Earthblade, a Game by Celeste Devs, Cancelled Due to \"Disagreements\"

Earthblade, the highly anticipated sequel from the Celeste developers, has been cancelled due to internal team conflicts. This article details the events leading to the game's cancellation.

Internal Disagreements Lead to Cancellation

Extremely OK Games (EXOK), the studio behind the acclaimed Celeste, announced the cancellation of Earthblade on their website. In a statement, Director Maddy Thorson attributed the cancellation to internal fracturing within the team, specifically citing disagreements regarding the intellectual property rights of Celeste between herself, programmer Noel Berry, and former art director Pedro Medeiros. While a resolution was reached, it resulted in Medeiros' departure to pursue his own project, Neverway. Thorson emphasized that there are no hard feelings and welcomed continued collaboration in the future.

Beyond the IP dispute, Thorson acknowledged that the project's protracted development and the pressure to surpass the success of Celeste contributed to the team's burnout and ultimately led to the decision to cancel Earthblade. The game's progress was deemed insufficient for the time invested.

EXOK's Future Focus

With a significant portion of the team moving on, Thorson and Berry plan to refocus on smaller-scale projects, returning to a development style reminiscent of their work on Celeste and TowerFall. They expressed a desire to collaborate with former team members in the future.

Earthblade was envisioned as an explor-action platformer following the journey of Névoa, a child of Fate, on a ruined Earth. While the cancellation is disappointing, EXOK aims to learn from this experience and move forward with renewed creative energy.