Have you ever heard of the common phrase, “Go big or go home”? Well, in the wild world of video game development, this exact phrase feels more like, “Go big or your studio goes home for good.” Sometimes those ambitious and over-hyped games crash and burn so spectacularly that they even take their developers to the digital graveyard.
So, get ready because we are about to unearth ten video games that performed so badly in the gaming industry that their entire studio got shut down. Without further ado, let’s jump right into it.
1 Concord
Starting the list with one of the major failures in 2024, Concord. This was a multiplayer first-person hero shooter game that was developed by Firewalk Studios back in August. The game was supposed to go against the big leagues like Overwatch 2 and Valorant, but it was deemed a failure because of low sales and a lukewarm reception.
The game was later shut down in September, just two weeks after launch, with all the sold copies being refunded to the players. And on October 29, Sony announced that they would be closing Firewalk Studios for good.
2 SimCity
Next in line, we have SimCity, which is basically Cities: Skylines, but less fun. SimCity is a city-building simulation/MMO that was developed by Maxis, and it was released back in March of 2013. Before the game’s release, it received pretty good reviews, but when the game was launched, it was riddled with bugs and widespread gameplay problems.
People even hated the mandatory network connection for playing and saving game data. Just two years later, in March 2015, EA closed down the Maxis studio, and this move came after the troubled launch of SimCity in 2013.
3 Hellgate: London
Hellgate: London did have a good story and some really good visuals, but that did not stop the game from taking down its developer. Hellgate: London was a dark-fantasy themed action RPG that was developed by Flagship Studios and was released back in October of 2007. Although the game received mixed reviews for its overall experience, it did not really make that much money.
According to many players, the game was released in an unfinished state, which was later confirmed by the CEO, Bill Roper. Hence, in August 2008, the studio filed for bankruptcy, and the co-founder, Max Schaefer, announced that it had shut down.
4 Multiversus
Coming back to something new, Multiversus is a free-to-play fighting game (similar to Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros) which was developed by Player First Games and published by Warner Bros. Games. The game was released back in May of 2024 and featured characters and stages from and inspired by Warner Bros. Franchises like the DC Universe and Looney Tunes.
While the game did receive a positive reception during its release, that did not last long when the developers decided to rebuild the game in Unreal Engine 5, which brought in a lot of problems. As a result of the switch, many features stopped working in the Unreal Engine 5 version, and Warner Bros. Games decided to stop further support in January of this year. And by February, Warner Bros. Games announced the closure of the studio.
5 Dead Rising 4
Going strong with Dead Rising 4, which is an action-adventure game from 2016, developed by Capcom Vancouver and published by Microsoft. The game is the fourth installment in the Dead Rising series, and it features the return of the beloved Frank West, but in the holiday season.
While the game received praise for its gameplay, players noticed a decline in the overall quality of the game. In September 2018, Capcom announced the closure of Capcom Vancouver, which led to the cancellation of a sequel to the game Dead Rising 5.
6 Kingdom of Amalur: Reckoning
Kingdom of Amalur: Reckoning is an action RPG developed by Big Huge Games, which was a subsidiary of 38 Studios. The game was released back in February of 2012, and while it did sell above expectations for EA as a new intellectual property, the game commercially underperformed for 38 Studios and Big Huge Games.
Although two DLC expansion packs were released, a planned sequel to the game was cancelled after 38 Studios filed for bankruptcy in 2012, and subsequently, Big Huge Games also shut down. But the studio was later revived under new ownership and is currently operating as a mobile game developer.
7 The Lord of the Rings: Gollum
Coming at number seven is The Lord of the Rings: Gollum, which is an action-adventure game that was developed by Daedalic Entertainment and was released in May 2023. The game generated a lot of hype among the LOTR fans, but it disappointed a lot of fans after its launch.
The game was a commercial failure, and many even consider it to be one of the worst video games ever made. This failure made Daedalic Entertainment’s game development division shut down and led to a shift in focus in the company.
8 Forspoken
Forspoken is an action-adventure RPG that was developed by Luminous Productions, which was a subsidiary of Square Enix and originally known as Business Division 2. The game was released back in January of 2023, and the hype was absolutely crazy for this game.
Although the game did achieve its goal of fluidity and speed, the slow pacing and the overall low quality made the game impossible to play. Due to the lukewarm reception of Luminous Productions’ debut title, the studio was shut down and merged back into Square Enix.
9 Redfall
Redfall is an open-world first-person shooter game that was developed by Arkane Austin, the developer behind the beloved Dishonored series. Redfall was released back in May of 2023, and while it had somewhat good gameplay, the technical problems during release and the plot sort of ruined the overall experience.
According to Microsoft, Redfall had generated “minimum sales,” and Phil Spencer, the CEO of Microsoft Gaming, apologized for the game and stated that he was disappointed. After one year, Microsoft Gaming has stopped all development on Redfall, and they even closed down Arkane Studios.
10 Mass Effect: Andromeda
Last but not least, Mass Effect: Andromeda, which is an action RPG, led to the downfall of its developers, BioWare Montreal. The game was released back in March of 2017, and it is the fourth main entry in the Mass Effect series. Unlike the previous Mass Effect games, this game experienced a troubled production cycle and received a disappointing commercial and critical reception.
BioWare Studio was initially tasked with developing Andromeda as their first solo project, but that did not go quite well, and the studio was essentially shut down and merged with EA Motive.
So, which of these studios do you want to see make a comeback? Let us know, down in the comments.
