Sony has addressed concerns regarding the release of Marathon following its indefinite delay back in June, and the overall outlook of the firm’s live service offerings.
During an earnings call (via Seeking Alpha) following the publication of its first quarter financial results, Sony’s chief financial officer Lin Tao confirmed that Sony expects Marathon to launch “within this fiscal year”, but reiterated that “this is not a commitment”.
“Based on the progress, in the autumn time frame, we believe we can communicate when we will be launching [Marathon],” said Tao.
“We believe this launch will happen. And if this launch is cancelled, we [would] need to do a revision of the valuation. However, as of now, this is not expected.”
As for Bungie overall, Sony detailed how the Destiny and Marathon developer is “becoming more part of PlayStation Studios” rather than continuing as an independent subsidiary.
Bungie was acquired by Sony in 2022 in a deal worth $3.6 million.
“At the time of acquisition, we were offering a very independent environment,” Tao noted. “However, thereafter, we have gone through structural reform as we announced last year.
“This type of independence is getting lighter. Bungie is shifting into a role which is becoming more part of PlayStation Studio. In the long term, the direction is for [Bungie] to become part of PlayStation Studio.”
Tao also addressed live service games in general, and the volatility of the segment at Sony considering the failure and cancellation of Concord last year.
“Five years ago, live service games were almost nonexistent for PlayStation Studios,” Tao explained. “We have Helldivers 2, MLB, Gran Turismo 7, and Bungie’s Destiny 2. So we have these four live services contributing to sales and profit in a stable manner.”
Tao continued: “In terms of transformation, it’s not entirely going smoothly. But from a longer-term perspective, if you look at the changes over five years, there has definitely been change.
“Of course, we recognise that there are still issues, many issues. So we should learn the lessons from the mistakes and make sure that we introduce live service content where there’s little waste and it’s more smooth.”
Looking at Sony’s latest financial results, PlayStation saw a 137% boost in operating income during its first quarter of the fiscal year.
Sony’s Games and Network Services operating income increased to ¥148 billion ($1 billion). The firm noted that this rise was due to an increase in sales of non-first-party software titles and DLC, in addition to sales from network services.