PlayStation Veteran Claims Japan Studio Shut Down Due to Inability to Create Blockbuster Titles Like God of War or Uncharted

Since the closure of Japan Studio in April 2021, many gamers have been left scratching their heads over Sony’s decision to shut down a studio that produced iconic titles like Ape Escape, Shadow of the Colossus, and Ico—games that were pivotal in shaping the early PlayStation experience.

Shuhei Yoshida, the former president of Sony Interactive Entertainment, shares in the disbelief, offering an explanation that might surprise some: the studio was deemed incapable of creating the blockbuster titles necessary to drive PlayStation 5 sales, such as God of War and Uncharted.

This insight comes from a recent translation of Yoshida’s remarks at the Computer Entertainment Developers Conference on July 22. He noted that fans frequently question the rationale behind the studio’s closure, and he finds the situation just as perplexing. “Players from around the world have said that it’s unbelievable that Sony would shut down Japan Studio,” Yoshida remarked. “Japan Studio released loads of games, creative games, didn’t it? At that time I was saying something similar.”

After the studio’s closure, Sony claimed that Japan Studio was simply “re-organized” and merged with Team Asobi, the developers behind Astro Bot. However, sources indicated that most of Japan Studio’s team had been let go before this merger, with key figures like Demon’s Souls producer Teruyuki Toriyama and Gravity Rush director Keiichiro Toyama leaving months earlier.

Yoshida expressed concern for the Japanese developers at Japan Studio, stating, “At that time, as the head of development, I was worried about [Keiichiro] Toyama [creator of Silent Hill] and the other Japanese developers at Japan Studio. But while they came up with a lot of creative ideas, the games they made weren’t big in scale. What we call AA games are a perfect fit for the PlayStation Vita, but we were slowly shifting to AAA on the PS4 and PS5, and sometimes it’s difficult to scale up like that… As a company, PlayStation wanted to drive hardware sales with games like God of War and Uncharted, because that’s the kind of game that’s in demand… It’s hard for Japan Studio to launch a new series on console.”

This shift in focus has led Sony to prioritize live-service games that haven’t resonated with players since Japan Studio’s closure. The absence of a new Uncharted title only adds to the confusion, especially considering that Naughty Dog has been busy with The Last of Us Online for several years.

While these major titles are released at a snail’s pace, many gamers who already own the consoles would likely appreciate some smaller, AA-budget games to fill the gap. It will be interesting to see if Sony maintains this hardware-centric strategy when the PlayStation 6 eventually launches, a console that may be out of reach for many.