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- Alan Wake 2 cost around €70 million to produce and recently recouped its development costs.
- Remedy states that the game went over budget despite measures to keep costs down.
- Rising budgets are a huge problem for the industry today and pose a major threat to everyone involved.
Alan Wake 2 was praised as one of the industry’s best horror games in 2023. The game told a very compelling story and delivered exceptional visuals, all while maintaining a relatively low budget compared to the average AAA release.
However, Remedy still struggled with the budget. In fact, a new interview reveals that the team exceeded its initial budget plans.
Why it matters: Budget management is a major concern in the gaming industry, and this instance highlights that even cheaper games are not exempt from this issue.
Speaking to MP1st, communications director Thomas Puha discussed the importance of managing budgets and the scope of games.
He highlighted how Remedy has faced tough financial situations at various points during its three-decade lifespan, which has led the team to carefully weigh its options when developing a new game.
While Alan Wake 2 had a much lower budget than expected, the game still went over budget. As Thomas Puha puts it, this happens frequently in the industry as developers aim to push ideas and make the best games possible.
We did go over budget on Alan Wake 2.
-Thomas Puha
Perhaps this was why the game stayed unprofitable for so long and only recently recouped the development costs. Moreover, Thomas Puha’s comment highlights a larger problem with the industry.
If moderately sized teams like Remedy struggle with budgets, it’s only natural to see bigger studios like Ubisoft spending millions of dollars on projects like XDefiant or Skull and Bones that may not necessarily turn out to be massive successes.
With more studios now taking note of this issue, perhaps gaming budgets will eventually go down in the future. In Remedy’s case, however, the team is moving forward with Max Payne remakes based on a similar budget as Alan Wake 2.
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[News Reporter]
Avinash is currently pursuing a Business degree in Australia. For more than three years, he has been working as a gaming journalist, utilizing his writing skills and love for gaming to report on the latest updates in the industry. Avinash loves to play action games like Devil May Cry and has also been mentioned on highly regarded websites, such as IGN, GamesRadar, GameRant, Dualshockers, CBR, and Gamespot.
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