22 Cans CEO Simon Phillips is directly involved in one of the biggest disappointments in crowdfunded games ever, and was willing to candidly speak about it in an interview published yesterday. 22 Cans are responsible for Peter Molyneux’s Godus, a game that has been poorly received by the gaming community, to say the least. Phillips himself was not involved in Godus’ development process, only becoming CEO once Molyneux realized he was in over his head, but is still willing to admit that Molyneux and 22 Cans should have done better.
Quoting from a conversation Phillips had earlier with Molyneux, he stated:
Godus has been struggling with development issues for years now. Molyneux even promised a gamer who had won a contest related to the Curiosity mobile game that he would receive a share of the game’s profits once 22 Cans released the God of Gods mode. As of this writing, there is still no timeline for a God of Gods release, even though the contest ended in 2013. It’s issues like these that have hurt the reputation of 22 Cans, and Phillips is looking to change the way the company approaches its games:
Godus is another example in a long line of Molyneux’s ambitious promises that never became reality. As a result of the Godus controversy, Molyneux has stated he will no longer talk to the press at all. Although Simon Phillips’ interview might not be what’s required to rebuild the 22 Cans’ reputation, it is at least a start, and a promise from a less controversial face that everyone involved is committed to improving their product. Given Molyneux’s current reputation, Phillips’ honesty could be exactly what 22 Cans needs in order to get things back on track.
Godus is available for iOS and Android, and is available in early-access stage for the PC via Steam.
