PlayStation Studio PixelOpus Is Being Shut Down
Concrete Genie developer PixelOpus has announced that it will be closing its doors later this year, as it’s been being shut down by Sony. In a tweet from the official PixelOpus Twitter account, the devs explained that their “adventure has come to an end” and thanks fans and players for all the support since the studio was founded back in 2014.
In a statement released to IGN, Sony itself confirmed the news by explaining that the decision to close PixelOpus was “part of a recent review process” and that the studio will shut down on June 2 later this year. It’s unclear whether the people working at PixelOpus are being laid off or being offered jobs with other existing PlayStation studios, as Sony obviously didn’t feel the need to clarify this in its statement.
We can also probably assume that any projects that PixelOpus had in development have also been scrapped. It was revealed in June 2021 that the developer was working on a “unique project” alongside Sony Pictures Animation, although we’ve seen no further updates since then. It’s possible development hasn’t gone according to plan or Sony saw no value in the project, which may have resulted in the closure of the studio – this is all just conjecture though.
window.arrayOfEmbeds[“1654563543386296320”] = {‘twitter’ : ‘"n<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Dear friends, our PixelOpus adventure has come to an end. As we look to new futures, we wanted to say a heartfelt thank you to the millions of passionate players who have supported us, and our mission to make beautiful, imaginative games with heart. nWe are so grateful! u2764ufe0fud83dude4f <a href="https://t.co/rQO2Cgvhnq">pic.twitter.com/rQO2Cgvhnq</a>n— PixelOpus (@Pixelopus) <a href="https://twitter.com/Pixelopus/status/1654563543386296320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2023</a></blockquote>nn"’}; window.arrayOfEmbedScripts[“twitter”] = “"<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>"”;
Given that PixelOpus is yet another small relatively small PlayStation studio that Sony has decided to shut down, it definitely reinforces the publisher’s obsession with prestige and live services. It’s no secret that PlayStation has been scooping up several multiplayer focused studios, presumably for its ten live services it plans to release in the coming years. PlayStation had already been accused of shunning its less prestigious titles upon the closure of Japan Studio in 2021, and PixelOpus’ closure only really cements the feeling that PlayStation just doesn’t care about smaller projects these days.
In other PlayStation-related news, data provided by Sony has revealed that the £70/$70 price tag that the company has attached to the majority of its big, first-party offerings is leading to reduced sales. While revenue is at an all-time high, less people have been picking up PS5 titles now that they’re more expensive on launch, particularly for those in places other than the US. Who knew that making your games more expensive means less people get to play them?
Source: www.thegamer.com
