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Gravity Rush/Silent Hill/Siren veterans led by Keiichiro Toyama quit Sony to form Bokeh Studio

Bryank75

Banned
Sad, seems to me that the competition are spending billions to try and build up a strong 1st party and PlayStation are taking what they have had for granted.

Of course the people at the top now didn't build what is there today, so maybe they just don't appreciate it.

That Japanese heritage has been absolutely essential in building the PlayStation identity, they even use that Japanese voice to announce 'PlayStation' on each advertisement.
I expected Sony to invest MORE in Japanese development, not let things go to this point.....

Variety is extremely important. Why has Sony not bought Kadokawa out yet...it fits perfectly with their aspirations in Anime and gaming..... and would garner them one of the most influential studios in the industry right now.....

Sony have left every massive opportunity pass them by the the region..... Atlus, Capcom, From and Gen Design could all be under the PlayStation Studios right now. But Sony's lack of interest is really disappointing.

Apparently Xbox value their customers enough to spend over 10 billion on new studios but Sony can barely scrape 300 million for one of the best studios around that have worked with them for over 20 years. FFS.

Overall, between Japan Studio, Bend, San Diego Studio and talent being poached by The Initiative from ND and SMS....... it seems like Sony is really not doing a good job of preserving or building on what they have.

Not ONE positive story about PS Studios in a very long time...... Not ONE!

Rebranding from WWS to PS Studios must have really taken it out of them.....
 

Topher

Gold Member
Weird. I just started playing Gravity Rush again this week on PS4. Decided to go for platinum while I'm anxiously waiting for Cyberpunk 2077. Incredibly underrated game. Japan Studio's talents were definitely being underutilized so I'm not surprised at all that key folks are leaving. This indeed good news.

And I'm not sure what is going on with Sony but it seems as though they just want to leave their Japanese roots behind.
 

Angelcurio

Member
Sad news indeed, I really enjoyed Gravity Rush 1 and 2. Was somewhat expected though, as soon as they removed Yoshida from WW Studios and put that guy from Guerilla Games in charge, it was clear what their priorities and new general direction were.
 

vkbest

Member
I'm not saying I want less games. I'm just saying that all of Sony's JPN titles have all sold horribly. It's apparent that the majority of PlayStation community aren't interested in their first party JPN titles after the PS3 era.

What do you expect with AA budget and no publicity from Sony?

GR2 for me is in the top 5 exclusives from PS4.
 
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ULTROS!

People seem to like me because I am polite and I am rarely late. I like to eat ice cream and I really enjoy a nice pair of slacks.
I'm not saying I want less games. I'm just saying that all of Sony's JPN titles have all sold horribly. It's apparent that the majority of PlayStation community aren't interested in their first party JPN titles after the PS3 era.

You know, it's sad because despite being an avid Japanese gaming fan, I'm just okay with Sony's Japanese first party output. The ones I legit liked are Wild ARMs (until 2), Alundra (only the first), Tomba (1 + 2), Gravity Rush 1 was a great PSVita title (didn't like 2 as much).

Siren is just okay for me tbh. I didn't super get into LocoRoco, Patapon.
 

Saber

Gold Member
Hope everything turns well to them. Maybe this time they can release their own versions of their games. Kinda sad though.
 
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fvng

Member
If Sony bought up Konami and their IPs it would have been neat to have him work on Silent Hill again. Puppeteer, Siren and Gravity Rush are obviously very good games. Japan Studio just lost a major talent
 
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Kokoloko85

Member
Sad, seems to me that the competition are spending billions to try and build up a strong 1st party and PlayStation are taking what they have had for granted.

Of course the people at the top now didn't build what is there today, so maybe they just don't appreciate it.

That Japanese heritage has been absolutely essential in building the PlayStation identity, they even use that Japanese voice to announce 'PlayStation' on each advertisement.
I expected Sony to invest MORE in Japanese development, not let things go to this point.....

