Sony was surprised by Until Dawn’s success

Not all first party triple-A games are equal.

Some fall short of the weight of lofty expectation placed on their shoulders. Others, however, strike a bigger chord with fans than their makers expected.

It seems that Sony’s interactive survival horror Until Dawn, which hit PS4 last month, falls into the latter camp, with Sony Studios boss Shuhei Yoshida telling Eurogamer that the game has performed better than expectations.

I think everybody was caught by surprise by the positive reaction,” he said. We can say it’s a sleeper hit. I’m very happy with how the game was received.

People have asked me why it wasn’t marketed as much as other titles. It’s a decision made by marketing departments in each region. Because of the focus on this Christmas time-frame, to really support the big third-party titles like Destiny and these titles, they didn’t see the need to push Until Dawn that much from the platform marketing standpoint. Once it’s recognised, originating with consumers, the marketing department can continue to support the title through Christmas with some creative ideas.”

Yoshida also said that the game’s success could have positive implications for the interactive drama genre.

We’re super happy with the reactions from people, especially people who are streaming or posting videos on YouTube,” he added. It’s super fun to watch other people play, even after you’ve finished the game, because other people make different choices.

That’s a really great thing for the future of the interactive drama genre. We’re a big fan of this genre. These games can talk to a broader audience. You don’t have to be good at playing games. You can even just watch your friend play the game. We believe this interactive drama genre can help expand the audience for console games.”