Former Sony exec finally says the quiet part out loud: putting PlayStation games on PC is 'almost like printing money'
It's been an obvious truth for ages: console manufacturers have been missing out on fat stacks by not releasing their games on PC. Microsoft long ago gave up on pure Xbox exclusives, and iseven releasing games on PlayStation now. Sony, meanwhile, has tacitly acknowledged the fact for years, steadily releasing its PS4 and PS5 back catalogue onto Steam, and then last year, releasing Helldivers 2 concurrently on both PS5 and PC toenormous success. Now, former Sony executive Shuhei Yoshida has come out and said it explicitly: releasing its games PC is a license for Sony to print money.
Speaking toSacred Symbols+ (viaPush Square) about his time as head of PlayStation Studios Yoshida explained he wanted to bring Sony games to PC far earlier than when it eventually happened, but it just wasn't the way Sony thought back then. Eventually though, Sony was sold on the idea through a notion that releasing games on PC now might entice players to buy a PlayStation in the future.
«Releasing on PC does many things: it reaches a new audience who do not own consoles—especially in regions where consoles are not as popular,» Yoshida said in the interview. «The idea is that those people may become fans of a particular franchise, and when a new game in that series comes out, they may be convinced to purchase a PlayStation.»
It's worked out well for us, but I question whether this argument holds water. PC gamers can be incredibly patient when it comes to playing games on their preferred platform, and since Sony has demonstrated its willingness to put nearly all its major exclusives on Steam (exceptBloodborne), PC gamers' response would simply be to continue waiting. Then again, maybe Sony has access to data that suggests otherwise. In any case, Yoshida also noted that it's an easy way for the publisher to generate extra revenue, stating «porting to PC is way cheaper than creating an original title. So it's almost like printing money. And that helps us to invest in new titles now that the
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