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Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), formerly known as Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE), is a multinational
video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...
and digital entertainment company wholly owned by multinational conglomerate
Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...
. The SIE Group is made up of two legal corporate entities: Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC (SIE LLC) based in
San Mateo, California San Mateo ( ; ) is a city in San Mateo County, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula. About 20 miles (32 km) south of San Francisco, the city borders Burlingame to the north, Hillsborough to the west, San Francisco Bay and Foster C ...
, United States, and Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (SIE Inc.), based in
Minato, Tokyo is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is also called Minato City in English. It was formed in 1947 as a merger of Akasaka, Azabu and Shiba wards following Tokyo City's transformation into Tokyo Metropolis. The modern Minato ward exhibits th ...
, Japan. Tokyo-based SIE Inc. was originally founded as Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI or SCE) in November 1993 to handle Sony's venture into video game development for the
PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
systems. SIE LLC was established in San Mateo in April 2016, and is managed through Sony's American branch,
Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation SONAM, headquartered in New York City, manages the company's US-based businesses. Sony's principal U.S. businesse ...
. Since the launch of the original PlayStation console in 1994, the company has been developing PlayStation home video game consoles, accessories and services. The company expanded from Japan into North America and Europe, where it founded the branches Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) in May 1995 (in
Foster City, California Foster City is a city located in San Mateo County, California. The 2020 census put the population at 33,805, an increase of more than 10% over the 2010 census figure of 30,567. Foster City is sometimes considered to be part of Silicon Valley ...
) and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) in July 1995 (in
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
). The company quickly became Sony's main resource for research and development in video games and interactive entertainment. In April 2016, SCE and Sony Network Entertainment International was restructured and reorganized into Sony Interactive Entertainment, carrying over the operations and primary objectives from both companies. The same year, SIE LLC was established, with its headquarters in San Mateo, California. Sony Interactive Entertainment handles the
research and development Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in Europe as research and technological development (RTD), is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products, and improving existi ...
, production, and sales of both hardware and software for the
PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
video game systems. SIE is also a
developer Developer may refer to: Computers *Software developer, a person or organization who develop programs/applications *Video game developer, a person or business involved in video game development, the process of designing and creating games *Web deve ...
and
publisher Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...
of video game titles, and operates several subsidiaries in Sony's largest markets:
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
,
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and
Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
. By June 2022, the company had sold more than 581 million PlayStation consoles worldwide.


History


Establishment, PlayStation release, and North American expansion (1993–2005)

Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. (SCEI) was jointly established by Sony and its subsidiary
Sony Music Entertainment Japan , often abbreviated as SMEJ or simply SME, and also known as Sony Music Japan for short (stylized as ''SonyMusic''), is a Japanese music arm for Sony. Founded in 1968 as CBS/Sony, SMEJ is directly owned by Sony Group Corporation and is opera ...
in 1993 to handle the company's ventures into the
video game industry The video game industry encompasses the development, marketing, and monetization of video games. The industry encompasses dozens of job disciplines and thousands of jobs worldwide. The video game industry has grown from niches to mainstream. , ...
. The original
PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
console was released on December 3, 1994, in Japan. The company's North American operations, Sony Computer Entertainment of America (SCEA), were originally established in May 1995 as a division of Sony Electronic Publishing. Located in
Foster City, California Foster City is a city located in San Mateo County, California. The 2020 census put the population at 33,805, an increase of more than 10% over the 2010 census figure of 30,567. Foster City is sometimes considered to be part of Silicon Valley ...
, the North American office was originally headed by Steve Race. In the months prior to the release of the PlayStation in Western markets, the operations were restructured: All video game marketing from
Sony Imagesoft Sony Imagesoft Inc. was an American video game publisher that operated from 1989 to 1995 and was located in California. It was established in January 1989 in Los Angeles, California, as a subsidiary of the Japan-based CBS/Sony Group (CSG) and in ...
was folded into SCEA in July 1995, with most affected employees transferred from
Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...
to
Foster City Foster City is a city located in San Mateo County, California. The 2020 census put the population at 33,805, an increase of more than 10% over the 2010 census figure of 30,567. Foster City is sometimes considered to be part of Silicon Valley ...
. On August 7, 1995, Race unexpectedly resigned and was named CEO of Spectrum HoloByte three days later. He was replaced by Sony Electronics veteran Martin Homlish. This proved to be the beginning of a run of exceptional managerial turnover, with SCEA going through four presidents in a single year. The PS console was released in the United States on September 9, 1995. As part of a worldwide restructuring at the beginning of 1997, SCEA and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) were both re-established as wholly owned subsidiaries of SCEI. The launch of the second PS console, the
PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...
was released in Japan on March 4, 2000, and the U.S. on October 26, 2000. On July 1, 2002, chairman of SCEI,
Shigeo Maruyama (born 1941 in Tokyo, Japan) is a Japanese businessman. He is best known for being the founder of Epic/Sony Records, former chairman of Sony Computer Entertainment and former CEO of Sony Music Entertainment. He is known for discovering artists su ...
, was replaced by Tamotsu Iba as chairman.
Jack Tretton Jack Tretton is a member of the advisory boards for Genotaur, an artificial intelligence startup, and LifeApps Digital Media, a digital publisher of products and services focused on health, fitness, and sports topics. He is best known for being t ...
and
Phil Harrison Phil Harrison is a vice president and general manager for Google, and the former corporate vice president of Microsoft. Previously, Phil was the British corporate executive and a representative director of Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. (SC ...
were also promoted to senior vice presidents of SCE. The
PlayStation Portable The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...
(PSP) was SCEI's first foray into the small handheld console market. Its development was first announced during SCE's E3 conference in 2003, and it was officially unveiled during their E3 conference on May 11, 2004. The system was released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in Europe and Australia on September 1, 2005.


