Sony is reportedly pulling away from PC when it comes to single-player PlayStation games to focus more on console exclusivity.
Various comments from credible sources, including Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier and Digital Foundry’s John Linneman, indicate PC has become less important for Sony, and that single-player PlayStation exclusives may remain just that.
Speaking on the Triple Click Podcast, Schreier indicated that Sony will continue to release its live service games on PC as well as PlayStation, but “the sense I’m getting is that they’re backing away from putting their exclusive console stuff like traditional single-player stuff on PC.”
Schreier pointed to Insomniac’s Wolverine, due out on PS5 exclusively this September, which he suggested may never come to PC.
Schreier then suggested Sony hasn’t seen significant commercial success putting its single-player games on PC. “It doesn’t seem like it’s going to be that big of a blow,” he added. First-party single-player PlayStation games that have made the jump to PC include Marvel’s Spider-Man, God of War, The Last of Us, Ghost of Tsushima, and Days Gone.
In a post on ResetEra, Schreier said his comments were “not speculation, but sometimes topics come up on the show before I’m quite ready to publish a story about them. More to come soon I’m sure.”
Digital Foundry’s John Linneman said something similar on Digital Foundry Direct. “I actually have an inkling that they’re pulling away from PC,” Linneman said. “Watch this space. I get the feeling that under the current leadership, PC has become less important.”
“One might argue that the Jim Ryan era, the one positive thing to come out of it is this shift to PC. But I’m not confident they have a huge vision for PC going forward. Not to say we won’t still see some PC games happening. But I think it’s not going to become more PC focused. I think if anything it’s going to become less. This is the reason I don’t think they would ever consider a PC launcher, like going bigger on PC at the expense of console. I think console is where they want to be.”
IGN has asked Sony for comment.
Sony has in recent years expanded PlayStation to PC, but refrained from going as far as console rival Microsoft, which releases all its games on PC at the same time as console. Sony, however, has employed a staggered approach, releasing its single-player PlayStation games on PC after a period of console exclusivity. When it comes to live service games like Helldivers 2 it’s a different story, with Sony publishing on PC day-one — and in the case of Arrowhead’s third-person action game, to record-breaking success. Indeed, Sony-owned Bungie is about to launch live service extraction shooter Marathon across PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X and S at the same time. Guerrilla’s live-service multiplayer Horizon spinoff, Hunters Gathering, is set for PC and PS5, as is MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls.
The reports cast doubt on the likes of Wolverine ever coming out on PC. But there are more games to consider here. We had assumed Sucker Punch’s Ghost of Yōtei would eventually hit PC having launched on PS5 last year, but will it? Will Housemarque’s Saros?
It’s worth noting recent reports that Sony may have to delay the release of the PlayStation 6 to 2028 or even 2029 as a result of the AI-fueled chip crisis. In January, an analyst report suggested that Sony may push the launch of the PS6 beyond 2028 and lengthen the PS5 lifecycle. David Gibson, senior analyst at MST international who focuses on game and tech companies, predicted that “rising memory prices will not impact short-term performance thanks to Sony’s existing inventory.” However, he noted that increased memory costs could become an issue for Sony in the next fiscal year (ending in March 2027), saying “Sony might pass future cost increases onto consumers.”
With that in mind, doubling down on PS5 as the home of exclusive games may help reinforce the console’s value for PlayStation fans, and encourage sales.
This month Sony announced the shock closure of Bluepoint Games, the studio behind the remakes of both Shadow of the Colossus and Demon’s Souls. Sony still operates PC port specialist Nixxes Software, which it bought in 2021.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
