Ambient Studios to close, Death Inc backers to be refunded
Dev couldn't "make enough money to keep the wolves from the door"
Ambient Studios, the developer behind Monster Meltdown and the in-development Death Inc. has announced that it will be shutting down as a result of financial issues.
The studio announced the closure via its website, expressing sadness and thanking fans for support.
"Hi all," reads the statement. "It's time for a sad announcement: Ambient is shutting its doors. It's been an amazing ride and we've produced some amazing products like Monster Meltdown and Death Inc. We're super proud of what we achieved, but ultimately we didn't manage to make enough money to keep the wolves from the door. And so we had to make the difficult decision that it is no longer feasible for Ambient to continue operating.
"Thank you so much for all your support and encouragement along the way, we've got no regrets and have loved every minute of it."
The team had recently been raising funds for Death Inc. via a paid alpha, after the game missed out on a Kickstarter campaign total despite gaining a good deal of media traction. In addition to announcing the studio closure, the website also confirms that anyone who contributed to the paid alpha will be receiving refunds.
"Obviously we cannot deliver on the commitments we made in the various Death Inc. alpha tiers. If you're one of the alpha backers, don't worry - we will be issuing full refunds so you will not be in any way out of pocket."
The decision seems like a sudden one - just a week ago the team was updating the blog with news on Death Inc.'s development.