Former Head of Sony Interactive Believes Gaming’s Future Is Indie

Former head of Sony Interactive Entertainment Shuhei Yoshida comments on the current state of the game industry.

Shuhei Yoshida was the President of SIE Worldwide Studios at Sony Interactive Entertainment from 2008 to 2019 and the head of PlayStation Indies from 2019 until his retirement in 2025. He still believes in the power of Indie Games, as you recently stated in an interview that he no longer plays AAA games because they require too much time.

Indie Developers Will Lead Gaming’s Next Era, Says Ex-Sony Exec

During an interview with GameSpot, Yoshida stated that he believes the rise of digital game storefronts and the ability for any developer to be a publisher has had the biggest impact on the video game industry. He spoke about how it’s easier to create a game than ever before, noting that the number of games being published will continue to increase, but he believes that that will mean the quality will also rise.

“Because of that amount of games being produced,” Yoshida says, “it becomes even harder to get the games noticed.”

When asked how he believes future indie projects can stand out amid the rising number of titles, Yoshida stated that it’s much easier for indie developers to find success once they have created a game that connects with an audience. This makes it easier to have a future community of testers.

“When your games are successful, they will feel that they are part of the success, so they will become even more passionate about supporting you–it’s very, very important to have a strong sense of community support,” he said.

The producer of the Sonic the Hedgehog games recently commented on what AAA game developers can learn from independent studios. Read those comments here.

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