Sony nearly won Limbo exclusivity

Cult indie hit Limbo was very nearly a timed exclusive on the PlayStation Network, Sony has admitted.

The game was released exclusively on Xbox 360 two years ago and was subsequently released on PS3 and PC after the expiration of its exclusivity period a year later.

"I maybe shouldn’t say this, but we had issues when we were trying to sign Limbo because of the IP," SCE executive producer Pete Smith said at the Develop Conference, as reported by Edge.

"[Playdead] pitched a good game, and wanted to keep the IP, have a massive development spend, bigger royalties, and guaranteed unit sales and marketing spend. They’d have got one of those.

"There are obvious benefits to keeping [the IP], but also to giving it up: you’re way more likely to get the deal. Remember: 100 per cent of nothing is nothing. A publisher is much more likely to commit to marketing and merchandising if they own the IP.

"Sometimes all we want is protection so [devs] don’t make a game, finish it then go to one of our rivals. We look at IP on a case-by-case basis. With a bit of common sense, you can find common ground."