According to Bloomberg journalist Jason Schreier, Sony plans to close Dark Outlaw Games, its in-house development team headed by Jason Blundell, who previously served as a producer on the Call of Duty series. Prior to this role, Blundell oversaw Deviation Games, an independent outfit that was crafting a title for PlayStation before its own closure, as noted by Schreier.
Although Dark Outlaw Games has not revealed any projects, Blundell's extensive background in the Call of Duty series suggests the team could have been focusing on a multiplayer title for the PlayStation platform. Blundell started as a programmer and producer at Activision, later moving to Treyarch where he helped create Call of Duty 3. He went on to support various entries in the Call of Duty: Black Ops lineup, notably directing the campaign and Zombies features in Call of Duty: Black Ops III, as well as the career and Zombies elements in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4.
Engadget has reached out to Sony for details regarding the status of Dark Outlaw Games and will revise this story upon receiving a reply.
This closure coincides with reductions in PlayStation's mobile development personnel, per Schreier. Over the past year, Sony has frequently reduced workforce and eliminated studios, appearing to pull back from prior commitments to online and live-service multiplayer titles. For instance, the company shuttered Bluepoint Games in February after efforts to launch a live-service version of God of War. Sony also terminated Firewalk Studios following the major flop of the multiplayer shooter Concord in October 2024. Earlier, in December 2023, Naughty Dog ceased development on a separate multiplayer edition of The Last of Us.
Sony still maintains several ongoing multiplayer efforts, including at least two offshoots from Horizon Zero Dawn—a co-op project by original creators Guerrilla Games and an MMO from NCSoft—along with Fairgame$, which continues despite the exit of Haven Studios' leader Jade Raymond; Helldivers 2 from Arrowhead Game Studios; Bungie's Destiny 2 and Marathon; and, if broadly interpreted, Gran Turismo 7. While Sony persists in pursuing online multiplayer content, its broader push into the genre can fairly be described as a significant setback.