Sony Shuts Down Bluepoint Games
Sony is shuttering Bluepoint Games, the Austin-based studio behind acclaimed remakes like Demon's Souls and Shadow of the Colossus, affecting about 70 employees. The closure follows a failed live service God of War project canceled in January 2025, part of Sony's broader strategic pivot toward live service games that originally targeted 10-12 titles by 2026.
- Sony officially acquired Bluepoint in September 2021, formalizing a partnership that had spanned over 15 years and included projects like the *God of War Collection* and *Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection*. - At the time of its acquisition, Bluepoint was working on an unannounced original title, a departure from its history of remakes, which was later revealed to be the canceled *God of War* live service game. - The broader live service strategy that led to Bluepoint's final project has been largely scaled back after multiple game cancellations and the commercial failure of *Concord* in 2024, which was shut down weeks after its release. - Before its closure, Bluepoint also contributed to the development of the critically acclaimed *God of War Ragnarök*, which was released in 2022. - Bluepoint's shutdown is part of a wider trend of studio closures at Sony during the PlayStation 5 generation, which has also included London Studio, Firewalk Studios, and Neon Koi. - The studio was founded in 2006 by Marco Thrush and Andy O'Neil, two engineers who previously worked at Nintendo's Retro Studios on the *Metroid Prime* series. - The closure was met with significant disappointment from fans, many of whom had publicly hoped the studio's next project would be a remake of FromSoftware's *Bloodborne*, following the success of the *Demon's Souls* remake.
