SEGA's Super Game was a Costly Mistake and Total War Devs are Paying For It
SEGA wanted a „super game,” and was left with a costly bill, which apparently went to Creative Assembly.
The new Total War may not have met the expectations of reviewers and gamers, but it still had more luck than Hyenas - a brand new project by Creative Assembly, which apparently will cost the developers dearly. However, it seems that allegedly the most expensive game in SEGA's history did not have to turn out to be such an expensive flop.
Unanswered criticism
Let's be clear on one thing: Hyenas clearly had little chance. This was already clear after the first reports from Volund - a youtuber who reached out to Creative Assembly employees. As Video Games Chronicle's sources confirmed, the chaos in the works - from the switch to a new engine to the lack of clear guidelines on the game's atmosphere - made it difficult to put much trust in the success of the project.
This is the main reason for the irritation of the developers, who were the main focus of Volund's next video. Even after getting the support of director Neill Blomkamp (the "vibe video" he made was leaked to the web; via Volund), which was a "shot of energy" for the team, Creative Assembly employees made critical comments about Hyenas, but these were systematically ignored by the management.
A super game for nobody
The developers reached by the youtuber were very critical of both the game and the publisher. One developer bluntly stated that the attitude of those overseeing the team is mainly an example of "ignoring unfavorable feedback and striving to polish this metaphorical shit into a production for which the publisher has paid."
These pressures were supposed to be for a simple reason: Hyenas was planned as one of SEGA's "super games", which was mentioned in the company's announcements in 2021 and 2022 (no longer available) - a high-budget title aimed at a mass audience, as opposed to Creative Asssembly's earlier, more niche productions. The studio was even to purchase two separate buildings - for the current and future team responsible for the project.
Cancellation and Creative Assembly getting the "bill"
This ambition was the reason for the huge investment in the project, but it was also probably the reason why SEGA was not willing to cancel the game for a long time, even when the developers made it clear (via Volund's previous video) that Hyenas is "a bad game, a bad experience and something that will eventually vanish into the background of an already oversaturated multiplayer shooter market."
This is why former developers of Hyenas have the publisher to blame not for the game's cancellation itself, but that it came so late and at the expense of major layoffs at Creative Assembly. According to Volund's interlocutors, it's the "bill" for "management mistakes made at the executive level" and the employees are paying for it.
In fact, the only thing that some developers complimented was the combat system. Perhaps at least this element will find its place in another game from Creative Assembly. Or rather, what will be left of that team after the layoffs.
