Given how Sony has strictly kept its games on PlayStation platforms in the past, their decision to bring some of their back catalog to PC was a surprise- but a pleasant one, without a doubt. They kicked things off with Horizon Zero Dawn’s PC port last year, and multiple other games are going to follow suit, with Days Gone also coming to PC this Spring.
But what exactly led to the shift in Sony’s strategies, leading to them deciding to release some of their prestigious first party titles on PC? Well, according to PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan, it was “a straightforward decision”, motivated by wanting to bring those games to a larger audience as well as “the economics of game development”, and how bringing console games to non-console owners has now become much easier.
“I think a few things changed,” Ryan said in an interview with GQ. “We find ourselves now in early 2021 with our development studios and the games that they make in better shape than they’ve ever been before. Particularly from the latter half of the PS4 cycle our studios made some wonderful, great games. There’s an opportunity to expose those great games to a wider audience and recognise the economics of game development, which are not always straightforward. The cost of making games goes up with each cycle, as the calibre of the IP has improved. Also, our ease of making it available to non-console owners has grown. So it’s a fairly straightforward decision for us to make.”
As for what other PlayStation games could be headed to PC, that much remains to be seen. The developers of Dreams and God of War have gone on record to say that they’d like for their games to be ported to PC, while there’s no shortage of demand for a PC port of Bloodborne either- though Sony, of course, are yet to make any announcements.
We do know that Days Gone, at the very least, is launching for PC this Spring. Stay tuned for more updates.