Publishers Rejected Outlast Because They'd 'Rather Invest $50,000 in 10 Mobile Games,' So Red Barrels Turned to Public Funding and Savings

Red Barrels co-founder Philippe Morin said multiple publishers passed on Outlast, preferring to put $50,000 into 10 mobile games rather than $500,000 into the horror title. The studio financed development with a $1 million investment from the Canada Media Fund plus savings, credit cards, and home mortgages. Outlast sold 400,000 copies in its first five months and reached 15 million copies sold as of 2018.