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PlayStation London has officially shut down

Over 22 years, PlayStation London broadened PlayStation's appeal with the SingStar games, along with its VR titles Blood & Truth and PlayStation VR Worlds.

Justin Carter, Contributing Editor

May 21, 2024

2 Min Read
Graphic highlighting Sony London's games throughout its 22-year history.
Image via Sony London.

Today, May 21, is the last day for SingStar creator PlayStation London. In a final farewell on Twitter, the developer (also known as London Studio) thanked everyone for the "wild and wonderful journey."

"[We've] been home to some exceptionally talented and wonderful people in the games industry," it wrote.

"As we close the doors, and all go forward to new adventures, we wanted to say a heartfelt thank you, to all our past and present, players and colleagues who have supported us over the years."

Sony announced the developer's closure as part of its layoffs and project cancellations back in February. Before that point, it was reportedly working on an unannounced multiplayer game that was intended to begin a new franchise.

The life and times of PlayStation London

Founded in 2002 after The Getaway developer Team Soho merged with Psygnosis' Camden team, PlayStation London made over 60 games during its lifetime.

Most were PlayStation 2 games, a console it stuck with even after the PlayStation 3's launch in 2006. The studio really took off with its EyeToy games for the titular PS2 peripheral and the SingStar series.

The latter sold over 20 million copies in six years, and helped broaden the PS2's appeal. Alongside its own works, PS London helped with development on Killzone 2 and LittleBigPlanet.

With 2012's Wonderbook, the studio started making games for PlayStation's augmented and virtual reality products. Its most well-known PlayStation VR title is 2019's Blood & Truth.

In late 2022, PlayStaton London was reportedly pivoting from the VR space to live-service games. At the time, co-head Stuart Whyte said the new project would let it "explore some new avenues and set ourselves some new challenges."

This new project was built specifically for the PlayStation 5, and said to be inspired by the works of fellow PlayStation studio Guerrilla Games.

On PlayStation London's Twitter, its bio now reads: "Our studio has now closed. Thanks for the memories!"

About the Author(s)

Justin Carter

Contributing Editor, GameDeveloper.com

A Kansas City, MO native, Justin Carter has written for numerous sites including IGN, Polygon, and SyFy Wire. In addition to Game Developer, his writing can be found at io9 over on Gizmodo. Don't ask him about how much gum he's had, because the answer will be more than he's willing to admit.

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