Space Marine 2 developer studio boss prophesies the death of AAA games

Matthew Karch, head of Saber Interactive, recently shared his perspective on the future of the gaming industry, predicting the decline of the high-budget AAA model. Karch, whose company developed Warhammer 40,000 Space Marine 2, stated: "I think the era of $200, $300, $400 million AAA games is coming to an end. I don't think it's necessary. And I don't think it's appropriate...I think if anything has contributed to job losses [mass layoffs in the game industry] more than anything else, it's a budget of a few hundred million dollars [for games].”

This sentiment echoes a growing feeling among developers that the "AAA" label has lost its meaning. Once signifying high-budget, high-quality, low-risk projects, it's now often associated with profit-driven competition that compromises quality and innovation.

Revolution Studios co-founder, Charles Cecil, called the term "silly and meaningless," arguing that massive publisher investments have negatively impacted the industry. He points to titles like Ubisoft's Skull and Bones (which Ubisoft itself labeled a "AAAA game") as an example of this trend. The implication is that the pursuit of enormous budgets hasn't necessarily translated to better games, but rather has contributed to instability and potentially unsustainable practices.