Sony will not be seeking partnerships with indie or smaller developers as part of their strategy for PS5. Instead, the console holder will focus on big publishers and AAA exclusives.
The information comes from two unnamed Sony officials who spoke to the Wall Street Journal.
This is consistent with the announcement from the Sony chief executive Kenichiro Yoshida that the company’s next-gen console will be designed for hardcore players. Sony execs believe that high quality graphics and the established IP will be driving sales and set PS5 apart from competitors. To that end, the hardware will support 8K resolution and ultra high definition.
In the light of this strategy, it’s no surprise that Sony will not be showcasing indie developers at Tokyo Game Show in 2019.
This does not sound very friendly towards smaller games studios. However, as WSJ’s sources indicate, the platform holder sill expects indie companies to make games for PS5 even without Sony’s endorsement. After all, it’s a big market, and indies will not want to completely ignore it.
In other insights, Microsoft remains Sony’s biggest competitor, while Google’s Stadia is perceived as more of a potential challenge in the somewhat distant future.
PlayStation 5 will likely arrive sometime next fiscal year, probably around Christmas 2020.