Tim Schafer: Double Fine's plan to split up Broken Age worked

Double Fine's plan to split up Broken Age into two parts, and have the first part's revenue help fund the second part's development, was a success, said studio head Tim Schafer in an interview with GamesIndustry International.

Broken Age began as a Kickstarter project called "Double Fine Adventure," and the studio raised more than $3.33 million in early 2012 to fund the game. Double Fine announced last July that it would be selling Broken Age in two parts, with the first half targeted for a January 2014 release, so the company could keep developing the second half with revenue from sales of the first.

The studio launched Broken Age part 1 to the public on Jan. 28, less than one month ago, and it has proven to be a success in terms of the two-part plan.

"We've made enough that we can make the second half of the game for sure," Schafer told GamesIndustry International. He added that Double Fine's work on the first part isn't yet complete, since it's not out on iPad yet, just Linux, Mac and Windows. When the second half is released later this year, it will be delivered as a free update to people who have already purchased the existing portion.

The announcement to break up Broken Age generated a major backlash, with many individuals assuming that Double Fine was running out of money. According to Schafer, that wasn't the case; he said he realizes now that while the studio had kept its Kickstarter backers in the loop with private updates, outside parties had no other information to go on.

"that was really a lesson for us"

"We were just expanding the game and paying for it ourselves, not asking for more money," said Schafer. "That was really a lesson for us, learning that even though our backers are really well informed, the rest of the world hadn't really heard of us since the Kickstarter happened."

Schafer eventually learned to block out all the "internet Twitter hate." In the future, he said, Double Fine plans to be more transparent about its process. The studio's second Kickstarter-funded game, Massive Chalice, has forums that are open to the public, and Double Fine regularly runs public livestreams on the web.