Peter Molyneux Vows to Never Again Speak With the Press

Illustration by Max Yeager

As a result of the recent public scrutiny surrounding the Kickstarter-funded game "Godus," prominent British game developer Peter Molyneux has announced that he is done talking with the press.

In an interview with The Guardian, Molyneux addressed the promises he made to both financial backers and the public regarding his studio 22cans' most recent game.

“I love working on games, it is my life. I am so honored to be a part of the games industry, but I understand that people are sick of hearing my voice and hearing my promises. So I’m going to stop doing press, and I’m going to stop talking about games completely. And actually I’m only giving you this interview now in answer to this terrible, awful, emotional time over the last three days. I think honestly the only answer to this is for me to completely stop talking to the press.”

The controversy began to unfold following a recent community update made by Molyneux, during which he acknowledged economic realities limiting the development of "Godus," particularly the PC version, which has yet to see a full release. Earlier in January, a post in the Godus Community Forums by 22cans employee Konrad Naszynski had also acknowledged that the studio will likely be unable to deliver all the features it had pledged on the Kickstarter Page.

Shortly afterward, Eurogamer.net published an interview with Scot Bryan Henderson, the winner of a contest held by Molyneux and his studio through their previous game "Curiosity." Molyneux had promised Henderson a role in "Godus" where he would be able to control aspects of the game’s virtual universe. In the same statement, Henderson was also promised a cut of 1  percent of the game’s profits during his tenure in the described position. Molyneux had described winning the contest as a “life-changing experience.”  According to the interview, Henderson has not received any news or further assurances on his “Gods of Gods” role or promised portion of profit since January 2014.

Molyneux later responded to Eurogamer.net,

"I totally and absolutely and categorically apologize. That isn't good enough, and I'll take it on my own shoulders that I should have made sure he was communicated with. We will from today onwards do that." 

The developer explained that they have been unable to implement the role promised to Henderson because of the need to work on the game's combat. Molyneux stated that the combat in "Godus" needs to be finished before the multiplayer is constructed, which is the aspect of the experience where Henderson’s role would supposedly come into play.

Molyneux has since been interviewed by several other outlets, one of which was the website Rock, Paper, Shotgun, who asked him several questions about his reputation, "Godus’" development and guarantees made during the Kickstarter campaign. Soon after, the developer made his claim to The Guardian about retreating from the press.

The full PC version of "Godus" is currently without a release date, although a mobile rendition of the game is available on iOS and Android devices. An early build of the PC version can be found on Steam Early Access.