Whether he would have said the same thing had Compulsion Games still been part of Microsoft is anyone's guess, but the creative director of South of Midnight has shared a rather interesting confession. Speaking to our colleagues at MinnMax, David Sears admitted that, had he been in Xbox's shoes (and those of its boss Phil Spencer), he would not have funded the game.
South of Midnight, a bad bet by Xbox?
« They were funding a lot of games and a lot of studios, he explains. I thought to myself: "Fine. Clearly your funds are unlimited. Do as you see fit, but as far as I'm concerned, I don't want any of that. I don't want to feel the pressure of a huge budget, or be in charge of an army of 600 developers. I want to make a game that isn't going to bankrupt Microsoft or the Xbox division." »
No official figures have been released, but according to some analysts, the development and marketing campaign for South of Midnight cost Microsoft somewhere in the region of a hundred million dollars. A colossal budget for a title that had no AAA ambitions, much like its predecessors We Happy Few and Contrast.
Cassandra syndrome
David Sears tried to brush his doubts aside. « I told myself: "Maybe the game will be a huge success, maybe Cassandra (a reference to Cassandra syndrome, ed.) will be pleasantly surprised." But that wasn't the case, he says. I even warned people, telling them: "Careful, things could turn sour", because one day somebody will end up saying: "We're turning off the taps." » The consequences would then be dramatic for what came next. »
Asked to clarify his comments, David Sears conceded that, had he been in Xbox's position, he would not have funded South of Midnight. « With hindsight, the situation wasn't viable. So the outcome was always going to be brutal, he laments. It's easy to analyse things today, but at the time, when I was talking with other members of the team, we'd ask ourselves: "How is this possible? How can we be this lucky? Are we living through a golden age?" And every time I'd add: "For now." »
He goes on: « There's always a night when Rome burns. I didn't know exactly when it would happen, but it's something that always worried me. »
Compulsion Games goes independent again
David Sears left Compulsion Games in 2025. Following the restructuring plan launched by the Xbox division under Asha Sharma, the Canadian studio regained its independence while also taking back its intellectual properties (We Happy Few, Contrast and South of Midnight). Boss Guillaume Provost has said that, from now on, Compulsion Games' priority is to back projects that fit the studio's DNA while keeping its finances healthy.
