Derrick the Deathfin Developer in Deep Water

Derrick the Deathfin creator Gordon Midwood is in deep water, and is struggling to come up for air. The developer racked up a whopping $63,000 in debt while producing the papercraft PSN exclusive – a figure which he is never likely to earn back.

“It’s entirely possible, or indeed by the looks of things at the moment 100 per cent probable, that sales will never amount to enough to pay back even a quarter of my personal debts,” he wrote in a personal blog post, before noting that Sony has been very supportive of the project. “They loved the concept from the first time we pitched it to them and they have been to very easy to work with since then. The publishing and promoting is on our shoulders though, as we can’t afford to pay anybody professional.”

Midwood added that the game has sold fewer than 5,000 copies to date. “I’m not allowed to say exact numbers I don’t think,” he said. “It might well be quite a bit under 5k, which I don’t think I’m allowed to say either.”

We praised Derrick the Deathfin’s sense of style, but lamented some of its disastrous design decisions in our review. Either way, it deserves more success on the basis of its premise alone. We sincerely hope that developer Different Tuna doesn’t sink before it gets the opportunity to give the idea another splash.

This does make me sad. I bought a copy of the game (discounted for PS plus members) and rather enjoyed it. I thought it was a good little game. I wish Gordon the best of luck in any future endeavors! Please know that your efforts are appreciated!