It's Not Too Late To Save Beloved Gaming Franchises

"Every time I read a headline about a game franchise being shelved because it's become too expensive, too big of a risk for a publisher to gamble $200 million on, I want to scream into the sky at the obviousness of the solution. But now, following the 2025 success of games like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 , Arc Raiders , , and Helldivers 2 , surely the answer is clear to everyone? License these once big-name franchises to proven mid-size AA teams, and don't interfere."

"With the colossally over-inflated prices involved in these deals, those buying are either borrowing heavily from predatory investors or gambling huge stakes of their own fortunes, such that the sheer notion of creating a new game in a once-loved series (let alone an original IP) becomes fantastically risky. To match the ridiculous valuations, the games these companies make are burdened with a need for justification, and every project must be predicted to bring in at least half a billion bucks to be worth even storyboarding."

Major gaming franchises are being shelved because publishers view new entries as too risky and expensive amid industry consolidation and inflated acquisition valuations. Buyers take on heavy debt or gamble huge capital, which forces projects to justify extreme returns before greenlighting development. Publishers demand that new releases be predicted to earn hundreds of millions, often half a billion or more, which sidelines once-beloved series and original IP. Recent successes from mid-size AA teams show high-quality, profitable alternatives. Licensing dormant franchises to proven mid-size teams, combined with minimal publisher interference, can revive franchises at lower cost and acceptable risk.

Read at Kotaku