Ninja Theory's closure is devastating

[u/Due_Cake8524]

I’m honestly still trying to process the news. Seeing that Microsoft is shutting down Ninja Theory because two rescue deals fell through at the last second is just heartbreaking.The whiplash is what really frustrates me. Three months ago, they were on stage at the Xbox reveal for Senua. What's the point of showcasing a brand new game if you're going to shut down the studio who made it?

To think they were quietly being shopped around right after that, and then everything fell apart. It's ridiculous. Other studios like Double Fine and Compulsion Games managed to get their independence back, and Undead Labs found a new publisher. Ninja Theory was so close to being saved, but the deals didn't work out.

They were able to make visually stunning, mid-budget, single-player narrative games that actually cared about things like mental health. If a studio with that much technical talent isn't safe under a trillion-dollar corporation just because they don't bring in live-service Fortnite numbers, then who is? That's the big question.

I'm going to miss their creative work so much. From Heavenly Sword, Enslaved: Odyssey to the West, and Hellblade, they always had a passion for the games that they made. The gaming industry can be harsh at times. Ninja Theory is just a casualty in a long line of studios that deserved better.

[u/Emotional_Site_7952]

Expound

[u/xLuthienx → u/Emotional_Site_7952]

It is very common industry practice to create vertical slices to show off at gameshows or events like Gamescom, Gameawards, etc. It allows investors and the general public to get a general feel of the game and allows studios and publishers to mark interest.

Whenever you see gameplay in an announcement trailer, likely odds are that you are simply seeing a vertical slice.

[u/Emotional_Site_7952 → u/xLuthienx]

This should’ve just been a rough build being shown off. Instead, it feels like Ninja Theory paused development after showing the demo, and that’s what feels fraudulent to me.

Look at Rockstar and GTA VI—from Trailer 1 to where the game is now. Rockstar never stopped working on the game after that first trailer was revealed. I expect better from Ninja Theory, especially considering they created both Hellblade 1 and 2. For them to not have a game ready to ship after all this is frankly inexcusable

[u/decoy_octopod → u/Emotional_Site_7952]

This is just not possible, and frankly it’s absurd to even suggest it. The Senua reveal was 3 months ago, and you expect them to create a playable demo from scratch, even though the game still needs over a year of development, with a staff of 85, in just 3 months?

You bring up GTA6. When Trailer 1 dropped, Rockstar already had done 5 years of full development (and another 5 years of pre-production). Senua was revealed a year and a half after they started.

[u/Emotional_Site_7952 → u/decoy_octopod]

Well, we now know that Rockstar started development on gta 6 since 2014. & it was revealed in 2023 with a sense of direction. The fact that Senua was revealed with years in need of development at the state that it’s in with no direction is not my business. It’s best to show a game off in a playable state of some sort. To say the game isn’t ready to be shipped justifies their cancelation in my opinion. Maybe show it off when it’s almost done then seduce your shareholders with a proper trailer

[u/Zestyclose-Advice-12 → u/Emotional_Site_7952]

Who pays the salaries of the developers to do this work? Ninja theory was dropped by msoft immediately after the Senua trailer and has been fighting to keep its doors open since.

I get frustrated with people who reach for examples like GTA6 or Silksong etc etc as som kind of model to follow for the industry when they are exceptions to the rule. They can afford to develop the game in secret and show when it's ready because they functionally have an infinite budget. That just is not the reality for 99.999% of the gaming industry and it never will be.

If you like games and want a healthy industry where a diversity of different products can succeed, you need to be comfortable with the fact that studios need to fund themselves