Sony has officially confirmed that it is “reorganizing” Japan Studio, as of April 1. One of the oldest primary teams within the platform owner’s stable will be restructured around Team ASOBI, the developer of the recent Astro’s Playroom, as well as Astro Bot Rescue Mission and The Playroom VR.
A statement shared with IGN explains: “In an effort to further strengthen business operations, SIE can confirm that PlayStation Studios Japan Studio will be reorganized into a new organization on April 1. Japan Studio will be redirected to Team ASOBI, the creative team behind Astro’s Playroom, allowing the team to focus on a single vision and build Astro’s Playroom’s popularity. “
More interestingly, the manufacturer confirmed that any external production functions will be “concentrated on the global functions of PlayStation Studios”. In addition to internal projects, Japan Studio is perhaps best known for its collaborations, such as Bloodborne (which he did with FromSoftware) and Everybody’s Golf (which he did with Clap-Hanz).
It’s an interesting turn of events, but not entirely surprising – especially with the series of high-profile matches on the developer lately. It may be worth noting that, in terms of purely domestic productions, Japan Studio’s production over the past five years has consisted of a Knack sequence, two LocoRoco remasters and the aforementioned Astro Bot titles.
However, the developer’s catalog is much more attractive, with legendary franchises like Ape Escape and Shadow of the Colossus among them. It is also true that, while they may not have sold much, franchises like Gravity Rush added the necessary diversity to the original PlayStation portfolio. It will be a pity to see that variety disappear.
Most curious of all, in an era when competitors are buying studios like toilet paper in a pandemic, Sony is apparently growing come back your operations. Obviously, quality is better than quantity, but here and now that doesn’t seem like a particularly good example of “organic growth” that PlayStation boss Jim Ryan has been talking about for the past 18 months or so.