Creation of SCE Worldwide Studios, acquisitions, and restructure (2005–2011)

On September 14, 2005, SCEI formed
SCE Worldwide Studios PlayStation Studios (formerly SCE Worldwide Studios and SIE Worldwide Studios) is a division of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) that oversees the video game development at the studios owned by SIE. The division was established as SCE Wo ...
, a single internal entity to oversee all wholly-owned development studios within SCEI. It became responsible for the creative and strategic direction of development and production of all computer entertainment software by all SCEI-owned studios—all software is produced exclusively for the PS family of consoles.
Shuhei Yoshida is a Japanese businessman and gaming industry veteran. He was the President of SIE Worldwide Studios for Sony Interactive Entertainment from 2008 to 2019, before moving onto other SIE-related projects. Yoshida has been a key member of the Play ...
was named as president of Worldwide Studios on May 16, 2008, replacing
Kazuo Hirai is a Japanese businessman. He is best known as the former chairman of Sony Corporation, serving from April 2018 to June 2019, as well as president and CEO from April 2012 to April 2018. He also served as a board member of Sony Computer Entertain ...
, who was serving interim after Harrison left the company in early 2008. On December 8, 2005, video game developer
Guerrilla Games Guerrilla B.V. (trade name: Guerrilla Games) is a Dutch First-party developer, first-party video game developer based in Amsterdam and part of PlayStation Studios. The company was founded as Lost Boys Games in January 2000 through the merger of ...
, developers of the ''Killzone'' series, was acquired by Sony Computer Entertainment as part of Worldwide Studios. On January 24, 2006, video game developer
Zipper Interactive Zipper Interactive was an American video game developer based in Redmond, Washington and part of SCE Worldwide Studios. It was founded in June 1995 by Jim Bosler and Brian Soderberg. It created many different games, including the ''SOCOM U.S. Na ...
, developers of the ''Socom'' series, was acquired by Sony Computer Entertainment as part of Worldwide Studios. In March 2006, Sony announced the online network for its forthcoming
PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...
(PS3) system at the 2006 PlayStation Business Briefing meeting in
Tokyo, Japan Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
, tentatively named "PlayStation Network Platform" and eventually called just
PlayStation Network PlayStation Network (PSN) is a digital media entertainment service provided by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Launched in November 2006, PSN was originally conceived for the PlayStation video game consoles, but soon extended to encompass smartp ...
(PSN). Sony also stated that the service would always be connected, free, and include multiplayer support. The launch date for the PS3 was announced by Hirai at the pre-E3 conference held at the
Sony Pictures Studios The Sony Pictures Studios is an American television and film studio complex located in Culver City, California at 10202 West Washington Boulevard and bounded by Culver Boulevard (south), Washington Boulevard (north), Overland Avenue (west) and ...
in
Culver City, California Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. Founded in 1917 as a "whites only" sundown town, it is now an ethnically diverse city with what was called the "third-most d ...
, on May 8, 2006. The PS3 was released in Japan on November 11, 2006, and the U.S. date was November 17, 2006. The PSN was also launched in November 2006. On November 30, 2006, president of SCEI,
Ken Kutaragi is a Japanese engineering technologist and businessman. He is the former chairman and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), the video game division of Sony Corporation, and current president and CEO of Cyber AI Entertainment. He is known ...
, was appointed as chairman of SCEI, while Hirai, then president of SCEA, was promoted to president of SCEI. On April 26, 2007, Ken Kutaragi resigned from his position as chairman of SCEI and group CEO, passing on his duties to the recently appointed president of SCE, Hirai. On September 20, 2007, video game developers
Evolution Studios Evolution Studios Ltd. was a British video game developer based in Runcorn, Cheshire. The company was founded in 1999 by Martin Kenwright and Ian Hetherington, following the purchase of their studio Digital Image Design's publisher Ocean Softwa ...
and
Bigbig Studios Bigbig Studios was a British video game developer based in Leamington Spa, England. It was founded in 2001 by a core team of four former Codemasters employees. The company was set up with the help of parent company Evolution Studios. Bigbig Stu ...
, creators of the MotorStorm series, were acquired by Sony Computer Entertainment as part of Worldwide Studios. On April 15, 2009, David Reeves, president and CEO of SCE Europe, announced his forthcoming resignation from his post. He had joined the company in 1995 and was appointed as chairman of SCEE in 2003, and then president in 2005. His role of president and CEO of SCEE would be taken over by Andrew House, who joined Sony Corporation in 1990. The
PSP Go The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...
was released on October 1, 2009, for North America and Europe, and on November 1, 2009, for Japan. On April 1, 2010, SCEI was restructured to bring together Sony's mobile electronics and personal computers divisions. The main Japanese division of SCEI was temporarily renamed "SNE Platform Inc." (SNEP) on April 1, 2010, and was split into two divisions that focused on different aspects: "Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc.", consisting of 1,300 employees who focused on the console business, and the network service business consisting of 60 to 70 employees. The network service business of SCEI was absorbed into Sony Corp's Network Products & Service Group (NPSG), which had already been headed by Hirai since April 2009. The original SCEI was then dissolved after the restructuring. The North American and European branches of SCEI were affected by the restructuring, and remained as SCEA and SCEE. Hirai, by that time SCEI CEO and Sony Corporation EVP, led both departments. On March 2, 2010, video game developer
Media Molecule Media Molecule Ltd. is a British video game developer based in Guildford, Guildford, Surrey. Founded in 2006 by Mark Healey, Alex Evans, David Smith, and Kareem Ettouney, Sony Computer Entertainment acquired the firm in 2010. It became part of S ...
, developers of the PlayStation 3 (PS3) game
LittleBigPlanet ''LittleBigPlanet'' (stylized as ''LittleBIGPlanet''; abbreviated ''LBP'') is a puzzle platform video game series created and produced by British developer Media Molecule and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Most games in the series ...
, was acquired by SCEI as part of Worldwide Studios. On August 23, 2010, the headquarters of the company moved from
Minami-Aoyama is a district of Minato, Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () ...
to the (Sony Corporation's headquarters) in Kōnan,
Minato, Tokyo is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is also called Minato City in English. It was formed in 1947 as a merger of Akasaka, Azabu and Shiba wards following Tokyo City's transformation into Tokyo Metropolis. The modern Minato ward exhibits th ...
. On April 20, 2011, SCEI was the victim of an attack on its
PlayStation Network PlayStation Network (PSN) is a digital media entertainment service provided by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Launched in November 2006, PSN was originally conceived for the PlayStation video game consoles, but soon extended to encompass smartp ...
system, which also affected its online division,
Sony Online Entertainment Daybreak Game Company LLC is an American video game developer based in San Diego. The company was founded in December 1997 as Sony Online Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Computer Entertainment, but was spun off to an independent investor in ...
. On August 1, 2011, video game developer
Sucker Punch Productions Sucker Punch Productions, LLC is an American video game developer based in Bellevue, Washington. It is best known for creating character action games for PlayStation consoles such as ''Sly Cooper'', ''Infamous (series), Infamous'', and ''Ghost ...
, developers of the Sly Cooper and
Infamous Infamous may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Infamous'' (2006 film), an American drama film * ''Infamous'' (2020 film), an American crime thriller film * "Infamous", an episode of ''Lego Ninjago: Masters of Spinj ...
series, was also acquired.


