PlayStation acquires Playroom and The Persistence dev, Firesprite

(Image credit: Firesprite)

PlayStation is acquiring a new studio in the form of The Persistence developer Firesprite.

Originally founded by developers from SIE's Studio Liverpool, Firesprite has worked with Sony on The Playroom projects, but now will be officially part of the PlayStation Studios team, making it the 14th studio to join the family.

According to the official announcement, Firesprite "will play a critical role in strengthening SIE's exclusive games catalog in genres outside of PlayStation Studios' core offerings", although there's no news on what exactly Firesprite is working on currently.

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“We are delighted to welcome Firesprite into the PlayStation family,” said Jim Ryan, president and CEO at Sony Interactive Entertainment. “We have a rich history of working with the founders of Firesprite and are excited to grow the PlayStation presence in Liverpool. The portfolio of titles Firesprite has developed has continually demonstrated the team’s ability to transcend traditional gameplay experiences and brilliantly showcase the potential of our hardware.”

"I know Firesprite really, really well. All of the senior group I've personally worked with, so I have that privileged knowledge of the quality, the sheer quality, that's there," said Hermen Hulst, head of PlayStation Studios, speaking with GamesRadar+. "They are a really talented team."

"We've been collaborating on a few projects with Firesprite in recent years and that's gone really, really well. It is, I think, the quality of a team that is very entrepreneurial, that's very interested in experimenting with doing new things. That just matches us very well. There's that drive to grow, to try new things, and now we get an opportunity to work on some really interesting games, exclusive games within PlayStation Studios, that I can't talk about today in detail, but I'm very, very excited about it."

Sony states that Firesprite will continue to be run by Firesprite's current management team when it comes to the day-to-day operations of the studio post-acquisition.

“At Firesprite, we’re always striving to bring something new to a game or genre, and developing for new technologies is a driving force of our passion,” said Graeme Ankers, managing director at Firesprite. “Joining PlayStation Studios will allow us to amplify this passion, working more closely on cutting-edge hardware without any limitations and furthering our studio’s heritage of creativity and technical innovation to offer some truly unique experiences for PlayStation fans.”

Until we find out what Firesprite is working on, why not check out these confirmed upcoming PS5 games for 2021 and beyond?

Sam Loveridge is the Brand Director and former Global Editor-in-Chief of GamesRadar. She joined the team in August 2017. Sam came to GamesRadar after working at TrustedReviews, Digital Spy, and Fandom, following the completion of an MA in Journalism. In her time, she's also had appearances on The Guardian, BBC, and more. Her experience has seen her cover console and PC games, along with gaming hardware, for a decade, and for GamesRadar, she's in charge of the site's overall direction, managing the team, and making sure it's the best it can be. Her gaming passions lie with weird simulation games, big open-world RPGs, and beautifully crafted indies. She plays across all platforms, and specializes in titles like Pokemon, Assassin's Creed, The Sims, and more. Basically, she loves all games that aren't sports or fighting titles! In her spare time, Sam likes to live like Stardew Valley by cooking and baking, growing vegetables, and enjoying life in the countryside.