ACCORDING TO REPORTS, THE DEVELOPERS OF REDFALL ALLEGEDLY EXPRESSED THEIR DESIRE FOR THE GAME TO BE EITHER CANCELLED OR REBOOTED BY MICROSOFT.
A recent report has surfaced, aiming to provide insight into the factors that contributed to the underwhelming launch of Redfall last month. Despite facing multiple delays, the highly anticipated Xbox exclusive developed by Arkane Studios faced various technical problems and received generally negative reviews, with aggregate scores of 56 (Xbox Series X/S) and 54 (PC) on Metacritic.
Redfall marks a departure for Arkane Studios, known for their critically acclaimed single-player immersive sims such as Dishonored and Prey, as it ventures into the multiplayer loot shooter genre.
As per a recent report from Bloomberg, the development of the game suffered from several challenges, including a lack of clear vision, a high rate of employee turnover, and limited resources for a project that was intended to be a triple-A game.
Based on information from over a dozen anonymous sources who worked on the project, a recent report from Bloomberg reveals insights into the development of Redfall. The game’s development began in 2018 after being presented to the team as a “multiplayer Arkane game,” but some members found the concept unclear and had doubts about the translation of Arkane’s signature gameplay into a cooperative setting.
The development of Redfall reportedly faced challenges due to a persistent understaffing issue within the team at Arkane’s Austin office, which had fewer than 100 employees. Additionally, there was insufficient outsourcing support provided by Bethesda. Numerous experienced developers who were not interested in creating a multiplayer game reportedly left the studio, with nearly three-quarters of the Austin staff who had previously worked on 2017’s Prey departing by the time Redfall was completed.
The report also highlights difficulties in filling vacancies at Arkane, which were attributed to factors such as lower-than-average salaries, the studio’s Texas location, and the preference of potential employees to work on single-player immersive sims. Furthermore, it was revealed that Redfall initially had a significant microtransaction plan in place for three years before being abandoned in 2021. Following Microsoft’s acquisition of ZeniMax, Bethesda’s parent company, in the same year, some Arkane staff members reportedly hoped that Microsoft would either cancel Redfall or reboot it as a single-player game.
Despite the challenges faced, Xbox boss Phil Spencer acknowledged in a recent interview that Microsoft took a more hands-off approach to Bethesda’s game development studios. He admitted that they could have done a better job in engaging Arkane Austin and providing internal resources to help them understand the benefits of being part of Xbox’s first-party lineup. Nevertheless, Spencer expressed confidence in the talented team at Arkane Austin and their ability to deliver another exceptional game.
