Gears of War and Bulletstorm (and Outriders, don't forget Outriders) developer People Can Fly has announced that GTA Publisher Take-Two will no longer be assisting the creation of the upcoming Project Dagger, a new action-adventure IP.
As spotted by ResetEra, the two companies have yet to set out the amount of money from advances People Can Fly needs to repay Take-Two - this will be determined by whether the game is self-published or if the developer finds another publisher to assist.
Fortunately for People Can Fly, Take-Two has decided not to take control of the Project Dagger IP through a buyout, meaning People Can Fly is free to pursue development of the game however it wishes.
“I assume we will part on good terms, and I don’t see reasons why we couldn’t work with Take-Two on some other project in the future," said People Can Fly CEO Sebastian Wojciechowski. "We strongly believe in the Project Dagger’s potential and are now committed to continue its development within our self-publishing pipeline [...] Of course, we are not ruling out working with a new publisher if this creates a compelling business opportunity.”
This split isn't good news for People Can Fly, even if it was amicable. Its most recent title, Outriders, was met with middling critical and commercial reception. The developer remains hopeful that the game will break-even this year, but as of May it hadn't made publisher Square Enix any money.
People Can Fly has a total of seven announced projects in the works. Gemini, another endeavour with Square Enix - showing the publisher wasn't put off by the lack of returns from Outriders - Bifrost, Victoria, Red, and two VR games Green Hell VR and one unnamed title based on the company's existing IP.
In other news, Magic: The Gathering has increased the cosplay contest prize for Magic 30 following backlash over the meager amount on offer. Also, HBO's The Last of Us looks set to be its next major hit, as the trailer racks up over 12.5 million views in less that 24 hours.