The sales of the second part, Deadfire, have left the studio cold, which does not know what has failed if the criticisms were better than those of the first installment.
With the peace of mind granted by having launched a success like The Outer Worlds, in Obsidian they have made inventory and review of all their games and franchises, surely with the intention of choosing in which future projects they embark. A review that has taken him to Pillars of Eternity and that has left the future of the saga in the air. The design director of the study, Josh Sawyer, has pronounced on Tumblr about a hypothetical Pillars of Eternity 3 and has assured that, if it comes into existence, it will not be like the previous ones. The developer is very proud of the criticisms received by the press and users … but not the sales of the second installment. "Low sales mean that if there is another Pillars game we will have to rethink the game concept completely."
“It's hard to know exactly why a sequel sells worse than its predecessor if both games had good reviews. Is it because the former met an existing need then and that the audience no longer had when the latter? Is it because the promotion was lower for the sequel? Or because despite the strong notes and sales of the first people did not like at all? Maybe it's a combination of all those things, ”said Sawyer, who remembered that Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire has an 88 in Metacritic and the first, an 89.“ The problem is that without knowing the reasons it is difficult to move on. It would be easier if Deadfire had been a critical failure. For the press, Deadfire improved the first in most sections. ”
Although the reserves of the second were three times greater than those of the first Pillars of Eternity, sales were somewhat lower both on the day of launch and during the rest of its useful life. Deadfire ended up selling worse than Tyranny, another of Obsidian's new IPs. "I'm sure some people think they know why Deadfire sold worse than Pillars 1, but I don't have that confidence and it's one of the reasons I distrust directing a sequel," Sawyer concluded. We'll see if you change your mind once Pillars of Eternity 2 comes out on consoles or in case this helps improve the sales of the series, one of the most acclaimed RPGs in recent years.
