Sony Reportedly Abandons Hideo Kojima's Physint as Marvel's Wolverine Receives Mixed Reviews

Sony has reportedly stepped back from publishing Physint, the upcoming stealth-action game from Hideo Kojima that was billed as his return to the genre following his work on the Metal Gear series. The project has since found a new backer in Xbox. The news arrived alongside the critical reception for Marvel's Wolverine from Insomniac Games, which emerged as the studio's lowest-reviewed title in a decade. Together, the events highlight ongoing concerns regarding strategy and resource allocation during the current console generation.

PlayStation has faced a difficult software climate marked by a shortage of exclusive releases. Industry analysis points to years spent steering single-player studios toward live-service projects as a major factor in draining development resources. Studios including Bluepoint, Naughty Dog, Bend Studio, Firewalk, Bungie, and Guerrilla have experienced shifts or closures tied to live-service initiatives. These missteps left fewer resources available to produce a steady stream of standalone games for the PlayStation 5, placing heavy expectations on Marvel's Wolverine.

While titles like Ghost of Yotei received strong praise, the overall hardware generation has been impacted by rising prices, fewer options, and a pullback from physical games and personal computer releases. Sony's decision to part ways with Physint and the lukewarm reception to Marvel's Wolverine underscore a broader sea change for the platform as leadership navigates declining returns on its recent strategies.