Since then, Sony has released one title that follows the controversial Games-as-a-Service model, MLB The Show 2022. However, it appears that Sony Interactive Entertainment wants to triple this number before this fiscal year ends. SIE CEO, Jim Ryan, confirmed the company’s live-service endeavors for FY2023 in a recent presentation. As leaked online, one of the slides shows that SIE has three live-service games planned for FY2023, which ends in March 2023. This means that, on top of MLB The Show 2022, PlayStation fans can look forward to at least two more live-service games coming to the PS5 (and maybe even the PS4) soon. Unfortunately, Ryan stopped short of confirming the title of these games. We might have to wait at least a month before we start hearing more about the unannounced projects. At the moment, Sony is busy with the rollout of the new PS Plus.
— @Zuby_Tech (@Zuby_Tech) May 25, 2022 As we’ve already mentioned, Sony has never kept its live-service aspirations a secret. Earlier this year, Sony announced that it wanted to release at least 10 live-service games by 2026. The recent slides don’t just reflect that number, it actually improves on it. During the briefing, Ryan clarified that Sony sees live service titles as those “with no end” as Sony now prepares to launch three in FY23, four in FY24, and at least a pair in FY2025. In addition to this, Ryan implied during the briefing that part of Sony’s upcoming live-service slate is also coming to PC. It’s been interesting to watch Sony change its stance in recent years. It wasn’t so long ago that the console manufacturer insisted on keeping its first-party titles on its consoles, and for a good reason - its games sell well. 2018’s God of War, for example, sold 19.5 million copies on the PS4 alone. Even a relatively niche title like FromSoftware’s Bloodborne can sell at least 2 million units on just the PS4. Sony had every reason to bet on the strength of its first-party library. However, ever since porting over Horizon Zero Dawn to the PC in 2019, Sony’s become more open to bringing its exclusives to at least the PC platform. Since then, exclusives like Days Gone, God of War, and Death Stranding, have had native ports launch on desktops with Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection coming soon, among potentially several others. Going back to the briefing, one of the slides reveals that Sony expects to make $300 million on PC for the current financial year. Altogether, Horizon Zero Dawn, Day’s Gone, and God of War, only made nearly $110 million. To expect almost triple the said amount either suggests that even more PC ports (maybe Ghost of Tsushima?) of best-selling PlayStation franchises are coming or that the GaaS games coming to the PC aren’t going to be free like MLB The Show 2022. For now, we are at the mercy of Sony’s next showcase and/or official announcement. In the meantime, you can join the rumor mill, where the latest grapevine talk suggests that one of Sony’s planned live service games is the standalone multiplayer offshoot of The Last of Us, which, last we heard, isn’t going to be Factions anymore. Some are also speculating that it’s going to be the long-gestating Twisted Metal revival.
