Last October, Ballistic Moon unveiled its PS5 remake of Until Dawn, aiming to revitalize Supermassive’s cherished PS4 horror gem with improved graphics and gameplay enhancements. Unfortunately, the remake fell short of expectations, marred by numerous issues, leading to its underwhelming return. Now, industry chatter points to the studio being on the brink of closing down.
In recent developments, Insider Gaming reports that Ballistic Moon laid off approximately 40 employees in September 2024. The remaining staff continued to support the game post-launch in October. However, by December 2024, an additional 20 members of the team were let go, thinning the ranks down to just a handful of people, including the founders. Alarmingly, there are now no staff members in the studio’s PR, marketing, and development departments.
One insider recounted to Insider Gaming, “Gamers have been flagging bugs to alert the team, but unfortunately, there’s no one available to work on game patches anymore. The studio is essentially shut down.”
Rumors suggest that attempts by Ballistic Moon’s management to secure funding and pitch new projects haven’t panned out successfully. Despite these setbacks, many employees reportedly had positive experiences at the studio, although there were complaints about instances of unpaid overtime, with some team members going unpaid for “weeks” of work.
As it stands, the fate of Ballistic Moon remains uncertain, with no official word on whether the studio plans to close permanently.
In related Until Dawn news, January saw the release of the first trailer for Sony Pictures Entertainment’s film adaptation of the game. Interestingly, the film appears to share only its name with the original 2015 game, as the trailer takes a different narrative approach. Directed by David F. Sandberg, and featuring Ella Rubin, Odessa A’zion, and Michael Cimino, the film is slated for a theatrical release on April 25.
