Jim Ryan, Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO, has been speaking with GQ and revealed his perspective on the development of AAA titles, particularly new IP.
Ryan notes the immense investment taken to launch AAA franchises, saying "we’ve invested a lot organically over the course of the PS4 generation, more than people realise."
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“We’ve added Insomniac Games through acquisition. We’re making great games now and we certainly plan to continue making great games," he added.
“The thing with those blockbuster games is that they need a box office release. They cost more than $100m dollars to make these days and in order to be able to do that and bring new IP to the market – which is a very risky thing that we did four times in the PS4 generation – you’ve got to have a box office release.”
Those four that Ryan is referring to are likely Horizon: Zero Dawn, Ghost of Tsushima, Days Gone and The Order 1886.
“We have a management organisation that sits over the individual studios and one of the things that we look at a lot is the portfolio and we look at is the balance between new iterations of much-loved series such as God Of War or Uncharted and shaking things up with new IP such as Horizon Zero Dawn or Ghost Of Tsushima. We think about this very deeply and very carefully.”
Still, with Microsoft doubling down on Game Pass, it's good to see Sony committing to continued AAA title development – despite the risk Ryan mentions.
Already in the PS5 generation, we've seen Sackboy strike out on his own for the first time, as well as Returnal announced.
The full interview also discusses the PS5's focus on tech as opposed to graphical horsepower, and whether or not he was able to get a PS5 early.
The last we heard from Ryan, he was discussing the possibility of a Game Pass style service on PS5.
With the PS5 out now, here are some of the best launch titles you can get.
And because new consoles are expensive, here are the finest free titles, too.
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