Game studios are getting candid about funding problems | Kaser Focus

The games industry’s economic struggles are not exactly an unknown — by now, it’s been over a year since the layoffs, studio closures and game cancellations began in earnest. Somewhere in the midst of this, game companies have become somewhat more transparent about the goings-on behind the scenes. And recently, that’s taken the form of admitting when they’ve simply run out of money. Surgent Studios revealed today it’s put its staff on notice as it’s having trouble securing a publisher for its next game. This is after it’s already had a round of layoffs following the underperformance of Tales of Kenzera: ZAU.

Surgent is not the only studio that has gotten frank about its inability to secure stable funding. Earlier this month, Orphan Age developer Studio Black Flag revealed its deal with its publisher fell through, and the French government shut it down when its funding disappeared. It called itself “another casualty of the current downturn in the video game industry.” Similarly, Italic Pig, developers of Paleo Pines, said in a social media statement that it couldn’t find a production partner for its next game, and said the whole indie gaming scene was facing “a sudden drying up of publishing and investment opportunities.”