It may not be something you think of too often, but making a game can be a pretty pricey endeavor. The bigger the project, the more res𒀰ources are put into a game’s development. That often ends up costing developers millions of dollars. With so much being spent on making these titles, you can start to understand just how much pressure there is to make a product that’s going to sell.
These AAA titles are some of the most expensive games ever made, and you’ll no doubt recognize mo༒st of the names on this list. Between marketing and development costs, these games cost a pretty penny to put out, though not all of them paid off. Read on and find out which titles made their money back and which ones flopped.
Updated November 19th, 2020 by Hayley Mullen: As AAA video games get more technologically advanced and larger projects are taken on, there's no doubt that gamers will see even larger budgets for games in the future. Considering how many recent titles have broken the $100 barrier, it's not impossible to imagine that the gaming industry will someday reach the same heights as the Hollywood movie industry. We've added more games that cost more than any others in gaming history to make.
15 Red Dead Red🌃emption - $80-100 Million
If anyone thought Grand Theft Auto was all Rockstar Games was capable of, they certainly changed their tune after Red Dead Redemption's release. A successor of sorts to Red Dead Revolver, this foray into the American frontier was a high-risk, high-reward project from a monetary perspective, and it took more than just five years and tens of millions of dollars; it also came at the expense of their staff members' health and financial well-being.
Though no official statements have been made about its 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:successful sequel, Red Dead Redemption 2, h𒀰ave made estiౠmates of around the same range of $80-100 million.
14 🏅ಌ Disney Infinity - $100 Million
Many companies have tried to sell toys and figurines that have tie-in online experiences or games (better known as toys-to-life), but the sheer popularity and wealth Disney wields almost guaranteed they would attempt such an endeavor. With its first release in the late summer of 2013, using physical toys to boost video game sales and reception seemed to be Disney Interactive's next step at trying to cull its $1.4 billion in losses since 2008.
The game received generally favorable reviews (aside from the 3DS version) and racked in over $1 billion by late 2014, helping Disney Interactive make up previous losses and the estimated it cost to make Disney Infinity.
13 🌳 Deadpool - $100 Million ﷺ
The Deadpool video game actually cost more than the movie it was inspired by: the movie cost only $60 million to make compared to the game's
The appeal of this game is mostly due to the personality and antics of Deadpool himself, rather than the gameplay, which some have said is rather generic. It is difficult to make hack-and-slash games unique due to their design, but Deadpool's fourth-wall breaking and critique of the overall story makes it an enjoyable comedic romp.
12 𝔉 Tomb Raider - $100 Million
This 2013 game is the tenth title in the Tomb Raider series and acts as a 💝reboot of the origins and character of Lara Croft. Lara starts off ൩new to adventuring or raiding of any kind, and we see her becoming the skilled and hardened explorer we know right before our eyes.
Game analysts have estimated the budget of Tomb Raider to be Luckily, it more than made up this money by selling over one mi♔llion copies in the first 48 hours of its release, as well as over 11 million copies as of 2017.
11 💫 APB: All Points Bulletin - $100 Million
Realtime Worlds’ APB: All Points Bulletin is one of many games to have a development and marketing cost of around . Out of all given such big cheques, APB may be the on꧒ly real failure of the bunch. It’s always upsetting to see that despite putting so much in on a game, it can still burn out hard.
Many players and critics have stated that the game felt unfinished or underdeveloped. The week-long revꦛiew embargo put in place for its release only drew more criticism to what was ultimately a disappointment to many.
10 Grand 💫Theft Auto IV - $100 Million ▨
One thing you’ll notice pretty quickly is that Rockstar has quite the strong presence on this ꧟list. The team doesn’t mess around, with most of their 𓆉modern games costing them a pretty penny in development.
GTA IV was estimated to have cost in the range of when it came out, making it one of the most expensive games ever made at the time. It still ranks pretty high up on the list despi♔te having been released over a decade ago.
9 💛 Max Payne 💃3 - $105 Million
Yet another Rockstar game, Max Payne 3 was released four years after GTA IV and ended up costing them about the same amount to make. Released nearly ten years after the last game, Max Payne 3 was highly anticipated but didn’t﷽ sell as well as you’d think.
Though the series has a loyal following, the numbers weren’t what you’d expect 𒁃from a Rockstar product. That had to have been a tough pill to swallow given the ridiculous
8 ꦜ Dead Space 2 - 🦹$120 Million
Tied for fifth place on our ranking is Dead Space 2. Developed by the now-defunct Visceral Games in 2011 as a follow-up to 2008’s Dead Space, Dead Space 2 was well received by both critics and fans. The game offered a fresh new take on the 🌟survival horror genre and cost around $60 million to develop.
Though it sold millions, the game still failed to meet sales expectations. At least to EA’s standards. Developer Zach Wilson lamented the game’s marketing costs and didn’t seem too pleased with how the game’s budget was handled. Regardless, Dead Space 2 still holds up as a fun and well-made game.
7 Halo 2 - $120🐭 Million 𝓀
Consider that 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Halo 2 came out seven years before Dead Space 2 and still carried a similar total cost of development. That fact alone is astounding. With inflation, Halo 2 actually ends up being the more expensively developed gameཧ of꧋ the two.
Halo 2 left behind a pretty big legacy, especially in regards to console online matchmaking. Fans will say that it’s still the best game in the series, and it’s hard to disagree with them there. There are still those dedicated to 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:playing and speedrunning the game to this day.
6 🅰 𝔍 Shadow of the Tomb Raider - $135 Million
Though not as well received as its predecessor, Shadow of the Tomb Raider outdid the 2013 reboot in at least one regard; cost. While Tomb Raider only co🐎st around $100 million to get 🍌out, the 2018 sequel ended up with a because of its promotion costs.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is another game that got off to a slow start in regards to its sales. With over 4 million units moved, it makes the difficulty developers face when covering development costs all the more clear. At least players got another entry into the Tomb Raider series with the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:weapon-handy Lara Croft we all love.