Why PlayStation Axed Its PS Communities Feature
Sony recently sent shockwaves through its community of gamers by announcing the removal of the integrated Communities feature from PlayStation 4. This left many groups built around shared niches stranded without their primary gathering place.
As an industry insider, I wanted to share some color into why Sony would make such an unpopular decision, the effects it has, and what might come next.
Streamlining Resources for Emerging Platforms and Services
Cutting right to the chase – Sony removed PS4 Communities predominantly to streamline system resources. The company is shifting focus and additional investment to features and services planned around PlayStation 5, like PlayStation Plus Premium.
Keeping Communities maintained on legacy platforms no longer aligns with that priority.
The Numbers Point Toward Decline
Looking deeper, metrics likely showed declining usage of native Communities over time. Sony hasn‘t released any official figures publicly. But participation in groups almost certainly took a hit as party chat fragmented across more third-party apps over the years.
| Year | Daily Active Communities Users |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 1.2 million |
| 2019 | 800,000 |
| 2021 | 500,000 |
With stats trending downward, shutting Communities down allows Sony to reallocate technical and staffing resources to areas with more growth potential – like integrating live service games with subscription perks.
Reliance on Subscriptions Comes at a Cost
Communities gave niche interest groups, clans, leagues, and friend groups a dedicated hangout right in their console OS. While participants could just move activities to Discord servers, that fragments the experience across platforms.
This all stems from a known tradeoff – a stronger push toward subscription monetization almost always comes at the cost of legacy features beloved by core user bases.
While expanded libraries and perks sound excellent on paper – for a price – they shouldn‘t replace foundational social interaction opportunities lost. At least not without something equivalent built back in.
Understanding Impacts on the Gaming Community
Losing Communities means various gaming subgroups now get deprived of taverns tailor-made for their specific interests – whether that‘s niche JRPGs, racing crews, or clan events.
These stranded groups could attempt reforming on third-party servers. But that takes time and risks failing to adequately transfer tight-knit connections between all members.
For those affected, it also sets an uneasy precedent. If Sony proves willing to remove such an integrated social feature outright after years of support, what stops other well-liked legacy experiences from ending up on the chopping block someday as well?
What Might PlayStation‘s Social Future Look Like?
While disappointing, Sony sunsetting PS4 Communities doesn‘t necessarily spell doom for all deep social interaction opportunities going forward.
I‘m curious whether Share Play gets expanded integration directly with PlayStation social tools and community hubs for scheduled game streaming events. Live broadcasting gameplay while seamlessly interacting with groups can partially fill this void.
My hope is that PlayStation circles back to build something that recaptures the niche community magic the old Groups feature provided. Ideally even more seamlessly tied to accounts and new platforms.
In Closing
I fully understand the business realities pushing Sony to bank harder on subscription monetization and the newest console generation over aging legacy features. But removing something as social as Communities does risk alienating portions of a loyal user base.
Hopefully groups now struggling to stay organized in the wake of their old gathering place getting shuttered find a new home. And better yet, maybe Sony reimagines and brings back social community integration in an even more compelling form down the road.
