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NASCAR '14 skipping Xbox One, PS4 because install base is too small

Eutechnyx developer Ed Martin says, "there just isn't enough hardware out there yet to justify the cost of development."

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There aren't enough Xbox One and PlayStation 4 consoles in homes yet to justify the cost of releasing NASCAR '14 for the new platforms from Microsoft and Sony, developer Eutechnyx has explained.

"We took a good, hard look at it, but there just isn’t enough hardware out there yet to justify the cost of development,” Martin told Sports Illustrated's Extra Mustard in a new interview.

Sony has sold 4.2 million PS4s, while Microsoft has shifted more than 3 million Xbox Ones, meaning there are a total of at least 7.2 million next-generation systems out there right now. This compares to at least 160 million combined PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles in the wild currently.

Martin explained that Eutechnyx made up its mind about releasing NASCAR '14 on Xbox 360/PS3 instead of Xbox One/PS4 after hearing from Sony CEO Jim Ryan. The Sony executive said in May that Gran Turismo 6 would be released for PS3--not PS4--because there are 80 million PS3 units in the wild, compared to zero PS4 consoles at the time.

Notably, first-week Gran Turismo 6 sales were down significantly compared to 2010 PS3 game Gran Turismo 5, at least in the UK.

Though the math doesn't add up for Eutechnyx right now to release a NASCAR title on Xbox One or PS4, Martin explained that the studio is open to the idea of bringing the franchise to the new consoles sometime in 2015 or beyond.

"It costs us about $6 million to develop a next-gen version of NASCAR," Martin said. "You have to sell an awful lot of copies in order to meet the development costs, on top of all the licensing. It just doesn’t add up for us right now. We own the rights, and we absolutely have plans, but it won’t be later this year.”

NASCAR '14 launches February 18 for Xbox 360, PS3, and PC published by Dead Island and Saints Row publisher Deep Silver.

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