It’s been a crazy first month of 2022. Microsoft acquiring Activision and PlayStation acquiring Bungie, it’s safe to say that these two video game titans are planning something big for their future. While Microsoft acquiring Activision makes sense, as Microsoft and Xbox are primarily known for being great platforms for multiplayer, PlayStation getting Bungie is a bit quizzical, as Bungie is known for creating Halo and Destiny, games that offer single player but great multiplayer.
But at the same time, I believe it’s the right move for PlayStation.
Live Service Games Is A Smart Move For Sony
When you think of PlayStation, you think of award-winning single player games, right? The Last of Us, Uncharted, Spider-Man, Ghost of Tsushima, God of War etc. are all great examples of the single player experience PlayStation has been pumping out since the PS4 era.
Single player is PlayStation’s strength, but everyone has a weakness. For PlayStation, it’s multiplayer.
Now that doesn’t mean PlayStation doesn’t have multiplayer at all. The Last of Us and Uncharted had multiplayer that players continue to play to this day. But that’s about it.
While the folks over at Microsoft and Xbox have a plethora of multiplayer games that are renowned around the world. Sea of Thieves, Halo, Gears of War, Forza etc. are some of the best examples.
PlayStation has tried to create multiplayer to rival the likes of Halo or Forza, but cannot seem to get it right.
So instead, they put all their focus into creating single player games, which has done wonderfully for the PlayStation brand, as they are now the big name when it comes to publishing single player games.
PlayStation acquiring Bungie is the first step in PlayStation fixing the lack of multiplayer options. Bungie are veterans in the multiplayer business, and I believe they can help fix that. But it’s obvious PlayStation has more plans they’re keeping from the public.
Sony has plans to launch at least 10 live-service games by March 2026, meaning that Sony has been planning this for a while now.
While Bungie are excellent developers for multiplayer games, they’re not enough to give PlayStation the multiplayer games they need. I believe Sony is making moves to acquire more developer companies for their multiplayer games, which is a smart move.
PlayStation is dominating the single player market already with their games, and with Horizon Forbidden West and God of War Ragnarök not too far, it’s expected that they’ll be topping the charts once more with their games.
It’s only a matter of time that Sony and PlayStation does the same for the multiplayer market.
