Saber Interactive CEO Matthew Karch believes that AA games with relatively modest budgets could become one of the key factors for the survival and further growth of the gaming industry. In his opinion, developers should pay more attention to such projects, as they carry less financial risk and can yield higher returns than expensive blockbusters.
As an example, Karch cited the horror game Hellraiser: Revival. The head of the studio stated that the game is showing very good results on PC and consoles.
This game confirms the idea that well-known intellectual property and quality AA development with controlled costs can deliver excellent results and high user ratings.
In his opinion, the future of the industry is linked to a more active development of mid-budget projects based on well-known franchises, rather than exclusively creating massive AAA blockbusters.
I believe that a stronger emphasis on such mid-segment projects instead of giant AAA games is the way to maintain the growth and dynamism of the gaming industry. Properly developed and wisely financed AAA projects will always have their place, but an AA game offering deep immersion for a lower price carries less risk and, on average, can provide significantly higher returns.