Top 7 Games That Led to Bankruptcy

3D REALMS: DUKE NIKEM FOREVER – Duke Nukem Forever was the sequel to the highly successful Duke Nukem 3D. So, what could go wrong? Apparently, plenty. DNF spent over a decade in development and 3D Realms changed its engine multiple times. In 2009, the company ceased to exist but Duke Nukem Forever was eventually released by Gearbox Software in 2011. And it was still a disappointment. (Image credit: Gearbox Software)

38 STUDIOS: KINGDOMS OF AMALUR: RECKONING – Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning was the first and only game of 38 Studios. The company was founded by Curt Schilling, an American baseball player who also happened to be a huge fan of video games. The title was funded by the state of Rhode Island for a total of $75 million. With R.A. Salvatore as a writer and Spawn creator Todd McFarlane in the design department, the game was set for success. Sadly, even though it was very well received, the game failed to make up for its costs as it was released in 2012 when the Skyrim hype was still in effect. This led to the studio filing for bankruptcy. (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

ION STORM DALLAS: DAIKATANA – This one is something of a legend. Jon Romero developed many successful titles – Wolfenstein 3D, Doom, and Quake. And then... there's Daikatana. The game was supposed to be Romero's first hit after leaving id Software but it came crashing down. It tried to remain competitive by changing its engine which led to a huge release delay. Daikatana was released in 2000 and the studio closed shortly after. (Image credit: Square Enix)

SEGA: SHENMUE – Let's start by saying that Shenmue was ahead of its time. The game featured innovative features like open world, weather changes, day and night cycles and more. Sadly, all of that came at a high price which the game failed to make up for despite selling over a million copies in 1999. SEGA left the hardware market right after. We can only wonder what the world would be if they had stuck with it? (Image credit: SEGA)

LIONHEAD STUDIOS: FABLE LEGENDS – Lionhead Studios are the developers behind the Fable series and Fable Legends was supposed to improve on the fairy tale saga. We're saying "was" because Fable Legends never actually got released – but don't worry, it still managed to kill the studio. After a long period in development (sound familiar?), Microsoft decided to pull the plug in 2016 and with it, Lionhead Studios also closed down. (Image credit: Lionhead Studios)

TROIKA GAMES: VAMPIRE THE MASQUERADE: BLOODLINES – Bloodlines was the second part in the Vampire the Masquerade series after the initial Redemption. It took place entirely in the modern day and offered various new features. The game spent quite a lot of time in development and even went a year without a director. When it finally came to life in 2004, it was riddled with bugs. It was well-received by fans for its open world and narrative but ultimately failed to deliver revenue. Troika Games couldn't find any funding for the future and had to close down. A pity for one of the best RPGs out there. (Image credit: Troika Games)

ATARI: E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL – The movie E.T. by Spielberg was released in 1982 and Atari fought long and hard to get the license and make a game about it (it was also the first movie-to-game adaption). After all, the movie was highly successful and a game based on it would be a big win, right? Eh, no. Atari spent so much time trying to acquire the license that they barely had any development time left. Reportedly, the game spent only five weeks in development before getting shipped for the holiday season. Atari had high hopes and made millions of copies but little did they know that the game would be a massive flop. It was barely playable and had nothing to do with the movie. Word of mouth was quick to spread and the E.T. sales were far from the expected. According to popular legend, Atari had to bury the rest of the copies in the New Mexico desert. Atari was pretty much killed a year after by the fierce competition and E.T.'s fail didn't help. (Image credit: WIRED)