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[Draugoth]

Commenting on the news, Hulst confirmed that the lay offs have also resulted in the cancellation of unnamed game projects, which almost certainly includes London Studio’s online co-op game set in a fantasy London.

Our goal at PlayStation Studios has always been to make the best games for PlayStation fans, and our global community of studios represent some of the most creative and talented teams within the gaming industry. PlayStation 5 is in its fourth year, and we are at a stage where we need to step back and look at what our business needs. At the same time, our industry has experienced continuing and fundamental change which affects how we all create, and play, games.

Delivering the immersive, narrative-driven stories that PlayStation Studios is known for, at the quality bar that we aspire to, requires a re-evaluation of how we operate. Delivering and sustaining social, online experiences – allowing PlayStation gamers to explore our worlds in different ways – as well as launching games on additional devices such as PC and Mobile, requires a different approach and different resources.”

via VGC

 

[R3TRODYCE]

PC is becoming a better investment everyday.

 

[Ass of Can Whooping]

Crunch + Work From Office = Success

 

[Killjoy-NL]

Basically what they've been saying for the past 4 years or so.

 

[Represent.]

How vague can you be Herman. Are you still investing in those narrative driven Blockbusters or not.

 

[SlimySnake]

God I hate these suits. just say what you are doing. Re-evaulating is too vague.

Just tell us if you are reducing the investment in GaaS trash. Or if its the other way around. Just be honest and up front and say, if you are going day one PC.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

true leadership

 

[Vick]

Delivering the immersive, narrative-driven stories that PlayStation Studios is known for, at the quality bar that we aspire to, requires a re-evaluation of how we operate.

Do whatever you need to do to keep providing those.

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

3rd parties keeping Playstation afloat lol.

 

[Ass of Can Whooping]

3rd parties keeping Sony afloat lol.

Thank you Xbox for helping

 

[K' Dash]

This has been the shittiest generation, what a fucking mess.

Take me back to 2006.

 

[Wooxsvan]

Crunch + Work From Office = Success

 

[thicc_girls_are_teh_best]

He should've mentioned something about smaller 1P AA games, too. PS kinda really needs those to fill out the release schedule, and they'd be a lot cheaper to make than the AAA tentpole blockbusters.

 

[Varteras]

I fully expect PlayStation to diversify its offerings. I think those big narrative games will keep coming, but at a slower pace. I'm guessing we'll see a first-party that moves away from its PS4 look and gets back to its PS3 days.

 

[Interfectum]

 

[Magic Carpet]

Playstation 5 is already a certified success, over 50 million sold. Everything beyond this is gravy. They don't have to release another 1st party game, they have 'won' the generation. All they have to do is sit back and cash those 3rd party store fees.

 

[tommib]

Fire this idiot before he puts Housemarque working on an Horizon spin off.

 

[Topher]

 

[diffusionx]

Hermann Hulst sucks at this job. He probably thinks it can be fixed by greenlighting another Horizon game.

 

[SlicedBread3]

How vague can you be Herman. Are you still investing in those narrative driven Blockbusters or not.

God I hate these suits. just say what you are doing. Re-evaulating is too vague.

Just tell us if you are reducing the investment in GaaS trash. Or if its the other way around. Just be honest and up front and say, if you are going day one PC.

It kind of reads to me like they're saying: "All our studios that specialise in single player gamers will be dropping the GAAS stuff to be focusing on those. And we'll be looking elsewhere for talent that specialises in multiplayer to carry on the GAAS initiative".

Which would also make sense when you look at which studios have been affected imo.

 

[GymWolf]

I hope he doesn't cut the budget for their single player games, we only need one nintendo and microsoft in this industry.

 

[Represent.]

It kind of reads to me like they're saying: "All our studios that specialise in single player gamers will be dropping the GAAS stuff to be focusing on those. And we'll be looking elsewhere for talent that specialises in multiplayer to carry on the GAAS initiative".

Which would also make sense when you look at which studios have been affected imo.

Well if thats the case they have terrible PR, because that would be good news.

If worded like that there would be celebration instead of panic.

Still RIP to those that lose jobs, but people would be less skeptical of the actual industry

 

[TheTony316]

I fully expect PlayStation to diversify its offerings. I think those big narrative games will keep coming, but at a slower pace. I'm guessing we'll see a first-party that moves away from its PS4 look and gets back to its PS3 days.

That would actually be a great.

 

[ProtoByte]

Well if thats the case they have terrible PR, because that would be good news.

If worded like that there would be celebration instead of panic.

Still RIP to those that lose jobs, but people would be less skeptical of the actual industry

People don't read, and the ones that do rarely read from the direct source unedited. There's gonna be panic based on anything these guys say. Paraphrasing and reframing is rampant in the games media, so getting a close, english-teacher like reading and having everyone take away what they're supposed to take away is impossible.

