Companies were offering a single dollar for Hitman dev IO Interactive when Square Enix was looking to offload it
There's a parallel universe out there where things went much, much worse for our favourite chrome-dome assassin.
Companies were offering a single dollar for Hitman dev IO Interactive when Square Enix was looking to offload it
- Thread starter Bansi
- Start date
I still can't believe Square let them do this. You've got to hand it to them.
I'm so happy that IO are in the position they are in now.
I'm so happy that IO are in the position they are in now.
Hitman: Absolution wasn't profitable?
I have my issues with the game but I swear SE announced it sold 3 million, which makes me wonder how much the total budget was.
I have my issues with the game but I swear SE announced it sold 3 million, which makes me wonder how much the total budget was.
I guess it kind of makes sense? You aren't just paying the $1, you're paying for them to run at a loss like they had for the past decade. Fortunately, IO seems to have turned things around and looks like they're doing amazing now.
Companies were offering a single dollar for Hitman dev IO Interactive when Square Enix was looking to offload it
There's a parallel universe out there where things went much, much worse for our favourite chrome-dome assassin.www.pcgamer.com
The last part only applies to Hitman right?
Pretty sure IO doesn't own Kane & Lynch
We all know Square and their stupid expectations for their Western studios.
It's crazy to read this when you consider just how much quality they output and how high their reputation is today. Having their name attached to James Bond alone has people feverishly excited and confident in a product we haven't even seen yet.
Its not just a game being profitable
There are numerous operating costs beyond tge budget for the games
Even Tomb raider made money for CD but it didn't make enough once you take everything else in the books to account
Its the same thing here
The price of CD and Eidos is starting to make a lot of sense now (personally it still doesn't but whatever).
I like how companies like IO and Remedy are working with lots of different publishers on different big games at the same time, so they have their eggs in multiple baskets and can stay independent and protect themselves from a deal collapsing and killing the studio. It's a very smart strategy.
OP
OP
This is the publisher that declared that FF XVI and Tomb Raider sales didn't meet their expectations. FF XVI sold 3 million units in its first week. Tomb Raider sold 3.4 million in two weeks.
Hitman Absolution sold 3.4 million in 4 months.
I have no idea what kind of fantastical accounting happens at Square Enix.
As article pointed out:
It didn't come easy.
I'm sure a Hitman designed specifically around F2P would be worse, but the model you described is literally the model the are currently using.
HITMAN™ Free Trial on Steam
Play the beginning of HITMAN for free and become the master assassin.
OP
OP
They hadn't made any money for 10 years in a row, so what do you expect?
That isnt available anymore? It makes sense to offer a demo of sorts like this but thats basically just.. a demo? Not building the franchise completely around starting f2p and offering dlc expansions on top.I'm sure a Hitman designed specifically around F2P would be worse, but the model you described is literally the model the are currently using.
HITMAN™ Free Trial on Steam
Play the beginning of HITMAN for free and become the master assassin.store.steampowered.com
![00Quan[T]](/data/avatar/31681832007/115484-m.jpg){kind=avatar}
Still surprised by this. Basically means that series is dead because Square is obviously never going to do anything with it. Guess it was just a case of being "Well you can have that and get whatever PC sales come off of it"
If the company is in the red for a decade, offering anything other than a single dollar doesn't make any financial sense. This sounds pretty standard when it comes to acquisitions, and offering a higher than market price for a company that is valued at a negative is irresponsible and opens the company up to a lawsuit from shareholders.
Yeah I think Abrak's statement in the quoted portion of OP is astonishingly clear-eyed. He's not even contending it, and his wording seems to go almost as far as to say "and that made sense" (divestment, not the $1 offers).
That's some refreshing candor.
OP
OP
Square Enix is the asshole ex who will ruin your life, dump you, and then take one of your cats in the breakup just as a final fuck you.
Wasn't it later revealed that the specific context to Square being pissy about Tomb Raider's sales was that the reboot actually cost a nightmarishly large amount of money when you factored in all the costs that got sunk into the failed incarnations the game took before it landed on the one that finally got made?
That actually makes sense to buy low, sell high. If you're taking on a company that has bled money for 10 years (toxic asset), offering the absolute minimum to acquire it, strip it down to the bare essentials and turn a profit is capitalism 101. They aren't even worth being a loss leader with that IP.
It's not like companies in the position to acquire IO are doing it because they sure do love the Hitman IP gosh darn it!
Happily, it went in another direction.
It's not like companies in the position to acquire IO are doing it because they sure do love the Hitman IP gosh darn it!
Happily, it went in another direction.
OP
OP
At the end of the day, it's on the publisher to manage costs. If they were pouring outrageous sums into the development that would require unrealistically high sales to recoup, that's on them.
Ah, there is still a demo, but under a different listing.
I believe it is just one mission.
HITMAN World of Assassination on Steam
Enter the world of the ultimate assassin. HITMAN World of Assassination brings together the best of HITMAN, HITMAN 2 and HITMAN 3 including the main campaign, contract mode, escalations, elusive target arcades and the roguelike inspired game mode HITMAN: Freelancer.
Tbh their initial messaging around Hitman 2016 was very confusing. They changed strategies a few times, before ultimately releasing episodically. Obviously it worked out in the end, and the game is solid, but they did have quite a bit of confusion over the release model.
The trilogy as a whole is a fantastic accomplishment, but it's actually pretty unconventional how it has released. Three different titles with three different publishers, ultimately transitioning into one combined title etc.
They're good, but I think Larian is #1. From on the brink of absolute closure, to a desperate Kickstarter for Divinity Original Sin, to now releasing one of the best selling RPGs of all time, breaching the most played Steam charts, and having publishers slobbering over them.
Man I really got to give it to IOI for really turning everything around thanks to strong leadership and holding faith for the long term.
All paid off and I'm sure they will never wish to be in that position again.
All paid off and I'm sure they will never wish to be in that position again.
I have no doubt this is the case/will eventually be the case, but do we have any hard numbers for Baldur's Gate 3 sales? Just curious.