That's what many people are starting to think and I'm partially into that too.
Should it proved to be true then the employees will get all my sympathy.
The scenario of people pondering whether or not this is fake could've all been avoided.
It's 2018. You have the special opportunity to deliver a product people want, a dream game for millions, including yourself. Some of these customers are tourists who love the genre, some players of the original rpg, while others are die-hard fans who adore your company. You fucked up, announced the game way too early and years later presented the first inkling of gameplay at an E3 console showcase, announcing a year later the release date for the current generation. 2020 comes, showtime; You either chose to avoid spending the extra 8-20 million worth of development the game needed, pushing it onto current gen console and PC only, or your game couldn't run at all on previous gen hardware so you've had to take a cleaver to it... resulting in it feeling unfinished and being almost completely broken.
Either of these situations play out amidst an unprecedented marketing campaign, full circuit interviews with high level developers, management, celebrities, etc. You're stated reason for the delays? Making it super awesome and optimized. Release date nears and you start buying off youtubers, some don't bite -warning the public about what's happening; the most fervent sectors of your fanbase attack them for "doomsaying" and labels them a "shill" while a handful become increasingly concerned. Reviewers aren't allowed to share their own footage, not that their reviews were honest anyway as you had already bribed them earlier with studio tours and exclusive demos, people are becoming suspiscious of the investor call where you stated the game runs "surprisingly well" on current gen hardware, nothing running on consoles has been seen for more than a few minutes ever, and you drop a launch day trailer completely removed from the premise you've been hyping since day one.
You desperately try patching the game, promising each patch/hotfix will be better than the last, but can barely squeeze a few more FPS out of the consoles versions... and you end up further breaking the PC version in the process often. You offer a non-apology where you insist everything was good, you did everything right, COVID ruined the game even though you missed the initial deadline before things went tits up, and you'll make the game better... sort of, in a year, maybe.
Now you may or may not have been l33t haxX0rd and your player base is further fractured, wondering if this is the video game industry's Reichstag fire proper. The working girl you propositioned is on the bed, untouched, browsing her phone, bored with the delayed responses and getting hungry. You stare out of your elite hotel suite balcony windows, barely blinking, as the sun steadily creeps over the horizon. Weathervane crosses dot the landscape.. it's been a long time since you last went to mass, you think to yourself. The coffee in your gold-rimmed, gucci style, Cyberpunk™ mug has gone cold since it was poured earlier that evening, but the taste is just as bitter... you no longer have time for cream and sugar these days. 'How did it come to this?' you wonder as Slack pings relentlessly in the background. You barely feel the sun's warmth as dawn arrives and you return to your laptop. Why is this happening? You just wanted to make video games.
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