According to one of the developers of Oddworld: Soulstorm, the game’s release on the PS Plus would have had devastating consequences for the studio and sales
Each month, PS Plus subscribers can grab a salvo of free games. A system that greatly benefits players, but what about developers? One of them is ultimately not satisfied with the deal with Sony.
A devastating day one release on the PS Plus
Big disappointment for Oddworld Inhabitants. The independent studio behind Abe’s adventures had to come a long way before being able to release their new game. Due to a lack of resources, the developers turned to partners to help them carry out the project. That’s when Sony got in on the action and got their hands on a new PS5 exclusive. This new partnership then concluded with a deal to offer Oddworld: Soulstorm to PS Plus subscribers on the day of its release.
Obviously, Sony offered in exchange an undisclosed sum to cushion the lost sales. The studio could have everything to gain and yet according to Lorne Lanning, at the head of the company, they lost more than anything else. The Japanese publisher has indeed taken into account the estimated sales at the initial launch of the game and the number of PS5s sold at that time. What amply compensate for the shortfall when the release of Oddworld: Soulstorm. Except that the COVID-19 has decided otherwise.
A significant shortfall
Telecommuting, confinements and other upheavals of the pandemic prompted the studio to postpone the release of its game from January 2021 to April of the same year. A delay of a few months which may seem trivial and which would have completely changed the situation. The stats marked in the contract were no longer the same. PS5 stocks were at their best in the health context and more units sold.
As a result, Oddworld: Soulstorm was picked up for free by more players than expected via PS Plus. According to Lorne Landing, the former PS5 exclusive has been claimed by over 4 million players. ” It was devastating for us explains the developer in the Xbox Expansion Pass podcast. We are indeed a long way from the 50,000 and 100,000 initially planned in the deal.
The sum of the deal set months earlier was therefore well below what was needed to amortize the costs of starting the game.” We thought we had made a good deal, it was a double-edged sword “. The interested party did not, however, go into details, especially since the game has since been released on other platforms. The CEO of SIE had himself warned the players. The day one release of the PS5 exclusives on the PS Plus is a dangerous game and obviously Oddworld Inhabitants paid the price.