MMORPG Ashes of Creation appears to be facing a crisis, as developer Intrepid Studios is reportedly undergoing mass layoffs following senior staff resignations.
Nearly a decade after a successful Kickstarter helped fund Ashes of Creation, the game remains in alpha, and new developments seem to spell the end of any hopes it will make it beyond that.
There have been reports of mass layoffs, and in a message, director Steven Sharif states that he has resigned “in protest” of the Intrepid Studios board’s decision-making. That was followed by several former developers revealing they are no longer with the company.
Ashes of Creation Board Allegedly Burns its Staff and Players
Sharif’s resignation is pretty substantial, as he was a major source of investment outside Kickstarter backing, having personally put in funds to help the MMORPG get going. In a Discord message, Sharif wrote,
“Control of the company shifted away from me, and the Board began directing actions that I could not ethically agree with or carry out.’’
Sharif continued by explaining why he resigned in protest and how that led to layoffs.
“As a result, I chose to resign in protest rather than lend my name or authority to decisions I could not ethically support.’’
“Following my resignation, much of the senior leadership team resigned. Following those departures, the Board made the decision to issue WARN Act notices and proceed with a mass layoff.’’
Recent developments have rung a few alarm bells: the game’s alpha state had a measured roadmap, but it then made an abrupt Early Access debut on Steam last December, and the normally active Sharif had largely withdrawn from the community Discord.
Last week, a statement emerged addressing players’ frustration, but not the emerging situation regarding the reported layoffs.
Then, at the weekend, long-time Director of Communications Margaret Krohn announced her time at Intrepid had ended, and paid tribute to the player base’s passion and dedication. She was asked if the game faced cancellation, and replied,
“I don’t work there anymore, so I can’t answer that for you. Personally, I don’t know how they would make it when the heart and soul of the product, the amazing dev team, was all laid off.”
As if that wasn’t enough troubling evidence that the writing is on the wall for Ashes of Creation, senior environment artist Adam Anthony claims that he’s looking for work following “the closing of Intrepid Studios’’ and many other Intrepid employees have changed their LinkedIn status to ‘Open to Work’.
On the game’s Steam page, there’s little sign that anything is amiss from the developer side, with a development update livestream set for February 13, 2026. We’ll see if that ends up being the game’s obituary or an overhaul, but either way, it doesn’t seem like good news is on the horizon for Ashes of Creation’s fanbase.
Tlayers are making their feelings known, however, by posting negative reviews on the Steam page, warning others not to purchase a cancelled game and angrily calling the game ‘a scam’.
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