In a weird replace to the lengthy The Day Before saga, studio Fntastic has introduced its closure simply days after the sport’s launch in early entry final week.
“In the present day, we announce the closure of Fntastic studio,” the corporate stated in an announcement on its X/Twitter account. “Sadly, The Day Before has failed financially, and we lack the funds to proceed. All revenue obtained is getting used to repay money owed to our companions.”
Fntastic provides that the way forward for The Day Before and Propnight is “unknown, however the servers will stay operational.”
See the complete assertion beneath.
Official assertion. #fntastic #thedaybefore #propnight pic.twitter.com/AKcRHeIaIW
— Fntastic (@FntasticHQ) December 11, 2023
The assertion additionally makes a degree to notice that “we did not take any cash from the general public throughout the growth of The Day Before; there have been no pre-orders or crowdfunding campaigns. We labored tirelessly for 5 years, pouring our blood, sweat, and tears into the sport.”
Nonetheless, the closure comes after followers nonetheless did spend cash on it, with it costing $39 in early entry. Some gamers had been already asking for refunds, nevertheless, even earlier than right this moment’s closure information. The long-controversial recreation’s early entry launch was a rocky one to say the least, with the Steam page being flooded with unfavourable critiques.
Not solely was The Day Before tormented by bugs and server points, however many complained that it wasn’t even what was initially marketed. Whereas labeled as an open-world MMO, many had been fast to level out that it is truly an extraction shooter. The backlash was so unhealthy that its participant rely dropped virtually 90% in 4 days, and it is already entered Steam’s 10 worst-reviews video games of all time.
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That troubled launch adopted an already-controversial growth interval. Fntastic first revealed The Day Before again in 2021 with a five-minute trailer, stoking pleasure for what gave the impression to be an enormous zombie apocalypse MMO. The cracks, although, rapidly started to point out, notably surrounding the studio’s use of unpaid employees. The group defended the observe again in 2022, saying the “firm’s values are constructed upon the concept of volunteering which implies that each one that works or volunteers right here is doing that willingly.”
It, too, confronted a number of delays, copycat allegations, and even a trademark dispute. By 2023, a lot of the neighborhood had turned on The Day Before, with many even accusing it of being a rip-off.
Following the information of its closure, many followers are renewing their requires refunds from Steam. IGN will replace once we know extra.
Alex Stedman is a Senior Information Editor with IGN, overseeing leisure reporting. When she’s not writing or enhancing, you could find her studying fantasy novels or enjoying Dungeons & Dragons.