Launch of PlayStation Vita and PlayStation 4, expansion into China (2011–2016)

In January 2012, BigBig Studios was closed and Cambridge Studio—renamed
Guerrilla Cambridge Guerrilla Cambridge (formerly SCE Studio Cambridge) was a British video game developer based in Cambridge, England. The studio was founded under Sony Computer Entertainment in July 1997 through the buyout of the game development division of Cyb ...
—becoming a sister studio of Guerrilla Games. In March 2012,
Zipper Interactive Zipper Interactive was an American video game developer based in Redmond, Washington and part of SCE Worldwide Studios. It was founded in June 1995 by Jim Bosler and Brian Soderberg. It created many different games, including the ''SOCOM U.S. Na ...
, developers of the '' SOCOM'' series, ''
MAG Mag, MAG or mags may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''MAG'' (video game), 2010 * ''Mag'' (Slovenian magazine), 1995–2010 * '' The Mag'', a British music magazine Businesses and organisations * MacKenzie Art Gallery, in Regina, Sask ...
'' and ''
Unit 13 ''Unit 13'' is a third-person shooter video game for the PlayStation Vita. This is the last game to be developed by Zipper Interactive before the studio was rendered defunct. It was released on March 6, 2012 in North America, March 7 in Europe and ...
'', was closed. On June 25, 2012, Hirai retired as chairman of Sony Computer Entertainment; however, he remains on the board of directors. On July 2, 2012, Sony Computer Entertainment acquired
Gaikai is an American company which provides technology for the streaming of high-end video games. Its technology has multiple applications, including in-home streaming over a local wired or wireless network (as in Remote Play between the PlayStation ...
, a cloud-based gaming service. In August 2012,
Studio Liverpool Psygnosis Limited (known as SCE Studio Liverpool or simply Studio Liverpool from 1999) was a British video game developer and publisher headquartered at Wavertree Technology Park in Liverpool. Founded in 1984 by Ian Hetherington, Jonathan Elli ...
, developer of the '' Wipeout'' and ''
Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...
'' series, was closed. In August 2012, Sony Computer Entertainment announced
PlayStation Mobile PlayStation Mobile (formerly PlayStation SuiteHinkle, David. (2012-06-04 HTC is first partner for 'PlayStation Mobile,' the new name for PlayStation Suite pdate: Press release added Joystiq. Retrieved on 2013-08-23.) was a software framework us ...
for Vita and PlayStation certified devices, with a developers such has THQ, Team17 and Action Button Entertainment signed up. A press release was published on August 20, 2013, announcing the release date of the PlayStation 4 (PS4) console. On that date, SCEI introduced the CUH-1000A series system, and announced the launch date as November 15, 2013, for North American markets and November 29, 2013, for European, Australasian and Central and South American markets. Following a January 2014 announcement by the Chinese government that the country's 14-year game console ban would be lifted, the PS4 was scheduled to be the first Sony video game console to be officially and legally released in China since the PlayStation 2. On March 6, 2014, Sony Computer Entertainment of America President and CEO, Tretton, announced he was resigning from his position at the end of the month, citing a mutual agreement between himself and SCEA for the cessation of his contract. Tretton had worked at SCEA since 1995 and was a founding member of the company's executive team. He was involved in the launch of all PlayStation platforms in North America, including the original PlayStation, PS2, PSP, PS3, PSN, PS Vita, and PS4. Tretton was replaced by
Shawn Layden Shawn Layden (born June 25, 1961) is an American businessman and was the Chairman of SIE Worldwide Studios. Previously, he served as the president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment America (SIEA), executive vice president and COO of So ...
, who was the vice-president and chief operating officer (COO) of Sony Network Entertainment International, effective April 1, 2014. On April 2, 2015, it was announced that Sony Computer Entertainment had acquired the intellectual property of the cloud gaming service
OnLive OnLive was a Mountain View, California-based provider of cloud virtualization technologies. OnLive's flagship product was its cloud gaming service, which allowed subscribers to rent or demo computer games without installing them on their device. ...
, and that its services would cease by the end of the month. The beta version of Sony's first-ever cloud-based television service,
PlayStation Vue PlayStation Vue (PS Vue) was an American streaming television service that was owned by the Sony Interactive Entertainment subdivision of the Sony Corporation of America division of Sony. Launched with a limited major-market rollout on March 18, ...
(PSVue), was launched in the U.S. in November 2014. It was only offered on an invite-only basis for PS3 and PS4 users, prior to its official launch in early 2015. Sony signed deals with major networks, including CBS, Discovery, Fox, and Viacom, so that users can view live streaming video, as well as catch up and on-demand content, from more than 75 channels, such as Comedy Central and Nickelodeon. Although pricing and release dates for other regions was not publicized, Sony confirmed that PSVue will eventually be available on
iPad The iPad is a brand of iOS and iPadOS-based tablet computers that are developed by Apple Inc. The iPad was conceived before the related iPhone but the iPhone was developed and released first. Speculation about the development, operating s ...
, followed by other Sony and non-Sony devices.


