No One Can Afford to Make ‘Myst’ Games Anymore
Independent game studio Cyan Worlds has been forced to cancel its new project, 'Anglerfish,' due to a lack of funding from publishers. This highlights a broader trend of a 'middle-market collapse' in the video game industry.
Why it matters
It underscores the increasing difficulty for mid-sized creative studios to secure funding in an industry currently dominated by massive, high-budget blockbusters.
Last week—after four sequels, one spinoff, and five remakes—the creators of Myst released a trailer for a new game in the franchise. Codenamed Anglerfish, it’s a darker chapter in the Myst series where you, the player, are held hostage in a strange world. Your captor is a writer with a temper, voiced and motion captured in a stunning performance by Noshir Dalal, known for his work in Red Dead Redemption 2, Horizon Forbidden West, and Ghost of Yōtei. Reactions to the trailer on YouTube were ecstatic.
The only problem? Anglerfish died months ago when no one agreed to fund it.
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