cancellation Archives

AppWizard

July 10, 2025

“Star Wars: Battlefront 2 jumped from 135th on the monthly best-selling titles chart in April to 12th in May,” analyst says, illustrating the community’s efforts: “It ranked 5th across the PC aggregated storefront tracking”

Star Wars Battlefront 2 rose 123 spots in the US best-selling games chart in May 2025, reaching the 12th position after being 135th in April. This surge is attributed to the celebration of Star Wars Day and increased calls for a sequel, with peak concurrent players on Steam hitting 35,892, up from 10,489 in 2021. The game became the fifth best-selling game on PC, surpassing titles like Black Ops 6 and Red Dead Redemption 2. Despite this resurgence, EA is focusing on franchises like Battlefield, The Sims, Skate, and Apex Legends, raising doubts about the development of Star Wars Battlefront 3.

AppWizard

July 8, 2025

Romero Games asserts it has not closed

Developer Romero Games has confirmed it is still operational despite facing funding issues and the cancellation of its in-development project due to withdrawn funding. The studio is exploring new opportunities with other publishers and has reassured employees that it is not shutting down. They are evaluating several opportunities from interested publishers and are committed to preventing further disruptions.

AppWizard

July 8, 2025

Romero Games is not closed: ‘We are doing everything in our power to ensure that it does not come to that’

Romero Games announced that funding for its first-person shooter, revealed in 2022, was withdrawn, coinciding with significant layoffs at Microsoft affecting 9,000 employees and leading to multiple project cancellations. The studio clarified on social media that it remains operational and is reassessing its staffing and operations amid concerns about its stability. While the publisher responsible for the funding withdrawal has not been disclosed due to confidentiality agreements, speculation arose regarding the timing of the decision. Former employees expressed fears of the studio shutting down or being sold. Romero Games hopes to attract interest from investors to support their ongoing development efforts.

AppWizard

July 6, 2025

Warren Spector was so desperate to make Deus Ex that it almost became a Command & Conquer RPG: ‘I was going to find a way to make it one way or another, even if it meant making another damn sci-fi game!’

Deus Ex recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. In an alternate reality, PC gamers are celebrating a different 25th anniversary for a first-person Command & Conquer game that could have been created by Warren Spector, who initially conceived a game called "Troubleshooter" in 1994. Spector aimed to create an open-ended near-future simulation featuring a supercop named Jake Shooter. He managed to persuade Westwood Studios to invest in a version of his game set in the Command & Conquer universe, intending to combine genre elements and player choice. However, he later joined Ion Storm after receiving an invitation from John Romero, leading to the development of Deus Ex, with Jake Shooter evolving into JC Denton.

AppWizard

July 4, 2025

Matt Firor steps down as ZeniMax Online studio boss

Matt Firor is stepping down as president of ZeniMax Online Studios after 18 years. He will be succeeded by studio head Jo Burba, executive producer Susan Kath, and game director Rich Lambert. Firor expressed confidence in the new leadership team, which has been involved in significant expansions for Elder Scrolls Online. The transition occurs alongside restructuring at ZeniMax, including the cancellation of an MMO project called Blackbird. Firor joined ZeniMax in 2007 and his departure signifies a major change for the studio.

AppWizard

July 4, 2025

EA is finally killing Anthem

Electronic Arts (EA) has announced that the game Anthem will be taken offline on January 12th, 2026. Players will no longer be able to purchase in-game currency, but any accumulated premium currency can still be used until the game's closure. EA has stated that there will be no immediate layoffs associated with this decision, although future job impacts remain uncertain. Anthem, developed by BioWare and launched in early 2019, struggled to gain a significant audience and faced a troubled development process, leading to the cancellation of an enhancement project known as Anthem Next.

AppWizard

July 4, 2025

Romero Games’ new shooter loses funding, the studio may be closing, and it looks like Microsoft is to blame

Romero Games, co-founded by Brenda and John Romero in 2015, announced that funding for their latest project has been abruptly terminated, resulting in layoffs within the company. CEO Brenda Romero stated that the publisher canceled funding for their game and other unannounced projects at various studios, a decision made at a high level within the publisher. While the specific publisher has not been disclosed, former employees suggest Microsoft may be responsible, coinciding with Microsoft's layoffs affecting 9,000 employees and project cancellations at several studios. The future of Romero Games is uncertain, with indications from some employees that the studio may close. The studio was previously working on a first-person shooter, which had been described as a significant new direction for them.

AppWizard

July 4, 2025

Publisher pulls funding for Romero Games project

Romero Games has lost funding for its in-development project, leading to potential layoffs or significant changes within the organization. The studio was developing a first-person shooter using Unreal Engine 5, which had received backing from an undisclosed major publisher, speculated to be Microsoft. Studio head Brenda Romero announced the funding cancellation in a message, emphasizing that the team's dedication and performance were not at fault, as they consistently met all milestones and received positive feedback. The news has had an emotional impact on the team, many of whom have long-standing relationships.

AppWizard

June 29, 2025

OG Hytale founder confirms he “will reach out” to Riot Games about buying back the Minecraft rival: “The chances of revival are next to impossible… It’s the least I can do”

Simon Collins-Laflamme, founder of OG Hypixel Studios, intends to engage with Riot Games about reviving Hytale, a game previously canceled after generating significant anticipation and over 60 million views for its announcement trailer. Collins-Laflamme, who sold the studio and game to Riot, acknowledged the complexity of the revival process and indicated it would take months to get answers. Additionally, Eric Barone, creator of Stardew Valley, expressed a willingness to potentially intervene in the Hytale situation but emphasized the need to understand the reasons for the game's failure first.

AppWizard

June 28, 2025

Ex Hytale devs say the game looked “maximum 2 years away” from release in 2019 and “systems that were already far ahead of Minecraft” were changed under “unrealistic ambitions”

Simon Collins-Laflamme, founder of Hypixel Studios, expressed confidence in Hytale's potential and stated he would invest millions to complete the project. He suggested reducing the game's scope for a PC-only release and open-sourcing some components to expedite development. Collins-Laflamme reflected on his leadership from 2016 to 2019, claiming the game was two years away from release and that the team was highly productive. Former developers noted that an obsession with perfection and feature creep contributed to the game's cancellation. They suggested that an early version could have been launched, focusing on Hypixel-style minigames and a modding suite. Collins-Laflamme emphasized Hytale's unique qualities and the disappointment of its cancellation, urging fans to direct frustration towards internal issues at Hypixel Studios rather than Riot Games.