The world of new IP for triple-A development can be a scary one, and Double Fine's Tim Schafer has confirmed his studio’s movement away from such big titles was directly attributed to that sense of risk aversion. Schafer says that publishers are simply too ‘scared’ to take on the risk of new IP, opting instead to rely on sequels and proven money-makers.
Speaking with Digital Spy, Schafer offers that “Publishers often don't want to release anything new, I mean they're scared of new IP, and Double Fine specializes in new IP.
“That's always been our challenge, is getting a publisher to invest millions of dollars in something brand new like Brutal Legend."
Double Fine has been working on smaller titles at a more rapid release schedule. The downloadable titles such as Iron Brigade, Costume Quest and Stacking have all proven to be critical and sales hits. Double Fine’s latest Minigame compilation Double Fine Happy Action Theater has also been seeing positive reviews.
The last triple-A title from the studio was Brutal Legend, which did enjoy generally positive reviews, but did not see as good a sales performance as was hoped.
