Ex-PlayStation boss reckons 'growing confidence' of Korean developers 'owe something to Stellar Blade's influence'

Former PlayStation boss Shuhei Yoshida reckons that increasing confidence among Korean game developers is at least partly in thanks to Stellar Blade.

Shift Up's soulslite did pretty well for itself when it hit consoles last year, with a further boost when the game made its way over to PC in early 2025. I had a good amount of fun with Stellar Blade myself—even if I found it a little uninspired in the face of similar concepts. But when it comes to Korean developers breaking out beyond niche MMOs and mobile games, I can't deny that Stellar Blade is one of the forerunners in broadening the region's reach.

It's something that Yoshida agrees with, and even reckons that the game's success has bolstered spirits among Korean game developers, particularly when it comes to developing console games.

As spotted by GamesRadar (via MiniMap), the ex-PlayStation boss sat down with press ahead of game development conference G-Star to chat about the Korean indie scene, the role larger corporations play in helping them to thrive, and other console-y related bits.

When asked about how the collaboration with Stellar Blade came about, Yoshida said: "I visited Shift Up between 2019 and 2020 after hearing that an outstanding console game was being developed in Korea. The creator also happened to be a fan of mine, so I decided to visit the studio. At the time, Shift Up was mainly known for Destiny Child so I was curious about what kind of game they were working on."

Yoshida said he was surprised to find that Stellar Blade had "exceptional quality across the board: 3D modelling, realism, graphics, and action," saying it felt "stylish, polished, and genuinely fun."

Apparently after being pretty impressed with "the way the team designed characters" by taking real-life body models and using them to create Eve, he went back and told his team "this is a truly remarkable game."

That was the catalyst to Sony throwing its money and manpower behind Stellar Blade, with Yoshida saying "I believe Stellar Blade represents more than just one successful title. If the game succeeds, it could inspire many other Korean developers to pursue their ambitions. Even today's conference and the growing confidence among Korean creators, in my view, owe something to Stellar Blade's influence."

I do think that perhaps Yoshida's years-long investment in the game has influenced his strong feelings towards Stellar Blade, but it certainly has been interesting to see an uptick in Korean-developed games breaking into more mainstream parts of our hobby. Neowiz's Lies of P saw tidy success back in 2023 and Mintrocket's Dave the Diver had half of the PC Gamer team in a chokehold that same year.

Even Sims competitor Inzoi garnered huge attention in the run-up to its release, though it didn't quite dazzle folks when it launched in early access earlier this year. I reckon we'll only be seeing more Korean-developed games breaking new ground over the next few years and entering more mainstream spaces—though whether they'll be kissing Stellar Blade's feet as they do, I'm not so sure.