According to a report from Jason Schreier, Sony Interactive Entertainment has shut down Dark Outlaw Games. The announcement comes just over a year after the company was formed on March 17, 2025.
Jason Blundell, the founder of the studio, previously worked on the Call of Duty: Black Ops franchise as producer, campaign design director, and game director on the Campaign and Zombie modes. Originally, he was developing a game for Sony with Deviation Games, which shut down before the game could be released. Sony then hired him to form Dark Outlaw Games and develop a brand new project. Other sources state that said project was still in early development before the studio’s closure. It is unknown how many people were employed at Dark Outlaw Games.
Alongside the closure of Dark Outlaw Games, Sony has also made cuts to its mobile gaming department. Specifically, 50 people have been laid off. Reportedly, the cuts are due to Sony’s desire to move away from the mobile game market, despite MLB The Show Mobile and Ratchet & Clank: Ranger Rumble still being in development. At the time of writing, PlayStation has not yet confirmed the validity of either report.
When Blundell initially formed Dark Outlaw Games, he stated the following about the initiative in an interview: “…Dark Outlaw Games have been working away in the shadows for a while, and when we’ve got something to talk about, we’ll step out into the light. But you know the story for me is about the game, not about the studio, so the reason why we’re not doing a fanfare or shout about it from the rooftops is like, ‘let’s get something,’ right?
And it’s such a privilege to be able to do it with with Sony as a new first-party studio. You know, Sony doesn’t set up first-party studios all the time. So to have to have that privilege is humbling—it’s really nice. I’m really excited.”
