The utterly unnecessary excess of the gaming industry and its inefficient approach to modern game design is perhaps best evidenced by PlayStation and its slew of phenomenal but costly first-party releases. For many, the PS5 era has proven to be somewhat disappointing, one marked by occasional excellence but largely characterized by lengthy periods of silence and a desire for something more exciting. The failings of this era have haunted the studio for some time, slowly chipping away at its hard-earned goodwill and garnering it an unflattering reputation for being iterative.
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This is a genuine shame, as PlayStation used to be home to some of the greatest games in existence, fostering an abundance of exceptionally unique experiences that dominated the cultural zeitgeist for some time. Of course, it still produces masterpieces, but at such a slow rate and in such a specific style that one would be forgiven for failing to spot the differences between them. Fortunately, there is a solution to not just PlayStation’s current struggles, but also the aforementioned excess plaguing the gaming industry and its interminably long development times. Indeed, this solution ironically lies with PlayStation’s latest controversial release, Sons of Sparta, as it offers something the studio hasn’t really produced in quite some time.
Sons of Sparta’s Smaller Scope Is The Perfect Solution To AAA Gaming’s Woes
I can’t imagine that Sons of Sparta’s divisive reviews painted the most positive picture of the prequel spin-off. It’s shadow-dropping likely helped pick up a few sales here and there, but after being lambasted by the original creator of God of War and fans alike, I suspect it is destined to fall to the wayside, a forgotten experiment doomed to fail. So, I can understand the confusion at my suggestion that Sons of Sparta should serve as the blueprint for PlayStation’s first-party lineup going forward.
Of course, I’m not implying that Sony should look at the many failings of Sons of Sparta and replicate those, as that would invariably damage the brand unnecessarily. Rather, Sons of Sparta’s scale, release strategy, and, one can only assume, budget, feel like the perfect solution to the long-gestating first-party releases that spark little more than derision these days. Instead of spending over half a decade developing a game everyone will inevitably denigrate as being an iterative experience akin to DLC, why not invest a little bit of the not-so-insignificant fortune spent to create the likes of God of War and Marvel’s Spider-Man into smaller projects?
Sons of Sparta isn’t the flashy AAA experience Sony’s first-party games have become known for, but it does carry over many of their finer traits, including a focus on narrative and character development. It ostensibly shows what a lower-budget PlayStation game can look like in 2026, one that centres its design philosophy around the core tenets of Sony’s first-party lineup and, in theory, their bar for high quality while exploring a genre or ideas simply not possible in the big-budget releases. More importantly, it helps to bridge the gap between releases and doesn’t require the ridiculous investment that its blockbuster brethren do.
It is this latter point that is so crucial to get right in order to sustain the PlayStation brand well into the future. As development schedules and budgets for AAA games continue to balloon, Sony needs to look to other ways of not just generating revenue, but also ensuring its loyal fanbase remains distracted and avoids turning to its competitors. The PlayStation 3 and 4 eras were packed with regular releases thanks to shorter development cycles and an influx of indie exclusives like Kena: Bridge of Spirits and Concrete Genie. The PS5 generation hasn’t had that luxury, and as a result, has garnered its aforementioned reputation for being barren of exclusives. Sons of Sparta could be the change needed to fix all that and allow Sony to step out of its comfort zone and begin offering experimental experiences its fans won’t expect.
We Need More Experimental Games In The AAA Space
I don’t think it is a particularly novel take to state that much of the discourse surrounding Sony’s lack of innovation stems from the relative lack of risks it takes. That isn’t to say that risk-taking inherently leads to bad games, as I believe it would be disingenuous to imply that Sony’s games are bad. Rather, the iterative nature of much of its recent output stems from a need to play it safe or else risk potentially losing the hundreds of millions of dollars that are invested in the production of its flagship titles. Considering Sony is largely dependent on its exclusives to drive sales and produce any profit from its PlayStation line of products, it is incredibly important that they not only appeal to the broadest audience possible, but also don’t take any risks mechanically that could result in negative reviews.
This lack of experimentation has resulted in Sony sticking rather fervently to a handful of its main IP, and it is stifling to say the least. By prioritizing smaller projects peppered between bigger blockbuster releases, Sony can still offer the experimental experiences that allowed it to become the juggernaut it is today, the kind that ensures series like God of War, Uncharted, Marvel’s Spider-Man, and more flourish today. It also allows it to introduce new IP, work with brand-new studios with bold visions, and expand upon the ideas established in the mainline games.
I’ve spoken a lot about how AAA games need to be smaller for the industry to survive, and how studios like Sony should look at the movie industry for inspiration on making multiple moderate returns on small investments rather than banking on a significant return on the precarious success of a singular entry. Sons of Sparta undeniably feels like an attempt at achieving that level of success, which is why I sincerely hope its potential failure doesn’t dissuade Sony. In fact, its failure is exactly why games like these are important, as smaller budget titles from bigger studios can, in theory, risk failing to both keep an IP relevant and establish new gameplay ideas and trends.
Ultimately, we all want more games, and we want them more frequently. Frankly, as much as I enjoy the rare tentpole titles from PlayStation, Nintendo, and Xbox, I would much prefer a slew of smaller games set within the universes I’ve come to know and love. It is how it used to work during the glorious golden era of the PlayStation 2, and how it should work now. Not every game needs to cost 100 million, and not every game needs to be a cinematic marvel. Some games can be small, tell intimate stories, and exist purely to further develop an IP that hasn’t had a new entry in some time. Sons of Sparta, for all its faults, did absolutely that, and PlayStation should look at its successes and replicate it for its future lineup of exclusives.
Do you think PlayStation needs more smaller games? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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