In the MMO shooter Destiny, by the Halo creators Bungie, the previously unimaginable development costs of half a billion US dollars left many mouths agape. In an interview, Pete Parsons, the COO of Bungie, clarifies the figure.
“You have to ask Activision about the size of the marketing budget, but we are not nearly that high on production costs,” Parsons said in an interview with gamesindustry.biz, an online site that focuses on the financial aspects behind the titles.
The rights to the world are with the developer, not the publisher
The interview reveals how proud Bungie is of the terms they were able to negotiate with Activision. The game’s license, the registered trademark, will be under Bungie’s name. This is a rare occurrence in such a deal, which Parsons attributes to his company’s unique position: “We emerged from Microsoft as an independent company with a great reputation. And that comes from the great people we have. More than half of the original Halo team is still with us. I think Activision saw that and recognized the potential of our vision.”
Halo as motivation
For Parsons and the team at Bungie, it is a motivation to reach the level of Halo once again: People are still talking about the game more than 10 years later, placing it among the best entertainment they have ever experienced. It ranks alongside Harry Potter or Star Wars. Years later, Halo still holds significance for many people. That is just fantastic.
Ten-year plan and the significance of the title
When the interviewer mentions that Activision holds the title in high regard, given that a ten-year plan is in the works, Parsons corrects him: That is how Bungie came to Activision. That was their idea. If you are leaving a universe you have grown fond of – what could be better for a young and bold company than to take on such a massive project?
That is why the title is also called Destiny. Originally, it was just a codename for the game. A title that was briefly changed to “Tiger,” but “Destiny” expressed so much about where they wanted to go with the game that they returned to it: “We want to tell the story over ten years.”
