PlayStation Studios Won't Publish Stellar Blade on PC

Stellar Blade enthusiasts have been bracing themselves for excitement ever since SHIFT UP confirmed the PC release announcement. SHIFT UP's financial report from around six months ago verified that the developer was reflecting on releasing the game on PC and making a Stellar Blade sequel.

After Stellar Blade's successful launch on PlayStation 5 in April 2024, the game is now officially in the final phase for PC release through Steam and Epic Games. According to SHIFT UP's 3Q 2024 Financial Report, the PC port is set to be released in 2025, and this platform extension of the Stellar Blade platform is currently being reviewed for launch in 2025.

Based on current indications, SHIFT UP has already moved past the PC release milestone and likely began developing the Stellar Blade sequel at this moment. However, one question remains: Which studio is publishing Stellar Blade on PC? According to Sony's latest reports and PlayStation's third-party exclusive arrangements clauses, Sony would solely focus on its owned IPs and studios, not the third-party ones. Besides, the PSN requirement for the games published by PlayStation Studios on Steam might also discourage SHIFT UP from this partnership.

So, even if SHIFT UP is planning to release Stellar Blade on PC in April 2025, their publishing partnership is still a concern. Some of these details include who published the game for personal computers. Publisher details for the PC edition are still under wraps, in contrast to the 2021 exclusivity contract that saw PlayStation handle the PS5 version. This partnership was crucial to the development of Stellar Blade since it came about after the publisher had tested an early build and persuaded Sony to back the game as a console exclusive.

Sales are another concern for SHIFT UP. There's a chance that Stellar Blade might get review boomed due to PSN requirements, which could affect the sales figures. In its original PS5 edition, Stellar Blade sold one million copies in the first two months after its release. Even though it didn't come out until the very last day of April, it nonetheless managed to top the US sales rankings that month.

Despite being an exclusive PS5 title for a while, sales remained stable all the way into the third quarter of 2024. Consistently delivering content patches and updates has helped prolong the game's popularity and boost the IP value. Until the platform expands, SHIFT UP intends to keep the IP's demand up with the Stellar Blade - NieR:Automata DLC and continuous promotional activities such as adding the Photo mode and recently released summer event, map pins, and Ammo Package.

After seeing how well it was doing, SHIFT UP revealed in June that they were thinking about making a PC version to boost their profit from this IP since they have yet to make a reasonable profit from Goddess of Victory: Nikke. Stellar Blade's immense popularity (despite some not liking it) influenced them to declare their intention to release it on PC in August.

Now that the new timeline has been announced, fans who are anxious to enter into the universe of Stellar Blade on PCs are eagerly anticipating March 2025. SHIFT UP is putting a lot of money into the PC port because they think PC users will increase sales even more. There is reason for them to be optimistic about the performance of other AAA action games on Steam, such as Black Myth Wukong. Stellar Blade might potentially outperform its PS5 run, according to SHIFT UP, which bodes well for the PC gaming market's future.

The transition to PC, then, is really exciting. There is still time to find out who will be the publisher for SHIFT UP, considering the release is set for 2025, even if it's not March, since the date hasn't been confirmed yet. Stellar Blade is clearly preparing to have the same enormous impact on PC as it did on PS5 till then. The PC release has the potential to attract a more extensive and effective player community, perhaps even inspiring pro modders to focus on the game and making Nano Suits for EVE. Rest assured; there will be plenty of breathtaking Nano Suits for Eve from the PC modders.

Apart from the Stellar Blade PC release, just so you know, SHIFT UP is currently developing a game called Project Witches with the intention of releasing it after 2027. SHIFT UP will provide detailed information about Project Witches in the first half of 2025.