Variety is extremely important. Why has Sony not bought Kadokawa out yet...it fits perfectly with their aspirations in Anime and gaming..... and would garner them one of the most influential studios in the industry right now.....

Sony have left every massive opportunity pass them by the the region..... Atlus, Capcom, From and Gen Design could all be under the PlayStation Studios right now. But Sony's lack of interest is really disappointing.

Apparently Xbox value their customers enough to spend over 10 billion on new studios but Sony can barely scrape 300 million for one of the best studios around that have worked with them for over 20 years. FFS.

Overall, between Japan Studio, Bend, San Diego Studio and talent being poached by The Initiative from ND and SMS....... it seems like Sony is really not doing a good job of preserving or building on what they have.

Not ONE positive story about PS Studios in a very long time...... Not ONE!

Rebranding from WWS to PS Studios must have really taken it out of them.....

Hopefully the will acquire Bluepoint, Kojima studios and Housemarque before buying another big studio. I doubt From Software will be bought because they are owned by Kadokawa, but that would be amazing.

Im glad they bought Insomniac but some Japanese studios and talent is what they need. I do like they are making teams within teams like the new San diego team though
 
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K.S v2.0

Banned
I really am hoping sometime, somehow... Gravity Rush 1 and 2 make it to PC. Especially 2, since while it was playable @ 30fps it just felt like it could be SO so much more...
 

Hudo

Member
Someone get rid of Jim Ryan. Clearl


Hopefully the will acquire Bluepoint, Kojima studios and Housemarque before buying another big studio. I doubt From Software will be bought because they are owned by Kadokawa, but that would be amazing.

Im glad they bought Insomniac but some Japanese studios and talent is what they need. I do like they are making teams within teams like the new San diego team though
Well, Sony could try to buy Nihon Falcom. That would give them an RPG series (The Legend of Heroes) and Ys. And it wouldn't make that much difference to the market because Nihon Falcom are deep in bed with Sony anyway (ports are done via other publishers that publish the game outside of Japan). And yeah, Bluepoint and Housemarque are basically second-party devs already, so they're practically begging to be acquired.
 
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LRKD

Member
Honestly good news, PlayStation of Commiefornia has been a cancer for Japanese gaming. They have been actively working against smaller Japanese studio and their games.

So having them leave, and hopefully be able to work freely is great. If you like niche or AA Japanese games, best thing to do is jump ship and swim to Switch or PC. Somehow even Xbox seems more promising since it is receiving Gal Gun Returns, while PlayStation isn’t.

I pray someday PlayStation won’t continue to treat the average Japanese games and devs so poorly. But I honestly don’t think they ever will, too busy counting huge piles of cash from their mature 3rd person cinematic action games. The PlayStation lots of us had loved and enjoyed is long gone and replaced. When they say ‘For the Players’, they only mean some of us. Not all of us lol.


Thats not true at all,
It is absolutely true! Japan received decent advertising.

But not in the US. At E3 2016 they didn’t even bother showing the trailer during their press conference.
Instead they half assed dropped it in on YouTube and on the PlayStation blog (who the fuck goes there? Lol).

I’d bet the only way 99.9% of people heard about that trailer, was reading a article about how it was one of the best trailers you didn’t see at e3. If that doesn’t show how poorly Sony handled advertising I don’t know what will.

Don’t get me wrong though, this game did have some advertising, but it really was just a single notch up from being non existent. To say it had next to no advertising is absolutely correct.
 
Well, Sony could try to buy Nihon Falcom.

jKIBDHg.jpg


No! Stop with this acquisition nonsense! It's never in the interest of any gamer for a single corporation to have a monopoly on games development.
 

