Summary
- Huge flops in modern game development often stem from poor technical launches and flawed live-service models.
- Even major single-player triple-A games like Star Wars Outlaws and Dragon Age: The Veilguard have so far yielded underwhelming sales.
- Commercial failures such as Concord, Redfall and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League highlight the significant financial risks and consequences studios face in the industry today.
With ever-growing budgets and extended development cycles in recent years, players have witnessed some of the biggest flops in triple-A gaming, both in live-service and single-player titles, that failed to live up to their hype and struggled to find their audience. In many cases, these failures have resulted in entire studios being shut down, underscoring the immense risk and financial cost associated with modern game development, where a single misstep can spell disaster even for well-established companies.
6 Great Open-World Games That Sold Poorly
Despite weak financial results, fans of the genre are sure to have tons of fun with these open-world games.
While each failed game has its unique launch conditions, the reasons behind these colossal flops are not always surprising. Many such games debuted in a poor technical state, creating a lackluster initial impression that is difficult to overcome, as seen with titles like Cyberpunk 2077. Moreover, the modern gamble on live-service models in an oversaturated market frequently leads to disappointing initial performance, causing numerous games with planned long-term support to be prematurely abandoned or shut down, thereby denying developers the chance to address issues or implement content already in development.
Below, we'll examine some of the biggest games from recent years that flopped or severely underperformed financially, highlighting their impact on the studios and publishers involved.
Other Notable Flops Worth Mentioning (By Release Date):
- E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
- Shenmue (2000)
- Daikatana (2000)
- Too Human (2008)
- APB: All Points Bulletin (2010)
- Defiance (2013)
- LawBreakers (2017)
- Crackdown 3 (2019)
- Crucible (2020)
- HyperScape (2020)
- Marvel's Avengers (2020)
- Babylon's Fall (2022)
- Saints Row (2022)
- Gotham Knights (2022)
- Forspoken (2023)
7 Star Wars Outlaws
Estimated Sales: 2 Million Units
Star Wars Outlaws
- Released
- August 30, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- T For Teen // Violence, Simulated Gambling, Mild Language
- Genre(s)
- Open-World, Action-Adventure
Star Wars Outlaws stands among Ubisoft's biggest missteps in recent years, prompting the company to make strategic shifts following the game's unexpected failure. Despite launching under a major franchise name and backed by heavy marketing, Outlaws failed to meet expectations. The release was further hindered by a range of technical and gameplay issues that only added to the disappointment.
With an estimated budget of around $200 million, the game reportedly sold just 1 million units worldwide in its first month, with sales declining quickly afterward. While Ubisoft has not provided exact figures, the company noted that the game "underperformed" against expectations, suggesting the ambitious title may not break even, likely needing somewhere between 3 and 4 million sales to reach profitability.
Given the scale and marketing behind this release, the total sales are considered disastrous. As a result, Ubisoft delayed Assassin's Creed Shadows for extra polish and reconsidered its typical strategies, including a return to launching games on Steam from day one.
6 Anthem
Estimated Sales: Over 5 Million Units
Anthem
- Released
- February 22, 2019
WHERE TO PLAY
Despite relatively strong lifetime sales estimated to have surpassed 5 million units, Anthem remains one of the most disappointing triple-A launches in recent memory. Its troubled release marked a turning point for the industry, foreshadowing a wave of underwhelming live-service titles that followed.
Developed over six years at BioWare in an attempt to restore the studio's reputation after the lukewarm reception of Mass Effect: Andromeda, Anthem was backed by heavy marketing from EA, with total costs reportedly around $150 million. The game saw a solid start, selling 2–3 million units in its first month, but this fell short of EA's ambitious expectations of 5–10 million sales, as well as its broader goal of establishing a decade-long franchise similar to Destiny.
The real blow came when EA decided to pull the plug prematurely, scrapping the promising Anthem 2.0 overhaul project. Several factors contributed to this decision, including a poor critical reception, rapid player drop-off, lack of content, a weak endgame, and persistent technical problems. Once active support ceased in 2019, sales plummeted, with most players unwilling to buy an unfinished game even at steep discounts.
5 Dragon Age: The Veilguard
Estimated Sales: 1.5 Million Units
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
- Released
- October 31, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ // Blood, Nudity, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Violence
- Genre(s)
- RPG
In many ways, Dragon Age: The Veilguard stands in stark contrast to Anthem, yet it delivered even more disappointing financial results for both BioWare and EA. A single-player-only title, it launched in an almost flawless technical state, backed by a decade of development (with multiple reboots) and a reported budget of over $150 million. Despite being the fourth mainline entry in a well-established RPG franchise, The Veilguard debuted to near-catastrophic results.
