PlayStation CEO aims to rejuvenate the gaming landscape with live service titles following Bungie layoffs.

PlayStation’s CEO and President, Hideaki Nishino, recently reaffirmed the company’s commitment to live service games, but the timing of his remarks couldn’t have been worse. This announcement coincided with Sony’s decision to lay off hundreds of developers at Bungie, the studio known for Destiny 2 and Marathon.

In an interview, Nishino expressed his belief that live service games have the potential to attract a global audience, stating, “We want to continue to revitalize the market through both first-party and third-party content.” He emphasized that the focus would be shared between established titles and new projects like Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls.

He further noted, “With live service games, it’s important to continuously provide something. The genre itself is relatively new, and I think many people are trying various things, so we also want to continue to take on challenges within that context.”

PlayStation’s journey with live service games has been rocky this decade. While Helldivers 2 found some success, many other titles have struggled to meet expectations. The sci-fi shooter Concord was infamously shut down just two weeks after launch, and live service projects tied to the God of War and The Last of Us franchises were canceled during development.

Sony’s acquisition of Bungie in 2022 aimed to enhance its live service development capabilities, but Destiny 2 has seen a decline in player numbers since the acquisition, and Marathon has not performed as well as hoped, despite a more positive reception. Earlier this month, Sony ended support for Destiny 2 and laid off numerous developers working on the game.

Given this context, Nishino’s comments seem out of touch. With the company letting go of many skilled live service developers and facing a challenging track record in this area, the push for a successful live service hit feels ambitious. Currently, the live service games in development include the fighting game Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls, the co-op spin-off Horizon Hunters Gathering, the shooter Fairgame$, and an undisclosed project from the new studio Team LFG.