Despite significant investments in live-service games in recent years, Sony is not abandoning its focus on single-player experiences. The company plans to launch at least one major single-player title each year starting next fiscal year.
In a financial report released on Friday for Q2 2024, Sony’s gaming division shared positive news, even in light of the disappointing performance of the live-service game Concord. The hero shooter floundered at launch, peaking at just 697 concurrent users on Steam, according to SteamDB. Sony Interactive Entertainment took the game offline merely two weeks after its debut, leading to the eventual closure of developer Firewalk Studios.
Also notable is Sony’s ongoing involvement with Destiny 2 developer Bungie, which has seen staff layoffs this year and a restructuring that includes the formation of a new studio under the PlayStation brand.
On the bright side, single-player games have thrived for Sony this year. While the first-party release schedule has been light, the family-friendly platformer Astro Bot has garnered significant success. The title has sold over 1.5 million copies within its first nine weeks. Impressively, 37% of Astro Bot purchasers had not bought any first-party game from Sony in the past two years. Additionally, it currently boasts the highest rating among 2024 releases on Metacritic, sharing the honor with Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree.
“Our goal is to cultivate an optimal portfolio of titles during the current midrange plan period that merges our strength in single-player games—recognized for their potential to succeed due to established intellectual properties—with live service games that carry an associated level of risk,” the presentation transcript states.
This means that Sony will continue to roll out major single-player games featuring their well-known IPs, such as Ghost of Yotei, a sequel to Ghost of Tsushima, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, and Marvel’s Wolverine. While no further games in this genre have been officially disclosed, enthusiasts can anticipate upcoming entries like another Final Fantasy 7 Remake, a potential new God of War installment, and a concluding chapter to the Horizon trilogy, along with additional Marvel titles as per leaks from Insomniac Games.
Additionally, Sony is set to revise its live-service strategy, aimed at enhancing game development processes and applying lessons learned from Concord’s development and subsequent shutdown.
The company continues to enjoy success with Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. While Helldivers 2 is a live-service shooter, it has also performed exceptionally well on both PC and PlayStation 5.
