Last week, Jim Ryan, president of Sony Interactive Entertainment, confirmed that more of their first party exclusive will be coming to PC. Over the past few days, Sony has confirmed that they are restructuring Sony Japan Studio, with many developers leaving while others have been included in other teams.
So, maybe Sony does not realize that the games from Japan Studio should be the most urgent to a computer?
When I think of the iconic Sony games, it’s not Horizon: Zero Dawn (which came to PC last year) or Days Gone (which comes this spring). These are third-person action adventures of the kind I can already play on a computer. These are not even the better games of the genre I can think of, the Gods Of War, Lasts Of Us or Bloodbornes.
No, I’m thinking of the song by Loco Roco and Patapon. I think of the Pomeranian survival sim Tokyo Jungle and DualShock pioneer Ape Escape. I think of course of coveted (somewhat overrated) classics like Ico, Shadow Of The Colossus and The Last Obstinate Bird Dog.
Many of these games have been developed with other teams, either internally as in the case of Team Ico, or external companies such as Pyramid on Patapon. Many of the specific developers responsible for the games have also already left Sony Japan Studio, as in the case of Gravity Rush developers Team Gravity. So maybe the name Japan Studio does not mean much more – and maybe not.
But the games mean a lot. They are strange, ambitious, often very upbeat, video games. There is not too much of it, and the few that are made do now happen on a computer. The indie platform Pikuniku, for example, seems so clearly inspired by some of Japan Studio’s games. In my opinion, it makes the work of Japan Studio worthwhile to make it more widely available, and makes the computer a perfect home.
Transferring them to a computer also does not seem like a pipe dream. Many of these games – Colossus, Patapon, Parappa The Rapper, Loco Roco – have already received Remasters over the past few years, including some that previously brought PSP-exclusive games to the PlayStation 4. Maybe there is already a plan to do exactly what I suggest.
But if we reach the end of 2021 and Sony announces that the game coming after Days Gone is Sad Dad Reboot or Dog Murder: A Cautionary Tale, then it will feel like a missed opportunity to me.
TL; DR: Release Knack on PC, cowards.