Ninja Theory is a developer that always seems on the verge of
mainstream success. They landed a PS3 exclusive deal early on with Heavenly
Sword; they wowed critics with Enslaved: Odyssey to the West; and they made
serious waves with Dante’s redesign in DmC. However, it’s their newest effort Hellblade
that just may be their most important work to date. The game is shaping up to
be what fans would expect from the studio: a third person action title in the vein
of Devil May Cry or God of War. Though, it isn’t so much the game’s content
that’s been turning heads in the industry; it’s the way the game is being
produced. It’s a process they’re calling “Independent AAA”.
Ninja Theory’s goal is to create a AAA gaming experience
that can hold its own against anything that major publishers can afford while
maintaining a development that is independent of any of the usual constraints
that pay for such an experience. Ninja Theory is attempting to fund the entire
game themselves, forgoing even Kickstarter in order to remain beholden only to
themselves and their vision of what the game should be. This isn’t to say that
anyone interested in the project must wait for the slow trickle of information
usually associated with such high profile releases. Indeed, Ninja Theory is
keen to have a completely open and honest discussion about the direction development
is headed, whether it be challenges faced during iteration or the major
influences for the world they’re building. They do all this while trying to preserve
some mystery as far as where the game’s story will go. (If you want to see for
yourself, their official site has some fascinating insight on
Hellblade and on game development in general.)
What makes this gamble so important is that Ninja Theory
seems to be one of the few developers endeavoring to traverse the oft discussed but rarely explored middle ground of game development. By eliminating
outside publisher involvement and remaining a much smaller team, they’re able
to keep costs down while still potentially delivering an experience that gamers
would feel comfortable spending $60 on. With major publishers like Square Enix
showing disappointment at selling upwards of 3.4 million copies of Tomb Raider as
well as Sega and Konami bidding adieu to the console market not to mention the
overabundance of annualized franchises, it would seem that AAA development
costs are getting pretty far out of hand. Something like Ninja Theory’s “Independent
AAA” has the potential to give gamers a brand new IP at a value somewhere
between indie and traditional AAA while still delivering a polished experience
and a very transparent development process.
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Work on Hellblade is still far from over, but the benefits
from its potential success could open up the middle ground for more developers
to explore, allowing some to break away from rigid publisher mandates and schedules
in order to create new experiences on a more attainable budget. Mega budget
blockbusters that have carried the industry for so long will certainly still be
a big part of gaming, but the more diversity there is in gaming, not only in
terms of the games themselves but also their development techniques, the more
likely the games industry is to thrive, and Ninja Theory may be leading the way
on how to get there.
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