It ain’t cheap to make video games these days. Well, the kind that requires voice actors, motion capture, new visual effects and a couple hundred staff members that is. Sometimes, you can get an entire Witcher 2 game done for under $10 million. Other times though? Being Greek truly is costly.
According to 20 minuten, the price to get those red stripes looking so shiny on Kratos ripped physique may have cost just as much as Modern Warfare did to develop. While that figure isn’t publically known, analysts believe that the blockbuster Call of Duty title clocked in at around $40 – $50 million at the end of the day, minus the mammoth marketing budget of that title.
$50 million sounds rather realistic, but it’s still a damned high number for a game. Sure, it may not be as costly as Grand Theft Auto 4, but it’s expensive all the same. Right now, Ascension is considered to be an underperformer, only managing to shift 1.1 million units as of April 13.
Which is a shame, because by all rights, it’s actually a really decent game on its own, even if it didn’t live up to the standards set by previous entries in the franchise. Maybe all that upcoming DLC can swell the coffers a bit more for Sony.
Last Updated: April 22, 2013
Sir Oldfart
April 22, 2013 at 14:36
Kratos is still a dick.
Admiral Chief Erwin
April 22, 2013 at 14:41
“Money money money, must be funny, in the rich man’s world”
Slade Boender
April 22, 2013 at 15:21
Now sing it in greek!
Admiral Chief Erwin
April 22, 2013 at 15:32
??????? ??????? ???????, ?????? ?? ????? ??????, ???? ????? ??? ????????
Rincethis: Spellalicious
April 22, 2013 at 14:41
I am sure they can squeeze some microtransactions in here somewhere. Perhaps as a ‘I need to speak to a psychologist as I did bad things to mum, and no one understands me, and I just want eat some worms’. You could offer a full Freud session for $10, or a shock session for $100… Possibilities are endless. Kratos, you dick.
Sageville
April 22, 2013 at 14:42
My maths:
1 100 000 Units Sold x About $60 = $66 000 000
Profit = $16 Million.
Not that bad…..
Exalted Overlord Geoffrey Tim
April 22, 2013 at 14:47
That excludes marketing, shipping, production etc. Factor that all in, and you’re looking at a pretty big loss.
Rincethis: Spellalicious
April 22, 2013 at 14:52
If you look at some games, they spend up to 200% of the actual development cost on marketing, so BIG losses!
Purple_Dragon
April 22, 2013 at 16:00
Exactly, thats the biggest part of the problem, spending these massive amounts on marketing.
rogue_riezo
April 22, 2013 at 14:53
Sony don’t get $60 per game, you need to cut in retailers and in countries like ours distributors as well.
Sageville
April 22, 2013 at 15:26
Phneh, my speculationizing >> Your speculationizing!
Unavengedavo
April 23, 2013 at 09:02
So Pretty!!!