Video game development can take a terrible toll on a personâs mind, body, and soul. It can do even more damage to their bank account.
Gordon Midwood, a developer whose game Derrick the Deathfin was released on the PlayStation Network at just about the worst possible time to release a game, says he went ÂŁ40,000 in debt to get it done. In U.S. money, thatâs around $63,000.
Some of that money came from personal loans and credit cards, and some of it came from Midwoodâs dad, the dev wrote on his blog a couple of weeks ago. As Midwood writes: âItâs entirely possible, or indeed by the looks of things at the moment 100% probable, that sales will never amount to enough to pay back even a quarter of my personal debts.â
In an e-mail, Midwood told me he couldnât share exact numbers, but development has cost âsignificantly more than has been made back so far.â Even after making a deal with Sony to help get the game on PlayStation 3.
âSony have been very supportive throughout the process of completing and promoting the game,â Midwood said. âThey loved the concept from the first time we pitched it to them and they have been to very easy to work with since then. The publishing and promoting is on our shoulders though, as we canât afford to pay anybody professional, ha!
âIâm not allowed to say exact numbers I donât think!â he wrote. âIt might well be quite a bit under 5k, which I donât think Iâm allowed to say either ;)â
So onwards and upwards. Debt or no debt, Midwood says he and Derrick co-creator Ron Zo are going to keep making games. âIn fact, we are already scheming,â he said. âWe will always create!!!â
