EA’s chief executive officer Andrew Wilson is getting a lot of flack for suggesting that Dragon Age: The Veilguard missed its sales targets because it lacked live-service elements.
From Wilson’s perspective, – that being the perspective of someone who is far more interested in a game meeting its financial goals, than it being a critical success or, even good, really – live-service is an easy fall back for how games make money. The most financially successful games in the industry today, are live-service games.
But of course that doesn’t mean they are right for every game, and that every studio should be making live-service games. One studio that you can bet won’t be making a live-service game, is Josef Fares studio, Hazelight.
Hazelight’s next game Split Fiction is due out at the beginning of next month, and in a recent interview with Eurogamer, Fares did not mince words regarding his thoughts on live-service games, and if Hazelight would ever be drawn to the potential financial success they come with.
“We will not have them, I do not believe in them. I think [live-service] is not the right way to go. I hope more and more [developers] focus on their passion, and what they believe in. At the end of the day, we see clearly – and Hazelight is living proof – that when you trust in your vision and go with it, you can still reach a big audience. That’s what I want people to focus on.”
Fares continued, admitting that he understands that the nature of game development is that there will always be someone more concerned about the money involved. And that people do need to get paid, of course, to make these games. But he stood strong in that Hazelight will not turn into a live-service game studio.
“I have an understanding that publishers have a lot of, you know, worries about the ‘money issue.’ But, I think also you have to understand that we are working with a piece of art here, so you have to respect the creativity as well. They have to meet in the middle.
You also can’t be too much focused on creativity. You can’t just say, ‘give me $100M, I want to do what I want to do.’ But, there has to be a balance. It can’t just be towards the finance side. So, no, it will not happen with a Hazelight game, ever. I guarantee.”
Fares has never been one to mince words before in his career, so its no surprise to see him continue that behavior here. It also helps that he is absolutely right, and that game studios need to find a way to balance their financial and creative goals.
Source – [Eurogamer]