Avalanche Studio Founder Blames Warner Bros for Mad Max DLC Cancellation

Avalanche Studio founder Christofer Sundberg recently opened up about the challenges faced during the development of the 2015 Mad Max game. His comments came after director George Miller expressed disappointment in the game and suggested that Hideo Kojima would be a better fit for creating a Mad Max game.

Development Challenges

Sundberg shared his frustration over the development process on X, pointing fingers at Warner Bros. for insisting on a more linear game. The original pitch from Avalanche was for an open-world experience, but the publisher pushed for a different direction.

“They did everything they could to make this a complete linear game after having signed up with a developer of open-world games,” Sundberg said. This change of direction led to significant setbacks, with the team discarding a year’s worth of work.

Impact of Release Timing

Warner Bros. also forced the release of Mad Max on the same day as Hideo Kojima’s Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. Sundberg claims this decision negatively impacted the game’s sales. As a result, the publisher blamed Avalanche for the poor performance and canceled several planned DLCs. “They blamed us for the bad sales and cancelled a bunch of awesome DLC that was just sitting there waiting to be released,” he explained.

A Visionary Collaboration?

In a recent red carpet event, George Miller expressed a desire for someone like Hideo Kojima to take on a new Mad Max game. Despite his disappointment with the 2015 game, Miller praised Kojima’s creativity and expressed hope for a future collaboration.

“I’ve been speaking to Kojima here. He would take it on,” Miller stated, though he admitted he wouldn’t ask Kojima directly due to the developer’s busy schedule.

While the 2015 Mad Max game received mixed reviews, it remains a competent title made by a talented team. With Miller’s interest in a new game and Kojima’s potential involvement, the Mad Max franchise may yet see a highly acclaimed adaptation in the future.