I don't think Hulst is the best guy for the job at this moment, but as I told you in the other thread, I'm not seeing any red flags here. Not new ones at least.

 

[Ozriel]

Basically what they've been saying for the past 4 years or so.

Corporations don’t make significant layoffs, close a studio, terminate projects and state they’re reevaluating your strategy going forward if that’s just “what they’re been saying for 4 years”

 

[gow3isben]

PS3 generation was the best.

Get back to 8-15 hour linear set piece driven masterpieces!

Don't waste resources on empty useless open worlds.

 

[//DEVIL//]

PC is becoming a better investment everyday.

Honestly couldn't have said it better.

But. Sony still hold keys for some games I like that are very late to come to PC or may not come at all. My ps5 is mainly a gt7 console and soon FF7 rebirth.

I don't want to wait 6 months or 1 year to play it. Sony doesn't have exclusives this year and I am pretty sure they will expend the exclusivity for at least a year away from PC .


My only grip with the PC thing or the mistake I made I would say is that I was able to trade my 4090FE for a white strix 4090 to match my ( what I wanted back then, a complete white build. )

Now I am kinda butthurt about it because I wanted to go small form factor like ssupd meshroom x and I can't because gpu is the size of a boat.

 

[Killjoy-NL]

Corporations don’t make significant layoffs, close a studio, terminate projects and state they’re reevaluating your strategy going forward if that’s just “what they’re been saying for 4 years”

Except they've been saying it for 4 years or so, starting with Shawn Layden.

 

[Bernardougf]

PS3 generation was the best.

Get back to 8-15 hour linear set piece driven masterpieces!

Don't waste resources on empty useless open worlds.

Just finished Dead Space Ramake 14 hrs.. fucking great game loved every minute

 

[Wulfer]

Microsoft right now.

 

[Represent.]

People don't read, and the ones that do rarely read from the direct source unedited. There's gonna be panic based on anything these guys say. Paraphrasing and reframing is rampant in the games media, so getting a close, english-teacher like reading and having everyone take away what they're supposed to take away is impossible.

I don't think Hulst is the best guy for the job at this moment, but as I told you in the other thread, I'm not seeing any red flags here. Not new ones at least.

Theres still a bunch of red flags for me.

Games are too long, too expensive, don't sell nearly enough, and release too infrequently. Games are still looked at as something for kids.

Gamers have been demanding way too much.

First, 8 hours wasn't good enough. Then linear games were bad, everything had to be open world. Then even that wasnt enough, needed more content. Enter the DLC era. Then 70 bucks became too expensive. Then everything had to have 2 modes.

Its simply quantity over quality now

 

[cormack12]

Gamers have been demanding way too much.

Are we though? I don't think anyone ever asked for a 150h Assassin's Creed game for example. And we're always complaining about bloat, and dreaded side quests. I think a lot of this is vanity driven by devs/creatives or led my publishers.

 

[Physiognomonics]

I fully expect PlayStation to diversify its offerings. I think those big narrative games will keep coming, but at a slower pace. I'm guessing we'll see a first-party that moves away from its PS4 look and gets back to its PS3 days.

Since a few years they are doing the contrary to that.

 

[Interfectum]

Theres still a bunch of red flags for me.

Games are too long, too expensive, don't sell nearly enough, and release too infrequently. Games are still looked at as something for kids.

Gamers have been demanding way too much.

First, 8 hours wasn't good enough. Then linear games were bad, everything had to be open world. Then even that wasnt enough, needed more content. Enter the DLC era. Then 70 bucks became too expensive. Then everything had to have 2 modes.

Its simply quantity over quality now

Nah. That's on Sony and developers for focusing on the wrong things. No one asked for Last of Us 2 to be twice as long as the first, they chose that, same with God of War.

Gamers just want good games to play either alone or with their friends. Baldurs Gate, Palworld, Helldivers, etc all proven successes without needing to spend $500 million.

 

[ozz ex machina]

Are we though? I don't think anyone ever asked for a 150h Assassin's Creed game for example. And we're always complaining about bloat, and dreaded side quests. I think a lot of this is vanity driven by devs/creatives or led my publishers.

I don't think the creatives are driving these trends. Like everything it's dictated by the market. It's consumers who value time spent and graphical fidelity which result in these cookie cutter open world third person games full of shit sidequests and bloat.

We need to take a step back and evaluate what "value" is in gaming. It shouldn't be pixel counting or time spent. But quality of the experience, innovation, creativity and on top of all "fun" a concept that seems to have been lost along the way.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

Do whatever you need to do to keep providing those.

You think he means SP.

He means narrative-driven GAAS.

