Shuhei Yoshida, head of independent development at Sony PlayStation and the console maker’s longtime head of game development, is leaving the company after more than three decades at the company. He helped create some of PlayStation’s earliest hits and later helped lead the platform’s strong first-party studios across multiple generations of consoles.
“Yes, I have something to announce,” the Sony veteran said in an interview. and PlayStation Blog Tuesday. “I’m leaving Sony Interactive Entertainment on January 15, 2025… It’s like announcing the release date of a new game, [something] I haven’t done it for a long time [laughs]”. The industry veteran said that while he will no longer be at Sony, he plans to continue working on games in some capacity.
In the interview, Yoshida talks about the early days of the PS1 era and trying to convince publishers and studios to take a chance on making games for Sony’s first console. When he was an executive producer on early games like CRashed Kangaroo: Twisted and Legend of Dragon RiderHe then held leadership positions across the business unit, eventually becoming President of Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios.
he told PlayStation Podcast travelThe game was released on PS3 in 2012 and became a download-only indie hit, winning the Game of the Year award and becoming a career highlight. “But that game…[won] Game of the Year versus all these AAA games, which I think is a first for the industry… Creator Jenova Chen spoke at the summit, and he talked about a letter he received from a girl who lost her father , she thought she could move on with her life regarding her father,” Yoshida said. “The whole audience stood up and the whole room was filled with a feeling of happiness and wonder that this little game could have such a big impact on people’s lives.”
The executive is also known for his own development experience and design sense. a critical moment during Documentaries about the production of 2018 MarsYoshida’s scathing criticism of the version of the game in development became a make-or-break moment for the now-acclaimed reboot. He eventually resigned as head of global studios in 2019, and then-Guerrilla Games studio head Hermen Hulst took over the role in a PlayStation leadership shake-up. Helst now serves as PlayStation’s co-executive executive alongside Hideaki Nishino.
Yoshida’s announcement marks the second departure from PlayStation in a year, after former Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan retired last spring. It would also see the console maker lose one of its most high-profile executives and well-known faces who has always been popular with fans in the community. He is perhaps best known for his role in In the infamous 22-second E3 2013 clip Demonstrating how to share games on PS4, the stunt kicked off Sony’s current dominance of high-end consoles.
“I’ve been working at PlayStation from the beginning, and this is my 31st year at PlayStation,” he said. “When I turned 30, I was thinking, well, maybe it’s time for me to move on. You know, the company has been doing great. I love PS5, I love the games that are being released on the platform. We have people that I respect And admiration for the new generation of management. I’m very excited about the future of PlayStation and I think, well, this is my time.
Yoshida’s announcement comes ahead of PlayStation’s 30th anniversary on December 3. More information and even a mini presentation.
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