In a long investigation. Bloomberg reveals that Sony would be “obsessed” by very large licenses to the point of creating mistrust among some of its studios. A remake of the first The Last of Us, just eight years after its release, is reportedly in development for the PlayStation 5.
In a long article dedicated to PlayStation games, Bloomberg describes Sony as being very “conversational”. At the time when Microsoft is betting on the Xbox Game Pass to diversify its catalog, the Japanese would only have in mind its large exclusive licenses, those which bring it in the most and attract new players to the PlayStation ecosystem. Bloomberg says that some “small studios” have tried to impose their paw on Sony. But have rarely been treated to their fair value by the Japanese. Fortunately, the company would be aware of these excesses and would have started to make an effort.
The Last of Us and Uncharted at the heart of the tensions
Have you ever heard of the VASG (Visual Arts Service Group), the studio dedicated to finalizing PlayStation games? Based in San Diego, his mission is to help big studios (like Insomniac, Naughty Dog or Santa Monica) to finalize their projects, in order to eliminate the last bugs and make their games even more beautiful.
In his article, Bloomberg tells us that a few years ago, the VASG asked to take its independence. A team of 30 developers was formed and, to satisfy Sony, offered to develop “remakes” (which is generally very profitable). The studio wanted to recreate the first Uncharted (Naughty Dog) with new graphics, but Sony preferred to opt for the first The Last of Us, a game released in 2013 considered one of the greatest masterpieces in the history of the video game, also offered by Naughty Dog. The problem is that, gradually, the VASG lost its project. Hired by Sony to help finalize the sequel to The Last of Us, which was released in 2020, the studio gradually came under Naughty Dog before being completely absorbed. The whole thing is all the more sad that one can wonder if a game released eight years ago, already remastered on PS4, really needed a remake. We imagine that Sony will launch in the coming months a pack containing the two Last of Us games on PS5, just to make fans pay for the license, all developed by Naughty Dog.
Another example
Cited by Bloomberg, the studio Bend, to which we owe Day’s Gone, was not allowed to develop the sequel to its game released in 2019. Instead, Sony asked it to develop a multi game. -players based on a Naughty Dog license and… a new Uncharted game. So Bend found himself supervised by another studio, which he didn’t really like when he thought he had proven himself with Day’s Gone. Last month, Sony listened to his complaints and took those plans away from him, while allowing him to develop a new license. Proof that the Japanese know how to make the right decisions.
Among other examples of Sony’s obsession with big licenses. Bloomberg cites numerous massive departures in Japan from studios developing Gravity Rush and Everybody’s Golf. Games that Sony no longer wants because of their limited international success. In short, for Sony. The future of the PS5 is called The Last of Us, Uncharted, God of War, Spider-Man and Ratchet and Clank. Guaranteed success, at the cost of other projects.