Earthblade would be the next game from the creators behind 2D pixel art action hits TowerFall And Celeste. But on Wednesday, designer Maddy Thorson revealed that the project was quietly canceled last month after disagreements arose between some team members and a realization that the game's lengthy development had become a real slog.
“We on the inside have had some time to process this, grieve and work towards accepting it, although this process is non-linear and ongoing,” Thorson wrote. “For those who are just now reading this and may be emotionally invested in this project, we are sorry to disappoint you.”
Earthblade was announced by the indie team Extremely good games in 2021 and revealed its first gameplay in a trailer at the Game Awards 2022. A release was originally planned for 2023, but development did not progress as quickly as the team expected. A planned start in 2024 was also ultimately delayed.
In today's cancellation announcement, Thorson writes about a dispute with pixel artist Pedro Medeiros, whose visual style determined the upcoming project's aesthetic, over a dispute related to IP rights Celestethe popular 2018 GOTY contender. “We eventually came to an agreement, but in the end both parties also agreed that we should go our separate ways.” Earthbladewrote the director. “Pedro is working on his game now Absolutely notwhich you should definitely check out – we’ve played it and it’s very promising.”
Thorson then gave insight into the difficult development of the latest project. “CelesteThe success of put pressure on us to deliver something bigger and better Earthbladeand this pressure is one of the reasons why working on it has become so strenuous,” Thorson wrote. “It's not Pedro's fault – in fact, parting with him gave us the clarity to realize we've lost our way and the opportunity to admit defeat. I have a lot of feelings about it, but one big feeling is undoubtedly relief.”
For now Thorson and Celeste Co-creator Noel Berry has returned to prototyping new potential projects while the rest of the team has moved on. The dream of Earthblade may be dead, but the minds behind it aren't done making games yet.
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