London Studio
London Studio is a British video game developer based in London. Founded in 2002, it is first-party studio for Sony Interactive Entertainment. The studio was most known for developing the SingStar series, as well as games for PlayStation's external peripherals including the EyeToy camera and virtual reality headset PlayStation VR. The studio has created more than 60 titles since the studio was established.[1]
 | |
| Type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Video games |
| Predecessor | Team Soho |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Headquarters | , England |
| Products | |
| Parent | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| Website | playstationlondonstudio |
History
London Studio is established in 2002 following the merger of Psygnosis's Camden studio and Team Soho, the developer behind The Getaway.[2] As London Studio, the studio developed the SingStar series, which became extremely popular and helped broadened the appeal of the PlayStation 2 beyond the typical demographics of young male gamers. The series sold more than 20 million copies within 6 years.[3] It also created a lot of games for Sony's EyeToy webcam, and assisted the development of other Sony titles, such as Killzone 2 and LittleBigPlanet.[4] The studio was working on two AAA exclusives for the PlayStation 3 including Eight Days and the sequel to The Getaway, but both were cancelled by Sony Europe as Sony wanted to reallocate resources to other first-party games.[5]
Virtual reality
London Studio developed a virtual reality (VR) rendering technology, called LSSDK, which supports PlayStation 4 and PC. This engine was first used in PlayStation VR Worlds, which contained five virtual reality experiences: "The London Heist", "Into The Deep", "VR Luge", "Danger Ball" and "Scavenger's Odyssey".[6] While VR Worlds received mixed reviews, "London Heist" was critically acclaimed, and the game was commercially successful. Developing titles for the virtual reality headset became the company's main focus.[7] The studio's next game was Blood & Truth, which serves as the successor to the London Heist level. It became the first VR title to reach number 1 on the UK's retail sales chart when it was released in May 2019.[8]
Games developed
References
- Avard, Alex (4 October 2020). "Here's every PlayStation Studio, and the games they're currently working on". GamesRadar. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
- Exposed, Marco (25 May 2019). "Blood & Truth: who are the guys from London Studio and what The Getaway was". IGN. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
- Handrahan, Matthew (16 October 2019). "Sony will close down SingStar servers in January 2020". Gameindustry.biz. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
- Boxer, Steve (28 April 2008). "Inside Sony's Secret Powerhouse". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
- Yin-Poole, Wesley (2 August 2011). "Cancelled Eight Days was "jaw dropping"". Eurogamer. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
- Answer, James (March 2016). "Fast and Flexible: Technical Art and Rendering For The Unknown". GDC Vault.
- Lang, Ben (8 November 2017). "Sony's London Studio Doubles Down With VR as Its Top Priority". RoadtoVR. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
- Dring, Christopher (3 June 2019). "UK Charts: Blood & Truth is the first VR game to claim No.1". Gameindustry.biz. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
- "SingStar coming soon to PS4 with free microphone app". blog.eu.playstation.com. Retrieved 21 May 2014.