Sony’s head of independent development at PlayStation and longtime game development leader for the console maker, Shuhei Yoshida, is leaving the company after more than three decades. He helped produce some of PlayStation’s earliest hits before helping run the platform’s own studios across multiple generations of consoles.
During the interview, Yoshida talked about what it was like at the beginning of the PS1 era and how he tried to convince publishers and studios to take the risk of developing games for Sony’s first console. Although he was the executive producer of early games such as CBandicoot rash: Perverted AND The Legend of Dragonhe later took on an executive position across the business group and eventually became president of Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide studios.
The director was also well known for his programming experience and design sense. At one key moment during documentary about the making of films from 2018 God of warYoshida’s harsh criticism of the in-development version of the game becomes a watershed moment for the now highly acclaimed reboot. He ultimately stepped down as head of Worldwide studios in 2019, when, amid changes in PlayStation management, he was replaced by then-head of Guerrilla Games, Hermen Hulst. Hulst is now co-CEO of PlayStation alongside Hideaki Nishino.
Yoshida’s announcement marks the second major departure from PlayStation in less than a year, after previous Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan retired last spring. It will also leave the console manufacturer without one of the most notable executives and noticeable faces in the community, with a long history of popularity among fans. He is probably best known for his role in the infamous 22-second clip from E3 2013 demonstrating how games are made available on PS4, which marked the beginning of Sony’s current dominance of high-end consoles.
“I have been with PlayStation since the beginning and this is my 31st year with PlayStation,” he said. “And when I turned 30, I thought, hmm, maybe it’s time for me to move on. You know, the company is doing great. I love PS5, I love the games that come out on this platform. We also have novel generations of managers whom I respect and admire. I’m very excited about the future of PlayStation. So, you know, PlayStation is in really good hands. I thought, OK, this is my time.
Yoshida’s announcement comes on the eve of PlayStation’s 30th anniversary on December 3. In addition to releasing a line of retro-style PS5 consoles and accessories for the occasion, fans are also wondering if Sony will be announcing additional reveals or even a mini-show before the year’s launch.
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