In its latest financial report, Sony has recorded an impairment loss of $565 million against Bungie. This is the second time that the company has had to make this type of amortization. The first was during the second quarter of fiscal 2025, when the company recorded an estimated depreciation of $204 million. In total, Bungie has lost $769 million in value since becoming part of Sony. In 2022, the company agreed to pay $3.6 billion for this development team and since then its accounting price has fallen by 21.36%.
Looking at a company’s accounting isn’t particularly fun, but public companies are in the business of making money for their shareholders, and Bungie is blowing a growing hole in Sony’s accounts. So much so that the Japanese company has indicated that the loss of value of this development team has been the main negative effect that has affected its operating income during fiscal year 2025. The PlayStation division’s numbers are not bad, operating income is up 12% compared to the previous year and sales are maintained, but Bungie’s name is in the photo and it is not for the better.
It remains to be seen what Sony will do with Bungie. The Japanese company not only acquired the American development team and the Destiny franchise, but also intended to use its technology to boost its commitment to games as a service. By then, PlayStation had the goal of launching more than 10 games as a service before March 2026. The failure has been huge, but not all of the blame lies with Bungie. This studio has had nothing to do with the Concord fiasco or the canceled God of War game as a service.
Perhaps Bungie’s future is uncertain, but not PlayStation’s. For next year, Sony expects this division to increase its operating income by 30%, an increase that is partly explained by the expectation of not having to write off another accounting loss against Bungie. Regarding sales, they will fall 6% due to the lower number of PS5s shipped.