closure Archives

AppWizard

July 7, 2025

Romero Games have “completely” closed doors, but there’s still hope for the Doom creator’s new FPS

Romero Games has ceased operations after funding for their first-person shooter was withdrawn, affecting approximately 100 employees. An anonymous employee described the situation as a "big shock," noting that discussions with a publisher occurred just a day before the closure. The project was reportedly well-developed and had received positive feedback, but is now completely closed while the studio seeks alternative funding. The unnamed FPS had generated significant interest, and the Chief Technical Officer is advocating for former staff on LinkedIn. The game was announced in 2022 and was being developed using Unreal Engine 5. Prior to this, Romero and Carmack worked on a canceled game called Blackroom in 2016.

AppWizard

July 6, 2025

Romero Games reportedly met with Microsoft just a day before the publisher pulled funding for the studio, and there was ‘no mention’ of the decision that put over 100 people out of work

Romero Games has officially closed due to the withdrawal of crucial funding from Microsoft for its first-person shooter project. Former employees reported that meetings with the publisher occurred just a day before the funding was pulled, leaving the studio's future uncertain. Despite the closure, efforts are being made to explore alternative funding for the in-development FPS project. The studio had recently increased its social media presence and engaged with the gaming community through a new "FPS Fridays" series on Twitch.

AppWizard

July 6, 2025

Former Forza dev says original Motorsport series died in Microsoft’s cuts, but Forza Horizon lives on

Former Forza content coordinator Fred Russell announced on Facebook that the Forza Motorsport series has been effectively discontinued following Microsoft's mass layoffs, which reportedly affected up to 50% of Turn 10 Studios' workforce. Russell confirmed that the Forza Horizon spinoff will continue. The Forza Motorsport series currently holds a "Mixed" rating on Steam, while Forza Horizon 5 received a 90% score from PC Gamer.

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 1, 2025

Stardew Valley creator plays down reports he could help resurrect cancelled Minecraft-like Hytale

Riot Games has decided to cease development on Hytale after more than a decade of effort. The game, which began development in 2015 by Hypixel, was intended to combine mini-games from its Minecraft server with an RPG-style sandbox experience. Despite initial excitement and Riot's acquisition of Hypixel in 2020, the project could not meet expectations, leading to unsuccessful attempts to find new investors and resulting in layoffs. Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone, creator of Stardew Valley, clarified that he is not actively pursuing involvement in Hytale's revival, as he is focused on his current project, Haunted Chocolatier. Simon Collins-Laflamme, the original founder of Hypixel, has expressed interest in approaching Riot with a potential investment proposal to revive Hytale, while cautioning fans to manage their expectations regarding the project's future.

AppWizard

June 27, 2025

Hypixel Considers Reacquiring Its Sandbox Hytale from Riot

Hypixel Studios has announced its closure and the cancellation of its game Hytale, which was still in development. The studio, part of Riot Games since 2020, has left fans disappointed. Discussions about Hypixel potentially reacquiring the rights to Hytale have emerged, but the studio's founder, Simon, indicated that this possibility seems unlikely due to financial challenges. He expressed a willingness to invest million of his own money to finish Hytale, reflecting his commitment to the project, though he acknowledged that this ambition is currently just a plan and would be a significant challenge to realize.

TrendTechie

June 27, 2025

В Греции администратора торрент-трекера приговорили к пяти годам тюрьмы

The Piraeus Court of Appeals has upheld a five-year prison sentence for a 59-year-old Greek man who operated the torrent tracker P2PLanet from 2011 to 2014, along with a €10,000 fine. The platform had over 44,000 users and 14,000 torrent files available before it ceased operations in 2014 after a cyberattack and the administrator's arrest. The Greek cybercrime unit raided the suspect's residence in 2014, seizing a computer hard drive. The domain name p2planet.net has been inactive for a decade. Legal actions against torrent site operators in Greece are rare, indicating a potential shift towards stricter enforcement of copyright laws. In 2019, a Greek court sentenced another individual to five years in prison for managing multiple pirate sites. Global trends show a decline in piracy, with visits to illegal sites projected to drop from 229 billion in 2023 to 216 billion in 2024.

AppWizard

June 25, 2025

“The issues were all internal”: Former Hytale dev says the Minecraft-inspired survival RPG’s cancelation has nothing to do with Riot: “The community should be angry at the mismanagement”

Hytale has been officially canceled, coinciding with the closure of its developer, Hypixel Studios. A former developer from Hypixel Studios attributed the game's cancellation to internal management issues rather than external pressures from parent company Riot Games. Hytale was announced in 2018 and garnered 61 million views on its trailer, aiming to compete with Minecraft. The future of the Hytale intellectual property remains uncertain, as it is still under Riot's control. The former developer expressed skepticism about the game's revival, noting that the original team had left or been let go.

AppWizard

June 25, 2025

Minecraft Competitor Hytale Shuts Down After a Decade of Development

Hypixel Studios has ceased development on its sandbox game, Hytale, due to insufficient financial support and challenges in aligning its vision with the evolving sandbox gaming landscape. The studio, founded in 2016 and acquired by Riot Games in 2020, faced difficulties despite a major overhaul of the game engine. Riot Games assisted in seeking additional investors but ultimately decided to halt the project, providing support to the team during the transition. The existing Hypixel Minecraft server will continue to operate independently. The announcement comes amid significant layoffs in the gaming industry, with over 10,500 jobs lost in 2023 and projections of an additional 14,600 in 2024.

TrendTechie

June 24, 2025

В Греции осудили мужчину за торрент-сайт, закрывшийся 10 лет назад

A Greek court has sentenced the former administrator of the torrent site P2Planet.net to five years in prison, a €10,000 fine, and €1,800 in court costs. This is the first case in Greece where an individual has been imprisoned for file sharing via BitTorrent. The 59-year-old man operated the site from 2011 to 2014, which had over 44,000 registered users and approximately 14,000 torrents. The case was initiated after a police raid over ten years ago, and the verdict was delivered by the Piraeus Appeals Court after years of legal proceedings. Greek authorities are intensifying efforts against copyright infringement, with previous sentences given to administrators of other torrent sites.