Back in 2021, GamesIndustry.biz spoke to former PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan about his hopes for the future of the company. And he gave the following answer:
“I would like to see a world where the games we make at PlayStation can be enjoyed by many tens of millions of people. Perhaps hundreds of millions. Right now success with the current console model, a really great PlayStation hit… you’re talking 10 or 20 million people being able to play that game.
“We’re talking about games stacking up against music, we’re talking about games stacking up against movies. Music and movies, they can be enjoyed by almost limitless audiences. And I think some of the art our studios are making is some of the finest entertainment that has been made anywhere in the world. And to kind-of gate the audience for that at 20 or 30 million frustrates me. I would love to see a world where hundreds of millions of people can enjoy those games.”
There is a problem with this vision, which Ryan acknowledges when he mentions ‘the current console model’. The audience for games consoles hasn’t grown bigger in decades. For PlayStation in particular, it has never gone much beyond 150m. In a panel GI.biz held at IGN Live last week, former PlayStation Worldwide Studios president Shawn Layden said the games market is “still in the 250m overall install base of active consoles, and that’s a challenge.”