Key Takeaways
- Sony has created a new division called PlayStation Studios Mobile, which aims to bring 20% of new games to smartphones by 2025.
- The division is focused on providing management, strategy, licensing, and support to both internal and external game studios.
- Mobile gaming is a massive market, set to generate over half of the entire gaming market's revenue, and Sony's push into mobile gaming aims to tap into this lucrative sector.
- The PlayStation Studios Mobile Division is a rapidly growing team of experienced professionals, including industry veterans from companies like Apple, Zynga, Kabam, and Samsung.
- Sony's push into mobile gaming comes at a time when the PlayStation 5 console remains scarce and the PS Plus subscription service continues to compete with Microsoft's Game Pass.
Sony’s newly created PlayStation Studios Mobile Division aims to bring 20% of new games to smartphones by 2025.
The division is not focused on developing games in-house but rather on providing cross-functional management, strategy, licensing, and support to both internal and external game studios.
PlayStation Studios Mobile: A Growing Team
PlayStation Studios Mobile is a rapidly growing team of experienced professionals, including industry veterans from companies like Apple, Zynga, Kabam, and Samsung.
This “small but quickly growing team” focuses on determining which PlayStation intellectual property best suits mobile platforms, overseeing titles, and potentially investing in or acquiring external developers.
Mobile Gaming: A Massive Market
Mobile gaming is set to generate $136 billion in 2023, representing over half of the entire gaming market. Sony’s strategic move into mobile gaming aims to tap into this lucrative sector, with the PlayStation Studios Mobile Division paving the way.
The company has already acquired mobile games developer Savage Game Studios, which is currently working on a new unannounced AAA mobile live service action game.
PlayStation Studios Mobile is a rapidly growing team of experienced professionals, including industry veterans from companies like Apple, Zynga, Kabam, and Samsung.
Competing in a Crowded Market
Sony’s push into mobile gaming comes at a time when the PlayStation 5 console remains scarce and the PS Plus subscription service continues to compete with Microsoft’s Game Pass.
Sony is not alone in its pursuit of mobile gaming, as both Nintendo and Netflix are also exploring opportunities in this market.
Expanding the PlayStation Ecosystem
As the PlayStation Studios Mobile Division continues to grow, it will likely work with Sony’s internal studios to develop mobile games.
The division’s focus on licensing, co-development, and co-publishing partnerships demonstrates Sony’s commitment to producing high-quality mobile titles in collaboration with both internal and external partners.
Nintendo Shifts Focus Away From Mobile Gaming
As Sony dives deeper into the mobile gaming market, Nintendo is taking a different approach by shifting its focus away from mobile gaming for its iconic Mario franchise.
Shigeru Miyamoto, the celebrated Nintendo designer and creator of Super Mario, revealed in an interview with Variety that translating the intuitive control system of Mario console games to mobile devices has been a considerable challenge.
Despite some successful mobile ventures like Super Mario Run, which accumulated 90 million downloads within weeks of its release, not all Mario titles found the same success in the mobile space.
Out of nearly 20 mobile games released by Nintendo, five have been discontinued, indicating that the potential for mobile gaming success may not be easily replicated for Mario titles.
Instead of mobile gaming, Nintendo is exploring other avenues to expand the Mario brand, such as the recent release of the highly anticipated Super Mario Bros.