MagnesG

Banned
Well, Sony could try to buy Nihon Falcom. That would give them an RPG series (The Legend of Heroes) and Ys. And it wouldn't make that much difference to the market because Nihon Falcom are deep in bed with Sony anyway (ports are done via other publishers that publish the game outside of Japan). And yeah, Bluepoint and Housemarque are basically second-party devs already, so they're practically begging to be acquired.
Lol they can't even treat their Japan in-house studio right and you want them to acquire a niche Japan studio?
 

Clear

CliffyB's Cock Holster
I wish them all the luck in the world.

That said, what the FUCK is Sony doing.

What are they supposed to be doing? Put their long-term employees in leg-irons?!?

People do tend to move on, especially successful and talented ones. Its also hardly unprecedented in Japan for name devs to leave and setup their own studios.
 

Kokoloko85

Member
Well, Sony could try to buy Nihon Falcom. That would give them an RPG series (The Legend of Heroes) and Ys. And it wouldn't make that much difference to the market because Nihon Falcom are deep in bed with Sony anyway (ports are done via other publishers that publish the game outside of Japan). And yeah, Bluepoint and Housemarque are basically second-party devs already, so they're practically begging to be acquired.

Agreed. I love The legend of Heroes. So much NPC conversation detail
 

Miles708

Member
What are they supposed to be doing? Put their long-term employees in leg-irons?!?

People do tend to move on, especially successful and talented ones. Its also hardly unprecedented in Japan for name devs to leave and setup their own studios.
You're right, but if they feel to have more opportunities outside Sony than inside it, it means something isn't working as intended.

To be clear, I totally expect Sony to fuck-up this generation big time, as story teaches us that they're not fit for long term monopoly. This is only another step towards the ps3 disaster.
 
Just reinforces that my decision to sell my ps5 today was correct.

But you know its nothing new, there was already stories 2-3 years ago that all japanese devlopers had to go through cali hq with any questions (about censoriship and whatnot), in english... in us hours... Japanses playstation branch is as good as dead. I cant imagine its gotten any better now.
 

SilentUser

Member
Gravity Rush 2 remains as one of my fav PS4 titles. But don't fool yourself, that game was a hard sell. Marketing only truly works if there is people desiring or needing the game, and GR2 had none.

Introduced the game to a ton of friends and none of them liked the game. It is a niche title and it wouldn't have the sequel of that scope if it wasn't for Sony. Nintendo would make the game completely different, MS would never care.

Hopefuly the new studio does well, they are certainly talented people. Wish them the best!

And Sony, don't forget the balance you always had. This is one of the biggest selling points you have, imo. Time to truly invest in some JPN and other Asian studios.
 

Hudo

Member
Lol they can't even treat their Japan in-house studio right and you want them to acquire a niche Japan studio?
Yeah, maybe Kondo can become the manager of all SIE Japan-based studios. He seemed to manage Nihon Falcom very well (afaik, the dude basically busted Nihon Falcom out of declining sales and financial troubles). Sony are pretty incompetent anyway when it comes to their Japanese efforts, so they should get help from outside.
 

mejin

Member
Sad news.

GR2 came in january, 2017...ever since it was launched we had some infos Toyama was working in a new game...it is a pity it didn't work.

We can only hope for the best, but if we take Ueda and Gen Design as an example....it should take a long time till they have their first game out and you should also shouldn't expect a big game.
 
You thought they weren't? Sony has sidelined Japan Studio to make free preinstalled minigames to showcase their tech. That's pretty much when they sidelined Shu Yoshida to take care of VR and indies and away from the leadership of worldwide studios.
Sony needs more cinematic 3rd person action adventures.
 

Aion002

Member
Happy for them, since they might make new games.


Sad for Sony... This might be a huge loss in the long run.
 
I get the feeling this is in part what the supposed internal conflict between Layden and Ryan revolved around. Layden might've believed the Japanese branch was still crucial and vital to their platform meanwhile Ryan was opposing that notion. Eventually their superior, or whoever it is/was, sided with Ryan, which lead Layden to reconsider his position and resign.

