December 4th 2024.
Could the key to Sony's future success lie in its past? It's a question that's been on the minds of many as of late. While the PlayStation brand should be basking in celebration, it's been overshadowed by a lackluster year and an uncertain future.
In June 2023, amidst Microsoft's legal battle with the Federal Trade Commission over its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the tech giant made a surprising admission: they had lost the "console war" to Sony. While Microsoft may have been trying to paint themselves as the underdog in order to push the acquisition through, it's hard to argue with the state of both companies. Sony's PlayStation 5 has been dominating in terms of sales, more than doubling those of Microsoft's Xbox Series X. However, with no one to surpass, Sony now faces new challenges.
It's worth noting that Microsoft hasn't completely given up on making Xbox hardware. They have plans for a new handheld and a next-generation device. However, there are signs that they've acknowledged their inability to beat Sony in this area. We've already seen prominent Xbox exclusives, like Sea Of Thieves and the upcoming Indiana Jones game, go multiplatform. Additionally, Microsoft is openly promoting the fact that you no longer need an Xbox console to play their games. While this may be controversial for dedicated Xbox owners, it's a logical move for Microsoft that could prove beneficial in the long run. It's clear that Xbox is no longer playing by the same rules as Sony, whose own future plans for hardware are still up in the air.
Of course, there will be a PlayStation 6 at some point, but the few vague comments Sony has made about it suggest that it will simply be a technological improvement over the PlayStation 5. On the other hand, the idea of an Xbox handheld sounds more appealing, especially for those who want to play Xbox games on the go. Unless the PlayStation 6 offers something more substantial than just better graphics, it's difficult to imagine anyone other than diehard Sony fans investing in it. This is especially true if console prices continue to rise due to proposed tariffs.
Some may point to the reported success of the PlayStation 5 Pro, but it was always intended to be a niche product. Only those seeking the best possible visuals would be interested in purchasing it, while the average gamer or parent looking for a birthday or Christmas gift would likely scoff at its expensive price tag of £700. Former PlayStation America boss Shawn Layden seems to agree that the race for more powerful consoles has reached its peak. In an interview with VGC, he stated, "We're at the stage of hardware development that I call 'only dogs can hear the difference.' Jacking up the specs of the box, I think we've reached the ceiling."
Sony can't solely rely on the specs of new hardware to stay ahead. They need to offer something unique, whether it's a distinct gimmick or, as Layden suggests, captivating exclusives that will entice people to invest in a new PlayStation console. This is exactly what they did during the PlayStation 4 generation, which led to their incredible success. However, somewhere along the way, they seemed to have abandoned this strategy in the middle of the current generation.
The idea of "just make good games" may seem obvious, but when we look at Sony's current output, it's hard to deny that they've become allergic to making any kind of new games. As of now, the only first-party exclusive scheduled for 2025 is the highly anticipated sequel to Ghost Of Tsushima, Ghost Of Yōtei. Beyond that, there's Insomniac's Wolverine game, which still has no release date three years after its reveal, and two more attempts at the live service multiplayer shooter genre in FairGame$ and Bungie's Marathon reboot. However, it's difficult to be optimistic about these projects, considering what happened to Concord.
This year has been extremely quiet for Sony, with a heavy reliance on remasters, re-releases, and second and third-party offerings. The only wholly original first-party PlayStation exclusives we've seen this year are Astro Bot and Concord, and one of those is no longer playable. While there have also been releases like MLB The Show 24 and Lego Horizon Adventures, they're also available on other platforms. It's baffling that Sony has no major releases planned for the Christmas season, especially when both Microsoft and Nintendo have managed to do so.
This all makes what should be a celebratory year for the PlayStation brand feel lackluster. Sony has given fans little reason to have faith in their gaming future. Their plans to capitalize on the live service games market seem to have fallen through. Remember when they promised 12 such games by 2026? That claim has aged poorly, with most of those projects rumored to have been quietly cancelled. Additionally, Sony was always talking about breaking into the mobile games space, but that doesn't seem to have worked out either. One mobile studio they acquired was shut down, along with Concord developer Firewalk Studios. Aside from a LittleBigPlanet endless runner, Sony has yet to announce or release any mobile titles.
To an outsider, it may seem like Sony is struggling financially, but that's not the case. In fact, they're currently considering spending billions to acquire the developer behind Elden Ring. Understandably, PlayStation owners are frustrated with the lack of offerings from Sony. It's doubtful that the PlayStation brand can continue to rely on just one exclusive per year, sandwiched between remasters of games that are barely a decade old.
The hope is that Sony has secretly reevaluated their strategy. In a recent earnings report, Sony's senior vice president for finance and IR, Sadahiko Hayakawa, stated, "We intend to build on an optimum title portfolio during the current mid-range plan period, that combines single-player games, which are our strength and which have a higher predictability of becoming hits due to our proven IP, with live service games that pursue upside, while taking on a certain amount of risk upon release." A generous interpretation of this statement is that Sony is going to return to what has worked for them in the past and focus on single-player games, rather than putting all their efforts into pumping out as many live service games as possible.
If this is the case, then the ongoing silence from Sony is more understandable. It takes time to build up a new portfolio of games, and they may be planning to reveal them through a dedicated showcase next year. They certainly need to give PlayStation owners something to look forward to. With the Switch 2's launch and Microsoft's aim to release several first-party titles in 2026, including the highly anticipated Fable reboot, 2025 is shaping up to be a big year for their competitors. Let's hope this awkward time for Sony is just a temporary setback, and that we'll have more to celebrate next year beyond just birthdays and expensive new console models.
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