Sony has reportedly canceled its collaboration with Hideo Kojima's Kojima Productions on the game codenamed Physint due to concerns regarding the project's budget, potential profitability, and exclusivity. This decision follows Sony's announcement that it had "stepped away" from the previously PlayStation-exclusive "action espionage" title.
Sources familiar with the project told Bloomberg that the commercial performance of Kojima's earlier games, Death Stranding and Death Stranding 2, was a significant factor. Despite critical acclaim, these titles reportedly did not meet Sony's revenue expectations. Physint was also said to be over budget and had missed deadlines, even though it was still years away from release.
Furthermore, the game was slated for release on platforms beyond PlayStation. Sony expressed reluctance to invest hundreds of millions of dollars into a project that would not be exclusive to its console ecosystem. This move appears to align with reports from earlier this year suggesting Sony's pivot away from a multi-format strategy for its single-player PlayStation games, aiming to keep them PS5-exclusive. Physint, as an intellectual property owned by Kojima Productions, would have contradicted this new strategy.
The relationship between Hideo Kojima and Sony has been long-standing, but recent years have seen the departure of PlayStation executives who were closely associated with Kojima.
Sony has also encountered difficulties with other recent game projects, including Concord and Marathon, leading the company to implement more stringent production milestones. This has resulted in several game cancellations.
Adding to these challenges, the generative AI industry's impact on hardware costs has made consoles more expensive to produce and purchase. Consequently, Sony is prioritizing revenue maximization from its existing user base rather than audience expansion.
Following Sony's withdrawal, Xbox has reportedly picked up Physint. Microsoft's gaming division, despite its own recent controversies such as layoffs, sees Physint as a viable investment. Xbox is particularly interested in the game's PC presence and its potential for film and television rights, aligning with Xbox CEO Asha Sharma's stated goals of expanding franchises across various media.
An Xbox spokesperson confirmed their belief in Kojima's team, stating, "Betting on Kojima-san is an easy call. We believe in his team’s ability to build AAA games with groundbreaking, new IP and we believe in OD, Physint, and our growing partnership."