A representative for Sony declined to comment or provide interviews. Mumbauer declined to comment and others asked not to be named discussing private information. Many, including Mumbauer, have left the company entirely. The idea was to expand upon some of the company’s most successful franchises and the team began working on a remake of the 2013 hit The Last of Us for the PlayStation 5. But Sony never fully acknowledged the team’s existence or gave them the funding and support needed to succeed in the highly competitive video game market, according to people involved. The studio never even got its own name. Instead, Sony moved ownership of the The Last of Us remake to its original creator, Naughty Dog, a Sony-owned studio behind many of the company’s best-selling games and an HBO television series in development.ĭeflated, the small group’s leadership has largely disbanded, according to interviews with eight people familiar with the operation. Michael Mumbauer, who took over direction of the Visual Arts Service Group in 2007, recruited a group of about 30 developers, internally and from neighboring game studios, to form a new development unit within Sony. But about three years ago, a handful of influential figures within the Visual Arts Service Group decided they wanted to have more creative control and lead game direction rather than being supporting actors on popular titles such as Spider-Man and Uncharted. The San Diego-based operation helps finish off games designed at other Sony-owned studios with animation, art or other content and development.

Sony Corp.’s Visual Arts Service Group has long been the unsung hero of many hit PlayStation video games.

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