A couple of years ago, Starbreeze hit some major financial roadblocks. Triggered by the lower than expected sales of Overkill’s The Walking Dead, Starbreeze ended up filing for reconstruction, prompting then-CEO Bo Andersson to resign, with the company citing a shortage of liquidity and putting plans in place for long-term financial recovery.
Now, it seems, Starbreeze is in a much better position. In the company’s latest quarterly financial report, acting CEO Tobias Sjögren talked about the continued success of Payday 2, and how that, combined with steps taken that have led to improvements in business development, marketing, and the development team of Payday 3, has led to positive growth for Starbreeze.
“Our PAYDAY franchise and ‘games as a service model’ really showed their muscles during the year with several successful releases of content for PAYDAY 2. By late December, PAYDAY 2 had become the biggest game community on Steam, with 7.1 million members. We have executed two capital raises during the year and paid off a large proportion of our debts, strengthened our financial position, and thus enabling the continued successful development of PAYDAY 3 in 2021 – all key steps in putting Starbreeze back on the map as an industry leader.
“I have implemented changes during the quarter to strengthen our organization within marketing and business development and continued to recruit the best developers to our studios and in so doing create the best possible conditions for the company’s journey ahead.”
Sjögren goes on to explain that Starbreeze has a platform in place for the continued successful development of Payday 3. In addition, the company itself has taken further steps to contribute to its ongoing financial recovery.
“Through the proven strength of the PAYDAY franchise and a highly dedicated development team, we now have a stable platform that supports the continued successful development of PAYDAY 3. We are standing strong and confident in our efforts to close a publishing agreement with a partner that is as passionate about games as a service as Starbreeze is and ready to join us in the successful launch of PAYDAY 3.
“We also completed payments to our supplier creditors during the quarter, which was a key milestone in the reconstruction plan and important to us as a company in the effort to strengthen our financial position.
“Starbreeze is a much stronger company today than it was one year ago. We are hugely confident, thirsting for revenge and thrilled to be able to focus to the max on developing our IP with PAYDAY front and center. With expanded development capacity and continued good demand for everything PAYDAY, we are in prime position for future growth. I am truly looking forward to continuing the work with Starbreeze and the opportunities that lie before us.”
Payday 3 is confirmed to be using Unreal Engine for development, and is currently scheduled for FY 2022-23 (April 2022-March 2023).