Iron Lung Dev Says ‘Go Pirate It or Something’ in Response to Price Rise Backlash

The developer of hit indie horror Iron Lung, which mega YouTuber Markiplier is turning into a film, has told those who don’t agree with the game’s recent $2 price rise to “go pirate it or something”.

David Szymanski tweeted to respond to the backlash caused by Iron Lung’s price increase from $6 to $8, insisting the hike was entirely justified.

“Since people keep trying to gotcha me over this… once again, Iron Lung’s price went up because the game is worth $8 so I want to charge $8, because I want to earn more money. If you don’t agree with this price, I don’t want your money. Go pirate it or something. I don’t care.”

Then, responding to those who have said he’s “only doing this for the money”, Szymanski tweeted: “Yes, no f**king s**t. I make games for a living. If I didn’t want to earn money from them I wouldn’t charge money for them.”

“I like the business model of ‘I want money so I make something that I think is worth money, and you pay me that money and you get the thing, and we’re all happy’,” Szymanski continued. “That’s it. There’s nothing complicated or hidden here.

“If you don’t think the things I make are worth the money I charge, that’s completely okay. Don’t buy them, or wait for a deep sale, or go the sneaky route and get them for free or whatever, and please tell me that so I can adjust the prices for whatever I release next.

“This will be the last I have to say about the Iron Lung price change. I don’t expect to do any after release price adjustments in the future, so hopefully this won’t ever need discussed again.”

Sales of Iron Long have dropped since the price hike, a trend Szymanski said he expects to continue. “Note that this is not a bid for sympathy,” he added. “This was a gamble I knowingly took hoping it will be the right decision in the long term.”

Iron Lung. Coming soon to theaters. pic.twitter.com/vxP28YC9Vd

— Mark (@markiplier) October 14, 2023

Markiplier is currently directing and starring in a film adaptation of Iron Lung, the short 2022 horror game that sees a convict exploring an alien moon’s blood ocean in a cramped submarine.

Markiplier helped popularize Iron Lung after playing it in 2022, but this wasn’t the only event that propelled Iron Lung to relative indie stardom — earlier this year, the game saw a spike in sales (which Szymanski said “feels so wrong”) after the disappearance of the Titan submersible due to the game’s similar premise.

Markiplier also revealed that he had to turn down a role in the recently-released Five Nights at Freddy’s movie to focus on Iron Lung. Iron Lung’s movie doesn’t yet have a release date, but it’s headed to theaters, and the team behind the latter film revealed its first blood-drenched teaser in October.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].