Almost half of the entire workforce at Ascendant Studios has been laid off as a result of poor sales for its magical FPS Immortals of Aveum. Speaking to Polygon, three employees at the developer said "nearly half of its staff" was let go on Thursday, with bad sales of the game cited as one reason why. Sources claimed around 40 people were laid off from a studio that had 80 to 100 employees.
While the EA Originals label has made the likes of A Way Out, It Takes Two, and Lost in Random a success, Immortals of Aveum was continually met with muted interest in the lead-up to its August 2023 release across current-gen boxes and PC. And when it did hit store shelves, enthusiasm among critics was not much to shout about, landing on a stiff Metacritic rating of 70. Given the fact it released under the EA Originals branding, Immortals of Aveum will eventually make its way to EA Play.
Founder and CEO Bret Robbins added: "This was a painfully difficult, but necessary decision that was not made lightly; nevertheless, we have to make this adjustment now that Immortals of Aveum has shipped. We are supporting those affected in every way we can, including comprehensive severance packages and job placement assistance, as well as support services for those who remain."
In our Immortals of Aveum PS5 review, we handed the FPS a 6/10 rating and shared praise for its semi-open world and satisfying shooting. "It's a good first effort from Ascendant Studios, and the potential is absolutely there, but there's a feeling that the team bit off a little more than it could chew." It's hoped those who have unfortunately been let go find employment elsewhere in the near future.
[source polygon.com]
Comments 64
I feel like they did not do enough to promote this game, I remember seeing the initial trailer at an event (maybe SOP?) and then nothing for a very long time, where I did not even know it was coming out until I looked on the store and saw it was already released. I can't speak to the quality but it does look like a somewhat unique take on an FPS so I feel a lot of it came down to a failure in marketing
@Logonogo Well they showed this off during the last Sony "Event" and I got an Trailer in the Cinema while waiting for Oppenheimer lol
I'm looking forward this game, but still expect some betrayal on customer, because of EA.
@MagisterMagi oh wow! maybe I am way off base then and the concept just did not appeal to anyone
@MagisterMagi pretty sure it was also at summer game fest, the game really did get a ton of marketing but sometimes games just don't hit.
@Americansamurai1 it came out during the stacked months of the year while costing more than established IPs. This Game was doomed to flop
Oh bloody hell not some more. Seems to be a year of developers losing their jobs, wonder whose next. Regardless if a game is not so good or received poorly, its never good when loads are losing their jobs
Sad I would have supported had it released in July when it was supposed to. Picked up armored core instead when it got hit by the delay
@Logonogo I didn't even know the game existed (or maybe didn't remember), and I'm automatically more tuned into gaming news than 99% of the population lol. They definitely didn't do enough to advertise it.
@MagisterMagi very true, might have been smarter to save it until December through February. Game dev is getting insane, hate to say it but don't be surprised if we start seeing massive layoffs. With the emerging game devs in countries like China and the advancement of AI, i could see alot of jobs being outsource or even replaced with aI.
A shame that they won’t get the chance to iterate and improve on this interesting concept. Best of luck to all of those who are affected.
I think this speaks to the difficulty in this industry of starting a fresh IP. There is a lot of risk involved there.
I want to own this game... but I don't buy games new unless I absolutely know that I'll love them. Perhaps I'm part of the problem. But I only have so much time and resources to play video games.
I wonder if new IPs would be better suited launching into a service like Game Pass or PS Plus. That establishes a player base and then the sequel would gain that fanbase for a full price purchase? Other business minded people can comment on that idea.
Devs just do not get a second chance these days, it’s awful. Pick out any studio with a good reputation and you’ll find they made a bunch of fairly middling titles during the 90s.
@Ralizah "I didn't even know the game existed"
I thought it was 1 of the numerous free-to-play sci/fi & fantasy gaas games that seem to be all the rage these days, famous for closing down less than a year after launch. When I saw "sales" in the tile I was like "sales, what sales?" 🤷♂️
So I new it was a game, but I thought it was 1 of those things I wasn't interested in. For a single player game I'd say it got A LOT LESS exposure than something like Forpsoken, which seemed to have 3 articles a day, even if the comments here suggest otherwise. Oh well, might as well forget about it now.
@nessisonett It's the times we live in, cancelculture and all that. I agree, so sad make it at 1st try or you're out. That can't be good for the gaming industry in the long run imho.
I usually support EA Originals
It takes 2, Lost in Random, Unravel 1-2 and Sea of Solitude are all in my collection.
I completely forgot this was out. I think I also confused it with another game that came out on GamePass recently.
@Zeke68 Nah, nothing to do with cancel culture in the slightest. It’s late stage capitalism at work, constant growth, throw the workers under the bus so that your numbers go up every year. That only leads to the bubble bursting.
@Logonogo it feels like every major event had a trailer for it, the game looked a bit dated so i don't think it hit anyone's radar
Admittedly i was waiting on sales for this one but damn thats a harsh response for a first time. Cant blame marketing, it did get a fair bit but i think the whole hand gestures as guns thing is just a hard sell.
