PlayStation Store turns 20 as developers share the games that surprised them most

PlayStation celebrated two decades of the PlayStation Store this week, and the anniversary prompted an interesting reflection on the games that surprised developers the most. In an article published on November 2, PlayStation Studios and third-party developers shared the games from the past 20 years that caught them by surprise, from old classics to recent hits. The reflections covered a wide range of genres and eras. Among the games mentioned was Balatro, the 2024 deckbuilder that surprised Square Enix director Naoki Hamaguchi, who said he became hooked on the satisfaction of watching scores grow. Santa Monica Studio researcher Jonathan Burke cited Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age, and Ramone Russell spoke about God of War from 2018. Other developers described surprises including Inscryption, Inside, Sayonara Wild Hearts and Shadow of the Colossus. Sony also pointed to a PlayStation Store Showcase of deals that went live on November 2. Source: [PlayStation.Blog](https://blog.playstation.com/2026/11/02/20-years-of-playstation-store-devs-share-the-great-games-that-surprised-them-most/) ~Gaming