Stellar Blade 2 may not end up being published by Sony, because Shift Up is clearly moving to strengthen its position as a multiplatform publisher. A string of new job postings strongly suggests the studio is preparing to handle publishing duties itself.

Stellar Blade was Korean developer Shift Up’s first true console and PC release, and it landed as one of the strongest “big platform” debuts we’ve seen from a studio previously known for mobile work. Its early momentum was likely boosted by Sony Interactive Entertainment, but the game later proved it could stand on its own, becoming a major success on PC and moving a large number of copies in a short period of time.

With Stellar Blade 2 officially confirmed to be in development, it would have been easy to assume SIE would publish the sequel as well. But that assumption is suddenly less solid. As reported by AUTOMATON, Korean outlet GameMeca spotted multiple openings at Shift Up tied to localization, marketing, and PR – and the wording in those postings makes the intent hard to miss. One description states that Shift Up is preparing for “a new leap forward in the global market” and aims to expand its self-publishing capabilities to support internally developed titles across console and PC platforms.

Who publishes the sequel may not matter to a lot of players on paper, but it can shape how – and where – the game launches. With Sony’s PC strategy reportedly shifting, partner-studio titles are unlikely to remain console-only forever, yet a SIE-published sequel could still mean a staggered rollout on PC and potentially other platforms. If Shift Up publishes Stellar Blade 2 directly, a true day-one multiplatform release becomes far more plausible, letting more players jump in the moment it’s available.

The studio is also busy beyond the sequel. Shift Up is developing another project, currently known as Project Spirits. Powered by Unreal Engine 5, it will be published by Tencent’s Level Infinite label for PC, consoles, and mobile, with a release date that has yet to be announced.

Source: WCCFTech