Former PlayStation Boss Thinks 'Games Are Too Long'
Video games are too long these days, and it's a sentiment that Shawn Layden, former chairman of Sony Interactive Entertainment, agrees with. Speaking to Eurogamer on the eve of PlayStation's 30th anniversary, Layden talked about how the video game industry struggles to grow its audience and how making shorter titles could be the answer. Layden started by explaining how the cost of making video games grows exponentially across different console generations, which is directly linked to the industry's push for high-fidelity graphics. "We need to address two or three things specifically," he said. "One thing is the exploding cost of game development. Every generation it costs twice as much to build a game. What costs $1m on PS1, then costs two, then four, then 16. It goes exponentially. The PS4 generation, which was the last I was associated with, game dev was 150m if you want to be top of the line, and that's before marketing. So by that math, PS5 games should eventually reach $300m to $400m - and that is just outright not sustainable." Layden likens the games industry to building cathedrals, and whether it's worth building "these massive edifices to God for this incredible amount of labour and time." The former exec fears that the triple-A industry can't grow any bigger, but there may be a way to cut back. "How do we cap that? How do we bring that back? I think part of that answer is - and it sounds simplistic, but hear me out - I think games are too long," he adds. "I haven't even opened Red Dead Redemption 2, because I don't have 90 hours. And I'm retired and I don't have 90 hours. For the longest time, we kept banging on about '100 hours of gameplay'. 'This is going to be awesome. It's 100 hours of gameplay!' Like that's the most important thing to know. That was a metric in the early years, when the average gamer was 18 to 23. And when you're 18 to 23, you're time rich and money poor. But as the average age of the gamer moved into the late 20s, the early 30s - well, it's the opposite, right? Maybe you aren't money rich, but you're definitely time poor. So I think our approach is a mismatch to that market, to reality." Layden expressed his wish to see "a world where you can get back to 18 to 23 hours of gameplay" where the level of engagement doesn't drop off for newer players. "If only 50 percent of players see the end of your game, what about all those millions you spend on the final level, for only half the people to see it," he said. "There's so much money being put into making huge game experiences and people aren't seeing it. What would Coppola do if you walked out halfway through his movie? We have to understand - is this a good use of resources? I want a movement that gets more people to finish games, where we make it so compelling they just want to see it, and where it's not so onerous they don't have to spend three months doing it." On the topic of growing the business, Layden also spoke about how the games industry is "losing the next generation to TikTok" and the risks associated with bringing PlayStation's games to other platforms like Xbox. Sony is celebrating PlayStation's 30th anniversary with special limited-time PS5 themes, and with The Game Awards fast approaching, it's high time we get a sneak peek at Sony's upcoming games for 2025 and beyond. Until then, you can enjoy the classic Sly Cooper trilogy on PS Plus. The company has also announced that the PS2 is the highest-selling console of all time.Related ArticlesEx-PlayStation Head Says Video Game Industry is 'Losing The Next Generation to TikTok'Gran Turismo Goes Free-To-Play on PS5 and PS4 With a New Game for BeginnersPath of Exile 2 Release Times, Early Access and Preload – When You Can Start Playing POE 2Intel Launches Arc B-Series Graphics Cards for Budget GamersStart your unlimited Newsweek trial
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