In recent years, it has been Microsoft making studio acquisition headlines from smaller studios like Double Fine, to larger ones like last year's $7.5 billion Bethesda purchase. In light of all these moves, PlayStation fans called for Sony to counter Microsoft by scooping up their own set of developers kicking off what could be called a studio arms race. So far, Sony has yet to really oblige in a big way, though the company has started making smaller, no-brainer style moves.
While Sony appears to be pretty deliberate with what studio is acquires, moves started all the way back in 2019 when Insomniac Games officially became a first party studio. The move isn't too surprising considering the studio's extensive PlayStation history with franchises like Resistance, Ratchet and Clank, and the recent Spider-Man games. Earlier this week, Sony also picked up Housemarque, another studio with extensive PlayStation history including the well reviewed Returnal. However, another recent acquisition may hint at a possible future Sony could be moving towards.
Earlier today, the head of PlayStation Studios, Hermen Hulst, made another acquisition announcement welcoming Nixxes Software to the PlayStation family. According to a press release, the move was made to help "provide high quality in-house technical and development capabilities for PlayStation Studios." Since it formed in 1999, the Dutch studio has primarily worked with Square Enix studios like Crystal Dynamics, IO Interactive, and Eidos Montreal helping to port games from the Tomb Raider franchise, Marvel's Avengers, and Deus Ex to the PC.
While certainly not a splashy name that many fans may be familiar with, this type of move could be valuable for PC players. Speculation has already begun that Nixxes will be the ones to port Sony franchises to the PC, something which the company has previously stated it would like to do following the releases of Horizon: Zero Dawn and Death Stranding on Steam. Nixxes' experience with PC ports and its technical expertise will no doubt help Sony achieve this goal.
I highly respect Nixxes and am excited for this very experienced team to become part of the world-class development community at SIE. They have a passion for improving games and for delivering the best possible experience for gamers. Nixxes will be a strong asset for everyone across PlayStation Studios, helping our teams focus on their most important goal, which is to create unique PlayStation content at the best possible quality.
Following the surprising reveal of two acquisition announcements this week, many PlayStation fans are waiting on the announcement of a third. Earlier in the week, Sony Japan accidentally posted another welcome message which indicated that BluePoint Games was also being acquired. While the post was quickly taken down, the move wasn't very surprising to fans thanks to BluePoint's stellar history remaking first party PlayStation games like Demon's Souls and Shadow of the Colossus. Oddly enough, BluePoint is now pouring cold water on the anticipated announcement, shooting down the acquisition rumors completely.
Source: Nixxes.com