PlayStation cancels several unannounced projects amid heavy layoffs and a studio closure: "Sometimes, great ideas don't become great games"
Feb. 27, 2024PlayStation London’s online game being the most obvious cancellation
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Original story:
As itlays off around 900 people across Sony’s stable of studios, including cuts atNaughty Dog,Insomniac, and the entirety of now-defunct PlayStation London, PlayStation Studios is also canning multiple unannounced projects.
PlayStation discussed the layoffs in two separate blog posts, with onesharinga company-wide email sent by outgoing CEO Jim Ryan this morning, andanotherfrom PlayStation Studios head Hermen Hulst outlining more of the reasoning behind the layoffs as well as the resulting effects. In the latter, Hulst says “we looked at our studios and our portfolio, evaluating projects in various stages of development, and have decided that some of those projects will not move forward.
“I want to be clear that the decision to stop work on these projects is not a reflection on the talent or passion of team members,” he continues. “Our philosophy has always been to allow creative experimentation. Sometimes, great ideas don’t become great games. Sometimes, a project is started with the best intentions before shifts within the market or industry result in a change of plan.”
This cancellation marks another blow against PlayStation’s once much-vauntedambitions to release at least 10 PS5 multiplayer gamesin the coming years. That being said, it’s unclear whether these canceled projects were targeting PS4, PS5, PSVR, or evenPC and mobile as Sony pursues an “aggressive” multiplatform plan.
Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter
Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more
It’s not uncommon for companies, especially large publishers, to cancel unannounced projects due to budget constraints or creative concerns. In the last year alone, we’ve seenBlizzard can a survival game reportedly in the works for 6 years,Embracer Group desperately sweep 29 games under the rugas it lays off thousands of workers, andUbisoft cancel at least seven projectseven as it talks up its release lineup. With the industry as a whole still hunkering down amidst widespread layoffs, countless other projects have likely been, or likely will be, canceled as well, many for the worst possible reason: there’s nobody left to work on them.
Just last month,Phil Spencer announced Microsoft is laying off nearly 2,000 people from its gaming division.
“It seems we’ve missed the mark”: As their Steam review score drops to 14%, Dauntless devs wade into feedback after a disastrous update that gutted progress
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 makes headshots deadlier while cutting back on weapon sway and recoil: “We will be keeping a close eye on sniper balance after this change”
Get hundreds of hours of RPG goodness for $30 with this bundle of 8 games that includes the first two Baldur’s Gate games, which are absolutely worth playing
