Companies often view success solely by achieving a set of metrics. Sony doesn’t see things that way…in fact, they might say that viewpoint is a little myopic. Michael Denny, Sony Worldwide Studios boss for Europe recently shared his thoughts on how Sony judges themselves on more than just numbers.
The Official PlayStation Magazines Editor Ben Wilson spoke with Michael Denny at gamescom last week. When Ben asked if Sony measured its success against their competitors, Denny gave this surprising and refreshing response:
“There are a whole number of metrics we could measure success by, but for me on a worldwide studios side of things, there’s nothing more gratifying than when we break new IPs – innovative games we bring to PlayStation fans.”
Denny then used Heavy Rain as an example of what can happen when you take a risk:
“In a year like the one just gone, you look at a game like Heavy Rain. A lot of people questioned whether that was risky and whether it [could] stand up. But I think that’s what really brings the pleasure of working for Sony first party – we’re willing to take some risks and look at innovation.”
I have to applaud Sony for their mindset. Heavy Rain was extremely successful and sold over a million units – Despite the game’s success, not everyone liked it. Whether you liked it or not it’s hard to argue that it wasn’t innovative. It wasn’t built on a successful franchise that in some cases can mean guaranteed revenue. It was a big gamble that paid off.
For gamers, this means new and unique experiences – It presents new ways to immerse ourselves in gaming content. I don’t mind that one bit.
[Source]
