Polish developer CI Games announces they've taken out a syndicated loan to complete the development of their upcoming game: Lords of the Fallen II. CI Games has received a 26.8 million euro loan from Erste Bank Polska and Bank Ochrony Środowiska for development and marketing purposes. This loan helps the developer finish their upcoming game without further diluting the value of their current shareholders with new stock issuance. The news gives a glimpse into the studio's plans for completing Lords of the Fallen II, which players have been eagerly anticipating.
Polish studio secures debt financing and shifts platform to Steam
CI Games' CEO Marek Tymiński has stated that the entire development of the game is fully financed with this loan, without the need to issue new shares. According to their statement, the loan will mature on August 2027. The repayment strategy involves mostly utilizing the sales revenue from the game Lords of the Fallen II. This aligns the company's financial success with the success of the game's release.
In another major change in their approach to game distribution, CI Games has ended their exclusive deal with the Epic Games Store. Lords of the Fallen II will now be available on PC through Steam. This shift represents a departure from platform exclusivity towards a wider market reach for the game. It indicates the industry's trend of large-scale PC titles moving towards multi-platform distribution models.
We've been following Lords of the Fallen II's development closely and previously covered news about the Lords of the Fallen II closed beta delay. With this funding news, it seems that despite the schedule adjustments, the development pipeline is well-financed and active. The game is still planned to launch in Q1 2027, as previously reported. The loan ensures that the studio has the resources to hit this goal without needing to raise external equity.
With the full debt financing and Steam availability, we're getting a clearer picture of the game's market launch strategy. The challenge for CI Games now is to make sure they generate enough sales to pay off the 26.8 million euro loan by August 2027. The game's success will ultimately depend on the reception and its place in the competitive PC gaming landscape.
Source: IXBT
Debt financing is a high stakes gamble for a single title release. If Lords of the Fallen II fails to hit sales targets the studio faces immediate liquidity issues. This removes equity dilution but adds fixed repayment pressure.