Cancelled PS5 Shooter From Deviation Games Revealed in New Concept Art

A batch of concept art from a canceled PlayStation exclusive has surfaced online, giving the first detailed look at what Deviation Games had been building before the studio was shut down. The sci-fi shooter, never officially announced and still unnamed, was in development as part of Sony’s live-service strategy for the PS5. The leaked art confirms the project was more than a pitch—it had designs, characters, and gear that show a clear direction.

The images were posted by a former artist from the studio and picked up by MP1st. They show a futuristic setting, custom weapons, and one hero character design. From the looks of it, Deviation was working on a hero-based shooter in the vein of Overwatch 2 or Concord, not a traditional military-style FPS like the ones its founders had worked on before.

The most detailed pieces include a high-tech gauntlet labeled “Power Glove,” which features spinning mechanics and electric effects, plus a pistol system with mod attachments and revolvers that show ammo via neon-green side displays. There's also a scoped rifle in the mix. All of it fits a sci-fi setup, and one file in the gallery is dated 2020, showing that development had been active since at least that year.

One character design is labeled “Berserker,” likely one of several planned heroes if this were indeed a hero shooter. But other than the visuals, nothing else is known. The game never had a title reveal, trailer, or even a teaser. Sony and Deviation kept it all under wraps from the public.

The project’s cancellation came earlier this year, when Deviation Games was shut down entirely. The studio had opened in 2020 and was led by Call of Duty Zombies co-creator Jason Blundell and longtime Treyarch director Dave Anthony. Sony partnered with them in 2021, signing on to fund their first game as a PS5 exclusive. But Blundell quietly exited the studio in 2022, and two years later, the company was gone.

"It is with a heavy heart that we announce the closure of Deviation Games," said HR lead Kriste Stull when the studio shut down. "Thank you for all your hard work, dedication, and contributions to Deviation."

There was no public reason given for the closure. But the announcement came just weeks after Sony laid off 900 people across its gaming divisions, and Deviation was likely caught in that wave. Another post from the same HR lead months earlier showed the studio was hiring, so it’s unclear how much warning employees got before it ended.

The Deviation cancellation is one of many from Sony’s live-service rollout, which has been rocky at best. Sony originally planned to launch 10 live-service games by 2026. As of now, almost all of them have either been delayed or scrapped entirely.

Concord, another hero shooter from Firewalk Studios, was pulled offline after just a week of public testing. The Last of Us: Factions, a long-teased multiplayer spin-off, was canceled as Naughty Dog returned focus to single-player games. A Twisted Metal project was also shut down, as was a fantasy game from PlayStation London, along with the entire studio. Bungie’s Project Payback, widely rumored to be a new Destiny title, was canned too.

A Horizon MMO has also been shelved, though one spin-off project in that franchise is reportedly still alive. The only other known live-service title in active development is Marathon, another Bungie game that has already been delayed indefinitely.

Sony hasn’t commented directly on the failure of its multiplayer plans, but the trend is clear. The company’s internal focus on big-budget single-player games remains strong—Spider-Man 2, Horizon Forbidden West, and God of War: Ragnarok are all major sellers—but the multiplayer push just hasn’t landed. The live-service segment has been dominated by third-party titles like Fortnite, Call of Duty Warzone, and Apex Legends, and Sony’s attempts to catch up have either fizzled or never made it to launch.

The leak of Deviation’s artwork also highlights how many games get far into development before being shut down. The level of detail in the concept art shows that this wasn’t just a pitch deck or early prototype. Modular weapon systems, character roles, and production-level art were already in place. Sony had signed on early, the team was staffed, and the game had been progressing for years.

But even that wasn’t enough. Once layoffs hit and Sony re-evaluated its portfolio, projects like this were among the first to go. It joins a long list of unreleased titles that were once full of potential, now reduced to concept galleries and closing posts on LinkedIn.

The situation mirrors the broader state of the industry in 2024. Studios are being shut down, projects are canceled with little notice, and developers are left searching for work. Deviation’s staff are now scattered, with many sharing resumes and portfolios in hopes of landing new roles.

Meanwhile, the few multiplayer projects still in play at Sony remain under scrutiny. Without gameplay footage, public support, or firm dates, there’s little to hold onto. For players, the flood of canceled projects is turning expectations into skepticism. And for developers, it’s another reminder that even funded projects with name recognition aren’t guaranteed to ship.

The concept art may be all that remains of Deviation’s game. But it gives a glimpse of what could’ve been—a fully realized sci-fi world, character classes, and detailed tech that now only exists in files. Whether that direction lives on in other projects or gets folded into something new, it’s clear that Deviation’s shooter had real work behind it before getting cut.