Spellcaster Chronicles

Quantic Dream

In a neither shocking nor surprising movie, we have yet another shutdown of a live multiplayer PvP game that probably should not have existed in the first place. This time, it’s one of the weirder ideas, that the narrative-focused studio Quantic Dream would suddenly run the other direction and make a 3v3 MOBA-style offering, Spellcaster Chronicles. Now, three months after launching in Early Access, the game is now dead after putting up numbers reminiscent of the endlessly referenced Concord. But here, it’s more apt than usual.

Here’s part of Quantic Dream’s note announcing the shutdown:

“Today, Quantic Dream is announcing the discontinuation of the development of Spellcasters Chronicles.

“With this project, our teams set out to explore new creative territories and create a bold, original multiplayer experience. Spellcasters Chronicles allowed us to experiment with new concepts and bring to life an ambitious game shaped by the talent, creativity, and dedication of everyone involved.”

“In today's particularly challenging market environment, the game has not reached the audience needed to ensure its long-term sustainability. We have therefore made the difficult decision to refocus our efforts on our other projects.”

Refunds will be issued for anything spent on the game in Early Access, given this quick death, and Quantic Dream assures players that its most high-profile project, the once again narrative-focused Star Wars Eclipse, remains in the works, albeit still with no release date.

Spellcaster’s numbers were beyond dismal. Its peak concurrent count on Steam at launch was 888 players, rapidly dropping to 150 or so, and now at 54, which on that platform would mean enough players for nine total 3v3 PvP games. So, is this on the level of Concord? I mean, numerically, but Concord shut off after two weeks and had the distinction of far, far more years of work and hundreds of millions in development, which, so far as we know, Spellcasters was not close to. Plus, Spellcasters was free-to-play and still putting up these totals.

Once again, this feels like a cautionary tale of trying to build something in the live space that no one asked for that doesn’t break enough new ground. We saw this most recently with Highguard, another fast-killed game that actually debuted in the prime slot at The Game Awards. So what chance did a game like Spellcasters Chronicles ever have?

I find myself a bit cynical about all these games shutting down and lamentations about the studios in question wanting to “explore creativity in the space,” etc., etc. It comes off to me like way too many people are attempting to strike it rich in the live space, whether or not that’s in their talent wheelhouse or not, whether or not they’re making a game that appeals to anyone or not. But at a certain point, with enough studios and games shutting down, we must be reaching a point where the costs and risks outweigh the pipe dream of becoming the next Fortnite. And yet, there are still more of these seemingly in the pipeline to come, and some floundering outside of it as we speak.

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Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.