Trine 3 developer Frozenbyte has released a video response to the game's negative feedback, in which the company's marketing manager Kai Tuovinen personally takes the blame for the fact that player expectations were not met.
The issue, Tuovinen says, is that Frozenbyte did not explain Trine 3's short length - a result of the series switch to 3D. Neither did the developer discuss its decision to leave the game's story on a cliffhanger ending - a result of the shorter experience.
"In hindsight, our biggest mistake was that we didn't let you know we would be splitting the game into different parts," Tuovinen explains, "or that this would be a shorter game than others in the series.
"As head of marketing here, I have to bite the bullet. It's my fault."
Frozenbyte has yet to decide how - or if - it will continue the franchise, or release any kind of conciliatory DLC.
"It's pretty much do or die for us at this point," Tuovinen concluded. "Back to the drawing board."