Shuhei Yoshida, head of the independent developer initiative at Sony Interactive Entertainment, will leave the company on January 15th, 2025. After joining Sony Corporation in April 1986, Yoshida joined the initial team behind PlayStation headed by Ken Kutaragi in February 1993. He’s been with Sony’s gaming division for over 31 years.
On the Official PlayStation Podcast, Yoshida explained his decision while joking about the announcement being similar to the “launch date of a new game.” “I’ve been with PlayStation from the beginning, and this is my 31st year with PlayStation. When I hit 30 years, I was thinking, hmm, it may be time for me to move on. You know, the company’s been doing great.
“I love [PlayStation 5], I love the games coming out on this platform. And we have new generations of management who I respect and admire. And I’m so excited for the future of PlayStation. So you know, PlayStation is in really good hands. I thought, okay, this is my time.”
Yoshida has a storied history with Sony, acting as executive producer for titles like Ape Escape, Gran Turismo, The Legend of Dragoon, and more. He even served as president of Sony Computer Entertainment’s Worldwide Studios (which became PlayStation Studios). He would step down in November 2019 and join the independent developer initiative as its head.
“When I was managing [PlayStation Studios] working with big studios, making AAA games was great. However, when I went to events like E3 or Gamescom, I always went to the indie game area. I found games I liked, and oftentimes, the developer was there showcasing them. So I’d take a photo with the developer, trying to help promote these games.”
Aside from a few upcoming events like The Game Awards in December, the Taipei Game Show in January, and the DICE Summit in February, Yoshida has no plans for the future. He is keen to continue helping “indie developers or publishers if they need me”, and stay in the industry, per a recent tweet.
“I enjoy my free time…I would like to continue to help indie developers or indie publishers if they need me. So I’ll probably continue to help these creative, talented indie teams in the future.”
No, I’d like to stay in the industry 🙂
— Shuhei Yoshida (@yosp) November 27, 2024
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