ArtCraft Entertainment Laid Off Several Crowfall Team Members Over The Weekend

ArtCraft Entertainment has laid off several members of the Crowfall team just two months after the Kickstarted “Throne War Simulator” officially launched on PC. Valerie Massey, the former ArtCraft Community Director and now Senior Community Manager for Dual Universe, broke the unfortunate news on Twitter over the weekend.

Gutted and gobsmacked to hear about the @ArtCraftEnt layoffs today. Having worked on @CrowfallGame for five years, I had high hopes the game would be a success. Holler if I can help with recommendations or referrals.

— Val Massey (@Panntastic) September 3, 2021

Principal Technical Designer Thomas “Hanse” Eidson was among those that were let go. According to a now-deleted transcript of a conversation with Hanse, the former dev said that they were laid off without notice because the marketing for the game fell flat. He also said that the developers who made the game are “not on the game anymore.”

“RIP Crowfall. I was high on the game. I’m now free. It’s hard to let this shit go, but I’m a tad salty,” he said.

Community members who did a little digging on the internet have found evidence of possible downsizing. The studio’s staff numbers have reportedly taken a hit and several other members of the Crowfall team had been moved to other projects. There’s also rumors that J. Todd Coleman himself, the game’s creative director, has also been reassigned to another game.

Crowfall was announced back in 2015 alongside an $800,000 Kickstarter campaign that managed to secure over $1.7 million in funding. The studio also managed to raise more funds through several investment rounds over the past few years. After multiple revisions and delays, the game finally launched on PC in July but lacked the player numbers to support its PvP-centric gameplay.

ArtCraft Entertainment has yet to issue a statement.