Mark Darrah is the former Executive Producer of Anthem and shares many insights into the development of the MMO in a four-hour video. At the end of the video, he focuses on the future of the game and reveals how it could still live on.
How could Anthem be saved? According to Darrah, it would be technically feasible to save Anthem. It would require approximately 10 million US dollars, or about 8.5 million euros. Additionally, the title would need to sell around 400,000 copies after its relaunch for the rescue to be profitable for EA.
He presents a kind of 3-step plan on how a rescue would look:
- Step 1: Bring the game to current consoles, namely PS5 and Xbox Series X. The graphics should be elevated to PC ultra level and fixed at a stable 60 frames per second.
- Step 2: EA must move away from the expensive “Dedicated Servers” and towards “Locally Hosted Servers.” The code for this already exists and just needs to be reactivated and polished.
- Step 3: Gameplay adjustments would need to be made since the combat system is designed for 4 players and not just for one person. His solution would be AI companions, each receiving their own small story arc.
Especially the second step would cost the company hardly anything, according to Darrah. However, steps 1 and 3 remain, which would consume several million euros. The ex-developer therefore estimates whether EA would even be willing to revive Anthem.
EA and the chance to revive Anthem
Would EA revive the game? According to Darrah, EA would “certainly not” invest in a revival. Although it would be feasible and likely even profitable, it does not fit with the company’s strategy.
He claims that EA would be looking for billion-dollar hits in the live-service sector and would rather not invest in projects that only generate a little money, especially when the Anthem brand is already damaged.
You can watch his video here on YouTube:
What does No Man’s Sky have to do with it? The title is a prime example of a successful rescue. No Man’s Sky launched catastrophically on Steam because it did not keep promises and the technology was not up to par. However, the game fought its way forward; the developers worked hard on it and released huge updates, which keep it alive today.
No Man’s Sky is even so successful that other titles are stealing assets from the game. The heads of No Man’s Sky and Once Human have even reacted recently: A free survival game on Steam was accused of stealing an item from No Man’s Sky, and its boss has now responded
