AA games can sell at AAA levels with a budget that's ten times smaller, believes the head of Jagex
The CEO of Jagex, the developer behind the iconic MMORPG RuneScape, Jon Bellamy, gave an interview to the portal The Game Business. During the conversation, he touched on the topic of AA games and their commercial potential.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
According to Bellamy, AA games have suddenly become one of the "lifelines" for the gaming industry, which has been experiencing a significant crisis in recent years. He pointed out that their development costs are vastly lower than those of AAA games, yet if successful, the sales can be comparable.
"You can secure a budget of $400 million — there aren't many of these games left, but the opportunity to aim for something like this still exists. However, you can also manage with just a tenth of that amount and achieve results not too different, if you do everything right," stated the top executive.
As an example of a recent AA hit, Bellamy cited Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which, according to official data, sold 3.3 million copies in its first 33 days. The head of Jagex believes that it, along with some other similar games, has become something of a guiding star for many developers. Especially for those from large companies who have become disillusioned with the AAA segment.