Carbine Studios, the developer of MMO WildStar, is closing down.
Korean publisher NCSoft, which owns Carbine Studios, announced the news in a statement to Kotaku: “Today, we are closing Carbine Studios and will begin the process of winding WildStar down to ultimately shutter the game. WildStar players who have spent money within the game will be refunded purchases from July 1, 2018 until the payment system is shut off. We are also in the process of identifying the teams that will be doing the work to bring WildStar to a close. These decisions are very difficult to make and we are in the midst of shifting as many of our teammates as possible into other roles within the organization.”
Carbine Studios had 50 employees. It was founded in 2005 and boasted staff who previously worked on World of Warcraft at Blizzard. WildStar was launched in 2014, initially with a monthly subscription model, before it went free-to-play in 2015. But it failed to garner a significant following, and in February 2016, Carbine Studios laid off a number of staff.
Currently, WildStar’s official website hasn’t caught up with the news. But it’s worth keeping an eye on if you seek reimbursement for in-game purchases made since July 1, 2018, along with news about when the game will close for good.
