Things aren’t looking good for video games, and Sony’s handling of its game development studios has suffered another setback.
Dark Outlaw Games, a studio founded by former Treyarch developer Jason Blundell and announced last year, has closed down before releasing any titles.
As many of you may remember, this studio in Los Angeles grew out of Deviation Games, which previously worked with PlayStation on a game that was cancelled a few years back.
This marks another disappointing move for Sony, continuing a ten-year pattern of buying studios only to close them down, with Bluepoint Games being the latest example.
Here’s a list of all PlayStation first-party studio closures since the PS5’s launch year:
- 2020
- Manchester Studio
- 2021
- Japan Studio
- 2023
- PixelOpus
- 2024
- London Studio
- 2024
- Firewalk Games
- 2024
- Neon Koi
- 2026
- Bluepoint Games
- 2026
- Dark Outlaw Games
It’s hard to feel much disappointment about Dark Outlaw Games since we never knew what they were developing. However, their closure continues a troubling pattern for PlayStation’s internal studios, which have faced several setbacks during the PS5’s lifespan.
Trevor Blundell is famous for his work on Call of Duty Zombies, suggesting his new studio, Dark Outlaw Games, was developing a first-person shooter. Previously, Deviation Games was working on a science fiction game.
PlayStation will also be reducing staff in the US and Europe, though the number of affected employees is relatively small.
The company is shifting its focus away from making mobile games, but it will continue to support games it’s already announced, including MLB The Show Mobile and Horizon Steel Frontiers.
Sony has long wanted a piece of the mobile gaming market, but hasn’t released a successful game yet. They’re currently testing a game called Ratchet & Clank: Ranger Rumble in a few areas, but initial impressions aren’t very promising.
The company has seen a lot of turnover among its top leaders, having recruited many from major companies like Apple. Now, they’ve chosen to focus their investments in different areas.
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2026-03-24 22:06