Demonschool, a strategy RPG set in a school life, had its release date scheduled for September 3rd, but when Team Cherry announced at Gamescom that their Hollow Knight: Silksong would be coming out on September 4th, publisher Ysbryd Games decided to postpone the game, much to the displeasure of developer Necrosoft Games.
Now set for November 19th, the delay was not only due to Silksong but also because of the high number of game releases in October. Demonschool and Necrosoft Games find themselves in an unexpected situation, facing new financial demands and the need to capture as much attention as possible from indie lovers.
Developer’s Perspective
In a recent interview, Brandon Sheffield, creative director at Demonschool, reiterated that it was not the developer’s decision to delay the game. However, considering the need to recoup the invested money and secure funding for the next project, everything possible must be done to increase the chances of success.
For Necrosoft Games and games like Demonschool, it is even more crucial to attract attention from those who may not typically enjoy the genre their game falls under, in an attempt to persuade curious individuals to make a purchase. Sheffield mentioned that some people may have wanted to buy both games, while others may not have been interested in Silksong at all, but a decision had to be made, and that decision was to delay.
Financial Challenges
Sheffield emphasizes that announcing a delay is never good news, especially because it means more units need to be sold to recoup the investment. Even with the support of a publisher covering costs and removing the risk, the goal is to recover the money for those who believed in the project.
For a project like Demonschool, more than 100,000 units need to be sold to break even, a number that Sheffield considers very challenging to achieve for the vast majority of games. This makes it crucial to maximize sales opportunities.
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