Sony first-party PlayStation exclusive sales have declined since 2020
New data shows that sales of Sony's first-party PlayStation exclusive games have been on a downward trend since the 2020 fiscal year. Eurogamer reported that the decline persisted across most major releases, with only a brief spike in 2025. Titles including Horizon Forbidden West, God of War Ragnarok and The Last of Us Part II Remastered sold fewer copies than their predecessors or industry expectations. The drop comes despite Sony's investments of billions of dollars into its in-house studios. Sony has positioned PlayStation as the home for premium single-player exclusives, but the sales data suggests that formula is under pressure.
THE BREAKDOWN
Gaming creators who built audiences around Sony exclusives should diversify into multi-platform live service games and indie titles. Agents should look for creators with strong performance in genres Sony is now weak in, such as multiplayer shooters and RPGs, since brand budgets will follow audience attention. Brand managers in gaming should shift some spend from single-player launch campaigns to ongoing live service sponsorships that span multiple content drops. If Sony continues to miss sales targets, expect more porting of exclusives to PC and possibly Xbox, which would change the platform strategy for creator activations. Creators with early access relationships at Sony should negotiate clearer deliverable schedules before exclusivity windows shrink.
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