and the AAA game market has seen a decline. To thrive, publishers need to provide distinctive gaming experiences that can’t be found elsewhere. This strategy has worked well for competitors even with less powerful hardware. In fact, this was a key factor in PlayStation’s dominance in the console market for many years. If Sony continues to produce hits like Astro Bot and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, they could recapture some of their past successes from the PS2 era.
Please take note that the opinions shared within this article belong solely to the writer, and may not reflect the overall viewpoints or official stance of GamingBolt as a collective entity.
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2024-10-16 16:11