While EA has not released official sales figures, the game had engaged only 1.5 million players by early 2025, including those accessing it through the EA Play subscription service. This suggests direct sales were even lower—a far cry from the lofty expectations for a major RPG release long awaited by BioWare fans. EA later noted that the game "did not resonate with a broad enough audience" in a highly competitive market, indicating it missed the mark on its goal of reaching at least 3 million players within the first few months.
Given that The Veilguard was made available to PlayStation Plus subscribers just four months after release, this further underscores its underwhelming commercial performance. Sales remained very slow through the first months of 2025, ultimately contributing to yet another round of downsizing at BioWare.
4 Skull & Bones
Estimated Sales: 1.5 Million Units
Skull and Bones
- Released
- February 16, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
Between Star Wars Outlaws and Skull & Bones, it's difficult to decide which title proved to be more underwhelming and problematic for Ubisoft. However, considering Skull & Bones' reportedly inflated budget of over $200 million and its development cycle, which dragged on for nearly a decade and was marred by multiple reboots and delays, its financial results are likely to disappoint.
At launch, this pirate-themed live-service game struggled to attract even a million players, despite offering an 8-hour free trial while carrying a steep $70 price tag. Ubisoft has yet to release any official sales figures, a silence that strongly suggests the game fell far short of expectations.
To Ubisoft's credit, unlike Anthem, Skull & Bones has not been abandoned. The title is still receiving support and is expected to get its largest content update yet—one that may ultimately determine the game's future and whether it can turn its fortunes around.
3 Redfall
Estimated Sales: Below 1 Million Units
Redfall
- Released
- May 2, 2023
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- FPS
Redfall's failure came as a surprise, especially given Arkane's strong track record and Microsoft's backing. Developed over four years with a reported budget exceeding $150 million, expectations were high for a co-op shooter that would carry the studio's signature depth of gameplay mechanics and player freedom. Instead, players were met with a hollow experience riddled with technical issues.
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No official sales figures have been released, but Redfall was undeniably a huge commercial flop, with low retail sales and minimal Game Pass engagement. Estimates suggest lifetime sales didn't even reach the one million mark—a rare and unfortunate achievement for a modern triple-A game from an experienced studio. The swift shutdown of Arkane Austin further cemented the game's commercial failure, highlighting just how far short it fell of expectations, where even Game Pass couldn't soften the blow.
2 Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League
Estimated Sales: Below 1 Million Units
Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League
- Released
- February 2, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Strong Language, Violence
- Genre(s)
- Action, Adventure, Open-World
Rocksteady's superhero live-service venture ranks among the top triple-A flops of recent times, with sales figures that were strikingly low, given the project's scope, budget, and expectations. With an estimated budget of over $200 million and a seven-year development cycle complicated by a pivot to live-service design, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League debuted to underwhelming numbers, reportedly selling 33% less than Gotham Knights, itself a financial disappointment for Warner Bros.
By almost every measure, Suicide Squad struggled. It received a lukewarm critical reception, sparked backlash from longtime Arkham universe fans, and suffered from the shallow execution of live-service elements due to Rocksteady's inexperience in the genre. Warner Bros. Later reported a $200 million revenue hit due to the game's poor performance, bluntly labeling it a “disappointing” release.
Remarkably, post-launch support has been more consistent than what more successful titles like Anthem received, lasting nearly a full year. This is despite an extremely limited player base, even when the game was discounted by over 50% just two months after release.
1 Concord
Estimated Sales: Negligible, Fully Refunded
Concord
- Released
- August 23, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- t
- Genre(s)
- FPS
Concord is a textbook example of a mismanaged live-service title, one whose failure will likely be studied for years to come. It's difficult to compare its collapse to any previous case. Most games in similar situations are quietly canceled before release (as with Sega's "supergame" Hyenas), yet Sony pushed forward, seemingly hoping to launch a major franchise, and they paid a price.
Launched into an oversaturated hero-shooter market with a paid model, likely an attempt to quickly recoup its estimated $250+ million budget after nearly eight years of development, Concord was shut down just two weeks after release. Sony issued full refunds to all buyers, a rare move that underscored the scale of the catastrophic financial disaster.
The swift and far-reaching aftermath of Concord's flop is hard to overstate. Firewalk Studios was closed shortly after the game's shutdown, and Sony reportedly wrote off the project entirely. In the wake of Concord's failure, the company is reportedly reconsidering its entire live-service strategy, canceling multiple projects that had been in development for years.
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Whilst these open-world games got off to an unfortunate start, they eventually garnered a cult following over the years.