Should Sony publish Sunset Overdrive on PS4?

Here me out, this could be a strategy for potentially getting a Sunset Overdrive sequel made.

We know Spider-Man was a success. We know Sony has already given the greenlight to Insomniac to make a Spider-Man sequel and potentially even other Marvel games.

We know that Ratchet and Clank on PS4 was super successful.

We also know that the possibility of another R&C game is coming due to the success of the reboot.

What if Sony published SO on PS4 and opened the game up to its own userbase? The game is already on XBO and PC with low sales so I'm not saying it will be guaranteed to sell millions on PS4. But since Sony and Insomniac are already working together on two successful IPs (Spider-Man, Ratchet) would it really be THAT risky for Sony to publish a port of Sunset Overdrive on PS4? It would cost very little as it is just porting the game; they could also use the interest and sales to gauge interest on a sequel.

Considering Insomniac 100% owns the rights to SO, and Microsoft is clearly not interested in pursuing a sequel, this could be an interesting opportunity for Sony.

Discuss.

If it meant that we got a sequel, and it was mutli-platform (including Switch), then yes.

Are they allowed to? I would assume there's a deal with MS granting exclusivity to XBox and Windows 10

We don't need to that game on ps4 we got spiderman a better game by insomniac better hero better everything we DONT NEED SUNSET overflop on ps4

They have stated multiple times in interviews that they own 100% of the rights to the franchise and that is one of the core reasons why they went with Microsoft as a publishing partner. So, technically speaking, they should be able to take a sequel idea to any publisher with no legal problems.

I wouldn't be surprised if the original "Sunset Overdrive" landed on the PS4 later this year as October 2019 would be the 5-year anniversary of the game's release on Xbox One. That's the same amount of time between "Mass Effect," another Microsoft-published console exclusive, launching on the XB360 and PS3.

If Sony publishes then obviously it will not be on Switch. They would have to pitch the porting or development of a sequel to Nintendo, Activision, EA, Ubisoft, Square Enix, ect.

Maybe but there's no evidence pointing that it's actually going to happen. It would have to be Insomniac/Sony interesting in doing that. I wonder how much it would cost Insomniac to self-fund a port to PS4.

@jcrame10: that just means they can publish a sequel anywhere they want. It doesn't mean there aren't some legal ties on the current game.

For what purpose? It would be a token gesture to uplift and enrich an IP they don’t own. The benefit all slants toward Insomniac, and any possible profit is relatively paltry compared to what Sony’s got going on.

Insomniac should self-publish their IP where they want, when they want, but SO is not a property I believe they should invest into.

If I were them, I’d look into the possibility of procuring a licensing agreement with Nintendo in the same vein as they did with Sony and Spider-Man. Nintendo is on the record about wanting to open up access to their IP library and Insomniac has a track record of producing high quality and endearing titles aimed toward at a similar demographic.

The style of that game really didn't appeal to me at all, so I'm gonna say no. And if I say no then Sony won't do it.

@xantufrog: maybe, I wonder if there is some sort of clause prohibiting them from putting the game on Sony or Nintendo hardware.

That is some sweet artwork

<3 Ratchet Overdrive

There are plenty of Publishers Insomniac could work with besides Sony. The real $$$ is in Multi plat anyways.

It's a great game and pretty funny, hope more people get to play it.

Honestly though this game does take a while to get you hooked in, and some of the platforming can be infuriating. I have plenty of friends that have never finished it. I have rage quit it for months at a time and came back later and loved it again.

@the-a-baum: I finished when it first came out. I just got done playing chaos squad for the last hour. Still fun!

@jcrame10: Well if that's the case (it'd only be on PS), then no.

I'd only be for it if it's multiplatform.

Did some research, Insonmiac owns the franchise and IP.

That would be cool. It's a pretty solid game, and a sequel would be cool. I still have to grab it on PC.

I covered that in the OP. that is why Sony can publish a sequel or possibly even port the original game to PS4.

It is, definitely had to include it

back before it released though....people wanted it on PS4

https://www.vg247.com/2013/10/03/petitions-will-not-change-that-warns-insomniac-over-sunset-overdrives-xbox-one-exclusivity/

Because it costs next to nothing to port a game to PS4 (compared to creating an all new game). Porting a game isn't really "investing", it's just a quick cash grab. They wouldn't necessarily even have to be involved in the port, unless they wanted to make it an enhanced version or something along those lines.

That being said, if it sold like crap on Xbox/PC then even though it doesn't cost much to port a game, the incentive to do it might not be there. On the other hand, what's the point of "owning" your IP if you just have it laying around doing nothing?

@2Chalupas: True. Yet the intangible benefits are all oriented toward Insomniac, whereby their IP gets a shot in the arm, possibly stirs interest in a sequel, and Sony foots the bill for the port (and that’s without considering how much of the revenue gets split). It’s certainly another matter if Insomniac handled it themself or in tandem with a publisher who needs the business (or is performing the port as part of an obligation to fund and publish a sequel). But if you’re Sony, especially now, you don’t tie up capital in projects that provide nominal returns; every dollar should be maximizing returns and not stuck in a sub-2X prospect (or in their case, prospects that are sub-4X). Hence why we speculate rampantly about the future of studios like Sony Bend and Media Molecule. Even if their games are great, if they don’t deliver the right level of returns, it becomes untenable for Sony to keep them funded. It’s the same problem MS ran into with their first party, which looms large over their studio acquisitions.

It might be a different story if Sony owned the property, but since it is Insomniac’s, we can only speculate why they haven’t undertaken the effort to diversify and make available their game to other platforms. They may be tied up contractually or, more damning, they don’t believe it’s worth the effort knowing they could be crafting titles whose returns far overshadow what an SO port would generate.

Sunset overdrive was a cringe fest. I couldn’t even be bothered to finish it - Xbox with its lineup of other mediocre titles can keep it

Sony should jump on that opportunity if presented, wondering if Insomniac wants to, seems Sunset Overdrive was a means of negotiating better terms with Sony to get a more ambitious project, the ability to make a sequel on a non-Sony might keep Sony in check to let Insomniac have more bargaining leverage in what they want to make for Sony next.

It's a good game, but it's a little long in the tooth now for anyone to care. I think any sequel hopes are a long shot.

I don't think anyone wants that game

Rather have a Spider-Man sequel.

No... I'd rather have a great Spiderman trilogy and some more Ratchet and Clank Remakes.