Last month, Sony announced that it had completed the purchase of Insomniac Games. Insomniac is the developer behind several hugely successful PlayStation games and series such as cartoon platformer Ratchet & Clank and Marvel's Spider-Man. In buying Insomniac, Sony didn't just become the owner of these series though, as it means that Sony now owns Xbox One exclusive Sunset Overdrive too.
Speaking to Japanese publication Inside Games, Shuhei Yoshida, the president of SIE Worldwide Studios confirms that "SIE holds the rights to past Insomniac works" with Sunset Overdrive being among them. When asked if he is "worried" about what will happen with the Sunset Overdrive IP, Yoshida responded with " Insomniac is a powerful developer, so I can only say that I am looking forward to future titles." The SIE president also laughed and spoke about Marvel's Spider-Man and Stormland, which is Insomniac's new VR game for Oculus devices.
Some may be surprised to hear that Sony isn't thinking about making Sunset Overdrive 2. Insomniac has said that it would like to make a Sunset Overdrive sequel and releasing a new game in the series may seem like an easy layup for those involved. Sony could potentially get those Sunset Overdrive fans on Xbox consoles to jump over to PlayStation by dangling a PlayStation exclusive Sunset Overdrive 2 on a stick.
It would also deal a blow to Microsoft which has been criticized for its lack of exclusives. While the company has tried to address this by purchasing several studios, such as Hellblade developer Ninja Theory and Psychonauts 2 developer Double Fine, these companies have yet to release any games as part of Microsoft.
Microsoft also has its secretive game studio The Initiative, which has been hiring developers who've worked on Uncharted and God of War, two major PlayStation series. However, the first game from that team also looks like it's a long way off as it is hiring for several important positions.
However, Sony may worry about looking like it needs Microsoft's properties, or that it is profiting from work that Microsoft put in by publishing the first game. It's purely speculation, but the company may be trying not to look weak. That sort of posturing doesn't really service the may fans of Sunset Overdrive or Insomniac Games, but for Sony, it will just be business.
Source: Inside Games