Sony sees the future in transmedia, but how has that worked out for them so far?

Sony is a huge multinational. That doesn’t escape anyone. Even beyond video games and its other technological businesses, it is a giant in film, television, and music that can extend its tentacles in any direction it sees fit. That’s why it’s strange that, with all the franchises it has, some of them very powerful and recognized, it has never bet on something that has been in vogue in Japan for decades and in the US they have been wanting to know how to exploit for almost ten years: transmedia.

The possibility of taking the success of one medium to another and turning a franchise into multiple media is a sweet opportunity that Sony has never shown much interest in. Until now. They have started to convert many of their most important franchises into other audiovisual formats.

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The Near Future of Sony: Series and Movies for Everyone

Sony made a presentation at the past CES in Las Vegas, showcasing some of their new projects. All of them related to audiovisuals. Announcing that they are making live-action movies of Helldivers and Horizon: Zero Dawn, as well as an anime of Ghost of Tsushima: Legends, they wanted to confirm that their idea is to focus on their best-performing franchises and continue working on them. With shorter developments and entering the transmedia world to leverage their popularity.

This should not catch us by surprise. Sony already confirmed last year that they were developing ten other movies based on their video games. And we also know that the three games have, if not sequels, at least other derivative projects already in production. Which should only be a half surprise.

The question is, why now? It’s not a decision they’ve made suddenly. They haven’t jumped into the pool without first knowing if there was water. Sony has been testing for several years to see if there is a market for this kind of product and they have found, to their satisfaction, that there is. And it’s very strong. Finally deciding to do something that many other companies do without even having proof that there is an audience for their plans.

But how have these approaches to transmedia by Sony worked in the recent past? The most pessimistic might think poorly. Terribly. Except for honorable exceptions, which have worked well. Exceptionally well. And they would be wrong. The things that have not worked well have not worked so badly —and we could even say that, in business terms, they have worked quite well—, and the things that have worked well have worked as well as it seems. That’s why it’s worth taking a look.

Good or bad are relative concepts, because what a viewer thinks and what an executive thinks are very different things

Gran Turismo and Uncharted are two of Sony’s most recent major productions. With big names involved in the production and a large budget, they were movies that failed spectacularly among critics, demonstrating that it is impossible to make good video game adaptations. Except that’s not exactly the whole story. While it’s true that as movies their quality is more than questionable and as adaptations they are, at best, not very faithful, both performed well with the audience. But they did so especially at the box office. Especially in the case of Uncharted, which managed to be such a success that it has secured a sequel.

Is that the impression it gives from the outside? The truth is, no. They are not movies that captivate hardcore gamers, but they work quite well among an audience that matters a lot: the casual viewer. Who apparently, is also a casual gamer and recognizes the names of these games and is not so obsessed with fidelity or quality, but rather with having a good time watching an interesting movie.

That is not the case for fans of The Last of Us. A fandom obsessed with fidelity, canonicity, and the quality of the original work. Sony is aware of this, and that’s why it’s surprising that, when it came to making an adaptation, they chose the television series format and did it with such a powerful business partner as HBO. And the result was as expected: a critical and public success that occupied all imaginable public space throughout its entire broadcast period.

The other big news during CES 2025 has been, in fact, the confirmation of when the second season of the series premieres: April of this year. Something that has stirred up even more buzz than all the other announcements. Together. Demonstrating that Sony is not wrong with its focus on transmedia.

If there is one undeniable thing, it is that it is a smart move they should have made even earlier

We don’t even need to ask ourselves if this is the beginning of an approach of this kind. It is. It’s a fact, and we knew it even before CES. What confirms that there are two movies and an anime series of these characteristics is the approach they want to give to this transmedia approach to their franchises: certain products will be aimed at the general public, without necessarily seeking to please the more hardcore audience or critics, while another will be specifically aimed at the more specialized audience and critics. Going case by case depending on the interest of each of their franchises in particular among the public.

Is this the best move Sony could make right now? Probably. It allows them to have a global direction for the future, while also giving a breath of fresh air in two directions to an increasingly dying film section: it provides franchises to work with that will succeed and, if they achieve success, they can turn them into video games in the future. And if that ends up happening, how can we deny that this was the right move?

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