Obsidian Entertainment released three games in 2025. Two of them failed to meet sales expectations. The fallout isn’t just financial—it’s cultural. A new analysis of the studio’s struggles reveals a reckoning with its own processes, where decade-long development cycles, overambitious scope, and resource exhaustion have taken their toll.
At the heart of the problem lies a pattern: Avowed* took seven years to complete, The Outer Worlds 2 six. Both were scaled-down versions of far grander visions. The first was pitched as a Skyrim-meets-Destiny hybrid before multiplayer was scrapped mid-development. The second was a sequel to a cult classic, but its reception underscored how even beloved franchises can stumble when execution lags behind ambition.
The studio’s response is a deliberate pivot. Development timelines are being slashed—not by halving budgets, but by redistributing risk. Obsidian is leaning harder on external studios like Eidos Montreal for support, a move that allowed Grounded 2 to ship faster by outsourcing decisions that might otherwise have stalled internally. We made calls because we could, one managing director noted, referring to abandoning a shared-ride mechanic in Grounded 2 that would have added months of work. The lesson? Not every feature deserves infinite refinement.
Why Obsidian’s ‘At-Bats’ Strategy Matters
The studio’s next phase hinges on two principles: reusing technology and diversifying projects. Obsidian’s leadership acknowledges that reinventing the wheel—whether for inventory systems, UI frameworks, or even core gameplay loops—drains time and morale. Do people really care if we spent an extra hundred person-months on the inventory screen? the studio head asked rhetorically. The answer, increasingly, is no.
But the bigger shift is cultural. Obsidian is embracing a multiple at-bats approach, a baseball metaphor for small-scale experimentation. Instead of betting everything on one blockbuster, the studio will spread its resources across several smaller projects, mentoring rising talent like Justin Birtch and Marcus Morgan to eventually take the helm. Morgan’s perspective is telling: You need to keep having at-bats, because at some point, if you can consistently make good stuff, you’ll get those breakout hits.
The Road Ahead: No Outer Worlds 3, But More Avowed
For now, Obsidian’s pipeline is clear: no The Outer Worlds 3 in sight, but expansions for Grounded 2 and The Outer Worlds 2 are in development. The real focus, however, is on Avowed*—a franchise with untapped potential. The studio’s co-founder has hinted that a sequel is already in the works, though details remain scarce. What is certain is that Obsidian’s next moves will be shaped by the failures of 2025: shorter cycles, smarter outsourcing, and a willingness to abandon ideas before they become albatrosses.
The question now is whether these changes will translate to success. Obsidian’s survival depends on it.
