"This is a complete disaster": Rise of Rebellion from the FromSoftware veteran has flopped in sales
Rise of Rebellion is a fantasy action RPG created by the Japanese solo developer Hytacka and published by Kodansha. The game was released on Steam on April 21, 2025, and its launch proved to be disappointing for its creator.
Recently, Hytacka released a video on YouTube where he called the initial sales of Rise of Rebellion a disaster. He didn't reveal specific numbers, as he was uncertain about doing so without the publisher's consent, but he emphasized that they fell far short of expectations.
According to VG Insights, Rise of Rebellion has sold 3,400 copies to date. The Gamalityc service estimates the game’s sales range from 1,200 to 3,500 copies. These are indeed small numbers, especially considering that, pre-release, Rise of Rebellion had over 50,000 wishlists, and Hytacka himself spoke of plans to sell 100,000 copies over its lifetime.
The players who purchased Rise of Rebellion have been lukewarm towards the title. On Steam, the new release holds a “mostly negative” rating, with only 39% of 121 reviews being positive. The game is criticized for its cheap visuals and animations, as well as narrative issues and poor optimization, though many praise its combat system.
Hytacka intends to keep improving the game, but is uncertain of how the publisher will react to the low sales.
Before developing Rise of Rebellion, Hytacka worked at FromSoftware, where he contributed to Dark Souls III. He began working on his own game in 2020 and spent nearly five years on its development.