Loongforce Alleges Sony Mismanagement in China Hero Project

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According to reports from Noisy Pixel, based on internal documents like emails and chat logs, the China Hero Project studio is accusing Sony Interactive Entertainment’s China branch of poor management, causing financial damage, and trying to seize control of their game after development had been paused for years.

As a big fan of Convallaria, I was really bummed to hear about the issues Loongforce, the team behind it, has been having with Sony China. Apparently, things started going downhill after a change in leadership over there in 2022. Loongforce said communication got really slow, the support they were getting from Sony became spotty, and important decisions kept getting stalled without anyone explaining why. It’s frustrating to hear about these problems, especially when I’m hoping for more content from a game I love!

According to the studio, they repeatedly asked Sony for guidance on marketing, setting up servers, and launch plans throughout the first half of 2023, but didn’t receive responses. Despite Convallaria passing Sony’s internal beta test in January 2025, Loongforce states the project stalled. They didn’t move forward with player testing, create online store pages, or begin any marketing efforts.

Loongforce claims Convallaria was taken off the official promotional materials for the China Hero Project. Despite a producer filming content for a PlayStation China anniversary video showcasing involved studios, the game was apparently left out of the final version. The studio states they never received any reason for this exclusion.

Early in 2025, Loongforce faced increasing financial difficulties. They report that late payments resulted in monthly losses of over $230,000, bringing the studio to the brink of closure by April. Despite these challenges, the team maintained weekly development progress and even completed a server test in the U.S. Loongforce claims Sony then cancelled their payment agreement and offered new terms they considered unfair, which led them to end the partnership. Overall, the studio estimates total losses to be more than $1 million.

The studio is also worried about potential conflicts of interest in how Sony Interactive Entertainment China (SIE China) manages its projects. Loongforce claims that work was repeatedly given to Virtuos without a fair bidding process or approval from other developers. They also state they were unexpectedly asked to pay for an IT security upgrade done by a company connected to ex-Virtuos staff – a cost Loongforce believes wasn’t part of their original agreement.

The disagreement came to a head in June 2025, according to Loongforce, when they were allegedly informed that leadership of the Convallaria game’s development would be handed over to a “SIE Global Team,” and that refusing this transfer would halt the game’s release. The studio strongly disagrees with this decision, questioning both who authorized it and whether it was even feasible, characterizing it as a power grab.

Okay, so Loongforce says they tried to sort things out on their own for over a year before finally going public with it all. As of right now, I’ve reached out to Sony and the China Hero Project for a statement, but haven’t heard back from them yet.

Loongforce, the studio behind the China Hero Project, has made some accusations against Sony. We’d like to hear your opinion on this situation! Share your thoughts in the comments below and continue the conversation on the official TopMob Discord server.

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2025-12-16 19:48