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Ninja Theory: No Enslaved Sequel

Unfortunately, we figured this would be the case.

If Heavenly Sword sold 1.5 million copies and that wasn't enough to warrant a sequel in the developer's eyes, there's no way less than half the number will do it.

Speaking to Edge (as cited by CVG), Ninja Theory co-founder Tameem Antoniades said they expected Enslaved: Odyssey to the West to sell better, and he's glad they have "another chance" with DMC, the Devil May Cry reboot. Said Antoniades:

"Enslaved should have done better. Right now we should have been doing a sequel and perfecting that sequel and doing what franchises do, which is get better over time. [But] because that didn't happen we've not expanded to two teams like we intended to. So we've remained a smaller shop. But now we get another chance with DMC."

Enslaved enjoyed decent critical acclaim (we certainly liked it) but it just wasn't enough, as the game only managed to sell around 730,000 copies. The competition was steep, though, as it had to compete with titles like Castlevania: Lord of Shadows and other big fall releases.

Related Game(s): Enslaved: Odyssey to the West

Tags: enslaved, odyssey to the west, enslaved 2, enslaved sequel, ninja theory

9/22/2011 8:49:13 PM Ben Dutka

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Comments (26 posts)

Highlander
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 9:30:32 PM
Reply

Ninja Theory, do they even make sequels? I sometimes wonder if the reason a developer doesn't make a sequel is that they are afraid that they can't top the first game. And so, they find excuses wherever they can to excuse not making the sequel...Then again, have Ninja Theory ever made a sequel? Then again, since they have 4 productions to their credit, it should not be a surprise that there will be no sequel, since they are tied up working on something else...

Agree with this comment 4 up, 1 down Disagree with this comment

Looking Glass
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 9:50:07 PM

That's an interesting point. Commitment really doesn't seem to be Ninja Theory's forte. Know what I mean?

Agree with this comment 2 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

Qubex
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 11:30:08 PM

That is what you get for not doing a Heavenly Sword sequel!

Q!

"play.experience.enjoy"

Agree with this comment 8 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

PasteNuggs
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 9:38:29 PM
Reply

I really enjoyed Enslaved. The technical side was what held the game back and also no marketing I believe. I'll give Ninja Theory this, they can tell a good story.

Agree with this comment 7 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

Looking Glass
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 9:47:33 PM
Reply

It seems to me that the market is becoming more and more crowded and more and more competitive. When things get like that it's only logical that there be at least one or two titles that get screwed over for one reason or another. And on top of that it also makes sense that the titles most at risk are the new IPs and/or titles with no established niche or fan base. So in other words the lackluster financial performance of Enslaved actually makes sense.
Last edited by Looking Glass on 9/22/2011 9:52:24 PM

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Eld
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 9:58:05 PM
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Unfortunately, this game was a bit of a disappointment. It started good, but after the first hour or two, everything went downhill.

Agree with this comment 2 up, 2 down Disagree with this comment

playaplus
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 10:13:46 PM
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the demo...i played the demo and thought...this game might not be so bad. was upset there wasnt a heavenly sword sequel...to me...the monkey played a bit like nariko...sword was replaced w a rod...the gal i guess a character in the game played like nariko...for heaven's sake where is my heavenly sword 2 is what i thought. ultimately passed on it.

Agree with this comment 3 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

WorldEndsWithMe
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 10:37:36 PM
Reply

They better be careful because if DMC doesn't hit they will probably be sunk. Should have stuck with Heavenly Sword and built upon that. Proof positive going for the multiplat isn't always good business sense.

Agree with this comment 14 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

Qubex
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 11:30:44 PM

Indeed World, indeed!

Q!

"play.experience.enjoy"

Agree with this comment 4 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

Snaaaake
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 10:57:04 PM
Reply

Well it's not a bad thing though if one developer doesn't make sequels.
It's not like Final Fantasy ever had any direct sequels until the 10th installments.

But DmC is a double-edged sword, first as a reboot it has already angered tons of fans and smoking "Dante" is getting love and hate from left and right.
And based on our experience with HS and Enslaved, and also Capcom's attempt to reach out to the west, DmC might not be the same as the first four DMC in terms of the depth of the battle mechanic.
DMC is an action game for hardcore action fans, so I assume that DmC will be easier to pick up like God of War which was simple yet perfect.

So the question is, will DmC lose more fans? Or attract more new fans?
Very hard to say at the moment.

Agree with this comment 1 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

frylock25
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 2:38:31 AM

ffvii had a few spin off sequals but they did not happen right after vii. pretty sure they were kind of far into the ps2 lifespan. not sure if x-2 happened first though.

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Ignitus
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 11:53:57 PM
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Who cares? Now let's see how they mess up DMC.

