Mike and Josh Grier from Ember Lab have revealed that Sony is happy with the sales numbers of Kena: Bridge of Spirits and that the game has already recouped its initial development costs.
In an interview with Bloomberg, the Grier brothers didn't provide a sales number, but they noted that they were pleasantly surprised at the sales so far. "It’s hard to tell what's a huge success. Sony's happy," said Josh Grier. Mike Grier also mentioned that Sony put plenty of effort into marketing Kena: Bridge of Spirits because of the large amount of attention it was getting. It was revealed alongside the PlayStation 5 back in June 2020.
At game conferences, Ember Lab pitched earlier versions of the game. While there were lots of big publishers interested, the studio eventually closed a deal with Sony for both funding and marketing support. Additionally, Ember Lab was allowed to learn about the PS5 a year prior to its official announcement and was given development kits for the console.
The team pitched early versions of Kena at game conferences and drew interest from several big publishers, then struck a deal with Sony for funding and marketing support. Working with one of the big console makers had some nice perks. They were briefed on the PlayStation 5 a year before its announcement and even received early development kits, much to the delight of everyone there.
As for the studio's next project, the Grier brothers know that it'll be a narrative driven game. In IGN's Kena: Bridge of Spirts review, Mitchel Saltzman said, "Kena: Bridge of Spirits is a wonderful first game from Ember Lab, combining its outstanding pedigree in art and animation with some really solid combat, fantastic world design, and a great balance of action, platforming, puzzle solving, and exploration."
Kena: Bridge of Spirits launched on September 21 for PC, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5.
George Yang is a freelance contributor at IGN