In a put up celebrating survival-action match Atomfall’s launch milestone of 1.5 million+ players, which has since grown to two million avid gamers, Riot CEO Jason Kingsley drew consideration to the studio’s manner of constructing video games.
“Our size and stability mean that we can take risks to create something as different as Atomfall. Happily, that risk is paying off.”
Amid a stormy while of blockbuster match budgets, GamesIndustry.biz requested Kingsley if he believes Riot has were given the size of its initiatives – which come with the usual Sniper Elite order – good.
“I don’t think we’ve got it just right,” says Kingsley. “I think that one of the things Chris [Kingsley, Rebellion co-founder and CTO] and I want to do is repeat success. So we want to do more Sniper Elite, we want to do more Zombie Army, we want to do more Strange Brigade.”
“Now it looks like we want to do more Atomfall – it’s been successful, can we find the resources to do it? I don’t know. The idea has always been to have two thirds sequels, and one third new IP, pushing the boundaries. Partly because it’s actually interesting to solve the puzzles with a new IP.”
Atomfall, which introduced on PC, PS5 and Xbox in overdue March (together with Recreation Cross for PC and Xbox), takes avid gamers to an alternative historical past of the UK the place the Windscale nuclear crisis became a immense bite of the British geographical region right into a quarantine zone.
Resignation is the purpose, as avid gamers next sneak, barter and fight their manner throughout more than one interconnected farmlands patrolled by way of rogue factions, squaddies and gruesome robots.
Between its divulge and reduce, Atomfall drew superficial comparisons to the Fallout order. However its personal reference issues are extra particularly British, together with science fantasy books like Future of the Triffids by way of John Wyndham or The Demise of Grass by way of John Christopher.
“We try our hardest to control budgets and make them the appropriate size for our games”
Jason Kingsley, Riot
Nonetheless, the Fallout comparisons didn’t harm. Atomfall drew a accumulation of buzz following its divulge at ultimate moment’s Xbox Video games Show off, and Kingsley issues out that wishlists for the sport “have completely broken our projections because they’re much higher than they were for anything else.”
The sport’s many influences went past Bethesda’s RPGs, too.
“The Fallout series, along with any post-apocalyptic games, are obviously a reference point for us. It’s hard for it not to be. We did not set out to make an English version of Fallout at any stage, but we were very aware that it was an easy comparison to make, because [it’s a] post-apocalyptic landscape.”
“In some ways, the Metro series, or the STALKER series, are closer in themes…there’s been a nuclear accident, and you’re stuck in an area as a result of it. That’s more thematically [linked].”
Gamers perceived to agree that Atomfall had its personal id after they were given it of their fingers.
“We hoped – and it seemed to be the case – that as soon as people started to play it, they realised, ‘no, it’s trying to do its own thing’. Albeit in a similar broad genre of post-apocalyptic [games].”
Because the remark about ‘dimension and steadiness’ round Atomfall implies, Riot has skilled persevered good fortune life many builders round it have passed through layoffs in recent times.
Managing budgets is remarkable to the studio. “We effort our toughest to keep an eye on budgets and create them the right dimension for our video games. I’m flattered to also be mentioned in the similar department, and even vaguely occupying related portions of the charts as implausible video games like Murderer’s Creed, that are costing masses of thousands and thousands, I consider, I don’t know whether or not the untouched budgets are crowd. However I consider it’s masses of thousands and thousands.
“And obviously those games, ultimately, will sell better than our game. But our game is a very small fraction of that budget.”
Kingsley says that the entire writer’s video games are winning. With the evergreen Sniper Elite video games, its Zombie Military spin-offs and now Atomfall, Riot has caught to a scope that is smart for the corporate. “We don’t deliberately fit into this mid range, but that’s what we can do, and what we can do successfully. We literally can’t afford to spend 200 million on making a game. We just don’t have 200 million!”
