Sony is a giant that has stayed at the forefront of the gaming industry for decades. The brand has continually set trends, delivering blockbuster titles that have influenced the direction of gaming itself. Notably, Sony’s unwavering commitment to quality, as exhibited by its first-party developers like Santa Monica Studio and Naughty Dog, has resulted in a plethora of critically acclaimed titles that often score exceptionally high on the Metacritic platform.
But, as it turns out, there’s a good reason why first-party AAA games for the PlayStation platforms are as critically-acclaimed as they are.
Recently, a former Sony developer, Rafael Grassetti, revealed in an interview with the Portuguese Flow Games Podcast, that Sony demands its major development studios to aim for a minimum Metacritic score of 90. This expectation is set for high-end production studios like Santa Monica Studio and Naughty Dog. Considering Sony’s rank on Metacritic’s official game publisher list and its legacy of critically acclaimed titles, this revelation is not entirely shocking.
Titles like God of War, The Last of Us Part 2, Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, Shadow of the Colossus, and Astro Bot: Rescue Mission have received Metascores of 90 or above. However, other beloved Sony titles like Marvel’s Spider-Man have fallen short of this ambitious target.
Even so, it’s clear that Sony has set a high standard for the developers that fall under the PlayStation Studios umbrella – and it shows.
God of War: Ragnarok was the frontrunner for last year’s GOTY award while Horizon Forbidden West was in consideration as well. Prior to both, titles like Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Ghost of Tsushima, and The Last of Us Part 2, all had legitimate shots at the prestigious award (or, in this case of The Last of Us Part 2, it went down as one of the most awarded games of all time).
Grassetti also clarified that Sony’s method of incentivizing developers doesn’t revolve around Metacritic scores alone. Instead, Sony rewards its studios based on the achievement of set sales targets. The developers can also request additional production time, demonstrating Sony’s focus on quality rather than rushing games to market, similar to what Nintendo did most recently with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
This practice shows that while the company values high review scores, it understands that genuine success goes beyond mere numbers.
This score-oriented approach may explain why certain titles like Days Gone don’t get sequels. Despite multiple attempts to patch the game, pacing issues and several other problems meant that Days Gone just didn’t meet the high standards expected by Sony from its first-party exclusives.
However, it’s worth noting Sony’s stance on providing adequate time and resources for development doesn’t guarantee an absolute hit every time.
While some critics might argue that Sony’s score-centric expectations could foster an unhealthy work environment or put a lot of pressure on developers, many see it as a commitment to quality. If all major publishers placed a similar emphasis on the quality of their games, the gaming industry might be in a much healthier state. It’s also worth noting that Sony doesn’t tie its developers’ bonuses to Metacritic scores, a practice some studios were infamous for. Instead, it bases these bonuses on sales figures, showing a sensible approach towards rewarding its studios for their efforts.
Sony is scheduled to launch Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 later this year, which is expected to be in the running for GOTY as well. And, while it might not win over the likes of Diablo 4, Tears of the Kingdom, and even Starfield, its expected quality will likely guarantee that Sony has yet another critical darling and commercial hit for the nth year in a row.
