For fans of Telltale Games, yesterday’s news felt like a swift punch to the gut. With the second episode of The Walking Dead: The Final Season just days away from release, reports hit the web that the company was preparing to shut down. This effectively means that all of the upcoming games that the company has been planning are cancelled, including The Wolf Among Us 2 and a game based on Stranger Things.
An official statement from Telltale confirms that the company has laid off almost its entire workforce, after the past year gave them “insurmountable challenges.” It’s noted that a team of 25 employees will remain behind to fulfill the current obligations of the company. While the dying company’s plans aren’t yet clear, players of The Walking Dead: The Game were hoping this would mean Telltale would at least finish the final season, giving Clementine a proper sendoff.
From the statement:
It’s been an incredibly difficult year for Telltale as we worked to set the company on a new course. Unfortunately, we ran out of time trying to get there. We released some of our best content this year and received a tremendous amount of positive feedback, but ultimately, that did not translate to sales. With a heavy heart, we watch our friends leave today to spread our brand of storytelling across the games industry.
Telltale will issue further comments regarding its product portfolio in the coming weeks.
Sadly, USGamer reports that the team working on The Walking Dead are among those to be laid off. Those still there are apparently working on the Netflix edition of Minecraft: Story Mode. While Telltale has yet to verify this news, the site reports that production on the game will completely end following the release of the second episode of The Walking Dead: The Final Season.
Clementine’s voice actress, Melissa Hutchison, also seems to confirm this news on Twitter. In a message to her fans thanking them for support, Hutchison herself admits that it appears the series is over for good. “To my knowledge, they will release Episode 2 and then that will be it,” explains the heartbroken voice over artist.
Knowing about the demise of Telltale Games is crushing, and hearing this just feels like having salt poured in the wound. With just two unfinished episodes left to go in the series, it seems like such a painful stopping point.
Stay tuned for official updates on this game and Telltale’s other planned projects.
