Phantom Liberty's first ending was darker than The Tower

Igor Sarzyński, creative director of Project Orion, said the Phantom Liberty epilogue started out different: much darker and stranger. Once the expansion's main line became a coherent spy story, that ending no longer matched the tone.

It was replaced by The Tower. He also gave the opposite example: the dance with Alex arrived late, because the tension needed a quiet personal beat. Part of the job, he said, is noticing what must be added, not only what must be cut.

He described production as a constant trade: some things enter, some wait, some change. The aim stays the same — the best result that can ship on time.

By January 2026 the base game, on these figures, had sold more than 35 million copies, and Phantom Liberty 10 million. Arguments about cut scenes sit beside that as a story of assembly, not only a list of losses.