If I have to be honest, I think a group of gamers actually don't deserve good games. They'd rather use their favored flavor as some kind of pointless victory trophy in their childish backyard console fights. Instead of really appreciating the games, for what they are, they're used as a means to smear the opposition. Its embarrassing and I can imagine this is in part a consequence of it.

Anyways, cheers to the new age of Sony.

great-gatsby-gif-2.gif


Enjoy, you earned it.
 

Clear

CliffyB's Cock Holster
You're right, but if they feel to have more opportunities outside Sony than inside it, it means something isn't working as intended.

Not really, the only advantage you have as an employee of a platform-holder or a big publisher is job security, it sure as hell isn't creative freedom.
There's not an awful lot of difference between funding first and second party from a financial standpoint, because in the long term IP ownership and brand association is what really matters.


To be clear, I totally expect Sony to fuck-up this generation big time, as story teaches us that they're not fit for long term monopoly. This is only another step towards the ps3 disaster.

How so? The issues that led to the PS3's relative lack of success (although in the end it still shipped a lot of units) had nothing to do with the current situation. MS don't have a year's head-start, Cerny's whole strategy is a stunning rebuke to Kutaragi's utter disregard for development comfort and efficiency, and most of all they don't appear to be taking a massive hit subsidizing the hardware and software.

Japan Studio has never been the jewel in Sony's first-party crown; they've not a had a self-produced hit in forever, and the chances of that changing seems slimmer than ever given the state of the console market in Japan.
 

kuncol02

Banned
Not really, the only advantage you have as an employee of a platform-holder or a big publisher is job security, it sure as hell isn't creative freedom.
There's not an awful lot of difference between funding first and second party from a financial standpoint, because in the long term IP ownership and brand association is what really matters.




How so? The issues that led to the PS3's relative lack of success (although in the end it still shipped a lot of units) had nothing to do with the current situation. MS don't have a year's head-start, Cerny's whole strategy is a stunning rebuke to Kutaragi's utter disregard for development comfort and efficiency, and most of all they don't appear to be taking a massive hit subsidizing the hardware and software.

Japan Studio has never been the jewel in Sony's first-party crown; they've not a had a self-produced hit in forever, and the chances of that changing seems slimmer than ever given the state of the console market in Japan.

Competition says different things:
"Compulsion Games isn't worried about losing creative freedom under Microsoft's banner as part of Xbox Game Studios. The development team behind We Happy Few actually asserts that the Microsoft acquisition has afforded them the chance to more easily focus on the studio's future.

"That's actually removed a lot of the focus from finding where we're going to find the next paycheck to actually concentrating on what is it that we need to make great games," founder and creative director Guillaume Provost said in The Cost of Joy, a documentary recounting the history of Compulsion Games. "I can be more forward-looking to what we actually need in order to actually succeed. And [there's] a huge difference from having a big backer like Microsoft that's allowing us our creative space and our creative freedom, from being an independent developer that's starving all the time and looking for money. Build the team not just for the next game, but for the next series of games."

"Trying to maintain creativity inside an organization like Microsoft is not as hard as people think it is," producer Sam Abbott said. "It's really just about having a leadership group inside Microsoft that understands the value of creativity and creative games." Community developer Naila Hadjas added, "We have been told to keep making really weird, just different things. So, on the creative standpoint, it's just been all positive."
"
 

longdi

Banned
Just reinforces that my decision to sell my ps5 today was correct.

But you know its nothing new, there was already stories 2-3 years ago that all japanese devlopers had to go through cali hq with any questions (about censoriship and whatnot), in english... in us hours... Japanses playstation branch is as good as dead. I cant imagine its gotten any better now.

Shocking.... :messenger_open_mouth:
The SCE outta the door have be ongoing since Jim took the helm, not just japan too.

Dollar bet that Jim will take away SCEJ rights to design the PS5Pro, and give it his SCEE branch.
Because PS5 design got strong mixed signals and its a great opportunity for Jim to do his culling and consolidation.
 
