subject: Record Game Development Budget: $100 Million For Starcraft Ii [print this page] By sdnadmin | July 20, 2010 By sdnadmin | July 20, 2010
With a release date of July 27, news regarding the much-anticipated sequel to StarCraft has been abundant. Blizzard Entertainment, the games developer, went through beta testing in May and July, allowing devoted gamers a sneak peek into the newly designed universe, which created a stir. Recently, however, the announcement that the game cost more than $100 million to develop has the industry abuzz and gamers shaking with anticipation.
The $100 million development threshold puts StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty in an area almost no other games have been. At $60 million, Gran Turismo 5 was considered to be one of the most expensive games ever created, with graphics and gameplay seemingly unparalleled.
For a series that has been dormant for nearly 12 years, when the original title was released, Activision Blizzards parent company has put a lot of faith into the new installment. Activision Chief Executive Bobby Kotick told analysts at a recent meeting he sees the game as one of the companys "pillars of opportunity" which he believes will be responsible for between $500 million and $1 billion worth of revenue.
"There is no shortage of consumers for Starcraft," Kotick said. "For a game that is more than 10 years old, theres millions of people still playing it."
Despite recent dips in the industrys market, Activision believes it can create another empire with this title, similar its widely popular World of Warcraft franchise. Said Blizzard President Mike Morhaime "weve brought in a lot of new players in the beta testing whove been playing World of Warcraft but have never tried Starcraft."
The company will hope to recoup revenue from international users subscribing to play the game online. No such subscription model will be in place in the U.S., however.
Another reason Activision seems comfortable with the high price tag for the game development is that the title is only being released on computers. By doing this, Activision does not need to share revenue with any console manufacturer, such as Sony or Microsoft for their PlayStation and Xbox consoles, respectively.
With recent research from the NPD Group finding game software sales fell by 6 percent compared to last year, the idea of a game costing more than $100 million to develop seems risky; however, with the success of Activisions Warcraft franchise, the cost of the new StarCraft game could be worth every penny.
