How difficult it can be to install a new license in an already saturated video game landscape! Fortunately, Ghost of Tsushima’s sales provide a nice counterexample, even if not everyone is happy.
Jin Sakai not only surrendered his archipelago to the Mongol invasion, he also ran Sony Interactive Entertainment’s business. Ghost of Tsushima, the new license from Sucker Punch released in summer 2020, has sold eight million copies, and the studio didn’t hesitate to celebrate this milestone:
Ghost of Tsushima is … Rossed
It has to be said that when it was released on PlayStation 4, Sony didn’t skimp on the means to talk about its brand new license, not without (very) quickly offering a Director’s Cut version on Playstation 5 just to take advantage of it take advantage of a long transition that takes place between two generations. With its success, Ghost of Tsushima will even be the subject of a film adaptation, because that is now Sony’s strategy.
But this success has not only made people happy. In fact, celebrating this sales milestone helped reopen a gash on Days Gone’s director Jeff Ross:
When I left Sony Days Gone had been on the market for a year and a half (and a month) and had sold eight million copies. More have been sold since then, including another million on Steam. The managers at the studio always made us feel like it was a huge disappointment.
The worst is always certain
If Jeff Ross doesn’t seem to have digested the Days Gone episode, it’s undoubtedly because Sony turned down a sequel to the Bend studio despite five awards and a profitable development. In response to his testimony, the director offers new ways to understand his feelings as he believes Sony would have done so believed more in Death Stranding than in Days Gone
Resentments were shared among the ex-bends, as co-director John Garvin also let go last spring:
Don’t complain if a game doesn’t get a sequel if it wasn’t supported at launch. I don’t think passionate about a game is as important as buying it at full price. Because if so, you supported the developers directly.
Let’s hope for Jeff Ross’s nerves that Sony isn’t in too much rush to announce a sequel to Ghost of Tsushima or we won’t give much of your skin …
What do you think of Jeff Ross’s statements? Is the success of Ghost of Tsushima deserved? Tell us about yours razor sharp opinions like a katana in the comments section below.