Agree with this comment 3 up, 3 down Disagree with this comment

frylock25
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 2:10:33 AM
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good the game sucked. the combat was awful and the graphics were not impressive. i really tried to like the game but i just could not.

Agree with this comment 2 up, 5 down Disagree with this comment

Kevin555
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 2:37:09 AM
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They're too busy ruining Devil May Cry to bother with Enslaved 2.

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aaronisbla
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 2:55:02 AM
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it only sold that much with both systems combined? yet HS sold over a million with just one console? wow

Agree with this comment 11 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

___________
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 3:39:30 AM
Reply

NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
oh well, heres hoping that namco will kick them out and give it to someone else!
please for the love of god dont let this suffer the same fate as HS!

Agree with this comment 3 up, 2 down Disagree with this comment

Ultimadream
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 4:38:03 AM
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This is so sad, they actually had plans for an Enslaved 2 :( I loved the game, and bought it day 1. I would much ratehr have a sequel to a good game than putting the light out of a legendary series.

Agree with this comment 3 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

Lawless SXE
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 6:58:55 AM
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It's a shame to see such a poor reception to Enslaved. I actually thought that it was a marvel, and I even enjoyed the much maligned ending. I don't really see how they could have done a sequel (well, I can but I wouldn't want to see the game tarnished), but that's just the way it goes and I'm somewhat happy that there is no sequel. I'd rather see NT be like Platinum and just churn out awesome SP IPs and if another one wants to be made, let another dev handle it bu oversee it, like Sanzaru, Sucker Punch and Sly 4.

Anyway, I do hope that DmC pays off for them. I'd hate to see them sink. I wonder though, whether Sony would let them back for a HS sequel if they realised the error of their ways and came back grovelling...

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CrusaderForever
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 7:10:06 AM
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Enslaved was an incredible game. The story was movie/book worthy. When I finished it I was so impressed. To bad, because there is a lot they could do with this franchise. Maybe someone else will pick it up later on.

Agree with this comment 4 up, 2 down Disagree with this comment

PAKINIPS
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 7:53:07 AM
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Damn shame. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed enslaved. Thought it would sell more than that.

Agree with this comment 3 up, 1 down Disagree with this comment

Underdog15
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 8:31:21 AM
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I kinda liked the game too. It wasn't perfect, but it was definitely worth a play for anyone. Definitely should have sold better. But don't look at me. I bought it, and platinum'd it. Definitely one of my more pleasant surprises this generation.
Last edited by Underdog15 on 9/23/2011 8:32:02 AM

Agree with this comment 2 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

tridon
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 8:39:15 AM
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I LOVED Enslaved, but that ending was just too abrupt. It begged for a sequel. It's very disappointing that Ninja Theory won't return to the story of Monkey and Trip.

I'm begging to think that while Ninja Theory is very talented, they're also very greedy. They expect way too much. Heavenly Sword sold 1.5 million copies on a $600 system with a very small user base. I'm sorry, but that's pretty incredible. I can guarantee that a sequel would easily top those numbers.

Enslaved... it was an under-advertised game that was released during a PACKED fall. Hell, it was released on the same day as Castlevania: Lords of Shadow. That alone wasn't very smart.

I'm sure it was Namco-Bandai who chose the release date so Ninja Theory's not to blame there, but come on! You're releasing against Castlevania! Which one did you really expect to sell better?!

Agree with this comment 1 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

Qubex
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 9:41:21 AM

"I LOVED Enslaved, but that ending was just too abrupt. "

They ran out of time and money...

Q!

"play.experience.enjoy"

Agree with this comment 1 up, 0 down Disagree with this comment

ColTater
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 11:55:43 AM
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Agh, the ending. BLAH. I echo Qubex's sentiment. Out of time and money. Serves em right for going multiplat.

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Crabba
Friday, September 23, 2011 @ 9:05:24 PM
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"Enslaved should have done better" - No it shouldn't, it was all-in-all just a bad copy of Heavenly Sword. Graphics was much worse, story and characters less interesting and was even buggier technically than HS was. Not surprised in the least that it sold poorly, especially considering the 360 market apparently only play 3 games, Halo, CoD and GoW (and not the GOOD GoW at that :)

Now had they stuck with the Sony exclusive deal and made a sequel to HS instead, I'd bet they would have sold a lot more copies, and the game probably would have been a lot better, since they could have done what they talked about in this article and simply improved on the original HS engine. Sad really, because it seemed like a Studio with such potential after such a great early effort with Heavenly Sword...

Agree with this comment 2 up, 2 down Disagree with this comment

zard
Monday, September 26, 2011 @ 9:54:17 AM
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Heavenly Sword didn't need a sequel. Not everything does. And as far as Enslaved? It wasn't new. It had been done before. And it didn't do what it did well. It didn't sell well for a reason.

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