The video game industry has become dominant in entertainment, outpacing even Hollywood’s revenue in North America. Each year, gamers eagerly look forward to the release of new titles, sometimes with excessive enthusiasm. With the industry growing at a break-neck speed, developers have allocated increasingly large amounts of funding to both games and gaming machines.
For instance, San Francisco-based artist and renowned jeweler, Sydney Mobell, holds the Guinness World Record for designing the most expensive board game, Monopoly, worth $2 million. His latest creation, the Lady Luck slot machine, is worth $18 million and studded with diamonds, rubies, and sapphires. The slot machine was redesigned from a 1929 Calle slot machine, making it one of the most expensive in history. Mobell’s creations are often exhibited in museums and purchased at extremely high prices.
These games command a significant following globally and Australia continues gaining ground in real money gambling, with pokies ranking as one of the most popular. Today, you find a host of online pokies Australia for real money, which experts have carefully selected to help both newbies and veteran players in their gaming journey. Apart from these high-end machines, you will also find an expensive collection of video games to match.
Star Citizen – $339m
Cloud Imperium Games raised over $300 million through crowdfunding and private investment to develop Star Citizen, leading to significant project expansion. However, despite the vast amount of money invested in the game’s development since 2011, there is still no definitive timeline for its commercial release. The cost of production has already exceeded hundreds of millions of dollars, and it is expected to increase further as development progresses. Consequently, the stakes are high for the game’s final release, considering the significant investment in the project.
Cyberpunk 2077 – $316m
Cyberpunk 2077, a highly anticipated and expensive game announced in 2012, was finally released in 2020. However, the game failed to meet gamers’ expectations due to glitches, bugs, and console crashes. The game was pulled from the PlayStation Store soon after its release, but the developers released updates that fixed most of the issues. An expansion of the game has been announced, and audiences and critics have highly praised an anime series called Cyberpunk 2077: Edgerunners. Despite the rocky start, many players are now enjoying the game.
Grand Theft Auto V – $265m
GTA V, developed by Rockstar Games, follows the franchise’s legacy of crime-themed video games. It allows players to switch between three characters whose stories intersect and culminate in a series of lucrative heists. Despite being released for the PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2013, the game continues to be popular, selling 169 million copies and earning numerous Game of the Year awards. The game was simultaneously developed by a team of 360 developers as its predecessor’s release, resulting in its massive success and continued popularity among gamers.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 – $250m
The call of Duty franchise, known for its WWII first-person shooter games, introduced a modern war era with its 2007 release of Modern Warfare. The sequel to this game, which sold 4.7 million copies within 24 hours and received critical acclaim, was also controversial due to a mission in the main campaign titled “No Russian.” Although the game cost USD 250 million, only USD 50 million was used for development, while the remaining USD 200 million was spent on marketing.
Red Dead Redemption – $240m
Red Dead Redemption 2, despite not selling as many copies as GTA V, was highly detailed throughout its open world, costing the developer between $170m to $240m, with as much as $300m spent on marketing. The game generated $725m in revenue in its first two days on sale, indicating that Rockstar made a healthy profit. However, the actual cost of the game may have exceeded $500m, considering the online features, making it difficult to determine the developer’s total spending and profits.
Read Also:
