Metro Sequels Broader Audience

When a publisher acquires a franchise for several million dollars, they are making an investment not just in the series' present but also its future. Such is the case with Deep Silver and the Metro 2033 franchise.

While Metro: Last Light was waist-deep in development when Deep Silver acquired the franchise, the publisher has its own ideas for how the franchise should continue. But most importantly, they think the franchise should continue.

Speaking with Deep Silver CEO Dr. Klemens Kundratitz, Joystiq learned that Deep Silver's experience with the Metro franchise has been a "positive" one.

"I'm very glad we acquired that brand. While it launched in a very dry space in the gaming calendar this year, it still got a lot of attention. Our ambition is to absolutely continue with that brand and we will also, in the next phase, look to making it more accessible for a broader gamer audience."

Metro: Last Light (read our review) was certainly deserved of that attention, in large part because of the post-apocalyptic world and atmosphere that developer 4A Games was able to create. Although the game is billed as a shooter, it doesn't adhere to the typical conventions of the FPS genre. It's a unique experience and we highly recommend it.

However, Kundratitz claims that Deep Silver is looking to bring Metro to a broader audience has us concerned that the next sequel might lose a little bit (or a lot) of that personality. Sure, the games as they are now might not hit blockbuster numbers, but the series still has a strong following and it would be a shame to see Metro turn its back on them.

Luckily for fans, author Dmitry Glukhovsky — who wrote several Metro books — still holds the license, and so any potential ideas need to be approved by him.

"It is true with a license you have to be aligned with the license holder. In this case it's Dmitry Glukhovsky who holds the license and he's a great guy. He enjoys the game, the success of the game and we have a good relationship. He is a great contributor. Also, going forward, as he has been very positive contributing to the last game — I think he can play an active role for whatever comes in the future."

However, even though Kundratitz has provided some thoughts on a potential Metro sequel, he wants to emphasize that a sequel is not in active development. There is hope for the franchise to continue, and Deep Silver hopes to keep working with 4A Games, but they aren't ready to formally announce a sequel just yet.

Do you hope that there will be a Metro sequel? If it means the franchise can continue are you okay with Deep Silver pursuing a broader audience?

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Source: Joystiq