Belgian game developer Larian Studios has just concluded an incredibly successful Kickstarter campaign for a sequel to Divinity: Original Sin, raising over $2 million from more than 40,000 backers. The first game raised less than $1 million in its campaign, which Divinity: Original Sin 2 surpassed within its first week alone.

“All of us at Larian Studios have been truly overwhelmed by the level of support that we have received — not only in terms of pledges, but also feedback and involvement,” Larian wrote in an update to its Kickstarter campaign page. “Right from the beginning, it was our aim to use the campaign as a means to bring our community of fans into the heart of the development process. In every regard, you have exceeded our wildest expectations, and we would like to extend our everlasting gratitude to you all.”

The campaign managed to unlock its final two stretch goals by raising roughly $200,000 within its last 24 hours, during which Larian hosted a day-long Twitch stream with Q&A sessions, game tournaments, and behind-the-scenes looks at its games. Portions of the stream are still available to watch on Larian’s Twitch channel, and at the moment the studio is continuing to stream from its office as the team celebrates the end of the campaign.

While the campaign has finally ended, Larian says that it will keep backers and other fans in the loop throughout the development process of the new game.

“Of course, this is only the end of the beginning — there’s still a game to finish!” Larian said. “The updates and community involvement will continue for every step of the way; there’s plenty of stuff that we haven’t even gotten around to showing you yet, and we can’t wait to bring you the latest developments.”

With over $2 million in funds from crowdfunding, Larian yet another independent studio to show that game developers can take advantage of some of the niche genres that are ignored by the major publishers. Games like Divinity: Original Sin 2 may not rival the sales figures of a Triple-A franchise like Call of Duty, but they certainly prove that studios can still be successful without being bankrolled by a corporate overlord.

Image courtesy of Larian Studios