PlayStation Legend Shuhei Yoshida 'Would've Tried to Resist' Sony's Live Service Push

Former PlayStation executive Shuhei Yoshida reveals he would have resisted Sony's controversial push into live-service gaming. Yoshida, who led SIE Worldwide Studios from 2008 to 2019, expressed concerns to Kinda Funny Games about the inherent risks Sony acknowledged in this investment.

This statement comes amidst significant challenges for PlayStation's live-service titles. While Helldivers 2 achieved remarkable success, becoming the fastest-selling PlayStation Studios game ever, other ventures have faltered. Concord, for instance, stands as a major setback, shutting down after a brief period due to extremely low player numbers. The project, reportedly costing around $200 million in initial development (according to Kotaku), proved a costly failure, not including IP rights or studio acquisition costs. This follows the cancellation of Naughty Dog's The Last of Us multiplayer game and, more recently, two unannounced live-service titles.

Yoshida, departing Sony after 31 years, hypothetically placed himself in the shoes of current CEO Hermen Hulst, suggesting he would have resisted the live-service expansion. He highlighted the resource allocation dilemma, questioning the prioritization of live-service games over established franchises like God of War. While acknowledging Sony's increased investment in live-service games after his departure, he maintains that the inherent risk of success in this competitive market was significant. The unexpected success of Helldivers 2 underscores the unpredictable nature of the industry.

Sony's financial reports reflect this mixed experience. President, COO, and CFO Hiroki Totoki acknowledged lessons learned from both Helldivers 2's triumph and Concord's failure, emphasizing the need for earlier user testing and internal evaluations. Totoki also pointed to Sony's "siloed organization" and Concord's release window, potentially contributing to market cannibalization due to its proximity to Black Myth: Wukong.

Senior vice president Sadahiko Hayakawa further highlighted the contrasting outcomes of Helldivers 2 and Concord, emphasizing the importance of sharing lessons learned across studios to improve development management and post-launch content. The future PlayStation live-service strategy aims for a balanced portfolio, combining the proven success of single-player titles with the riskier, but potentially high-reward, live-service ventures. Several live-service projects remain underway, including titles from Bungie, Guerrilla, and Haven Studios.