Deep Cuts: Stéphane D'Astous founded Eidos-Montréal in 2007 as part of the Eidos Interactive brand. The studio went on to work on several blockbuster franchises, including Deus Ex and Tomb Raider, before becoming part of Embracer Group in 2022. Now, D'Astous believes the video game industry has lost much of its creative spark, as financial considerations and profit-driven expectations have become the primary focus.
D'Astous in a recent interview said that game development has changed significantly. The modern gaming business somewhat resembles the cyberpunk setting depicted in the Deus Ex series, with a handful of mega-corporations pulling the strings and controlling most of the industry's money. Unfortunately, C-suites are no longer interested in creativity.
Over the next few years, D'Astous predicts we will see the first tangible results of fully AI-driven development efforts – and, in his view, things are not going to be pretty.
Modern AAA publishers are largely driven by Excel spreadsheets rather than a passion for gaming, D'Astous said in the interview. Over the past 15 years, the industry has been turned upside down. A small number of corporations now control most of the available funding in the business, leading to extreme consolidation and leaving little room to go against the prevailing trend.
Fewer decision-makers now control spending, and they have deeper financial resources than ever before. The creative DNA that gave rise to Deus Ex is largely gone. Back in 2005, development teams were much smaller and could work on more experimental projects capable of reshaping the industry.
During his Ubisoft tenure, D'Astous worked on the "modern" Prince of Persia trilogy (Sands of Time). Prince of Persia helped pave the way for Assassin's Creed, which has since become one of Ubisoft's flagship franchises.
Furthermore, big publishers have apparently lost their grasp on the reality of game development. "How many times have I been asked to do the Witcher 3-like game with a limited budget in less than four years with a new team?" D'Astous said, explaining that "this doesn't coincide with sustainability."
The executive believes that Covid and generative AI are two of the main reasons today's game industry is fundamentally broken. During the pandemic, studios overspent in an attempt to monetize the new entertainment habits of millions of people forced to stay at home. Management expected to generate sustained profitability from half-baked ideas, and AI is now making the situation even worse.
The AAA industry traditionally operates on four- to five-year development cycles, and we are now beginning to see the consequences of these investment decisions. D'Astous' predictions appear to align with the current wave of layoffs, which is significantly affecting both the games industry and the broader technology sector.
Speaking about his potential future projects, D'Astous said he would very much like to make a new Deus Ex title. The executive left Eidos-Montréal in 2013 but is confident he could bring together many former developers who would be interested in working on the project. After all, real-world technology has become dystopian enough to serve as a fitting backdrop for the series' interactive commentary.
