Industry Saber Interactive CEO: Era of $70 Games Nearing End

• In an interview with the IGN portal, Matthew Karch, the head of Saber Interactive, discussed the impending disappearance of $70 games from the market. This trend arises from developers' efforts to reduce costs and risks associated with game development, though they assure that quality will not be compromised.

"I think as games become more expensive to make, the $70 title is going to go the way of the dodo [bird]. I do. I just don't think it's sustainable… Look, you remember the hype for Cyberpunk, which I think actually ultimately performed okay, but when the expectations are so high and so much money is put into one title, it's hugely risky for the company that's doing it. What if it fails? You remember what happened when Ubisoft a couple of years ago, all their titles slipped out of the year, and then all of a sudden they were in an entirely different place? It's hard to recover from that. I think the market is going to shift to development which is not necessarily lower quality, but there's going to be an emphasis on trying to find ways to reduce costs," said Karch.

• Saber Interactive is already following this path by creating AAA games without inflating budgets excessively. Karch cited Helldivers 2 as an example, which successfully attracted an audience as an AA-project. This success will guide the company's future focus.
• Regarding the release of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, Karch stated to IGN that it will initially be priced at $70. While the developers wish to offer the game at a lower price, they are hesitant due to potential negative reactions from the audience, who might perceive it as indicative of lower quality.

 

[Seductive_Spy]

Will cost $80.

 

[Rain]

Will cost $80.

And 120 for those who can't wait another 3 days for the release.

 

[Lord of Cringe]

And 120 for those who can't wait another 3 days for the release.

Why? It will cost 50 bucks, full of microtransactions, and company fanatics will all eat it up and tell you that grind for access to basic game mechanics is normal and in general all developers do that.