Sony's new development team could be working on Uncharted 5, or other "existing franchises"

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
(Image credit: Sony)

Sony has an unrevealed San Diego studio prepping up for something big on PS5. As reported by IGN, a previous PlayStation Studio Head, Michael Mumbauer, has hinted at his work with the mysterious team on his LinkedIn profile.

Specifically, the quote refers to an "all-star, AAA Action Adventure development team" created to build upon "existing franchises." It also refers to the studio working on new stories as well, but it's equally as likely that the team's next game falls under the former category.

So, what does this mean? Well, Sony has a small number of AAA action-adventure game franchises that could be built upon. The most obvious guess would be Uncharted 5, or some other spin-off occurring within the game's world. Naughty Dog likely concluded Drake's story with Uncharted 4, and The Lost Legacy very well might have been the team's last addition to the series.

It would make sense for Naughty Dog to move onto something original rather than building on a world they've had since 2007. The team's next game could be a new independent property, one that might very well define the next generation.

However, Sony might not be willing to let go of the Uncharted name just yet. Instead of keeping Naughty Dog tethered to the series, the company probably found it more effective if they built a new team to take on projects such as these.

Infamous is another possibility for what the San Diego team is working on, but this seems less likely since Uncharted 4: A Thief's End sold more than twice what Infamous: Second Son did. This would still make sense though, as keeping Sucker Punch tethered to Infamous could be a controversial decision after the incredible success the studio found in Ghost of Tsushima.

Other than those two, it's hard to imagine what else fits this new game's description. Unless Sony is returning to older exclusives like Syphon Filter or Jak and Daxter, there's a decent chance that we see a new Uncharted game announced for PS5.

Momo Tabari
Contributing Writer

Self-described art critic and unabashedly pretentious, Momo finds joy in impassioned ramblings about her closeness to video games. She has a bachelor’s degree in Journalism & Media Studies from Brooklyn College and five years of experience in entertainment journalism. Momo is a stalwart defender of the importance found in subjectivity and spends most days overwhelmed with excitement for the past, present and future of gaming. When she isn't writing or playing Dark Souls, she can be found eating chicken fettuccine alfredo and watching anime.