PlayStation’s Live Service Game Plans Exceeded Our Expectations

There’s a buzz in the gaming community about a potential flood of PlayStation live service games on the horizon, thanks to a recent leak. Sony, it seems, might be diving deeper into this territory than anyone expected. It’s not surprising for big names in gaming to experiment with various projects, but this particular leak raises eyebrows over whether there’s an overemphasis on games-as-a-service (GaaS).

Numerous PlayStation Studios Join the Live Service Trend

According to an investigative dive by TheGamePost, concept art and early designs from at least two yet-to-be-announced live service games emerged, hinting at their development within Firesprite. One project reportedly had a gritty post-apocalyptic vibe, while another aimed to enter the sci-fi battle royale arena.

To stay clear of any copyright issues, I won’t be sharing those images here, but you can definitely check them out on TheGamePost. It seems a former artist from Firesprite included various weapon designs and snippets about these projects in their portfolio. Allegedly, the world might never see the post-apocalyptic game as it was shelved, while the sci-fi battle royale concept got transferred to another developer after being sold off.

Rumors also suggested Firesprite was crafting a Twisted Metal live service game, yet this too was apparently abandoned. Sony’s decision to throw several studios with limited live service experience into the mix is concerning, especially after what happened with the Concord fiasco.

The trend doesn’t stop with Firesprite and Firewalk. Over at Haven Studios, Fairgame$ is under development. Meanwhile, a planned multiplayer component for Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us has been shelved. On the other hand, Bungie is knee-deep in creating Marathon, Bend Studio might be cooking up a multiplayer game, and despite whispers of a Spider-Man multiplayer project at Insomniac Games, it was apparently scrapped. Not to be left out, a multiplayer game set in the Horizon universe is reportedly brewing.