Savage Game Studios CEO Michail Katkoff leaves PlayStation mobile dev

PlayStation's mobile developer Savage Game Studios is losing its CEO Michail Katkoff. On LinkedIn, he confirmed his leave from the studio, saying he wanted to have a better work/life balance. 

Katkoff was candid in saying that focusing on game development affected the personal relationships with his life. By leaving the studio he helped co-found, he hopes to "course correct and find the equilibrium."

In his place, fellow co-founders Nadjim Adjir and Michael McManus will be running the studio. Both men currently serve as Savage Game's respective director and head of technology. 

The trio founded the studio in 2020, and secured $4.4 million in funding the following year. Presently, the studio is working on an unannounced triple-A mobile title for PlayStation.

Where are PlayStation's mobile plans at right now?

In August 2022, PlayStation acquired Savage Game Studios as part of its larger plans to create a mobile division. At the time, PlayStation Studios head Herman Hulst said the division will "provide more ways for more people to engage with our content."

So far, though, the biggest mobile-related news has come in the form of departures. In June, PlayStation Studios' mobile VP Nicola Sebastiani left the company after a two-year tenure. 

Katkoff's departure is all the more notable because at present, his (now former) studio is the only developer that PlayStation has highlighted as part of its collective of mobile developers. 

Much like with PC ports of older games, the console maker is taking gradual steps to spread itself out beyond the titular systems. But how much investment it truly has in mobile, and how long it'll care about that space, will take some time to be truly seen.