As Sony Interactive Entertainment (2016–present)

On January 26, 2016, Sony announced that effective April 1, 2016, Sony Computer Entertainment and Sony Network Entertainment International would be re-organized and combined into a new company, Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE). Unlike the former SCE, SIE is based in
San Mateo, California San Mateo ( ; ) is a city in San Mateo County, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula. About 20 miles (32 km) south of San Francisco, the city borders Burlingame to the north, Hillsborough to the west, San Francisco Bay and Foster C ...
, and represents the entire PlayStation brand, regional subsidiaries, and its content operations. On March 24, 2016, Sony announced the establishment of ForwardWorks, a new studio dedicated to producing "full-fledged" games based on Sony intellectual properties for mobile platforms such as smartphones. It was reported in December 2016 by multiple news outlets that Sony was considering restructuring its U.S. operations by merging its TV and film business with SIE. According to the reports, such a restructuring would have placed Sony Pictures under Sony Interactive's CEO, Andrew House, though House wouldn't have taken over day-to-day operations of the film studio. According to one report, Sony was set to make a final decision on the possibility of the merger of the TV, film, and gaming businesses by the end of its fiscal year in March of the following year (2017). However, judging by Sony's activity in 2017, the rumored merger never materialized. On January 8, 2019, Sony announced that the company had entered into a definitive agreement for Sony Interactive Entertainment to acquire
Audiokinetic Audiokinetic Inc. is a Canadian software company based in Montreal, Quebec that develops audio software for the video game industry. Its main product is Wwise audio authoring software. On January 8, 2019, Sony Interactive Entertainment announced ...
. On March 20, 2019, Sony Interactive Entertainment launched the educational video game platform
toio toio is an educational Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, ...
in Japan. On May 20, 2019, Sony Interactive Entertainment announced that the company had launched
PlayStation Productions PlayStation Productions, LLC is an American production company owned by Sony Interactive Entertainment. History Sony Interactive Entertainment launched PlayStation Productions in 2019 with a focus on adapting the company's video game franchis ...
, a production studio that will mine the company's extensive catalogue of video game titles for film and television. The new venture is headed by Asad Qizilbash and overseen by Shawn Layden, chairman of Worldwide Studios. On August 19, 2019, Sony Interactive Entertainment announced that the company had entered into definitive agreements to acquire
Insomniac Games Insomniac Games, Inc. is an American video game developer based in Burbank, California and a studio of PlayStation Studios. It was founded in 1994 by Ted Price as Xtreme Software, and was renamed Insomniac Games a year later. The company is mo ...
. The acquisition was completed on November 15, 2019, where Sony paid ¥24,895 million (US$229 million) in cash. On November 8, 2019,
Gobind Singh Deo Gobind Singh Deo s/o Karpal Singh ( pa, ਗੋਬਿੰਦ ਸਿੰਘ ਦਿਓ, Gobind Siṅgh Dio; born 19 June 1973) is a Malaysian politician and lawyer who served as the Minister of Communications and Multimedia in the Pakatan Harapan ...
, Malaysia's Minister of Communications and Multimedia, announced that Sony Interactive Entertainment would open a new development office in the country as in 2020 to provide art and animation as part of Worldwide Studios' efforts to make exclusive games for PlayStation consoles. The studio will be Sony Interactive Entertainment's first studio in Southeast Asia. SIE announced the formation of
PlayStation Studios PlayStation Studios (formerly SCE Worldwide Studios and SIE Worldwide Studios) is a Division (business), division of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) that oversees the video game development at the studios owned by SIE. The division was est ...
in May 2020 to be formally introduced alongside the
PlayStation 5 The PlayStation 5 (PS5) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 4 in April 2019, it was launched on November 12, 2020, in Australia, Japan, New Zealand, North Ame ...
later in 2020. PlayStation Studios will serve as an umbrella organization for its first-party game development studios, including Naughty Dog, Insomniac, Santa Monica Studio, Media Molecule and Guerrilla Games, as well as used for branding on games developed by studios brought in by Sony in work-for-hire situations. Sony plans to use the "PlayStation Studios" branding on both PlayStation 5 and new PlayStation 4 games to help with consumer recognition, though the branding was not ready for some of Sony's mid-2020 releases like ''
The Last of Us Part II ''The Last of Us Part II'' is a 2020 action-adventure game developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 4. Set five years after ''The Last of Us'' (2013), the game focuses on two playable charac ...
''. SIE's parent Sony bought a minority stake in
Epic Games Epic Games, Inc. is an American video game and software developer and publisher based in Cary, North Carolina. The company was founded by Tim Sweeney as Potomac Computer Systems in 1991, originally located in his parents' house in Potomac, M ...
for $250 million in July 2020, giving the company about a 1.4% stake in Epic. The investment came after Sony helped with Epic's development of new technologies in its
