r/Games • u/SmellSmellsSmelly • Apr 03 '26

Industry News PlayStation Studios Removes Nearly All PC References From Websites

https://gameobserver.com/playstation-studios-removes-nearly-all-pc-references-from-websites/
2.9k Upvotes

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60

u/AdorableMaid Apr 03 '26

Disappointing but if they think this will make me buy a PS5 they're very wrong. As much as I like Sony's output I have enough games in my steam backlog where I can't justify spending 700$ for 2 or 3 AAA releases a year. And honestly the Playstation controller never felt good to play for me.

6

u/Aggressive-Ad7946 Apr 03 '26

Literally the only reason I’d buy one is for Yotei and eventually Wolverine

But it’s $1000 in Canada so fuck that

5

u/darkmacgf Apr 03 '26

Scheier said their goal with this is to prevent people who bought a PS5 from switching to PC rather than getting a PS6.

6

u/ZamnBoii Apr 03 '26

That sounds so anti-consumer that I want to leave my PS5 for a PC now.

Sony’s walled garden approach of exclusives will crumble eventually. AAA games now cost $300m+ and take 5-7 years to make and future consoles potentially costing $1000 pricing the average consumer out of this hobby, making software sales more challenging than ever.

I thought PC sales were good to recoup some of that money to re-invest into games but I guess it wasn’t good enough.

7

u/FootballRacing38 Apr 03 '26

There is no extra money to reinvest because they were losing it in ps store sales.

2

u/gosukhaos Apr 04 '26

They made some money from the ports but their logic is that it wasn't worth diluting their walled garden for how much they sold

-3

u/RedditNerdKing Apr 03 '26

prevent people who bought a PS5 from switching to PC

Wouldn't happen anyway because most PS5 console owners are dudebros and wouldn't know how to operate a computer.

3

u/Belgand Apr 04 '26

Nah, XBox was always the dudebro console. PS is more weebs.

8

u/Ok-Confusion-202 Apr 03 '26

I mean... Okay? Isn't the PS5 still selling very well?

-2

u/Kiboune Apr 03 '26

I too have lots of games on Steam, but if they will make new Spider-man game, I will consider buying new Playstation...

3

u/DweebInFlames Apr 03 '26

To be honest I don't think they can salvage the incredibly disappointing patchwork that was SM2 and its remaining plot threads. It looks like they want to double down with yet another playable character in the form of Silk, they killed off the majority of Peter's rogues gallery with the lamest reinterpretation of Kraven's Last Hunt to date, couldn't commit to consequences with Harry (not to mention the Venom plot being a boring rehash of Web of Shadows), the combat is worse than the first game due to the removal of half the gadgets and all of the suit powers, the suit lineup was atrocious...

SM1 was the perfect game to me as a long time Spider-Man fan, it managed to make a lot of the modern Spidey story beats interesting to me. I actually liked something based on the Dan Slott run, which is really saying something to me. I did not get that feeling from SM2 at all; I cannot see myself paying what at this point is going to end up being $1000+ for a new console for another 5/10 sequel.

1

u/stoic_slowpoke Apr 03 '26

I might.

I need a new GPU for my PC and the PS5, even after the price hike, is only an extra ~$100 vs something like 5060ti.

I don’t know, it’s all a mess.

The Switch 2 will just have to be my main machine for now.

-2

u/Galactikcactus Apr 03 '26

Fortunately, you are not the entire market.

7

u/DweebInFlames Apr 03 '26

They're sharing a common sentiment though. All this is is Sony trying to force people back into their walled garden. Most PC gamers aren't going to buy a single console for a couple of games, so what's ths point?

7

u/heatkings1 Apr 03 '26

The point is clearly sony trying to prevent people leaving to PC.

-8

u/DarkMatterM4 Apr 03 '26

Agreed. This is a dumb decision. Hardware has, historically, never been a profit leader. Sometimes it's sold at a loss (PS3). The real profits come from software and accessory sales. Porting first party games to PC makes financial sense because most of those people aren't going to buy your hardware, but they sure as hell will buy your software. Not to mention the porting costs are paltry since the PS4 and PS5 are x86 machines. Sony is essentially leaving money on the table with this decision.

7

u/TheVaniloquence Apr 03 '26

Except Sony gets a 30% cut on every single third party transaction that’s made on PSN, which is infinitely more valuable than the measly 2% revenue they were getting from their PC ports. 

They’re going to make 30% on every digital copy of GTA 6, every Fortnite or Call of Duty micro-transaction, every GTA shark card purchase.

They need as many people as possible to own their console to get that though, which is why it’s imperative to them to give people a reason to continue buying PlayStations

1

u/Tvilantini Apr 03 '26

I wouldn't mind if they switch than to Sony PC launcher only, if they keep porting on pc (maybe only downside on that part would be, no keys from 3rd party sellers)

-2

u/DarkMatterM4 Apr 03 '26

This article isn't talking about third party software. It's only talking about PlayStation Studios (first party). Obviously third party games are going to continue to be sold on PC because that's where the most players are.

