Sony continues to strongly bet on games as a service (GaaS), a model that seeks to keep players engaged through multiplayer experiences with recurring content. However, this strategy has led the company to accumulate several failures in this area, the most recent being the cancellation of two unannounced video games developed by Bend Studio and Bluepoint Games, according to Bloomberg.
These cancellations occur in a context where PlayStation has shown a history of failures, including titles like Concord and The Last of Us Online. More concerning is that one of these projects was from one of Sony’s star franchises: a God of War GaaS developed by Bluepoint Games. Despite this, it is assured that there will be no layoffs at either Bluepoint Games or Blend Studios, and both will continue working on new projects.
The gaming community hopes that Sony learns from these stumbles in a competitive market. Despite having canceled a total of nine GaaS projects to date, the company has invested 2.13 billion dollars in this sector and continues to develop titles such as a Horizon MMO and Fairgame$, a multiplayer heist shooter that was showcased at the last PlayStation Showcase.
Even though things didn’t go well this time, they continue to bet on GaaS
Additionally, the acquisition of Bungie for 3.6 billion dollars highlights the importance of this company in Sony’s strategy for games as a service. Bungie is working on Marathon, a multiplayer shooter expected to be released in 2025. Meanwhile, NetEase is focusing on a Destiny game for mobile, which could also come to PC.
Despite the setbacks, the story of PlayStation in the realm of games as a service is still far from over, with several initiatives on the horizon that could change its fortunes in this risky business model.
