Summary
A seniorParadox Interactiveofficial has expressed remorse about the company’s past reputation of releasing unfinished games. This sentiment was shared as part of a recent interview with several key executives at the Swedish developer-publisher, during which they vowed thatParadox Interactivewill do better moving forward.
The Swedish company has been on a rather bumpy road lately. Back in June 2024, itcanceled its long-awaitedThe SimsrivalLife by Youmere weeks ahead of its planned early access launch, labeling it as a “clear failure.” It subsequently shut down the game’s developer, California-based Tectonic, which employed some two dozen people at the time. All of this happened not long after Paradox found itself harshly criticized by fans for the poor state ofCities: Skylines 2, which launched in late 2023 with a myriad of technical issues, and then also angered players with its first piece of DLC. Called Beach Properties, the $9.99 pack was widely panned for its minimal content, prompting Paradox to refund everyone who bought it and give it away as an apology.
Paradox Has ‘Got To Stop’ Releasing Unfinished Games, Exec Says
Reflecting on some of these difficulties in a recent interview withGame File’s Stephen Totilo, Paradox Interactive Chief Creative Officer Henrik Fåhraeus expressed remorse about the company’s past mistakes. “I personally hate the kind of reputation we’ve had, at least cyclically or periodically, to release unfinished games,” the industry veteran revealed, adding that this practice has “got to stop.” Remarking onParadox’s closure of itsLife by Youstudio, Fåhraeus labeled it as “tragic.”
Paradox CEO Attributes Recent Mistakes To Overconfidence
Asked about the circumstances leading to the company canceling a game that spent half a decade in development, deputy CEO Mattias Lilja said that the group grew overconfident. As he phrased it,Paradox’s prior successesemboldened it to make substantial investments that were outside its “sphere of competence.” In this particular instance, althoughLife by Youseemingly fit Paradox’s portfolio on a conceptual level, the company took longer than it normally would to realize the scope of the issues that the project was facing and finally decide to bin it, all because it didn’t have any previous experience making life sims.
I personally hate the kind of reputation we’ve had, at least cyclically or periodically, to release unfinished games.
The interview also saw Lilja reflected onLamplighter’s League, a tactical RPG thatParadox labeled a “big disappointment” shortly following its 2023 debut. According to him, the game was only “good,” which is simply “not good enough” in a niche genre. Fåhraeus agreed with this sentiment, saying he’d still putXCOM 2andPhoenix Pointas two contemporary tactics games that were better thanLamplighter’s League.
Prison Architect 2 and Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 Are Still in the Works
As for what’s ahead, the executive duo confirmed thatPrison Architect 2andVampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2are still in development. While both have been delayed multiple times already over the years, withBloodlines 2even undergoing a developer switch in 2021, neither is currently in danger of being canceled.
