Sony Sees Bright Future For Live-Service Games, But It's All About Choice, Exec Says

PlayStation boss Jim Ryan has commented on the future of gaming, and he sees a lot of potential growth in the live-service category. This is not much of a surprise, as PlayStation has committed itself to releasing 10 live-service games in the next few years. At the same time, PlayStation believes single-player games like God of War and Ghost of Tsushima have a bright future at Sony.

Speaking to GI.biz, Ryan said live-service games are attractive from a publisher's point of view because people keep coming back again and again. The knock-on effect is greater engagement and potentially even more spending.

"I think that trend towards live services will continue, and if you look for a model in our category of entertainment, which supports sustained engagement over a long period of time, live-service games arguably fit that bill better than a subscription service," Ryan said.

Ryan went on to say that live-service games are tailored specifically to players who want to spend hours and hours in a game, month after month. "That phenomenon of the live-service game... that has, in a very large part, fueled the enormous growth in the gaming industry that we've seen over the last ten years," Ryan said.

While PlayStation is definitely investing in live-service games, the company at the same time believes there is a bright future for single-player games and in the idea of choice in general.

"It's all about choice. There are obviously many millions of people who are happy to subscribe to PlayStation Plus. We offer them that option on the platform, and we think that we are offering a significantly improved option with the changes we have made," Ryan said. "Equally, if people want to play Fortnite or Call of Duty or FIFA, and have their sustained engagement that way, that's fine, too. Nobody is obliged to do anything."

In terms of the upcoming Sony live-service games, one of them is Jade Raymond's debut project at Haven Studios--described as a AAA multiplayer online game--which Sony just recently acquired. Sony is also buying Bungie, which runs the Destiny franchise and has other upcoming projects in the works.

In other Sony news, PlayStation Plus' new tier-based model was just announced. For more, check out how PS Plus compares to Game Pass and our feature below.

• Whether Sony Likes It Or Not, Game Pass Makes The New PS Plus Look Underwhelming