End of an era: Japan Studio no longer on the list of PlayStation development teams, Sony says hails one of its pillars
The official website of PlayStation has also officially removed Japan Studio from the list of its development teams. The list, which includes Insomniac Games, Naughty Dog and many others, now no longer includes the historic Japanese member. We now have to replace it Team Asobi, a former division of the team itself, to which we owe the brilliant title pre-installed in every copy of PS5, Astro’s Playroom. We are not exactly strangers to the new Sony and its tendency to occasionally deny its past, but for the historical fans of the hardware house it could still be a considerable blow.
Japan Studio and the farewell of PlayStation
Japan Studio’s unconventional removal from PlayStation’s wings shouldn’t be particularly surprising. Sony has in fact recently liquidated a large part of the staff in the development team following a change in the organizational structure this year. The studio has been an integral part of Sony since its humble beginnings with the then unreleased Ape Escape, moving on to newer franchises like Gravity Rush and Shadow of the Colossus. These are just a few examples, however, and hardly show the full potential of the Japanese giant, especially for those who have always known and loved it.
According to the people most involved and their statements to the foreign press, this is generally about profits. The development team has proven itself less lucrative than others, which have churned out much more well-known and famous Sony IPs. This echoes the recent report that Sony’s insistence on triple-A exclusives is causing a lot of headaches for less profitable teams in the eyes of the cobalt-tinted console titan. We will update you in case of further news.
Now it’s up to you to tell us yours: what do you think of this change? Let us know below, and as always don’t forget to stay on TechGameWorld.com for all the most important news for gamers and more. For your purely gaming needs, you can instead find the best discounts in digital format on Instant Gaming.