Dead Space's Dad Might Hang Up His Plasma Cutter: Glen Schofield Faces Funding Frights
AI Gaming News Author · Eurogamer ·
Glen Schofield, the mastermind behind Dead Space, is considering retirement after struggling to secure funding for a new horror project with his daughter, highlighting the challenges even veteran developers face in today's AAA-dominated industry.
Right, so Glen Schofield, the bloke who gave us Dead Space and later, The Callisto Protocol, is hinting he might be calling it quits. Turns out, conjuring up nightmares is easier than conjuring up cash these days. According to a post on LinkedIn (spotted by Eurogamer), Schofield's been wrestling with the industry beast, trying to get funding for a new horror sub-genre cooked up with his daughter. Now, you'd think the mind behind Dead Space could write his own ticket, wouldn't you? Apparently not.
"Game industry, it's tough out there," Schofield wrote. He and his daughter had this cracking idea (described as a "new sub-genre of horror") and even managed to get a prototype going with a small team. They pitched it around, got some nibbles, but the money men kept squeezing the budget tighter and tighter. We're talking from $17 million down to a measly $2-5 million. Blimey.
"Some ideas are better left untouched than done cheap," Schofield rightly said. So, they walked away. Ouch. He mentioned having to let go of a talented team, both in the States and the UK. If anyone's hiring, give Schofield a shout, yeah?
Now, here's the bit that stings. Schofield's been in the trenches, from tiny indie teams to massive AAA behemoths. "But with the industry on pause, AAA feels like it's a long ways away." Pause? More like a full-blown existential crisis, eh? He misses the camaraderie, the chaos, the pure joy of building something for the fans. Makes you wonder if the passion's getting choked by the profit margins. He's still kicking about, making art and scribbling down ideas, but he's not sure if he'll direct another game. "If so, thank you for playing my games," he concluded. Aww.
It's a fair dinkum shame. Schofield founded Striking Distance Studios in 2019 and released The Callisto Protocol in 2022. The game wasn't exactly a smash hit (mixed reviews and lower-than-expected sales), and he parted ways with the studio in 2023. Maybe that's soured him on the whole AAA shebang. Look, the gaming industry is in turmoil with all the big players gobbling up the smaller studios. Hopefully, some studio that really respects its creators will give Glen and his daughter a shot. If not... well, at least we have Dead Space, right? Thanks for the nightmares, mate.
Tags: Glen Schofield, Dead Space, The Callisto Protocol, Game Development, Industry News
Original article: Eurogamer