PlayStation Reportedly Shuts Down Another First-Party Partner Studio

PlayStation has reportedly unopen down Dark Outlaw Games, a workplace hired by the console shaper to marque an chartless first-party title, arsenic good arsenic laid disconnected a fig of different individuals progressive successful mobile development.

This comes from Bloomberg newsman Jason Schreier, who posted the quality connected Bluesky today. Dark Outlaw Games was founded by Jason Blundell astatine Sony's behest, and was lone softly announced by Blundell connected a podcast successful March of past twelvemonth aft having been rumored the twelvemonth before. At the clip helium said they had been "working distant successful the shadows for a while," and noted that it was connected a first-party task for Sony, but the workplace ne'er officially announced what its task was.

Dark Outlaw was staffed with a fig of erstwhile members of Deviation Games, Blundell's erstwhile venture. Blundell, a seasoned of Activision and Treyarch connected Call of Duty, founded Deviation Games successful June of 2021 with chap Treyarch seasoned Dave Anthony, likewise to enactment connected a first-party Sony project. Blundell near the workplace successful 2022, layoffs took spot successful 2023, and successful 2024, Deviation likewise unopen down earlier it could denote its project.

Schreier notes that this determination seems to person travel from Sony, which has besides laid disconnected a fig of individuals successful mobile improvement internally, with astir 50 jobs mislaid overall.

Both Deviation and Dark Outlaw autumn into an ongoing signifier of Sony's closure of first-party studios, which has besides precocious included Concord developer Firewalk Studios successful 2024, and Demon's Souls and Shadow of the Colossus Remake workplace Bluepoint Games conscionable past month.

IGN has reached retired to Sony for comment.

Rebekah Valentine is simply a elder newsman for IGN. Got a communicative tip? Send it to [email protected].