Launching into Xbox Game Pass has been “a huge success” for survival action game Atomfall, according to Rebellion CEO Jason Kingsley.
Atomfall, which is set in an alternate, post-apocalyptic 1960s England, was released forPC,PlayStation 5, andXboxlast month. The game has been a big success forRebellion, attracting more than 2 million players since launch.
Speaking toGI.biz, Kingsley claimed this was in large part helped by the marketing support and discoverability boost of Game Pass, where the game appeared day-and-date.
“It’s been a huge success,” he said. “Microsofthas been a fantastic partner to work with, they’ve really leaned in to helping us. They brought their skills and their scale to bear on our small project, and it’s done really, really well for them, so they got a good deal, we got a good deal out of it as well.”
The CEO said that, while he believed launching into a subscription service could cannibalize sales for a ‘hardcore’ title like Atomfall, he hoped that word of mouth would lead to a boost in premium sales.
“With Game Pass, you can get people to try it, then as a result of those people trying it, they like it, and they then tell their mates on social media, ‘I found this game on Game Pass, I really enjoyed it, you should have a go.’
“And then some of them are on Game Pass, and will [play] it. But some of them aren’t on Game Pass, and will also want to be part of that conversation. So, they’ll go and buy it.
“At least, that’s our theory – we don’t have the data in for that. But Chris and I both feel, one of the biggest challenges for a company like us is discovery. And Game Pass has allowed for a lot of discovery for our game.”
Kingsley said there were other benefits to launching into Game Pass, beyond discoverability, such as Microsoft’s financial guarantees, and the “confidence booster” its interest gave the team.
“Yes, it does mitigate risk, because without going into details, they guarantee you a certain level of income, regardless of what it will sell for,” Kingsley said. “But it potentially has a knock-on effect.
“Places like Xbox sales, for example. You could argue that all the hardcore are on Game Pass, and they’re the ones that might buy a new IP like this, so therefore, are you cannibalising one section of the audience? And I think, perhaps, yes, a little bit. But what you gain from that cost is disproportionate.”
