Earthblade, a Game by Celeste Devs, Cancelled Due to "Disagreements"

Earthblade Is Officially Cancelled

Developers Cite Internal "Fracture"

Earthblade, the highly anticipated game from the developers of the indie sensation Celeste, has been officially cancelled due to internal conflicts within the team. Extremely OK Games (EXOK), the studio behind the project, announced the news on their official website in a post titled "Final Earthblade Update." In this announcement, EXOK Director Maddy Thorson shared the reasons for the cancellation and outlined the studio's future plans.

"Late last month, Noel and I made the difficult decision to cancel Earthblade. Yes, we are opening the year with a huge, heartbreaking, and yet relieving failure," Thorson stated, expressing her apologies to the fans who had eagerly awaited the game's release. She admitted that the team was still processing and grieving over the events that led to this decision.

Thorson explained that a significant factor in the cancellation was a "fracture" that developed within the team, particularly between herself, EXOK's Computer Programmer Noel Berry, and former Art Director Pedro Medeiros. The core of the conflict centered around a "disagreement about the IP rights of Celeste," though Thorson did not delve into further details, citing the sensitivity of the issue.

The trio eventually reached a resolution, which resulted in Medeiros pursuing his own project, Neverway, under a new studio. Despite the separation, Thorson emphasized that there were no hard feelings, stating, "Pedro and the Neverway team aren't the enemy and anyone who treats them as such isn't welcome in any EXOK community."

"Losing Pedro wasn't the only factor in cancelling the game, but it did prompt us to take a serious look at whether fighting through to finish Earthblade was the right path forward," Thorson added. She noted that while the project had potential, it was not as advanced as expected after such a long development period. The pressure to surpass the success of Celeste had taken a toll on the team, making the development process exhausting. Thorson concluded that the team had lost its way, and it was time to concede and admit defeat.

EXOK’s Future Plans

With a significant portion of their workforce having moved on, Thorson and Berry are now looking to learn from this experience and start anew. They are focusing on smaller-scale projects, currently prototyping and experimenting at their own pace. Thorson expressed a desire to "rediscover game development in a manner closer to how we approached it at Celeste's or TowerFall's inception." She also expressed hope for future collaborations with former team members, ending on an optimistic note: "We gave it all we've got, and life goes on. We are happy to return to our roots and reclaim some joy in our creative process, and see where that takes us."

Earthblade was envisioned as an "explor-action platformer" that would follow the journey of Névoa, the enigmatic child of Fate, as they attempted to restore a ruined Earth.