Unreal Engine 5 Unreal Engine (UE) is a 3D computer graphics game engine developed by Epic Games, first showcased in the 1998 first-person shooter game ''Unreal''. Initially developed for PC first-person shooters, it has since been used in a variety of genr ...
, which it was positioning for use in powering games on the upcoming PlayStation 5 to take advantage of its high speed internal storage solutions for in-game streaming. In March 2021, SIE announced that it and RTS acquired the assets and properties of the
Evolution Championship Series The Evolution Championship Series, commonly known as Evo, is an annual esports event that focuses exclusively on fighting games. The tournaments are completely open and use the double elimination format. As with Super Battle Opera, contestants ...
as a joint venture. On April 13, 2021, Epic Games announced that it received an additional $200 million strategic investment from SIE's parent Sony Group Corporation. On May 3, 2021, Sony Interactive Entertainment announced the acquisition of a minority stake in
Discord Discord is a VoIP and instant messaging social platform. Users have the ability to communicate with voice calls, video calls, text messaging, media and files in private chats or as part of communities called "servers".The developer documenta ...
, which will be integrated into the PlayStation Network by early 2022. On June 29, 2021, Sony Interactive Entertainment announced the acquisition of
Housemarque Housemarque Oy is a Finnish video game developer based in Helsinki. The company was founded by Ilari Kuittinen and Harri Tikkanen in July 1995, through the merger of their previous video game companies, Bloodhouse and Terramarque, both of which ...
. On July 1, 2021, Sony Interactive Entertainment announced the acquisition of
Nixxes Software Nixxes Software B.V. is a Dutch video game developer based at the World Trade Center in Utrecht. It was founded by former demoscene developer Jurjen Katsman in 1999 to port the game '' Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver'' to the Dreamcast. In July 20 ...
. Jim Ryan said later that month that they plan to work with Nixxes to release more of their PlayStation games to personal computers. On September 8, 2021, Sony Interactive Entertainment announced the acquisition of
Firesprite Firesprite is a British video game developer formed in 2012 by former members of the Studio Liverpool based in Liverpool. History Firesprite was founded in 2012 by Graeme Ankers as Managing Director, Lee Carus as Art Director, Chris Roberts as ...
, a Liverpool-based developer with over 250 employees. The studio has multiple projects in development, with the projects focusing on genres outside the core offerings of PlayStation Studios. On September 29, 2021, Firesprite announced that it had acquired Fabrik Games, bringing the studio's headcount to 265. On September 30, 2021, Sony Interactive Entertainment announced that
Bluepoint Games Bluepoint Games Inc is an American video game developer based in Austin, Texas. Founded in 2006 by Andy O'Neil and Marco Thrush, the studio is known for video game remasters and Video game remake, remakes, such as ''Uncharted: The Nathan Drake ...
had joined PlayStation Studios, with Bluepoint working on original content instead of remaking an older game. On November 4, 2021, Sony Interactive Entertainment acquired a 5% stake in the video game publisher
Devolver Digital Devolver Digital, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Austin, Texas, specializing in the publishing of indie games. The company was founded in June 2009 by Nigel Lowrie, Harry Miller, Graeme Struthers, Rick Stults, and Mike Wilso ...
. On December 10, 2021, Sony Interactive Entertainment announced the acquisition of the Seattle-based studio Valkyrie Entertainment. Sony Interactive Entertainment announced its intent to purchase
Bungie Bungie, Inc. is an American video game company based in Bellevue, Washington. It is a studio owned by Sony Interactive Entertainment. The company was established in May 1991 by Alex Seropian, who later brought in programmer Jason Jones (progr ...
for $3.6 billion in January 2022. This deal closed on July 15, 2022. Under terms of this deal, Bungie remained an independent development studio and publisher, allowing Bungie to pursue development outside Sony's platforms, and was intended to help bolster live service games for SIE. Sony Interactive Entertainment acquired
Jade Raymond Jade Raymond (born 28 August 1975) is a Canadian video game creator, best known for helping create the ''Assassin's Creed'' and ''Watch Dogs'' franchises, and for building the Ubisoft Toronto and EA Motive Studios. On 16 March 2021, Raymond an ...
's Haven Studios in March 2022 and incorporating it as part of PlayStation Studios, making the studio Sony's first development team in Canada. On July 18, 2022, Sony Interactive Entertainment and Repeat.gg announced that Sony Interactive Entertainment had acquired Repeat.gg. On August 29, 2022, Sony Interactive Entertainment and Savege Game Studios announced that Sony Interactive Entertainment had acquired Savege Game Studios, a mobile game development studio with offices in Helsinki and Berlin. Savage Game Studios joined the newly created PlayStation Studios Mobile Division, an independent operation from console development. On August 31, 2022, it was announced that Sony Interactive Entertainment has acquired a 14.09% stake in
FromSoftware FromSoftware, Inc. is a Japanese video game development and publishing company based in Tokyo. Founded by Naotoshi Zin in November 1986, the company developed business software before releasing their first video game, ''King's Field (video game) ...
.


