From a purely financial perspective, Sony decided to divest Fresintthe new project consists of Hideo Kojimacan be considered understandable, especially considering the estimates related to the profitability of the Death Stranding series. However, the situation is not just about financial profit: for a company like PlayStation, image, relationships with developers and public perception are also important, according to Rhys Elliott of Alinea Analytics. Death Stranding 2 on the beachattempts to understand the actions of Japanese multinational corporations.
Lots of noise, few results
According to estimates cited in the analysis, Death Stranding 2 will sell approx. 2.5 million copiesincluding 1.8 million on PlayStation and 700,000 on Steam, with total revenue of approximately $170 million. However, the sales pace will be highly concentrated in the first few months. On PlayStation, around 1 million copies were sold between June and July 2025, and in the following months the game struggled to sell more than 100,000 copies per month, falling below 30,000 copies in August despite the price being dropped to $40.
It is also estimated that “Death Stranding 2” earned approximately $129 million on PlayStation, 65% of which was concentrated in the first two months. Even on Steam, most copies were sold during the initial period: despite two subsequent sales, around 550,000 copies were sold in the first two months, equivalent to 80% of the current total.
Hideo Kojima pays tribute to Dario Argento who influenced ‘Death Stranding’
In contrast, the first Death Stranding would have sold approximately 5 million copies during the business cycle, generating approximately $243 million in revenue. So, in total, these two games will bring Sony about $413 million in revenue across different platforms.
But the problem is the cost. Unofficial estimates put the budget for the first “Death Stranding” at about $100 million, and the budget for the second at $150 million to $200 million, which was also due to the long development cycle and the difficulties caused by the epidemic. Furthermore, taking into account marketing and various costs, analysts believe the series is likely to break even or generate relatively low profits. The expected return on investment is between 18% and 38%: a figure that can translate into tens of millions of dollars, but may not be attractive for such a high-budget project.
There is also a strategic aspect related to publishing on Steam. Death Stranding will find a large audience in China: 27% of the first game’s Steam users and 44% of the second game’s Steam users are from the Chinese market. Stellar Blade, another game developed by a third studio but published by PlayStation, also attracted a large number of Chinese players: 46% of the public.
Therefore, abandoning or reducing this strategy means giving up some Gateway to the Chinese marketPlayStation maintains a limited official presence, with Steam serving as an important conduit.
However, the analysis highlights that the real reasons for Physint’s divestment are unclear. There may have been milestone issues, creative differences, or difficulties in the relationship with Hideo Kojima, but none of these assumptions have been publicly confirmed. Economic data may therefore explain why Sony is reassessing investments, but they do not by themselves constitute clear evidence of the company’s motives.
Finally, the image problem remains. The choice comes at a delicate moment for PlayStation, with talk of the fading physics support on the one hand and less-than-positive reactions surrounding some of its projects, including Fairgames, which just announced its first public beta, on the other. In this case, it might be beneficial to let go of a figure as closely tied to the PlayStation ecosystem as Hideo Kojima A huge price has been paid in terms of public awarenesseven if the decision seems reasonable from a profit perspective.
