The incoming PS5 console could feature exclusive games you didn't expect, as Jim Ryan, the current head of PlayStation, suggested that the company is looking to acquire more proprietary studios for dedicated PS4 and PS5 games.
In his comments on GamesIndustry.biz, Ryan said PlayStation was "always looking" to strengthen its customer base, even though his team "was paying attention to who we're looking at and who we're talking to."
Ryan added: "Buying studios is currently a very expensive business (...) We can do more in this area, but we need to make sure the company is right. The integration side of... C's an issue Boring business to tackle, but the world is littered with illustrations illustrating this catastrophic post-acquisition state of affairs.
"So we have to trust that, it has to be in our portfolio, it's a very different world than the one we acquired Guerrilla in 2005. You have to be very, very good." attention."
Some misgivings are understandable: acquiring a studio is no small task, and PlayStation must be sure that this kind of direct relationship will pay off, without hurting the studio's existing reputation or arousing resentment from its employees. like developer Destiny Bungie, whose staff reportedly opened bottles of champagne when it declared independence from publisher Activision.
But it could add more variety to Sony's gaming lineup in the years to come, with a new PlayStation 5 console poised to get vastly improved rendering capabilities, and the current PS4 will certainly be supported for a while as gamers and developers make the switch to the new platform.
Sony gives, and Sony takes
The outside world has yet to be treated fairly on the Xbox and PlayStation platforms...
(Image credit: Obsidian Entertainment)
There's a reason fans may feel conflicted about buying their favorite video game studios from a particular platform owner. While the process can help give studios the funding and support they need to create bigger, more ambitious games, there is inevitably a negative influence on how these games are made, as well as how they're distributed.
One of Sony's most recent acquisitions has been Insomniac, developer of Marvel's Spider-Man, one of the best PS4 exclusives of recent times. Naturally, Sony will look to repeat the operation when the situation suits it (Sony and Insomniac had been working closely for years on the Ratchet and Clank series before the acquisition), though no one parted ways. The PlayStation ecosystem could lose if one of its cross-platform developers favorites is just starting to create PlayStation games.
Microsoft has been pretty brash about some of its acquisitions as it prepares for the Xbox Scarlett, suggesting it's notorious that it doesn't have the same strong, exclusive reputation outside of two franchises like Halo and Gears of War.
The outside world has benefited from extensive coverage on Microsoft Xbox Game Pass, and a pleasantly satisfied approach from the new overlords of Obsidian, though the PlayStation platform's lack of 4K support was a bit of a surprise.
So would you like Sony to buy one of your favorite developers? With the success of the PlayStation platform, we think so.