Polish developer 11 bit studios have been at the top of the survival game class since it released This War of Mine exactly ten years ago, but CEO Przemysław Marszał explains that it has not always been smooth sailing.
During an interview with PAP Biznes, translated by Evgeny Obedkov of Game World Observer, Marszał shone a light on the trials and tribulations of being a major indie studio in an industry that is simultaneously booming and killing its members.
"The entire games industry is going through a severe crisis, according to Marszał. His own company, for example, had its shares reach a 7-year low despite a record year in profitability.
11 bit had to cancel Project 8 earlier this month, wrote off $12 million spent on developing the game, and let go of 18 employees in the aftermath.
The company had also planned to release the clone survival game The Alters before the year's end but made a call to postpone it to Q1 2025 to ensure a clean launch.
Besides game development, 11 bit has dabbled into publishing recently, an endeavor that Marszał says has not always bore fruit.
"Some of the projects from the publishing house...