Enough has been said about SOCOM, the famous tactical team shooter, and it eventually coming to PlayStation 4. Sadly, there’s been no confirmation of a sequel anytime soon. In an interview with PS Nation following PlayStation Experience 2015, president of Sony Worldwide Studios for SCE Shuhei Yoshida about the reason for the same.

Speaking about the dedication of PlayStation players, Yoshida stated that, “I appreciate the passion and their [fans] dedication. Every time there is a chance to voice their opinion or things they want to see come back. The latest that I understand had over 10,000 people signed up? So there is high expectations and when there is a rumor we are bringing back some of the PS2 games, they are like oh!…SOCOM was one of the PS2 titles, they want to see it and it wasn’t there. I thought I had to address that because there was such a high expectation. I said we had nothing that we can talk about and we don’t have plans for a new SOCOM game anytime soon.”

Apparently this made a lot of people upset with some asking Yoshida to leave the industry.

“That made some people really angry and I have been bombarded with angry messages. Some people say that I don’t qualify for my job, I should leave this industry and something like that. So I appreciate the passion but it’s not easy to bring back.

“In an online game…you know moved on. So much of quality and production values, everything is way, way higher. People have great memories of playing these games many years ago but people’s experiences have moved on as well. So even if they say that they had a great time and they want to experience it again they may not know how much higher their own expectations have become.”

Yoshida further states that it’s a matter of gauging interest and balancing things out. “We have to gauge the interest and what they are saying and what they really want to see or play. We have to balance that with what we can do with the number of people who will enjoy that and we don’t have a good answer to that. So it’s a hard one. We made the game. It’s not like we did not liked the game. We are extremely proud of what our teams have accomplished during that days, but we have to balance everything.”

What are your thoughts on Yoshida’s stance? Let us know in the comments below.

For those who were hoping that this week’s PSX would bring some big news about a couple of beloved classic games, it appears as if Sony boss Shuhei Yoshida has thrown some cold water on your dreams. Yoshida has been very active over Twitter in the last couple of days, something that is a bit of a change from the norm.

He addressed a number of different rumors that started flying soon after the event got started, but two that had gained the most steam was talk about a PS4 version of Socom and even Crash Bandicoot. While it seems as though the Socom talk materialized out of thin air for the most part, the Crash Bandicoot talk started when one of the event’s presenters strolled onstage with a shirt featuring the well known creature. Yoshida was asked about the possibility of the two games making an appearance anytime soon and Yoshida has shot those rumors down rather easily saying, “We have nothing to announce about SOCOM, thanks for your passion though.”

Yoshida was also busy making sure people understood that the PS2 games that were recently brought to the PS4 were not signs of backwards compatibility but instead were basically remasters of those game that now also have trophy support on the PS4. He even got to explain that he thinks the remake of Final Fantasy 7 being episodic will be better for the game. Despite there being nothing to announce about Socom yet, Yoshida has said in the past that Sony isn’t done with the franchise so we’ll just keep waiting.

A veteran game developer named Charles N Cox who worked on SWAT, MAG, and SOCOM has posted on his blog that he had enough for first person shooters.

Now, those games are… err, not something that sell really well, but his reasoning makes sense.

“Money isn’t an acceptable stand-in for ethical behavior. Just as legality doesn’t equal morality, so too does profit fail to imply ethical superiority. Great, we’re all making these games. Should we? Did we ever ask?”

“Screw it, I’ve been in the business a full, stormy, self-doubting decade and the world can hear me loud and clear: I will never work on a first-person shooter game, ever again. Period,” He wrote on his blog.

“The problem here is that money isn’t an acceptable stand-in for ethical behavior. Just as legality doesn’t equal morality (seriously, it doesn’t, spread the word), so too does profit fail to imply ethical superiority. Great, we’re all making these games. Should we? Did we ever ask?” he wrote. “I had an experience that forced my hand – I haven’t stopped asking since.”

It would have been awesome if he had made a new SOCOM game but even Sony doesn’t seem to be interested anymore after they shuttered Zipper Interactive.

Tell us what you think in the comments section below.

It’s not done. We never definitely retire any franchise. It’s sometimes great to have a fresh look at the classics that we have…Never say never. I feel sorry for people who are longtime SOCOM fans, and there are many people who still play SOCOM 1 and SOCOM 2, especially those seem to be their favorites.

While it’s good to hear that SOCOM continues, this doesn’t indicate when we’ll see a new title in the franchise.

Which begs the question: What about MAG? What about news on that, maybe a possible sequel? Where’s the love, people?!

Nonetheless, it’d be great to see a new SOCOM game, maybe an HD collection of the entire franchise. What say, Sony?

Source: MP1st

The shutdown begins on 1st October, affecting Motorstorm: Pacific Ridge, Arctic Edge and SOCOM Fireteam Bravo 2 and 3.

Fireteam Bravo 2 was only released in 2010, meaning its online connectivity will have only been active for some two and a half years.

Also on the chopping block is PSP title Eye of Judgement: Legends, to be taken offline on 31st August.

After earlier reports that Sony was closing down Zipper Interactive, the studio that handles the SOCOM franchise, it’s been confirmed.

After 17 years of being founded, the studio is being shut down by parent company Sony Computer Entertainment. In a Twitter post, the developers bid their fans a hearty farewell.

“After 17 years it’s time to head off into the sunset,” they said. “A sincere thank you to all our fans for everything you’ve done for us. Farewell.” Sony hasn’t confirmed the exact reasons for this, but it’s been a long time coming, seeing as Zipper Interactive delivered several unsuccessful games in quick succession.

The studio was already downsized after SOCOM 4. Even MAG and Unit 13, great games in their own rights, did not do very well in commercial terms.

It’s extremely sad to see such a talented developer go. Shame, really. And what the hell is Sony going to do with SOCOM now?

On SOCOM’s official site, Zipper Interactive posted:

“Dear SOCOM faithful,

Some of you may have heard through your favorite media outlets that SOCOM 4 is now a 2011 title, and we are writing this letter to you, our community, to confirm that SOCOM 4 is indeed scheduled for release in 2011.

While we’re certainly aware that you’ve been looking forward to playing SOCOM 4 this year, we don’t want to take any shortcuts. Instead, we want to deliver the best and most immersive SOCOM game we possibly can and we’re going to use our extra time to do just that.

Over the coming months, you can expect further updates on our 2011 release, in addition to other gameplay and feature announcements on the official SOCOM 4 blog, which can be found at blog.socom.com.

On behalf of everyone here at Zipper Interactive, we want to thank you for being patient and thank you for sticking with us — it will be worth the wait.

Sincerely,

The SOCOM 4 Team”

I’m not in a hurry, guys. Your last title, MAG, released earlier this year, was prettygood- but that’s about it, it was nothing remarkable. Something I would attribute to a few rough edges and a general lack of polish. The game’s response at retail, which was tepid, would tend to reinforce my statement.

Just take your time, and, as you have said, make it the best game you can. Good luck, and I look forward to SOCOM 4.

Please be warned, Spoilers ahead…

Further in the game, trying not to spoil too much, you’ll be taken back to a battlefield in the Gulf War, and you’re all alone behind enemy lines. The level takes place in Iraq and you’ll be fighting local militia.
This certain level is very much Socom style as the gameplay mechanics differ a bit from the rest of the game. 

Below is a 3-minute off-screen (HD) video demonstrating what we just talked about, but please be advised, spoilers at the end of the video..