Youssef Fares was forced to shoot an ad to get money for the development of A Way Out
Creating an action adventure game A Way Out was a serious challenge for Josef Fares. As the game designer recalls in a podcast for Sveriges Radio, he could have been on the street if the game had failed.
He said that the first two years were especially difficult for the studio. The game became more and more ambitious, and there was not enough money for it. By the middle of development, the A Way Out team had lost 5 million (it is not specified, Swedish kronor or dollars).
At some point, Fares reached such despair that he decided to sell his stake in Hazelight Studios. Fortunately, the potential buyer refused. Nevertheless, Fares did not give up and was able to find another solution: “I started shooting a bunch of commercials to earn money and pay salaries to employees,” he shared.
Ultimately, A Way Out was funded by Electronic Arts. The game was released in 2018.
