# Ex-PlayStation Boss Calls For A Return To The Good Old Days Of AA Gaming

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/ex-playstation-boss-calls-for-a-return-to-the-good-old-days-of-aa-gaming/
- Published: 2026-07-23T18:14:09+00:00
- Updated: 2026-07-23T22:18:45+00:00
- Original publisher: GameSpot
- Original article: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/ex-playstation-boss-calls-for-a-return-to-the-good-old-days-of-aa-gaming/
- Topics: Business, Companies, Entertainment, Gaming

## Key points

- Layden wants more mid-budget “AA” games.
- Rising blockbuster costs are making publishers cautious.
- Shorter, focused games could broaden player choice.

## Summary

Former PlayStation executive Shawn Layden has urged the games industry to revive more “AA” titles: mid-budget games that sit between small independent projects and blockbuster releases. He argues that escalating development costs and the pressure to produce huge hits have made major publishers overly cautious, leaving players with fewer varied, affordable games.

Layden said the traditional blockbuster model has become increasingly difficult to sustain as budgets, team sizes and production times rise. He suggested developers should make shorter, more focused games with clearer creative identities, rather than treating every release as a large-scale, long-term service platform.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.