Sumo Digital Shifts Focus to Partner IPs, Ends Development of Original Games

Sumo Digital has revealed a (big) change in its business plan: it will stop making its own (original) games. Instead, the company will focus only on partnering with other studios. This decision comes months after the company laid off 15% of its workforce last summer, which meant cutting around 250 jobs. Although this shift may seem surprising, it’s clear that Sumo Digital believes it can thrive by working with partners. However, some fans may miss the unique games that the company used to create. This new path reflects a growing trend in the gaming industry, where collaboration often leads to better results.

Sumo Digital has been recognized for its work in co-development on big franchises for a long time. Throughout the years, the studio has contributed to popular games like LittleBigPlanet 3, Sackboy: A Big Adventure, Crackdown 3 and several Sonic racing titles. It has also taken on a supporting role in major releases including Hogwarts Legacy, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, Forza Horizon and Hitman. Although Sumo mostly focused on licensed IPs, the studio did try its hand at original games, with Snake Pass (2017) being the most notable. However, with this recent decision, the company is now fully committing to its role as a co-development studio, leaving behind plans to develop any new in-house IPs.

What This Means for Sumo Digital’s Future

In a statement to staff, Sumo Digital’s leadership confirmed the studio’s new direction:

“After careful consideration, we have made the strategic decision to focus Sumo Digital exclusively on development services for partners. Whether collaborating on new or established games, co-developing games, providing specialist engineering, or porting services, we are confident in our teams’ exceptional talent.”—Sumo Digital

This change could reshape the future of Sumo Digital, because it signals a strong commitment to partnership over independent creation.

The announcement raises (many) questions about possible job losses, however, Sumo Digital insists it is committed to minimizing the impact as much as possible. It is also unclear how this decision will affect subsidiary studios, particularly The Chinese Room, which gained attention in 2024 for its horror game Still Wakes the Deep. If Sumo’s shift extends to its subsidiaries, it could impact future projects from studios under its umbrella.

Because Sumo Digital is now fully dedicated to partnered projects, speculation is growing about what franchises it might contribute to next. Given its history with racing games and platformers, fans are wondering whether the studio could return to LittleBigPlanet, Crackdown, or even another Sonic title. Whatever the case, Sumo’s expertise in co-development and porting ensures it will remain a significant force in gaming.