Shuhei Yoshida, one of Sony's veterans, has announced his departure from the corporation. In January 2025, he will step down as head of the PlayStation Indies division and embark on a well-deserved retirement.
Shuhei Yoshida
Yoshida dedicated a full 31 years to Sony. His career at the corporation began in 1993 when he became part of the team that laid the groundwork for the original PlayStation console.
Initially, he was the first and only employee not connected to the technical aspect of development. At that time, in his role as a client manager, Yoshida communicated with Japanese publishers and developers to convince them to release their games for the promising new console entering the market.
Later, in 2008, he became the president of Worldwide Studios, where he oversaw the development of exclusive titles from PlayStation's in-house studios, including Naughty Dog, Santa Monica Studio, Guerrilla Games, and others, for a decade.
In 2019, Yoshida handed over his position to Hermen Hulst and took the lead of the indie developer support program — PlayStation Indies. He called his last position "the dream job."
In an interview for the PlayStation podcast, Yoshida mentioned that he leaves with a light heart, as he believes in the corporation's prosperity under the guidance of young specialists. "PlayStation is in good hands, and I’m genuinely excited for its future," he added.
However, Yoshida hinted on his social media that he "would like to stay in the gaming industry," but in a new role.