Corporate affairs

The
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
, and
CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
of SIE is Jim Ryan, replacing John (Tsuyoshi) Kodera, who stepped down in April 2019. Kodera would leave SIE in 2021.
Andrew House Andrew House (born 23 January 1965) is a Welsh businessman and the former chair of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE). He previously served as President and Global CEO of SIE. House started working for Sony Computer Corporation in 1990, working ...
served as president and CEO from 2011 until October 2017, after stepping down from the role House served as
chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...
until the end of the year. House replaced
Kaz Hirai is a Japanese businessman. He is best known as the former chairman of Sony Corporation, serving from April 2018 to June 2019, as well as president and CEO from April 2012 to April 2018. He also served as a board member of Sony Computer Entertain ...
as president and CEO in 2011, who himself had replaced longtime CEO
Ken Kutaragi is a Japanese engineering technologist and businessman. He is the former chairman and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), the video game division of Sony Corporation, and current president and CEO of Cyber AI Entertainment. He is known ...
, also known as the "Father of the PlayStation". Kutaragi retired from his executive position at SIE on June 19, 2007, and holds the title of honorary chairman at the company. As of November 7, 2019, Hermen Hulst is the Head of Worldwide Studios.


Headquarters

SIE currently has eight main headquarters around the world: the global and regional headquarters for the
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
and
Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...
n (except
Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
and the
Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
countries) countries in
San Mateo, California San Mateo ( ; ) is a city in San Mateo County, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula. About 20 miles (32 km) south of San Francisco, the city borders Burlingame to the north, Hillsborough to the west, San Francisco Bay and Foster C ...
(Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC); Minato, Tokyo, Japan (Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. and Sony Interactive Entertainment Japan Asia) which control operations in Japan and was also formerly the headquarters for (Sony Computer Entertainment);
Seoul, South Korea Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...
(Sony Interactive Entertainment Korea) for the South Korean operations and
London, England London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...
(Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe) which controls operations in
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
(
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
included and except
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
,
Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...
and
Baltic countries The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
),
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
,
Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
(except
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
and Turkey),
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
and
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
whereas
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
(Sony Interactive Entertainment Singapore) operates throughout
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
;
Taipei, Taiwan Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...
(Sony Interactive Entertainment Taiwan) for the Taiwanese operations and
Shanghai, China Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...
(Sony Interactive Entertainment Shanghai) controls its operations in the
mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
;
Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
(Sony Interactive Entertainment Hong Kong) will serve the operations around Hong Kong and
Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
, previously served for operations in the (Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan). SIE also has smaller offices and distribution centers in
Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
(
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...
),
San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
;
Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
;
Melbourne, Australia Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metropol ...
;
Seoul, South Korea Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...
''(
Seocho-gu Seocho District () is one of the 25 '' gu'' (local government districts) which make up the city of Seoul, South Korea. Seocho is generally referred to as a part of Greater Gangnam Area, along with Gangnam District. As of 2022, Seocho District ra ...
)'',
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
;
Shanghai, China Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...
and
Liverpool, England Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
.


Game approval

SIE evaluates and approves games for its consoles. The process is more strict than for the
Nintendo Seal of Quality is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
, and developers submit game concepts to Sony early in the design process. Each SIE unit has its own evaluation process; SIEE, for example, approved '' Billy the Wizard'' for its consumers but SIEA did not. The company sometimes imposes additional restrictions, such as when it prohibited PS and PS2 games from being ported to the PSP without 30% of content being new to the Sony console.


Hardware


PlayStation

SCEI produces the PlayStation line of video game hardware that consists of consoles and handhelds. Sony's first wide home console release, the PlayStation (codenamed "PSX" during development), was initially designed to be a
CD-ROM A CD-ROM (, compact disc read-only memory) is a type of read-only memory consisting of a pre-pressed optical compact disc that contains data. Computers can read—but not write or erase—CD-ROMs. Some CDs, called enhanced CDs, hold both comput ...
drive add-on for
Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
's
Super NES The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in E ...
(a.k.a. "Super Famicom" in Japan) video game console, in response to add-ons for competing platforms such as the
TurboGrafx-CD The TurboGrafx-16, known as the outside North America, is a home video game console designed by Hudson Soft and sold by NEC Home Electronics. It was the first console marketed in the fourth generation, commonly known as the 16-bit era, thoug ...
and the
Sega CD The Sega CD, released as the in most regions outside North America and Brazil, is a CD-ROM accessory for the Sega Genesis produced by Sega as part of the fourth generation of video game consoles. It was released on December 12, 1991, in Japan, ...
(sold as the PC Engine CD-ROM² System and Mega CD in Japan respectively). When the prospect of releasing the system as an add-on dissolved, Sony redesigned the machine into a standalone unit. The PlayStation was released in Japan on December 3, 1994, and later in North America on September 9, 1995. By the end of the console 12-year production cycle, the PlayStation had sold 102 million units.