Shocking.... :messenger_open_mouth:
The SCE outta the door have be ongoing since Jim took the helm, not just japan too.

Dollar bet that Jim will take away SCEJ rights to design the PS5Pro, and give it his SCEE branch.
Because PS5 design got strong mixed signals and its a great opportunity for Jim to do his culling and consolidation.

Ryan is honestly not the problem, these things where set in motion long before he became ceo. if you want to blame anyone blame kodera
 

Clear

CliffyB's Cock Holster
Competition says different things:
"Compulsion Games isn't worried about losing creative freedom under Microsoft's banner as part of Xbox Game Studios. The development team behind We Happy Few actually asserts that the Microsoft acquisition has afforded them the chance to more easily focus on the studio's future.

"That's actually removed a lot of the focus from finding where we're going to find the next paycheck to actually concentrating on what is it that we need to make great games," founder and creative director Guillaume Provost said in The Cost of Joy, a documentary recounting the history of Compulsion Games. "I can be more forward-looking to what we actually need in order to actually succeed. And [there's] a huge difference from having a big backer like Microsoft that's allowing us our creative space and our creative freedom, from being an independent developer that's starving all the time and looking for money. Build the team not just for the next game, but for the next series of games."

"Trying to maintain creativity inside an organization like Microsoft is not as hard as people think it is," producer Sam Abbott said. "It's really just about having a leadership group inside Microsoft that understands the value of creativity and creative games." Community developer Naila Hadjas added, "We have been told to keep making really weird, just different things. So, on the creative standpoint, it's just been all positive."
"

Compulsion stands to benefit because We Happy Few didn't set the world on fire. Their next project would have required them to get funding and when your last project wasn't a hit then the odds are stacked against you. Same goes for most of MS other acquisitions during that round, they were mostly serial underachievers. The only studio with a recent hit that wasn't already deeply in bed with Xbox was Ninja Theory, and they are studio who's had every opportunity imaginable over the years and failed to generate a hit franchise apart from Senua.

A title that in all fairness was kind of a fluke, one-off success story, and as evidenced by the fact that despite it being developed ostensibly under this alleged "indie AAA" model that was going to revolutionize independent development, their next move was to sell out to a new corporate master! Yeah, you really showed us the way with that Tameem...
 

Elios83

Member
Unfortunately while the talent was undoubtedly there, their games had zero commercial success.
Siren has never been a big series (actually it was very niche) and the Gravity Rush series totally bombed, it started on Vita in 2012, it got a full chance on PS4 with a full sequel plus a remaster of the original and the result didn't change. With these results probably Sony didn't want to give them the chance to do something big and they decided to try to do new things on their own. I think it's fair and good luck to them, same thing with Ueda who is now developing a game for Epic after the 8-10 years odyssey to develop The Last Guardian.
 
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GonSama

Member
Sad news...



It's a shame that the Gravity Rush games had low sales. I really enjoyed playing them.
And Siren it's another "hidden gem" for the PS3.
Bluepoint should release a remaster/remake of the trilogy.
 
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longdi

Banned
Ryan is honestly not the problem, these things where set in motion long before he became ceo. if you want to blame anyone blame kodera

It seems sony musical chairs started rolling and ryan shortly took over.

ultimately jimbo can arrest the slide, but he seems to doubled down on the changes 🤷‍♀️
 

Killer8

Member
Japan Studio really peaked in the late 2000s. Their output has been anemic since then. Kind of depressing to see them put out just a handful of titles a year now, if that, and half of them are remasters.

When they do bother to make games, they can still be amazing (Astro) but they release too few and far between.
 
Can't blame Sony for Japanese gamers not being interested in consoles.

Sony can keep flogging the dead horse or pivot to the West in order to keep the business alive. And PlayStation 5 will still be getting all the ports of Japanese games.
 
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