Sony’s recent acquisition of Bungie, the developer behind the successful live service game Destiny, has left many wondering if the gaming giant is late to the live service party. While Sony has announced plans for ten live service games to be released in the next six years, the industry has seen a decrease in interest in the genre, leaving many to question if live service games still have any life left in them.
The popularity of live service games like Destiny, Fortnite, and Apex Legends during the eighth generation of gaming led many publishers to believe that the model was a surefire way to generate recurring revenue. However, numerous copycat games failed to replicate the success of these hits, leading to an oversaturated market and a decrease in interest among gamers.
Despite the numerous failures in the live service space, Sony seems committed to their new direction, with plans for ten live service games in the works. However, based on Sony’s history of success with high-quality single-player narrative-focused games, it’s unclear if their foray into live service will yield positive results.
Sony’s past ventures into trend-chasing have led to lackluster sales figures and discontinuation of services, while their focus on refined single-player experiences like God of War and Spider-Man have resulted in countless wildly popular and entertaining first-party PlayStation games. Shifting resources away from these successful projects in favor of live service games may kill Sony’s momentum as the generation progresses.
While Sony’s acquisition of Bungie and focus on live service games may seem like a gamble, only time will tell if it pays off for the gaming giant. With the industry seeing a decrease in interest in the genre, Sony may need to rely on their tried-and-true formula of high-quality single-player games to maintain their position as one of the industry’s leaders.
