Is Infogrames poised to make one of the biggest blunders in gaming history?
Four million retail ship for Matrix means game must succeed.
Infogrames has announced its intention to ship four million units of Enter the Matrix to retail, in one of the biggest videogame shipments ever.
The global shipment for the game, which launches across the world on May 15, means that it becomes, without question, a make or break title for Infogrames. It is unlikely that if Enter the Matrix flops, Infogrames, already having shed more than 300 staff from its European office, will be able to operate.
Indeed the figures behind the Matrix game make for incredible reading. To ship the game alone will cost upwards of $35 million. The rights acquired for Interplay last year cost over $40 million. Add a generous few million for marketing and even Infogrames own predictions of $70 million total spend looks to be too small. Most analysts believe that Infogrames will spend around $100,000,000 bringing Enter the Matrix to market.
What’s more, the firm has to make a payment to the French government in June, returning some of the cash it borrowed to embark upon its ill-conceived developer buy-a-thon of the late nineties. Insiders point to the amount being upwards of EU300 million.
However, in the press release, company CEO Bruno Bonnell is typically bullish. “We are thrilled by the tremendous worldwide demand for what is going to be one of the most groundbreaking games our business has seen in years," he said. "Enter the Matrix is the biggest game we have ever shipped, and I'm happy to report that it does not disappoint. Matrix fans and video game players worldwide are poised to enjoy an entirely new entertainment experience with a complete meshing of Hollywood film-making and interactive entertainment."
Which would be true if The Matrix Reloaded, the movie, hadn’t slipped by a week to May 21.
Make no mistake, Enter the Matrix is a massively important game for the entire industry. The decision to make an investment of this scale, tied to a license as valuable as The Matrix, is a brave step for Infogrames to take, and sets a new benchmark in big-budget mass-market videogames publishing.
Now all it has to do is sell. Sell a lot.
We’ll keep you fully updated on how Infogrames and Enter the Matrix, which launches on May 15 for Xbox, GameCube, PlayStation 2 and PC, fare.
The global shipment for the game, which launches across the world on May 15, means that it becomes, without question, a make or break title for Infogrames. It is unlikely that if Enter the Matrix flops, Infogrames, already having shed more than 300 staff from its European office, will be able to operate.
Indeed the figures behind the Matrix game make for incredible reading. To ship the game alone will cost upwards of $35 million. The rights acquired for Interplay last year cost over $40 million. Add a generous few million for marketing and even Infogrames own predictions of $70 million total spend looks to be too small. Most analysts believe that Infogrames will spend around $100,000,000 bringing Enter the Matrix to market.
What’s more, the firm has to make a payment to the French government in June, returning some of the cash it borrowed to embark upon its ill-conceived developer buy-a-thon of the late nineties. Insiders point to the amount being upwards of EU300 million.
However, in the press release, company CEO Bruno Bonnell is typically bullish. “We are thrilled by the tremendous worldwide demand for what is going to be one of the most groundbreaking games our business has seen in years," he said. "Enter the Matrix is the biggest game we have ever shipped, and I'm happy to report that it does not disappoint. Matrix fans and video game players worldwide are poised to enjoy an entirely new entertainment experience with a complete meshing of Hollywood film-making and interactive entertainment."
Which would be true if The Matrix Reloaded, the movie, hadn’t slipped by a week to May 21.
Make no mistake, Enter the Matrix is a massively important game for the entire industry. The decision to make an investment of this scale, tied to a license as valuable as The Matrix, is a brave step for Infogrames to take, and sets a new benchmark in big-budget mass-market videogames publishing.
Now all it has to do is sell. Sell a lot.
We’ll keep you fully updated on how Infogrames and Enter the Matrix, which launches on May 15 for Xbox, GameCube, PlayStation 2 and PC, fare.
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