The games industry’s economic struggles are not exactly an unknown — by now, it’s been over a year since the layoffs, studio closures and game cancellations began in earnest. Somewhere in the midst of this, game companies have become somewhat more transparent about the goings-on behind the scenes. And recently, that’s taken the form of admitting when they’ve simply run out of money. Surgent Studios revealed today it’s put its staff on notice as it’s having trouble securing a publisher for its next game. This is after it’s already had a round of layoffs following the underperformance of Tales of Kenzera: ZAU.
Surgent is not the only studio that has gotten frank about its inability to secure stable funding. Earlier this month, Orphan Age developer Studio Black Flag revealed its deal with its publisher fell through, and the French government shut it down when its funding disappeared. It called itself “another casualty of the current downturn in the video game industry.” Similarly, Italic Pig, developers of Paleo Pines, said in a social media statement that it couldn’t find a production partner for its next game, and said the whole indie gaming scene was facing “a sudden drying up of publishing and investment opportunities.”
I feel that the first instance of a game company being so honest was last September, when Pieces Interactive delayed Alone in the Dark and flat-out admitted that it didn’t want to release the game in the already over-crowded month of October: “Horror games thrive on the eerie embrace of solitude, something that is impossible to achieve in a gaming month as busy as October.” But being honest about the reasons behind delays is one thing — being honest about money troubles is another level of sincerity.
In personal news, I’m ready to get properly spooky this season with the release of A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead, which reminds me of Alien: Isolation in the best way. I’m not sure I’m up for replaying Until Dawn again — keeping those shrieking brats alive for one playthrough was difficult enough — but if I need a palate cleanser, Piranha Games just dropped MechWarrior 5: Clans. And if nothing else, there’s always the new Mario Party title, Super Mario Party Jamboree.
What to play this week
What’s new:
- Super Mario Party Jamboree
- MechWarrior 5: Clans
- A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead
- Neva
- Just Dance 2025 Edition
- Unknown 9: Awakening
- Drove – Forsaken Kin
- New World: Aeternum
- Killing Time: Resurrected
- RetroRealms: Ash vs. Evil Dead
- RetroRealms: Halloween
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants Unleashed
- Arsene Lupin: Once a Thief
New on subscription services:
- South Park: The Fractured but Whole (Xbox Game Pass)
- Donut County (Xbox Game Pass)
- Dead Island 2 (PlayStation Plus Extra+Premium)
- Two Point Campus (PlayStation Plus Extra+Premium)
- The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me (PlayStation Plus Extra+Premium)
- Gris (PlayStation Plus Extra+Premium)
- Return to Monkey Island (PlayStation Plus Extra+Premium)
- Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed (PlayStation Plus Extra+Premium)
- Firefighting Simulator The Squad (PlayStation Plus Extra+Premium)
- Overpass 2 (PlayStation Plus Extra+Premium)
- Tour de France 2023 (PlayStation Plus Extra+Premium)
- Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands (PlayStation Plus Extra+Premium)
- The Last Clockwinder (PlayStation Plus Premium)
- Dino Crisis (PlayStation Plus Premium)
- Siren (PlayStation Plus Premium)
- R-Type Dimensions EX (PlayStation Plus Premium)
- Mystery Box: Hidden Secrets (Prime Gaming)
- Vlad Circus: Descend Into Madness (Prime Gaming)
- Through the Darkest of Times (Prime Gaming)
- Killing Floor 2 (Prime Gaming)
- Zombies Ate My Neighbors and Ghoul Patrol (Prime Gaming)
- Assassin’s Creed Mirage (GeForce Now)
- Artisan TD (GeForce Now)
- ASKA (GeForce Now)
- Dungeon Tycoon (GeForce Now)
- Spirit City: Lofi Sessions (GeForce Now)
- Star Trucker (GeForce Now)
