Sony invests 152 million euros extra in developing its own games
Sony will spend an additional 20 billion yen in its next financial year on personnel costs and other costs for making its own games. Converted that is 152.16 million euros. Part of the amount will also go towards investments in external developers.
With the additional investment, Sony wants to expand its range of exclusive PlayStation games. Last week, Sony Interactive Entertainment president Jim Ryan said the PS5 will get more exclusives than previously released PlayStation consoles. He does not rule out the possibility that Sony will acquire more studios to make that happen. Sony’s CFO Hiroki Tokoki mentioned the specific amount on Wednesday when discussing the quarterly figures, VideoGamesChronicle reports.
According to Tokoki, Sony wants to strengthen the PlayStation platform through new collaborations with studios, among other things. For example, this could result in a game that may or may not be temporarily exclusive to PlayStation consoles. The financial chief refers to the deal with Haven Studios announced in March. That’s a new studio from Jade Raymond, who until recently ran Google’s Stadia studio, until it closed. Haven Studios is working on a PlayStation game, but details are not yet known.
Last week, Sony also announced a partnership with Firewalk Studios. That studio was founded in 2018 by veterans who previously worked on games like Destiny, Halo and Apex Legends. Firewalk is working on a new multiplayer game, details of which are not yet known, but the game will come exclusively to PlayStation consoles thanks to the deal made. What Sony pays for such deals is unknown.
The investments will also go to Sony’s own PlayStation Studios. Those studios have several games in development and some of them coming out soon. Housemarque’s Returnal will be released on April 30 and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart will be released on June 11. These games were developed exclusively for the PlayStation 5 and will not be coming to the PS4.
Horizon Forbidden West from Guerrilla Games will be released later this year and Gran Turismo 7 from Polyphony Digital will follow in 2022. A teaser of God of War Ragnarök has also been shown, but when that game will be released is not yet known. Rumor has it that Naughty Dog has been working on a PS5 remake of The Last of Us for several years now.
Sony sold 58.4 million first-party games in the past fiscal year. The manufacturer made this known at the presentation of its quarterly figures. In the coming financial year, which runs from April to March, Sony expects to sell more of its own games.
Launch trailer of Returnal, the next PlayStation 5 exclusive, out April 30.