Marvel Rivals game director Thaddeus Sasser reckons that Concord bombed because it “didn’t bring any unique value” to players, but added that it’s hard to predict whether a game will be a success or a failure. Sasser was specifically asked about Concord in an interview with VideoGamer ahead of Marvel Rivals launch, in response to which he revealed that developers are always worried about audience response.
Marvel Rivals dev on Concord failure: There’s a ‘switching cost’
Echoing what many industry professionals have already said, Sasser said that players are already heavily invested in a number of games, and if devs don’t offer anything fresh or unique, players won’t feel encouraged to “switch.”
“There’s a switching cost,” Sasser told VideoGamer. “I’ve already invested in Overwatch, I’ve got 15 skins for Pharah, I’m not going anywhere.” But Sasser also points out that we’ve seen games fail despite being expected to sell well, and we’ve seen games go on to become a smashing success despite people expecting them to flop.
“As a game developer you’re always worried until the audience has responded,” Sasser continued. “The truth is that I don’t think anybody can accurately predict this or the game industry would be radically different today.”
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