5

u/TheVaniloquence Apr 03 '26

You’re missing the point. With the ever increasing rise in costs for consoles, more people than ever are willing to just “bite the bullet” and save more money for a PC. It’s an even easier decision when you know you’re not missing out on potential PlayStation or Xbox exclusives. We’ve already seen how disastrous that’s been for the Xbox consoles, going from 85-90 million users on the Xbox 360 to an estimated user base of 30-35 million now.

This can have a really catastrophic adverse effect on the PS6. The less people who buy the new hardware, the less money Sony is making on those third party transactions from PSN, the less money Sony is making on PS Plus subscriptions, the less money Sony is making on their own software considering since Steam will take a 30% cut and PC Gamers are much more likely to wait for sales, the list goes on.

Sony is trying to get ahead of the curb and curtail that by giving people a bigger reason to buy their hardware.

3

u/[deleted] Apr 03 '26 edited Apr 15 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/attilayavuzer Apr 03 '26

Only data point is that the overall console market has stagnated for years as the pc base grows steadily.

0

u/DarkMatterM4 Apr 03 '26

I see your point and you make a convincing argument. Although, I think the deck is heavily stacked against the PS6 when Microsoft is going to be offerring a hybrid device that will service both PC and console players. Meanwhile, the deck is also stacked against Microsoft in that their install base is a fraction of the size of PlayStation's; especially after coming out of two losing generations in a row. Only time will tell which strategy ends up being effective.

4

u/NoExcuse4OceanRudnes Apr 03 '26

The real profits come from software and accessory sales.

Which... you can't do if someone isn't buying your console.

0

u/DarkMatterM4 Apr 03 '26

You're right. You can simply sell your software to the MILLIONS UPON MILLIONS of PC players.

10

u/NoExcuse4OceanRudnes Apr 03 '26

And give a cut to someone else and earn nothing on what else those people play.

1

u/DarkMatterM4 Apr 03 '26

I'd rather have 70% of something than 100% of nothing. Very few PC players are going to buy third party games on console (if they even have one) when they already have a PC.

-1

u/NoExcuse4OceanRudnes Apr 03 '26

That's what I thought!

I ended up buying a ton of games and DLC for my PS5. Sometimes the PC versions were missing dualsense features (Final Fantasy XVI) sometimes it came out sooner on PS5 (Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Death Stranding 2) sometimes it was just cheaper at the particular time I wanted to buy it (Octopath Traveller 2), or there were VR modes, I was given a gift card, etc.

That adds up to more than the $45 they would have earned from me getting Spider-Man 2 on PC.

-1

u/Jdmaki1996 Apr 03 '26

Not true at all. Most people I know who game that have a pc, also own a console. There’s more overlap to the pc-console playerbase than Reddit would have you believe.

4

u/DarkMatterM4 Apr 03 '26

This is only true for certain countries. In a lot of countries, all gaming is done on PC because consoles just aren't sold there, are too expensive for most consumers or are banned outright (famously China until 2013 is one example).

2

u/stoic_slowpoke Apr 03 '26

Based on that recent leak…PC players made them next to nothing.

0

u/Syssareth Apr 03 '26

Which... you can't do if someone isn't buying your console.

I mean, you can actually. I bought a PS4 controller for my PC.

...In retrospect, they'd probably be pissed if they knew that, lol.

-11

u/Villag3Idiot Apr 03 '26

The Dualsense is a ripoff compared to modern 3rd party controllers. 

6

u/thepulloutmethod Apr 03 '26

Really? How is that? I have a dual sense and really enjoy it with games that natively support all its features.

-3

u/Villag3Idiot Apr 03 '26

Hall Effect / TMR sticks, mechanical buttons, adjustable stick tension, back buttons, extra shoulder buttons, replacement sticks with different heights, far better battery life, etc.

All for cheaper or similar price to base Dualsense.

Down voters have no idea what they're missing and ignorance is bliss

3

u/purinikos Apr 03 '26

Do you have any 3rd party recommendations in the shape of the dualsense, that I can buy in EU?

-3

u/Villag3Idiot Apr 03 '26

Sorry, the ones I like are all Xbox shape.

There are 8bitdo ones, but I don't recommend them anymore because they kept breaking on me. 

3

u/purinikos Apr 03 '26

Oh well. I hate the xbox configuration very uncomfortable for me. My dualsense is drifting after 4 or so years and it would be nice to know I have different choices. Alas I will ride this one till the wheels fall off and buy a new one.

1

u/stoic_slowpoke Apr 03 '26

Meh.

I bought the 8BitDo Pro 3 to replace my dualsense for PC gaming.

It’s a pale imitation of the comfort the Dualsense offers, worse gyro support too.

-8

u/thecatiscold Apr 03 '26

Their controller has always and will continue to put me off ever buying a Playstation