PlayStation boss retires and fans celebrate – 10/04/2023 – Tech

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Jim Ryan, president and CEO of SIE (Sony Interactive Entertainment) —the division responsible for the PlayStation brand—, announced his retirement last Wednesday (27) after 30 years working at the company. In the position since 2019, he will leave his role in April next year and will be replaced on an interim basis by Hiroki Totoki, Sony’s financial and operations director.

“I leave having been privileged to have worked on products that have touched millions of lives around the world. PlayStation will always be a part of my life, and I feel more optimistic than ever about the future of SIE,” said Ryan in his letter of farewell.

The British executive said he decided to retire due to difficulties in reconciling work at Sony’s offices in the USA and his personal life in Europe.

What did they say

“Jim Ryan has been a huge contributor to our industry and a fierce leader for PlayStation. I wish him the best in his next endeavors. Thank you for everything you’ve done for the community over the past 30 years,” said Phil Spencer, head of Xbox , PlayStation’s main rival.

“Jim Ryan has been an inspiring leader throughout his time with us, but never more so than when overseeing the launch of PlayStation 5 amid the global Covid pandemic. This extraordinary achievement by the entire SIE team has been built on consistently and the PlayStation 5 is on track to become the company’s most successful console to date,” said Kenichiro Yoshida, CEO of Sony.

Successful career

Jim Ryan arrived at SIE in 1994, even before the launch of the first PlayStation, and has participated in the launches of all of the company’s consoles since then. He was CEO of the company’s European division from 2011 until 2016, when he assumed the role of global marketing director, the last position before reaching his current role.

Throughout his years as a top executive at the Japanese company, Sony established itself as the leader in the video game console market. Today, it is the second largest public company in the virtual games sector, with annual revenue of US$4.38 billion (R$22 billion), according to consultancy Newzoo — behind only the Chinese Tencent, with US$7.56 billion (R$38 billion) in revenue.

Furthermore, the company has achieved significant sales figures for the PlayStation 5 and great success with titles developed in its studios. Cases of the reformulation of “God of War”, the series “Marvel’s Spider-Man” and the franchise “The Last of Us”, now a multimedia product.

The company’s investment in the computer games market can also be attributed to him, which now includes titles that were previously exclusive to Playstation consoles.

Controversies

While the shareholders are happy, the executive faces reasonable antipathy from the brand’s fans, who celebrated his farewell.

The sentiment can be attributed to Ryan’s reputation as a ruthless capitalist who doesn’t think twice about putting players second if it means more profit for the company.

This comes from some controversial statements by the executive. For example, in June 2017, when the then marketing director was asked by Time magazine about the lack of support for old console titles on the PlayStation 4. He limited himself to saying that this was not important for players.

“It’s one of those features that is highly requested but actually doesn’t get much use,” Ryan said. “I was recently at a ‘Gran Tourism’ event where they had PS1, PS2, PS3, and PS4 games, and the PS1 and PS2 games looked old. Why would anyone play that?”

Added to this is Sony’s insistence on prioritizing “live service” titles. These games are seen as golden gooses by large companies in the industry, but they often fail to take off and are suddenly discontinued. Which ends up disappointing the few fans who decide to invest in the game.

End of the line

The truth is that, just like the company’s “live service” games, Ryan’s other bets still have a hard time paying off. This is the case with investment in expensive virtual reality devices, which are still restricted to niche audiences, and Sony’s recent return to portable video games, with the controversial PlayStation Portal, which should be launched in November.

Its biggest defeat, however, was in the long battle against Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard. The CEO was one of the biggest opponents of the deal and pressured competition regulatory bodies in several countries to veto the acquisition.

Its main argument, that the company would make the “Call of Duty” series exclusive to Xbox consoles, resulted in several agreements to make the franchise’s games available on different platforms. When everything indicated that the dispute against the business at the FTC (competition regulatory body in the USA) was lost, he had to give up and also signed a similar contract with Microsoft.

