Sony's live service pivot "may not pay off the way Jim Ryan had once hoped", says industry insider
eurogamer.netSony is reportedly «uncomfortable» about outgoing PlayStation boss Jim Ryan's pivot to games as a service.
That's according to Bloomberg's Jason Schreier, who reported yesterday that «even Bungie's expertise has not yet been able to turn PlayStation Studios into a service-game factory».
Just days after announcing its $3.6bn Bungie buyout bid, Sony announced back in April 2022 that it would launch more than 10 new live service games over the next four years, with the hope that Destiny developer Bungie would aid PlayStation in this major expansion of live service game development.
Now, however, in an editorial reflecting on Ryan's departure from Sony, Schreier commented that the move to live service games goes against many Sony's first-party studios given their expertise in making «big, cinematic adventure games that are played solo».
Schreier then pointed to Anthem as an infamous example of what happens when studios make a «drastic pivot from a familiar genre to something brand new» and suggested that «this bet on multiplayer games may not pay off the way Ryan and his team had once hoped».
The article ends by hinting that «insiders are worried about the company's lack of coherent vision».
ICYMI, Sony announced PlayStation boss Jim Ryan will be retiring next March, after nearly 30 years with the company.
Ryan — whose official job title is president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment — took charge of the PlayStation division back in February 2019, having previously helmed Sony Computer Interactive Europe.
In a statement announcing his retirement, Ryan wrote, «I've relished the opportunity to have a job I love in a very special company, working with great people and incredible partners. But I've found it
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