Former Sony Interactive Entertainment America CEO Shawn Layden said “AA is gone” during a speech, warning AAA studios about the reliance on blockbusters as a “death sentence.”
The remarks were made on stage at Gamescom Asia, where Layden also called the loss of mid-budget games a “threat to the ecosystem” during a talk with Raw Fury co-founder and editor-in-chief Gordon Van Dyke.
“Today, the entry costs to make a AAA game are in the triple-digit millions.” he said (thanks Eurogamer). “I think, naturally, risk tolerance goes down. And you are [looking] in the sequels there are imitations, because the finance guys who draw the line say, “Well, if Fortnite I've made so much money in this time, my Fortnite knockoff can make it in that time frame.' We're seeing a collapse of creativity in games today [with] studio consolidation and high production costs.”
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Layden went on to praise the higher quality found in all games in recent years, and particularly in the indie game space. “Now if only we could get a little more interest, excitement and exposure for these lower budget, but super creative and super unusual [type] of games… I'd like to see more. Because if we had to just rely on blockbusters to get us through, I think that would be a death sentence.”
Where companies like it EA have been quick to adopt generative AI technology, Layden warned of over-reliance on the tool of the moment.
“AI has been in video games since almost the first or second game ever made,” he said. “So all this excitement about the AI generation I find quite funny. I see its applications in certain places for certain things. But it's just a tool, it's not a savior. It's a tool in the way Excel is. It just helps you to speed up your tasks.”
With publishers increasingly looking for new ways to get a return on their investments, including Microsoft has eliminated all console exclusives—many worry about the relative of the industry lack of growth. Layden says the answer to growth is to encourage game developers outside Western markets, growing the industry globally.
“We need more people to play games. It's a $250 billion global business, but the actual number of gamers isn't growing at the same rate. So we get more money from the same people. We need more people to play games. How do we do that? We have need to get more people making games.”
“More people around the world need to get into the business or art of making games. Do it for your neighbors. Do it for your friends. Do it for yourself. But don't think the Western market is the be all and end all of your Build it here business, you will succeed.”