Vivendi didn't believe in Riddick, claims Tigon

By Robert Purchese Published 24 June, 2009

"Nobody really gave a sh*t."

Vin Diesel's production company Tigon Studios has recalled the struggle that The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay had finding an audience, because "nobody" - not even publisher Vivendi - "really gave a sh*t".

"To be honest, up until we started getting review scores, the feeling we had from most people was an incredible lack of interest. Seriously. It was a movie game, it was a developer that people hadn't really heard of, it was some actor that people weren't really sure they liked, and it was a publisher that didn't have a reputation for quality. Nobody really gave a sh*t," Ian Stevens, head of Tigon Studios, told GamesIndustry.biz.

"I remember at E3 that year, when people actually got a chance to play it, you could see their eyebrows raising. But that was the first time really. We felt as if nobody was really going to pay it any attention. "

Stevens said Escape from Butcher Bay suffered as Vivendi chose to lavish marketing on sibling movie-project Van Helsing instead. "Even internally in the corporate business," he added, "We felt that nobody was thinking it was going to be anything special."

Eurogamer awarded The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay a whopping 9/10 - praise that helped Vivendi commission Assault on Dark Athena, which arrived earlier this year.

"It was a very nice surprise," said Stevens of reaction to Butcher Bay, "and a mixed one as well - the game got a great reception, and great review scores... and the movie didn't."

"In the end Riddick [Escape from Butcher Bay] didn't sell especially well, so we walked away feeling great that Riddick was this wonderful game, and yet so much else around that wasn't hitting the same plateau.

"The thing we took away from Butcher Bay more than anything was just hoping that we might have a better experience with the publishing process the next time around," added Stevens.

Vin Diesel founded Tigon Studios in 2002 to bridge the gap between Hollywood and videogames. Stevens calls Diesel "a huge nerd", and claims he isn't "the meat-head action start" he is often portrayed as.

Find out why in the full interview with Tigon Studios' Ian Stevens over on GamesIndustry.biz.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (8) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • menage #1 3 years ago

    Now I'm confused. Tigon a part of Starbreeze, other way around, or 2 separate things?

  • skillian #2 3 years ago

    I think it's encouraging that a game can earn a great reputation and do pretty well in sales even without a big marketing push and faith from the higher-ups.

    Shows that quality can still shine through.

  • carlitoswagon #3 3 years ago

    Bit like the first movie.

  • Triggerhappytel #4 3 years ago

    and claims he isn't "the meat-head action start" he is often portrayed as. - eyes on the ball, EG.

    @ menage - Tigon is not part of Starbreeze; they are a small development studio set up by Petrol to overlook his game projects, presumably on a Producer-style level for when he is working on a movie and can't actively oversee the project. I think it's good that a Hollywood name like Four Star is actively interested in games like this; perhaps it will one day help bridge the gap between games and movies, and allow the 'core' end of the medium to be taken a little more seriously.

  • kestral #5 3 years ago

    @2 "In the end Riddick [Escape from Butcher Bay] didn't sell especially well

  • metallicorphan #6 3 years ago

    i liked both games..Athena was miles easier than Butcher Bay,mainly because they gave you weapons!!

  • wellzy4eva #7 3 years ago

    Well there was public shock that this game was any good, I remember reading this http://ww w.penny-arcade.com/2004/05/31/a... ages back.

    What I wonder is, would the game have been less popular or more popular if it was released with a generic action hero and a generic name? (I'm looking at prototype/infamous here)

  • Diabeu #8 3 years ago

    I like Riddick games and movies, both has this 80s feeling - violence is fun;]