Celeste Devs Announce Cancellation of Earthblade Amidst Disagreements

Earthblade Cancellation: A Heartbreaking Update from Extremely OK Games

Extremely OK Games (EXOK), the creators of the acclaimed indie title Celeste, have announced the cancellation of their highly anticipated project, Earthblade. This decision, detailed in a recent update on their website, stems from internal team challenges and disagreements.

EXOK Director Maddy Thorson explained that a significant contributing factor was a fracture within the team, involving herself, programmer Noel Berry, and former art director Pedro Medeiros. The core of the conflict revolved around a disagreement regarding the intellectual property rights of Celeste, a matter Thorson chose not to elaborate on publicly.

While a resolution was reached, it resulted in Medeiros's departure to pursue his own project, Neverway, under a new studio. Thorson emphasized that despite the circumstances, there are no hard feelings, and she hopes for future collaborations.

The team's struggles extended beyond the personnel changes. Thorson acknowledged the immense pressure stemming from Celeste's success, impacting the development process and ultimately leading to the decision to cancel Earthblade. The project, while promising, was not as far along as anticipated after an extended development period.

Looking Ahead: A Return to Roots

With a significant portion of the team moving on, EXOK is now refocusing on smaller-scale projects. Thorson and Berry plan to return to a more organic development process, similar to their work on Celeste and TowerFall. They expressed hope for future collaborations with former team members.

Earthblade, envisioned as an explor-action platformer centered around the character Névoa, will not see the light of day. However, EXOK remains committed to creating games, aiming to recapture the creative joy that fueled their past successes.