It seems as if the full pockets of major companies like Epic and Microsoft are starting to empty, putting some smaller studios in an awkward position. After offering money in exchange for exclusivity or availability on Game Pass, many indie developers have come to rely on these deals to fund their projects. However, it seems that these deals are becoming more difficult to secure, and their value is lower than they used to be.
Speaking in an interview at GDC, Casey Yano, co-founder of Slay the Spire Studio Mega Crit, said he heard the same story over and over again. “I talked to at least five small teams, like 35 [members] “And down, during GDC, they're like: cuts, cuts, cuts, canceling funding, canceling talks that had been going on for a year,” he said. We are certainly very fortunate to be able to self-finance. [Otherwise] “I'm going to be very, very, very scared right now.”
Chris Bourassa, co-founder of Red Hook Studios, the team behind Darkest Dungeon, noted that Microsoft's deals to put a game on Game Pass “have reached scale,” and that the story is similar with Epic and the Epic Games Store. . Previously, these deals allowed some teams to break even on their games before they were released, providing a great deal of security even if sales were lower than expected. Now, this safety net is becoming less reliable as the screws tighten.
It is an unfortunate, if not surprising, situation. Considering Game Pass is always pushed for day one releases, Microsoft's bottomless coffers have funded countless smaller titles to make sure they're part of the package. However, with subscriber numbers stabilizing and growth slowing, we're not surprised that Phil has to be more conservative here.
You have to assume that this also applies to Sony and PS Plus, as they will also be offering deals to different bands to include them in the additional catalogue. While there are some rare examples of day one releases, the platform owner's decision to largely eschew this feature of Game Pass may be the smarter play in the long run after all.
Anyway, it's an interesting topic, you have to wonder what things will look like in five or ten years. What do you think about all this? Discuss it in the comments section below.
