PlayStation is now confirmed to have quietly opened a new studio that is part of the PlayStation Studios banner. In recent years, Sony has been shutting down more companies that belong to PlayStation Studios than it has been establishing new ones. Developers like Firewalk Studios, Japan Studio, London Studio, Neon Koi, and Pixelopus have all shut down or have been overhauled in some capacity since 2021. And while Sony has been trying to shore up its first-party offering by acquiring companies like Bungie, Insomniac Games, and Bluepoint Games, it has now chosen to establish a new studio behind the scenes.
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Coming by way of Jason Blundell, who is best known for his work on the Call of Duty franchise, news regarding this new PlayStation studio was shared for the first time. In an interview with The Jeff Gerstmann Show, Blundell said that his new venture is called Dark Outlaw. Blundell said that Dark Outlaw is officially part of PlayStation Studios but has been operating “in the shadows” for quite some time. When it comes to what Dark Outlaw is making, Blundell didn’t provide specifics but he clarified that the company is still largely getting off the ground and is in the hiring process.
“The studio is called Dark Outlaw Games,” Blundell said. “We’ve been working away in the shadows for a while, when we’ve got something to talk about we’ll step out into the light. The story for me is about the game, not about the studio. So the reason we’re not doing a fanfare or shouting about it from the rooftops is like, let’s get something.”
“It’s such a privilege to be able to do it with Sony as a new first-party studio,” he continued. “Sony doesn’t start up first-party studios all the time, so to have that privilege is humbling.”
News of Blundell starting this new studio at PlayStation isn’t much of a shock given what has happened in recent years. Previously, Blundell had established Deviation Games in 2021, which had partnered with PlayStation to create its first game. For one reason or another, though, Blundell left the company in 2022 and Deviation ultimately shut down in 2024. Despite this, PlayStation itself still seemed to want to work with Blundell and was reported in 2024 to have signed him directly with the goal of establishing a new internal developer. Now, we know that those previous reports were accurate and have resulted in Dark Outlaw Games.
For now, it sounds like Dark Outlaw is going to keep being quiet in the years ahead. Until it is ready to show off its first project, which is presumed to be a live-service shooter, we likely won’t see or hear anything else from Dark Outlaw. Still, it’s exciting to hear that PlayStation Studios is growing and is being led by a director with vast experience in the gaming industry.
[H/T Insider Gaming]
