(Image credit: PlayStation)
At the Game Developers Conference last week, Sony unveiled the PlayStation Studios Vault, an ambitious initiative aimed at preserving over 30 years of gaming history. This colossal project houses hundreds of millions of files stored in a high-security ‘mineshaft’ of data tapes, inaccessible even to the company’s top executives.
During the event, Garrett Fredley, a senior build engineer, shared insights, attended by GamesRadar+. Fredley stated, “PlayStation Studios Vault is our approach to unifying PlayStation’s rich, 30-year heritage in one central location. It’s not merely about backups or source code, but everything related to a project—from documentation to audio files and prototypes—essentially, anything conceivable.”
For many, ‘game preservation’ is about making old games playable on modern technology, but the broader vision involves safeguarding the intricate development history that narrates each game’s unique story. This archival effort supports the creation of remasters and remakes by providing developers with access to original assets, although that is not its primary aim.
The preservation team operates two ‘staging vaults’ located in Las Vegas and Liverpool. These facilities boast rapid SSD storage, which allows developers to swiftly upload projects slated for preservation. The collected data is then migrated to the actual PlayStation Studios Vault, characterized as ‘cold storage’ and managed through data tapes.
Fredley elaborated, “All 30 years of history reside in our tape backups… They go into a mineshaft somewhere—and that’s no exaggeration.” The vault remains highly confidential, with access restricted to the IP preservation team and a select few IT staff.
The vault holds an Arc the Lad build from 1994, and continues to grow with material that includes every PS5 build produced by PlayStation Studios, alongside milestone releases of titles, including alphas, betas, and test builds. Fredley mentioned that there are approximately 200 million files stored within.
When queried about the public availability of this data, Fredley responded, “Unfortunately, probably not.” The material is intended as an internal resource. Yet, the potential exists for some content to emerge through remastered game bonus features or official documentaries, although Fredley clarified, “We help preserve stuff. We don’t decide what happens to it.”
Despite uncertainty about the future public access, Fredley’s dedication is evident. He humorously remarked on the panel, “There’s people who probably don’t know what Gex is. That wounds me personally.” Discover more about the best PS1 games ever made here.