Overkill's The Walking Dead was extremely hyped-up, and fans of the franchise and/or of Overkill, the game's developers, had to wait quite a long while before anything about the game was even revealed. Once it was, though, expectations floundered.
By the time everything was said and done, the game released to harsh criticism and fan disappointment, and Overkill's The Walking Dead caused the publisher, Starbreeze, to face bankruptcy. The situation is now slightly better, but not by much, if total earnings are anything to go by.
Overkill's The Walking Dead launched early in November 2018, and despite this, the game earned Starbreeze $3.7 million in Q4 2018, which marks a substantial 20% reduction over Q4 2017. Similarly, the company's pre-tax loss was a staggering $135 billion, which compares unfavourably to 2017's $7.3 million.
It is curious to note that, whereas Overkill's The Walking Dead earned Starbreeze as little as it did, 2013's Payday 2 earned them $2.2 million in that same period. Goes to show just how poorly OTWD has been performing if it barely surpasses a game that's now six years old.
Starbreeze's acting CEO Mikael Nermark seems at least somewhat optimistic, however, saying that "we will come through this period in a good way and emerge stronger from the transformation. I feel confident about the strategic route we have taken. Going forward, we will focus on the core business: game development and publishing."
If you'd like to read more about Starbreeze's tough luck, check out how their offices got raided late last year. It would seem that attempts are being made to alleviate their losses through selling publishing rights to System Shock 3, but it remains to be seen whether anything comes of this.