PlayStation 2

SCEI's second home console, the PlayStation 2 (PS2) was released in Japan on March 4, 2000, and later in North America and Europe in October and November 2000, respectively. The PS2 is powered by a proprietary
central processing unit A central processing unit (CPU), also called a central processor, main processor or just processor, is the electronic circuitry that executes instructions comprising a computer program. The CPU performs basic arithmetic, logic, controlling, an ...
, the
Emotion Engine The Emotion Engine is a central processing unit developed and manufactured by Sony Computer Entertainment and Toshiba for use in the PlayStation 2 video game console. It was also used in early PlayStation 3 models sold in Japan and North America ...
, and was the first video game console to have
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...
playback functionality and also
backwards compatibility Backward compatibility (sometimes known as backwards compatibility) is a property of an operating system, product, or technology that allows for interoperability with an older legacy system, or with input designed for such a system, especially i ...
with the original
PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
games included out of the box. The PS2 consisted of a DVD drive and retailed in the U.S. for US$299. SCEI received heavy criticism after the launch of the PS2 due to the games released as part of the launch, difficulties that it presented for video game designers, and users who struggled to port Sega Dreamcast games to the system. However, despite these complaints, the PlayStation 2 received widespread support from
third party developer A video game developer is a broad term for a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one person who undertakes all tasks to a large ...
s throughout its lifespan on the market. On December 28, 2012, Sony confirmed that it would cease production of the PS2 through a gradual process that started in Japan—the continuing popularity of the console in markets like Brazil and India meant that PS2 products would still be shipped, while games for the console were released in March 2013. The PS2 stands as the best-selling home video game console in history, with a total of 155 million consoles sold. Writing for the ExtremeTech website at the end of 2012, James Plafke described the PS2 as revolutionary and proclaimed that the console "turn dthe gaming industry on its head":
Aside from being the “first” next-gen console, as well as providing many, many people with their first DVD player, the PlayStation 2 launched in something of a Golden Age of the non-PC gaming industry. Gaming tech was becoming extremely sophisticated ... Sony seemingly knew the exact route toward popularity, turning the console with the least powerful hardware of that generation into a juggernaut of success.


PlayStation Portable

The
PlayStation Portable The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...
(PSP) was SCEI's first foray into the small handheld console market. Its development was first announced during SCE's E3 conference in 2003, and it was officially unveiled during their E3 conference on May 11, 2004. The system was released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in Europe and Australia on September 1, 2005. The console has since seen two major redesigns, with new features including smaller size, more internal memory, a better quality LCD screen and lighter weight.


PlayStation 3

The launch date for the PS3 was announced by Hirai at the pre-E3 conference held at Sony Pictures Studios in Los Angeles, California, on May 8, 2006. The PS3 was released in Japan on November 11, 2006, and the U.S. date was November 17, 2006. Technology journalists observed that Sony had followed what
Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...
did with the
Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation ...
, and produced the PS3 in two versions: one with a 20GB hard drive and the other with a 60GB hard drive. The PS3 utilizes a unique processing architecture, the
Cell microprocessor Cell is a multi-core microprocessor microarchitecture that combines a general-purpose PowerPC core of modest performance with streamlined coprocessing elements which greatly accelerate multimedia and vector processing applications, as well as m ...
, a proprietary technology developed by Sony in conjunction with
Toshiba , commonly known as Toshiba and stylized as TOSHIBA, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Its diversified products and services include power, industrial and social infrastructure system ...
and IBM. The graphics processing unit, the
RSX 'Reality Synthesizer' The RSX 'Reality Synthesizer' is a proprietary graphics processing unit (GPU) codeveloped by Nvidia and Sony for the PlayStation 3 game console. It is a GPU based on the Nvidia 7800GTX graphics processor and, according to Nvidia, is a G ...
, was co-developed by
Nvidia Nvidia CorporationOfficially written as NVIDIA and stylized in its logo as VIDIA with the lowercase "n" the same height as the uppercase "VIDIA"; formerly stylized as VIDIA with a large italicized lowercase "n" on products from the mid 1990s to ...
and Sony. Several variations of the PS3 have been released, each with slight hardware and software differences, and each denoted by the varying size of the included hard disk drive.


PlayStation Vita

The PS Vita is the successor to the PlayStation Portable. It was released in Japan and other parts of Asia on December 17, 2011, and then in Europe, Australia and North America on February 22, 2012. Internally, the Vita features a 4-core
ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore The ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore is a 32-bit multi-core processor that provides up to 4 cache-coherent cores, each implementing the ARM v7 architecture instruction set. It was introduced in 2007. Features Key features of the Cortex-A9 core are: * ...
processor and a 4-core SGX543MP4+ graphics processing unit, as well as
LiveArea The PlayStation Vita system software is the official firmware and operating system for the PlayStation Vita and PlayStation TV video game consoles. It uses the LiveArea as its graphical shell. The system is built on a Unix-base which is derived ...
software as its main user interface, which succeeds the
XrossMediaBar The XrossMediaBar (pronounced "cross-media bar" and officially abbreviated as XMB) is a graphical user interface developed by Sony Computer Entertainment. The interface features icons that are spread horizontally across the screen. Navigation mov ...
. On March 1, 2019, Sony has ended production of the system and physical cartridge games.