Discoverability is one thing Kingsley ponders ceaselessly. Often increase Riot’s recognition, game-by-game, is a part of that form of pondering. “At the end of the day, if people come back and say, ‘I really liked Rebellion’s last game, I’ll take a look at their next game’, you can then build up an audience that will just at least sit forward when there’s a new game announced by us.”
The most important discoverability spice up for Atomfall, although, was once the selling help and sheer visibility that includes launching on Xbox Recreation Cross. It wasn’t Riot’s first day-and-date reduce for the subscription carrier, however as a untouched IP, the cases labored in everybody’s favour.
“It’s been a huge success,” Kingsley mentioned. “Microsoft has been a fantastic partner to work with, they’ve really leaned in to helping us. They brought their skills and their scale to bear on our small project, and it’s done really, really well for them, so they got a good deal, we got a good deal out of it as well.”
Kingsley’s hope is that the have an effect on of achieving Recreation Cross customers extends to customers purchasing the sport, too.
“With Recreation Cross, you’ll be able to get society to effort it, next on account of the ones society making an attempt it, they love it, and so they next inform their associates on social media, ‘I discovered this match on Recreation Cross, I actually loved it, you will have a exit.’ And next a few of them are on Recreation Cross, and can [play] it. However a few of them aren’t on Recreation Cross, and also will wish to be a part of that dialog. So, they’ll exit and purchase it.
“At least, that’s our theory – we don’t have the data in for that. But Chris and I both feel, one of the biggest challenges for a company like us is discovery. And Game Pass has allowed for a lot of discovery for our game.”
We requested Kingsley how Riot forecasted gross sales for Atomfall, given its Recreation Cross reduce.
“We have good ideas about the kind of scale, and we usually do a low, medium and a high projection. And we hope [that] medium is about right. You can also look at things like wishlists before release and have a look at that curve – that’s always a fairly good indicator.”
As discussed, Atomfall wishlist numbers blew occasion Riot’s metrics, and the sport in the long run carried out forward of expectancies. “We’ve done a lot better than our mid-range estimates, actually, so that’s nice. It’s nice when marketing comes back to you and says, ‘yep, we underestimated our high-level success’, so that’s good, and quite pleasing.”
“Microsoft has been a fantastic partner to work with, they’ve really leaned in to helping us.”
Jason Kingsley, Riot
Past the invention advantages, the upside of launching a untouched IP like Atomfall on Recreation Cross is making certain some roughly monetary go back.
“Yes, it does mitigate risk, because without going into details, they guarantee you a certain level of income, regardless of what it will sell for,” Kingsley mentioned. “But it potentially has a knock-on effect. Places like Xbox sales, for example. You could argue that all the hardcore are on Game Pass, and they’re the ones that might buy a new IP like this, so therefore, are you cannibalising one section of the audience? And I think, perhaps, yes, a little bit. But what you gain from that cost is disproportionate.”
It was once flattering, too, that Xbox got interested within the venture, with Kingsley describing the association as a “confidence booster” for its untouched match.
It’s been an overly busy 2025 for the writer to this point, with the reduce of Sniper Elite: Resistance coming simply two months earlier than Atomfall. Kingsley says the successive launches had been a ‘suboptimal’ status, and that it simply “kind of happened”. Specifically, he says it was once a pressure on Riot’s advertising and communications serve as – in the long run, although, he believes it ended neatly.
“It’s worked. I wouldn’t plan it like that if we could possibly avoid it [laughs].”
Atomfall was once Kingsley’s dream match. It was once an concept he alluded to in press interviews for just about a decade. When requested if he has some other pastime venture he’d like Riot to pursue unwell the form, the solution is one who gained’t miracle any person who’s watched Kingsley’s usual YouTube channel, Modern History TV.
“I would love to try and make something medieval and fantasy. Don’t know when, [or if] we’ll ever get resources – we’re over 500 members of full-time staff, and we don’t have enough people to do all the games we want to do.”
“I would love to do something that fits in with my YouTube channel, Modern History TV, but also fantasy as well. Medieval, dragons, that kind of thing. I’ve got a few ideas percolating in my head right now, so maybe one day, yes.”