Guess, it is not even dev's fault: too many awesome games this year - probably every month there was something better than this game. Too easy to get lost among all the hits and blockbusters. Shame.
This will be more "proof" single player is fading.
That's a shame.
Unfortunately I guess I'm part of the problem. This is a game I looked forward to playing and something I would have gotten day 1 a few years ago.
However, PS Premium and the industry at large has taught me to be patient and itll be free on some cheap subscription soon, so why shell put 70$ or whatever when I can do a one month sub somewhere for way cheaper to play it?
I wonder what it must be like to be a developer working hard on something you think is great only for it to release and be received mildly. Surely, they read reviews. Feels bad.
It does seem like we may be heading to another industry crash at this rate, doesn’t it?
I’m not surprised to hear this studio got crunched following this title’s release. It received middling at best reviews and didn’t hit any nerve with the public (and it’s EA, so there’s a bit of preexisting bias against them in many gaming communities due to their greedy tactics). In the past, I feel like games like this had a chance to at least recoup some cost, but now the axe swings quickly. I hope things change soon, so devs can get more experience and a second chance in learning from their failures. Alas, fewer and fewer businesses expect failure in any capacity in this economy though.
@Juvenlast No….new IP should absolutely not start on GamePass because then gamers would expect the same for its sequels, they wouldn’t want to pay.
Immortal of Aveum was doomed from the start because of its lore. It just didn’t grab the audience and the trailers made the game look like it was directed by Michael Bay (just watch the reveal trailer). It was also doomed because it was under EA. Gamers probably assumed it was an FPS with micro transactions/ live service.
So at end of the day, it was marketing and EA.
Games barely been out and there already laying off people that's sad
This is really unfortunate. The game doesn’t seem bad, it just released at a very wrong time and with way too little marketing. EA has had a pretty great lineup this year (Dead Space, Wild Hearts, Jedi Survivor, this), so it’s really unfortunate that this positivity is now soured by this to an extent.
And yet, the founder and CEO Bret Robbins gets to keep his job. Such a backwards world we live in.
This was a superb debut effort and a great game.
I knew it hadn't sold well and it was unfortunately obvious it would under perform .
The majority of gamers just want COD, GTA, FIFA, madden etc and don't give new or interesting IP's a chance.
If anyone is on the fence about this I highly recommend it but I can guarantee it'll be discounted heavily soon.
It also came at a time when so many other games where coming out. Armored Core, Baldur’s Gate 3, Starfield. Etc. It should have been delayed to next year and maybe worked on a bit more. It got sandwhiched so bad.
Releasing a full price new IP game with little marketing at a time where loads of bigger games are releasing was quite frankly stupid, the fact its fairly average doesn't help either.
@TabulaRasa Well if those remasters, remakes and sequels are better then these new IP's why should we support the new overpriced IP's? I had a choice between Armoured Core 6 and this last month, i chose AC6 because its clearly the much better game and more worthy of my time and money.
@rusty82 Within the timeframe it released Baldur's Gate 3, Armoured Core 6 and Starfield released three games that have done very well and are excellent so it has nothing to do with COD or Fifa what aren't even out yet on why this game flopped.
@TheCollector316
Like Metallica whenever they release a new album since Master of Puppets...lol...
@Logonogo The game also had the benefit of the UE5 hype. As it was label as one of the first big UE5 game. If you had any interest in game graphic/technology this was on your radar...
EA being EA. Maybe if they realese their games in a better state people would have more confidence in spending 70 bucks on what EA publishes. Just sayin
I sure didn't help due to me not buying it. All of the sad people here seemed to not buy it either. It's our fault everyone!
I try make it a point to support at least one new IP a year if there is any that interest me. For this year I picked Eternights. Unfortunately I just never really had any interest in this game. It just looked a bit...I don't know it just didn't click.
It's a tough industry for sure. As much as I'd like support new IP efforts all the time is just not possible all the time. It also came out around Armored Core 6 and I was never going to skip that. Here's hoping for the best for both the people laid off as well as the team that remain.
terrible game leads to this
Not wanting to start a fight. But this year really hasn't had any hits or blockbusters? Sure this year has had something for everyone but it has not been filled with hits. Maybe the long-anticipated Starfield is a hit but that had an audience that was always gonna buy day one. Same with Zelda TOTK
Jedi: Survivor - MISSED, Forspoken - MISSED, Wild Hearts - MISSED, Atomic Heart - MISSED, FFXVI - MISSED, RE4 was fairly big but niche, Hogwarts was a hit but nobody could celebrate its success.
Forspoken, Atomic Hearts, Wild Hearts, and Atlas Fallen are all new IPs that failed to catch on.
I've Said it once I've said it 100 times. Games want new IPss they just don't want these new IPs.
@MikeOrator BG3 is a pretty big hit regardless if you like the genre or not
bummmer to see a new idea/ip crash and burn. Yet the problem is that this game was not really a new idea. It was a doom clone with a magic/sci fi fantasy skin. Its played out and in a busy time for release,s not very enticing.
