Sony announced the purchase of Bungie for 3,600 million dollars, news that has fallen like a bomb for the video game industry; as at the time the acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft. However, a part of the community does not find an explanation for a particular point that surrounds such an important movement. The most frequently asked question at the moment is: Why will PlayStation allow Bungie to keep releasing cross-platform games?
In their statement they were clear in expressing that Bungie will remain an independent studio and that it will continue to publish titles beyond the PlayStation platform. Without a doubt, the industry has been surprised by Sony’s actions. And it is that, at a time when companies are trying to reinforce their catalog with exclusive games, PlayStation has preferred to move away from that path and bet on a more “friendly” strategy with its direct competitors.
Yeah, it might sound crazy to pay $3.6 billion and not convert Destiny and future Bungie intellectual properties in exclusive PlayStation experiences. However, on closer examination, makes perfect sense what they really intend to achieve at Sony.
In search of a “game as a service”
In mid-2021, I told you that PlayStation partnerships with studios like Firewalk Studios and Deviation Games had one key goal: create the war zone/Fortnite playstation. Why? Unlike other companies, Sony doesn’t have a multiplayer title that can offer non-stop entertainment. That is, a “game as a service”.
Why is it important to have a “game as a service” today? Mainly because are a constant source of income for the companies. Most of these experiences are offered as Free-to-Play (free) and opt for a business model with microtransactions to be profitable through additional content. Sell Battle Passes and skins of characters/weapons/vehicles are just a few ways to encourage the player to open their wallet.
Sony, not having a single experience competing in this market, was forced to accelerate your efforts to create it. Firewalk Studios and Deviation Games are apparently working on intellectual properties that align with PlayStation’s vision. In addition, rumors suggest that Sony Santa Monica (God of War) and Insomniac Games (spider-man) also have their sights set on multiplayer projects.
With the purchase of Bungie, then, PlayStation takes a key step to consolidate its “games as a service” strategy. It’s not just about securing franchise ownership like Destiny —and the IPs that come later—, but also of lean on Bungie’s knowledge and skills In this sector. For its part, Bungie can take advantage of the expertise of PlayStation Studios to continue growing. Everybody wins.
A “game as a service” will hardly succeed being on a single platform
Now, for a “game as a service” to succeed, it needs reach as many people as possible. This is why PlayStation decided to keep Bungie a multi-platform studio; and the same for which Call of Duty: Warzone It won’t be exclusive to Xbox and PC…
I mentioned earlier that for businesses, the primary reason for offering a “game as a service” is to have a recurring revenue stream. Therefore, to put Bungie to work on exclusively exclusive projects was to give up a stratospheric amount of money coming from Xbox and PC. In other words: shoot yourself in the foot.
In an interview with GamesIndustry.BizJim Ryan, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, stated with the following regarding the purchase of Bungie:
“The first thing to mention is that Bungie will continue to be an independent, cross-platform studio and publisher. Pete [CEO de Bungie] and I have talked about many things in recent months; this was one of the first conclusions we came to together, and actually the easiest and most direct. Everyone wants the huge community of destiny 2, Regardless of the platform they are on, you can continue to enjoy your streaming experiences. destiny 2. And that approach will apply to future Bungie releases. That is unequivocal.”
Jim Ryan
Last year, vacancies at Bungie confirmed that their new IP will once again be a multiplayer-focused proposition. With the experience gained in Destiny, we are almost certain that it will be a “game as a service” set in a completely different world. Of course, you can forget to see it as an exclusive title for PlayStation consoles. “Philosophically, it’s not about bringing things into the world of PlayStation. It’s about together building huge and wonderful new worldsJim Ryan said.