Bend Studio Vows to Create 'Cool Stuff' Despite Sony's Live Service Cancellation

The developer behind the popular game Days Gone, Bend Studio, remains committed to creating innovative content despite the recent cancellation of their unannounced live-service game by parent company Sony. Last week, Sony pulled the plug on two unannounced live-service projects, one from Bend Studio and another from Bluepoint Games. While Bluepoint was reportedly working on a live-service version of God of War, as reported by Bloomberg's Jason Schreier, the specifics of Bend Studio's project remain undisclosed.

A spokesperson from Sony confirmed these cancellations to Bloomberg, reassuring that neither studio would be shut down. Instead, Sony plans to collaborate with both studios to explore future projects. This move comes amidst Sony's broader struggles with its live-service game initiatives. While Arrowhead's Helldivers 2 achieved remarkable success, selling 12 million copies in just 12 weeks and becoming the fastest-selling PlayStation Studios game ever, other ventures like Concord have faced significant challenges.

Concord is now considered one of the most notable failures in PlayStation's history, surviving only a few weeks before being taken offline due to low player engagement. Sony eventually decided to terminate the game and close its developer. This followed the cancellation of Naughty Dog's The Last of Us multiplayer project. Former PlayStation executive Shuhei Yoshida expressed that he would have resisted Sony's push into live-service games if he were in the position of current Sony Interactive Entertainment Studio Business Group CEO Hermen Hulst.

In response to the cancellations, Bend Studio's community manager Kevin McAllister took to social media to thank fans for their support and hinted at future projects, stating, "Thanks for the love and support everyone, especially to those that have reached out. P.S. We still plan on creating cool shit."

Bend Studio's most recent release was Days Gone in 2019 for the PlayStation 4, which later saw a PC release in 2021. In a recent financial call, Sony's president, COO, and CFO Hiroki Totoki discussed the lessons learned from the contrasting fortunes of Helldivers 2 and Concord. Totoki emphasized the need for earlier development checkpoints, such as user testing and internal evaluations, to identify and address issues before a game's launch.

Totoki also highlighted Sony's organizational structure, suggesting that a more integrated approach across departments could have mitigated some of the issues faced by Concord. He noted the game's unfortunate release timing, which coincided with the launch of the successful Black Myth: Wukong on PS5 and PC, potentially leading to market cannibalization.

During the same financial call, Sony's senior vice president for finance and IR, Sadahiko Hayakawa, compared the launches of Helldivers 2 and Concord, stating that the company would share the lessons learned across its studios. Hayakawa emphasized the importance of enhancing development management and post-launch content strategies to strengthen Sony's overall game development system.

Looking ahead, Sony aims to balance its portfolio with both single-player games, which have a higher predictability of success due to established IPs, and live-service games that offer potential growth despite the inherent risks. Several PlayStation live-service games are still in development, including Bungie's Marathon, Guerrilla's Horizon Online, and Haven Studio's Fairgame$.