Saber Interactive on Managing Tumultuous Game Industry State: We Try to Avoid Over-Inflating Our Games

While more and more people are into playing games, it seems the industry itself is not doing too well with layoffs, studio closures hitting almost every month. One studio that doesn’t seem to be affected is Saber Interactive — the studio behind the recent hit, Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2.

Speaking to MP1st in an interview, we asked Saber how they’re managing the rough seas of game development nowadays. Answering our question was Tim Willits, Chief Creative Officer (COO) of Saber Interactive.

MP1st: The gaming industry is in a very bad state right now with layoffs happening every week. How does Saber handle those rough seas?

Tim: The gaming industry has definitely faced challenges recently, especially as we came out of the pandemic, which has shifted the landscape for many developers and studios. At Saber, we are aware of these shifts and are committed to managing our business in a way that ensures success for both our teams and our projects. With studios located around the world, we focus on matching each development team with projects that fit within reasonable budgets and team sizes, always ensuring that the core gameplay experience remains the focus. We try to avoid over-inflating our games, and each project undergoes regular evaluation through production milestones and creative review gates. This approach allows us to remain agile and adaptable, ensuring that the development process is as efficient as possible. Additionally, by having multiple projects running simultaneously across different studios, we maximize resources and studio budgets. And lastly, our philosophy centers around finding the fun in a game as early as possible in development. Once we know what makes a game enjoyable, we build the scope and features around that core experience, giving us the confidence to move forward and develop a polished, focused product. This method not only ensures quality but also helps us balance ambition with practical execution.

Given how almost every game wants to add a deep progression system, loots, live service elements, complex combat systems and the like, Willits does have a point. Most games these days try to cram as many features and “selling points” as they can in order to entice gamers, and sometimes, that backfires.

Our full interview with the studio is hitting the site this weekend, so stay tuned.

Related Reading:

• Space Marine 2: No Plans for PvPvE; Saber Thinks It’s a “Holy Grail” of Game Design
• Saber on Space Marine 2: We Could Have Made an Open World Game Where Players Can “Hide in Tall Grass” but Doubts Fans Would Like It; Wanted a Perfect Sequel for Them
• Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 Roadmap Revealed, New Operations, Maps and More Incoming for Free

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