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Riot Games co-founder Marc Merrill has reacted to reports that the Netflix series Arcane was a financial disaster for the company.
Following speculation the animated series based on League of Legends had failed to turn a profit, Merrill says the show was in fact a huge success for Riot - one that succeeded on far more levels than just financial.
Despite the success of Arcane Season 2 with critics and viewers alike, reports suggest that the series has cost Riot an estimated $250 million to produce as the company fully self-financed the show.
Certainly, this investment reaped widespread critical acclaim and even some prestigious awards, but sources say it has yet to make a significant profit.
Rumours quickly flowed that the supposed financial losses were the reason behind Riot having no plans for Arcan Season 3, and that's not true; Riot has grand plans to develop more animated projects around its ever-growing universe after confirming it a while back, Merrill has since taken his two cents on the whole event in a Reddit post designed to clear up the said situation.
People who think in the short term, transactionally, just don't get Riot's approach," Merrill wrote. "These critics often misunderstand our goals, just as they doubted free-to-play games or esports in the past. They now claim Arcane didn't succeed, but that's simply untrue.
Merrill explained that Riot doesn't make shows like Arcane simply to drive revenue, but rather to extend their player base's attachment to the League of Legends universe. "We don't make Arcane to sell skins," he said. "We sell skins to make Arcane.
Riot is a mission-driven company, focused on delivering value to players over the long term.While Arcane wasn't cheap, Merrill confirmed the series was "profitable enough" for Riot and achieved its purpose.
For Riot, the show's success is measured in its ability to strengthen their relationship with players. "For players, Arcane crushed, and so it crushed for us," Merrill concluded.
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