It’s no secret that there’s tons of money to be made in the mobile gaming space. That’s a fact that more companies are becoming keenly aware of at a rapid pace, and we’re seeing more and more major companies and franchises making the jump to mobile gaming. Sony has indicated in the recent past that it intends to do the same with the biggest PlayStation franchises under its belt, and during its recent corporate strategy meeting, it did so again.
PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan remarked during the meeting that Sony has been experimenting with mobile games with some success of late, and intends to expand its audience to “millions of gamers” beyond the confines of PlayStation by entering the space. Ryan notes that Sony’s strategy will be to adapt IPs to mobile gaming so that they can “complement our AAA games or live service games.”
“The content developed by PlayStation Studios these past 25 years has created a wealth of IP and provided PlayStation with immersive experiences that evoke emotions and bring players on a journey,” he said (via VGC). “We have been thinking about how players enjoy our content and have had some early success with experimenting with mobile games and apps to provide more choice to gamers. Mobile is just one of the areas we are exploring to reach millions of gamers beyond our platforms.”
“PlayStation has a huge catalog of diverse first-party IP that can transition to smartphone gaming and complement our AAA games or live service games,” he continued. “We are exploring the mobile market with some wonderful PlayStation franchises so please stay tuned. Through investments in IP, Group collaboration within Sony, investment in Social and Mobile, we are excited for the opportunity to continue to expand our community and welcome millions of new gamers to the PlayStation family.”
Given Sony’s focus on premium, narrative-driven single player games where first party PlayStation efforts are concerned, it should be interesting to see which of their properties they have identified as potential mobile success stories, and how they plan to adapt them. Of course, the likes of Gran Turismo and Twisted Metal come to mind, while multiplayer experiences such as Killzone can also make that jump.
We should find out soon enough either way, so stay tuned.