In 2019, the year Days Gone launched across the world, Sony Bend tried to pitch a sequel to Sony, according to a new report. Sony didn’t see Days Gone 2 as a viable option because the first game’s development took too long and the critical reception was mixed. According to Bloomberg, this is just one of many games that lost out in favor of blockbuster hits more likely to appeal to gamers and is the reason why Sony’s studios have had a high turnover of staff in recent years, including Bend Studio leadership leaving.
Days Gone hasn’t been a failure by any means. The game was profitable and players racked up a total of 200 million hours within the game’s first year. The title was the only Sony exclusive to feature in the top ten PlayStation Store downloads for 2019 and has taken home awards including two Golden Joysticks. It’s since received a patch to help it function better on PlayStation 5, served a brief stint in PlayStation Now, is currently available as part of this month’s PlayStation Plus games, and will be the first Sony exclusive to appear on PC this spring. Sony Bend developers have stated before the game is set in “a world that we want to keep breathing more life into, and explore many, many different avenues”. Despite this, the pitch for a sequel was turned down, and Sony Bend was instead split into two teams. One went to help Naughty Dog on an unnamed multiplayer game (expected to be The Last of Us Part IIR...