manor lords publisher dropping a blacksmith sim on gta 6 launch day, not worried at all

Saw this on GamesRadar and had to share. Hooded Horse, the publisher that put out Manor Lords, is launching Blacksmith Master 1.0 on November 19. That's GTA 6 day. And they're apparently not bothered by it one bit.

Their reasoning is actually kind of smart. GTA 6 is console only right now. PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. No PC version announced, which means a huge chunk of players are going to be sitting at their desks on November 19 with nothing to play while everyone else is tearing through Leonida. The publisher figures some of those PC folks who'd normally be stealing cars might check out a blacksmith management sim instead.

It's a weird flex but I get it. Launching anything on November 19 feels like setting up a lemonade stand during a hurricane. Every gaming outlet, every streamer, every social feed is going to be GTA 6 for weeks straight. Nobody's going to be talking about your indie management sim. But if your audience literally can't play GTA 6, maybe there's a lane there after all.

Blacksmith Master is a completely different genre too. It's not like it's fighting for the same crowd. Someone who wants to run a medieval forge isn't necessarily the same person who wants to do a Vice City heist. Though there's probably some overlap, let's be real.

Still, the timing is wild. Most publishers would've scrambled to move their date the second Rockstar locked in November 19. These guys just kept their plans and shrugged. I respect it. Whether it pays off is another story, but the confidence is something.

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Source: GamesRadar+ · Curated content.