@pharos_haven
forgot about that one. Yeah, it's pretty big and is selling well. So that's 2 games, both sprawling RPGs, and neither are new IPs
@MikeOrator Pikmin 4 beat all sales expectations. It usually barely eeks out a million copies - it wrecked the charts since release.
but you also are not wrong.
@MikeOrator Hogwarts Legacy was, as of last month, the best-selling game of the year so far, at 15 million units. I completely understand where you're coming from, and I say this with respect to the communities who feel marginalized: the controversy had nothing to do with the game, was a lot of very loud shouting from a small number of people, and apparently had negligible effect on the game's sales.
At any rate, it was a blockbuster in the sense that a whole lot of people bought it. I definitely agree with you that the discourse surrounding the game made it impossible to view the game strictly on its merits, and as a result I do not expect it to get any nominations at The Game Awards, for whatever that's worth.
@thechetearly
That's because he is payed waaaay more and his "golden handshake" to rid of him.
much, much easier to run the hard working small people out of town.
very sad, but also very real.
@nessisonett @Geep
With "cancelculture" I meant people not buying the game because they saw some "cancelcuture" comment online that said it wasn't good and "if everyone else doesn't like it when I can't like it"
I rather buy a "bad" game and learn that the hard way than trusting people online tbh. I bought into the Cyberpunk 2077 lies how revolutionary it would be and how great it looked. They even lied and said the 4K HDR footage was captured on a PS5 when it was a beefed up PC.. So lesson learned, never trust CDPR again, ever. Liars will lie to make more money.
Anyway, so now I don't trust anyone elses view on any game at all. I read, like Push Square, take EVERYTHING with a big grain of salt, and maybe watch a YT video of the game in question.
After that I make my own decision to buy , not buy or just wait for it to be cheaper or come to PS Plus.
But not many seem to be like me reading comments online. It's Black/White in every game discussion and mostly "Black" =cancel the game!
When people don't buy it stuff like these layoffs happens, sad reality.
My friend bought this game, and the little I played it was quite good, solid 7/10 for me..
@rjejr Similar situation. I don't know if it's the title, the relative lack of coverage, or what, but I saw a mention of this game recently, and immediately thought it was some online hero shooter thing. It took a second to go, "oh, wait, didn't I see before that this was a decent-looking single-player game of some kind?"
@miguelseara it isn't a terrible game, though. It isn't spectacular or revolutionary in any way, but it was a good game. I had fun with it, I completed it. Think Doom Eternal, with a less interesting story and the guns replaced with magic spells.
@rusty82 it is a fun game, isn't it. I also enjoyed Atlas Fallen, that didn't get much attention either. The story didn't do much for me and some of the script was a bit 'iffy' but the voice acting was top notch and the gameplay was very good. The scope of the world was fairly impressive and its aesthetic was beautiful.
It's sad that people have lost their jobs and hopefully they all find work. As for the game, it's been clear for a long time that there was very little interest in it and its lack of success is no surprise
An this is why the industry is dominated by sequels an prequels And franchises an remakes nowadays.
@DennisReynolds All of those are sequels or part of franchises
@DennisReynolds I feel your attempted rebuttal is let down by your chosen examples.
All 3 are either established IPs or are from industry darling Devs.
Starfield is elder Scrolls in space and it was going to sell regardless. Armoured core has been steadily ramping up in popularity for years and anything FROM Software releases nowadays sells well.
BG3 has been hyped to hell and reviewed amazingly and is also part of an established series.
@knowles2 and far better games worthy of their price tags.
@rusty82 and? It shows other games can sell big. Your blaming Fifa and COD when the new ones aren't even out.
@DennisReynolds no what I'm saying is a big percentage of gamers only buy FIFA COD and don't bother with new IPs.
They would have sold more if it wasnt under EA. All gamers know EA is a toxic company and if you wait month or two you can get the game on sale like far cry 6 lmao.
@rusty82 yea if you are little boys they buy cod every year and fifa i suspect it caters more to europeans
@rusty82 and that % is mostly "casuals" who play nothing else but them. This game failed because it released at the wrong time, had poor marketing and got so so reviews. Why buy a 6/10 game when at the same time you have a 10/10 GOTY game in Baldur's Gate 3 out alongside it? New IP's do fine when they're good and release at the right time, look at Remnant 2 while not a brand new IP it is a fairly new series and the game has done very well. The issue isn't that people don't buy new IP's its that the new IP's themselves aren't very good or release at stupid times. I mean look at Lies of P its got good reviews but its timing is terrible, its competing with the biggest fighting game this Generation and the two biggest RPG's in years.
@smoreon "It took a second to go, "oh, wait"
Well it least you figured it out. This game is going to be on PS+ Extra in a few months and I'm still going to think it's a free to play gaas game. 😂
And yes, it is the title. I don't know why, it just is.
I've got to say I'm not surprised. I remember seeing it for the first times at one of the showcases or game awards and thinking who asked for or greenlit this. It shouldn't be the devs that take the hit it should be the silly buggers who thought it could be good.
@rjejr What it says on the box: "Immortals of Aveum"
What we see: "Champions of Legends"
@smoreon Or "Wild Hearts". or "Anthem". 😝 The gaas graveyard is overflowing.
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