 

[Interfectum]

I don't think the creatives are driving these trends. Like everything it's dictated by the market. It's consumers who value time spent and graphical fidelity which result in these cookie cutter open world third person games full of shit sidequests and bloat.

We need to take a step back and evaluate what "value" is in gaming. It shouldn't be pixel counting or time spent. But quality of the experience, innovation, creativity and on top of all "fun" a concept that seems to have been lost along the way.

That's absolutely false. Steam and Switch disprove this completely.

 

[Represent.]

Nah. That's on Sony and developers for focusing on the wrong things. No one asked for Last of Us 2 to be twice as long as the first, they chose that, same with God of War.

like O ozz ex machina said above me, everything is dictated by the market - consumers want longer games.

Gamers just want good games to play alone or with their friends.

Palworld,

GAAS

Helldivers,

GAAS

We're talking about single player AAA games

etc all proven successes without needing to spend $500 million.

Not successful single player games

 

[solidus12]

Here’s my advice:

-Ditch the pc and mobile efforts
-Sell off Bungie
-Don’t focus on gaas (Helldivers 2 seems to be doing fine)
- Keep releasing amazing single player games
- Release smaller scale games akin to Lost Legacy, and Miles Morales.

 

[AV]

Launch the fucking games on PC day one already. You're not making much money on hardware, I'm buying physical PS5 games and selling them and I'm never subscribing to PS+. I'm literally asking you to let me pay you full price for digital PC games.

 

[Killjoy-NL]

Here’s my advice:

-Ditch the pc and mobile efforts
-Sell off Bungie
-Don’t focus on gaas (Helldivers 2 seems to be doing fine)
- Keep releasing amazing single player games
- Release smaller scale games akin to Lost Legacy, and Miles Morales.

Thing is, to do the bolded they need GaaS titles for the revenue.

 

[Interfectum]

Not successful single player games

BG3, Elden Ring, BotW, Mario Wonder, Animal Crossing, etc didn't cost $500 million to make.

Don't blame gamers because Sony can't manage their games without massive financial bloat.

 

[balls of snow]

In normal human speak: the gaas bubble burst and we are scared shitless of our gaas games still in production. So we gonna cancel as many as we can and refocus on what actual ps gamers love, AAA story driven games. But with the caveat that its probably gonna be as close to day 1 on pc as we possibly can.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Music to my hears.

the "sony game formula" has lost a lot of its appeal. is time to shake it up

 

[cormack12]

I don't think the creatives are driving these trends. Like everything it's dictated by the market. It's consumers who value time spent and graphical fidelity which result in these cookie cutter open world third person games full of shit sidequests and bloat.

We need to take a step back and evaluate what "value" is in gaming. It shouldn't be pixel counting or time spent. But quality of the experience, innovation, creativity and on top of all "fun" a concept that seems to have been lost along the way.

How do you quantify that though when the majority of existing games don't even have a high completion rate of campaigns and story modes?

Biggest selling game of 2023 as an example (PC): https://www.ncesc.com/gaming-pedia/what-percentage-of-people-have-completed-hogwarts-legacy/

34% on PS5, not sure on xbox

 

[TheShocker]

Crunch + Work From Office = Success

Who woulda though showing up to your job and actually working would pay off in a quality product.

 

[Represent.]

BG3, Elden Ring, BotW, Mario Wonder, Animal Crossing, etc didn't cost $500 million to make.

Don't blame gamers because Sony can't manage their games without massive financial bloat.

Those are all long ass, bloated as hell, never ending games except Mario. Which is exactly my point. The only successful single player games these days are long ass 30-100 hour ones with endless bloat.

Name me 1 game that was 8-10 hours that had that level of success since I dont know... The Last of Us in 2013.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

PC is becoming a better investment everyday.

Yep. Don’t need the lay anyone off when you have no exclusives. Derp

 

[Killjoy-NL]

In normal human speak: the gaas bubble burst and we are scared shitless of our gaas games still in production. So we gonna cancel as many as we can and refocus on what actual ps gamers love, AAA story driven games. But with the caveat that its probably gonna be as close to day 1 on pc as we possibly can.

I think people are completely misreading what's being said.

To continue releasing the AAA games we've come to love from Sony, they need to re-evaluate how they keep it sustainable with rising cost and development time.
At the same time, they have to see how they're going to release GaaS, because they need the revenue to fund the aforementioned titles, but this will require a fundamentally different approach that they need to sort out, as almost all their studios are currently specialized in (AAA) singleplayer games.

They've really been talking about it for years.

The major change in Xbox strategy most likely comes into play as well.

 

[Joshmyersbv]

Overflated budgets like Spider-Man 2 and having some of your best studios work on remasters of remakes of games that came out on PS3 or GaaS is probably not good business.