PlayStation 4

The PS4 was announced as the successor to the PS3 and was launched in North America on November 15, 2013, in Europe on November 29, 2013 and in Japan on February 23, 2014. Described by Sony as a "next generation" console, the PS4 included features such as enhanced social capabilities, second-screen options involving devices like the handheld
PlayStation Vita The PlayStation Vita (PS Vita, or Vita) is a handheld video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 17, 2011, and in North America, Europe, and other international territo ...
, a membership service and compatibility with the
Twitch Twitch may refer to: Biology * Muscle contraction ** Convulsion, rapid and repeated muscle contraction and relaxation ** Fasciculation, a small, local, involuntary muscle contraction ** Myoclonic twitch, a jerk usually caused by sudden muscle con ...
live streaming platform. Following a January 2014 announcement by the Chinese government that the country's 14-year game console ban would be lifted, the PS4 was scheduled to be the first Sony video game console to be officially and legally released in China since the PlayStation 2—the ban was enacted in 2000 to protect the mental health of young people. Around 70 game developers, including
Ubisoft Ubisoft Entertainment SA (; ; formerly Ubi Soft Entertainment SA) is a French video game publisher headquartered in Saint-Mandé with development studios across the world. Its video game franchises include '' Assassin's Creed'', ''Far Cry'', '' ...
and Koei, will service Chinese PlayStation users. The Chinese release dates and price details were announced in early December, with January 11, 2015, confirmed by SCEI. The makers announced that both the PS4 and Vita consoles will be released in China, and the former's package will also consist of a 500GB and 1TB hard drive and controller. The 20th anniversary of the original PS console was celebrated on December 6, 2014, with the release of a limited-edition, anniversary-edition PlayStation 4 with an aesthetic design that recalled the original 1994 PlayStation.


PlayStation 5

The PS5 was announced to succeed the PS4 in 2019, and released in
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
,
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
,
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
,
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
, and
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
on November 12, 2020, with a further worldwide release on November 19, 2020.


Software


Development studios

SIE maintains several in-house studios since 2005, with the most recent move to brand these as PlayStation Studios starting in 2020. All of these studios develop PlayStation console-exclusive games for Sony. In addition to those listed below,
Bungie Bungie, Inc. is an American video game company based in Bellevue, Washington. It is a studio owned by Sony Interactive Entertainment. The company was established in May 1991 by Alex Seropian, who later brought in programmer Jason Jones (progr ...
operates as an independent studio and publisher under SIE since July 2022.


Other platforms

SIE began releasing some of its first-party studios' exclusive titles for
Microsoft Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...
in 2020, starting with '' Horizon: Zero Dawn'' in August 2020, and with ''
Days Gone ''Days Gone'' is a 2019 action-adventure video game developed by Bend Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 4. A Windows port was released in May 2021. The game is set in post-apocalyptic Oregon two years ...
'' in May 2021. Layden said in a 2021 interview that he was part of the team that came up with this concept, where they recognized "we need to go out to where these new customers are, where these new fans could be. We need to go to where they are... Because they've decided not to come to my house, so I've got to go their house now. And what's the best way to go to their house? Why not take one of our top-selling games?" Ryan said in an interview that with some of the latter PlayStation 4 titles that "There’s an opportunity to expose those great games to a wider audience" and that ''Horizon: Zero Dawn'' release on Windows shows there was a strong interest in further releases. An investor report in 2021 stated that a primary factor in SIE's recent desire to expand into PC gaming under Ryan stems from the motivation to expand the PlayStation brand into
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
,
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
and
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
—markets where console-oriented gaming is far less prevalent than in the West and Japan. In June 2021 after acquiring the studio Nixxes which had become their go-to developer for these ports, Sony confirmed that they are dedicated to PC gaming and value PC gamers, although the PlayStation consoles will still be the "first" and "best" places to play their games. Subsequent Windows releases included 2018's ''
God of War A war god in mythology associated with war, combat, or bloodshed. They occur commonly in both monotheistic and polytheistic religions. Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been po ...
'' in January 2022, ''
Marvel's Spider-Man Remastered ''Marvel's Spider-Man'' is a 2018 action-adventure game developed by Insomniac Games and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man, it tells an original narrative that is inspired by the long-ru ...
'' in August 2022, the '' Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves'' collection and '' Sackboy: A Big Adventure'' in October 2022, '' Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales'' in November 2022, ''
The Last of Us Part I ''The Last of Us Part I'' is a 2022 action-adventure game developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. A Video game remake, remake of the 2013 game ''The Last of Us'', it features revised gameplay, including enhanc ...
'' in March 2023, and '' Returnal'' in early 2023. ''
Video Games Chronicle Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British mass media company based in Brighton. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and other ...
'' observed that Sony had established a PlayStation PC label around April 2021 to handle the publication of its games on Windows. SIE stated in a May 2022 investor report that sales of PC ports of their games had grown from in their 2020 fiscal year, to in 2021, and estimated to be for 2022. Because of this, SIE plans to continue to support PC releases of their PlayStation exclusive games and anticipate that by 2025, a third of their games revenue will come from PC sales. SIE also began seeking the mobile games market, hiring a former content manager for
Apple Arcade Apple Arcade is a video game subscription service offered by Apple Inc. It is available through a dedicated tab of the App Store on devices running iOS 13, tvOS 13, iPadOS 13, and macOS Catalina or later. The service launched on September 19 ...
in 2020, as a means to bring their IPs to this platform. SIE acquired Savage Game Studios as their first dedicated mobile developer within PlayStation Studios in August 2022 for an undisclosed sum. It expects that by 2025, mobile games will make up 20% of their games revenue.


See also

*
List of Sony Interactive Entertainment video games The following is a list of video games published by Sony Interactive Entertainment, formerly known as Sony Computer Entertainment. Video games PlayStation 1994 * ''Retail'' ** '' Crime Crackers'' ''(Japan only)'' ** ''Motor Toon Gran ...


References


External links

* {{coord, 37, 33, 38, N, 122, 17, 03, W, display=title 1993 establishments in Japan American companies established in 2016 American subsidiaries of foreign companies Companies based in San Mateo, California Golden Joystick Award winners Japanese companies established in 1993 Sony subsidiaries Video game companies established in 1993 Video game companies of Japan Video game companies of the United States Video game development companies Video game publishers