Larian will keep Baldur's Gate 3 and other games off subscription services
"Direct from developer to players is the way," says founder and CEO Swen Vincke
Larian Studios' games won't be made available on subscription services, according to founder and CEO Swen Vincke.
Vincke shared his views in a thread on social media in response to Ubisoft's director of subscription Philipe Tremblay, who told GamesIndustry.biz that subscription models used in other media has "been a bit slower to happen [in games]."
"You won't find our games on a subscription service even if I respect that, for many developers, it presents an opportunity to make their game," Vincke wrote. "I don't have an issue with that. I just want to make sure the other ecosystem doesn't die because it's valuable."
Vincke added: "Whatever the future of games looks like, content will always be king. But it's going to be a lot harder to get good content if subscription becomes the dominant model and a select group gets to decide what goes to market and what not. Direct from developer to players is the way."
Larian's founder and CEO previously stated that Baldur's Gate 3 would not appear on Xbox Game Pass for similar reasons.
"We made a big game, so I think there's a fair price to be paid for that, and I think that is okay," he told IGN last month. "Upfront it's a big meaty game. So I think that should be able to exist as it is. This is what allows us to continue making other games."
Tremblay's comments have sparked discussion across the industry after he suggested that the subscription model won't take off until consumers become accustomed to not owning their games.
"One of the things we saw is that gamers are used to, a little bit like DVD, having and owning their games," he told GamesIndustry.biz. "That's the consumer shift that needs to happen. They got comfortable not owning their CD collection or DVD collection. That's a transformation that's been a bit slower to happen [in games].
"As gamers grow comfortable in that aspect… you don't lose your progress. If you resume your game at another time, your progress file is still there. That's not been deleted. You don't lose what you've built in the game or your engagement with the game. So it's about feeling comfortable with not owning your game."
You can read the full interview here.
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