Bend Studio Dev Says 'We Still Plan on Creating Cool S**t' After Sony Live Service Cancelation

Bend Studio, the developer behind Days Gone, remains committed to creating exciting new games despite Sony's cancellation of its unannounced live-service title. This follows Sony's recent decision to scrap two unannounced live-service projects, one from Bend Studio and another from Bluepoint Games (reportedly a God of War live-service game). While Sony confirmed the cancellations, it reassured fans that neither studio would be closed and that future projects are being planned.

Sony's foray into live-service gaming has been a mixed bag. The success of Arrowhead's Helldivers 2, a record-breaking PlayStation Studios title, stands in stark contrast to the failures of other ventures. The disastrous launch and subsequent shutdown of Concord, described as one of PlayStation's biggest gaming failures, highlights the challenges faced. This follows the earlier cancellation of Naughty Dog's The Last of Us multiplayer game. Former PlayStation executive Shuhei Yoshida even commented that he would have resisted Sony's aggressive push into live-service games.

Bend Studio's community manager, Kevin McAllister, offered reassurance to fans via Twitter, stating their intention to continue developing "cool stuff." Their last release was Days Gone in 2019 (with a PC port in 2021).

Sony's financial call shed light on the lessons learned from both the success of Helldivers 2 and the failure of Concord. Hiroki Totoki, Sony's president, COO, and CFO, emphasized the need for earlier user testing and internal evaluations to identify and address potential problems before launch. He also cited Sony's "siloed organization" and Concord's unfortunate release window (close to Black Myth: Wukong) as contributing factors to its failure. Sadahiko Hayakawa, Sony's senior vice president for finance and IR, further highlighted the contrasting experiences of Helldivers 2 and Concord, emphasizing the importance of sharing lessons learned across studios. Sony plans to balance its portfolio, focusing on its strengths in single-player titles while carefully managing the risks associated with live-service games.

Despite these setbacks, several PlayStation live-service games are still under development, including Bungie's Marathon, Guerrilla's Horizon Online, and Haven Studio's Fairgame$.