Between ups and downs, Jim Ryan has become a bastion of the current moment in the video game industry. Sony’s difficult decision about its replacement could shape many of the aspects that define the market in the future.

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Play

game tip, new or old, for you to try

Counter-Strike 2

(PRAÇA)

The new version of one of the best-known multiplayer games of all time was launched last week, but has been met with resistance from its most loyal players. The title, which mainly brings an improvement in graphics, has been criticized for its bugs and missing features compared to “CS:GO”, which was taken offline. Still, as it’s a free game, it’s worth checking out.

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Update

news, launches, business and what matters most

• With 98% of votes in favor, the union that represents voice actors and actors working in the video game industry approved a strike amid negotiations with the largest companies in the sector in the USA. Despite this, the union did not reach an agreement with the companies until the 29th.

• Senator Leila Barros (PDT-DF) was appointed as rapporteur for the Games Legal Framework project in the Senate Education and Culture Committee. She was one of the main opponents of Senator Irajá’s (PSD-TO) attempt to vote on the project urgently in the House plenary in recent weeks.

• Epic Games announced the dismissal of 830 people (16% of its payroll), including professionals from the former Aquiris, a Porto Alegre studio acquired in April by the American company. Questioned by Sheetthe company did not reveal the number of employees fired in Brazil.

• Even with the price of top-tier games rising to US$70 last year, Capcom president Haruhiro Tsujimoto stated in an interview with the Japanese newspaper Nikkei that the value is still below the industry’s needs. According to him, a new increase would be “a healthy option” for companies in the sector.

• Rockstar has started offering old versions of the “GTA” series to subscribers of its GTA Plus service. Subscribers to the service, which offers benefits to “GTA Online” players, will now have access to the definitive editions of “GTA 3”, “GTA Vice City” and “GTA San Andreas”. The company, however, states that the game catalog will change over time.

• EA Sports removed all games from the “Fifa” series from online stores shortly before the launch of its new football game “FC 24”. The measure is the result of the end of the developer’s licensing agreement with the entity that controls world football. Players can still access and play previously purchased titles.

• Sega announced the cancellation of the multiplayer game “Hyenas” and a “structural reform” at the Creative Assembly studio, which led the project. According to the company, the change in plans is a result of the “rapid change in the business environment”, in particular due to the decrease in the number of people staying at home after the end of the Covid-19 pandemic.

• Blizzard, developer of the “Diablo” series, is organizing a blood donation campaign this week in partnership with BGS (Brazil Game Show) and the São Paulo Blood Bank. To participate, donors must appear from 7am to 6pm at the institution’s Paraíso unit (Rua Tomás Carvalhal, 711), from Wednesday (4) to Friday (6), with a photo ID. More information on the São Paulo Blood Bank website.

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Download

games that will be launched in the next few days and promotions that are worth it

5.out

“Assassin’s Creed Mirage”: BRL 209.99 (PC), BRL 239.90 (PS 4/5, Xbox One/X/S)

“Front Mission 2: Remake”: R$ 152.15 (Switch)

“The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope”: R$ 99.50 (Switch)

“Wargroove 2”: R$ 47.99 (PC, Switch)

6.out

“Borderlands 3”: R$ 299.90 (Switch)

“Detective Pikachu Returns”: R$ 249 (Switch)

“NHL 24”: R$319 (PS4, Xbox One), R$359 (PS 5, Xbox X/S)

10.Oct

“Forza Motorsport”*: R$299 (PC), R$349 (Xbox X/S)

“Lil Gator Game”: price not available (PS 4/5, Xbox One/X/S)

“Roblox”: free (PS 4)

“Wild Card Football”: BRL 135.90 (PC), BRL 147.45 (Xbox One/X/S), BRL 199 (PS 4/5, Switch)

*Available on Xbox Game Pass

Promotion of the week

• Humble Bundle is promoting indie games from its publisher Humble Games, including the great games from Brazilian developers “Unsighted” and “Dodgeball Academia”. For prices starting at US$14 (R$70), you get both games and eight more indie titles. Part of the money raised goes to charities. The promotion runs until October 18th.