Mibu no ookami
Demoted Member® Pro™
I don't think Sony has any regrets on closing Zipper and Evolution studios.It is a completely different world out there now, even from 2018. I think Sony regrets closing Zipper, Evolution, consolidating the UK and SIE Japan. Sony got Insomniac for $229 million. You win some you lose some.
These studios were underperforming for years.
They probably regret not trying to save SOCOM which used to be more popular than Call of Duty. The only thing we've seen was Sony basically bring back Liverpool with the purchase of Fire Sprite.
SIE Japan wasn't really a studio. It was mostly a group of producers and they had been trying for years to make the studio more effective without much success.
I think YOU regret them closing those studios, but nothing I've seen from Sony suggests the same. They literally just closed Japan Studio a year ago AFTER they bought Insomniac and just a few months before they bought Bluepoint.
I think people get this idea that Sony has unlimited resources, but the reality is the more studios they have the more risk they have. Diversified yes, but more risk overall. As I've mentioned they are probably already beginning to feel the squeeze on lack of ROI on recent games.
Santa Monica downscaled their studio before God of War 2018. Sony is constantly re-evaluating its studios.