Tripwire Interactive, publisher of games like Chivalry 2 and Killing Floor, is taking an unconventional approach to supporting its player base by investing in community-driven infrastructure for the 2023 title Deceive Inc. Following the closure of developer Sweet Bandits in 2024, fans feared the game would become unplayable, a common fate for live-service titles that fail to meet expectations. However, Tripwire has announced that work is underway to provide Deceive Inc with community server tools and mod support, aiming to keep the game accessible indefinitely.
Bryan West, publishing director at Tripwire, explained that the company's mandate is to allow players to enjoy their games for as long as they desire. This initiative, he noted, involves significant engineering effort but is deemed crucial for Tripwire's reputation among gamers. "It's not inconsequential, but in terms of the gains, I would say it's very important for Tripwire as a business that relies on its reputation with gamers. It's important for us to look at the long term and not the short term of how this is impacting our bottom line," West stated.
He added that the decision is expected to be a "net win over the long haul" and reinforces a commitment to players. "When we sell you a game, you're able to continue playing it for as long as you want to," West said.
Deceive Inc, a PvP shooter described as 'Hitman meets Prop Hunt,' launched during the COVID-19 pandemic. While it garnered a dedicated community, it did not achieve the widespread success needed to sustain a live-service model for its developer. West characterized the game's launch and subsequent performance as a significant learning experience. "Launch went well, but it obviously didn't blow up the way we had hoped," he recounted. "It presents itself as a more friendly game on the surface, but when you get into it, it's a very hardcore shooter at its core."
The game's core loop involves spies in disguise completing objectives while evading detection, a concept that West hoped would lean into stealth and social deduction. However, the emergent gameplay favored its shooter mechanics, making it less accessible to a broader audience. Despite efforts by Sweet Bandits and Tripwire to add features like bot matches to onboard new players, recapturing momentum proved difficult.
This experience has shifted Tripwire's perspective on live-service games. West now views the live-service model as a "red flag" for smaller development teams, preferring instead games that utilize peer-to-peer networking or community-run servers. He likened this approach to that of Valheim, emphasizing the lack of ongoing operational costs associated with such models. "There will be big games and certain franchises where [live-service] makes sense, but on the whole, that's where we've pivoted our thinking," West explained.
Tripwire believes that Deceive Inc, with its complex social stealth gameplay, is well-suited to this older multiplayer paradigm. West envisions custom servers facilitating "friend game night" sessions, allowing players to enjoy the game with a small group of friends on platforms like Discord, fitting into a broader rotation of games rather than requiring constant engagement.
Deceive Inc remains available on Steam, and the beta for its custom server tools is expected in the near future.