HUNT: Horrors of the Gilded Age was first announced back in June of 2014 and there hasn’t been much in the way of information since that first announcement. Cyrtek came forward with a cool looking trailer that reminded some of Left 4 Dead and in hindsight made the game look quite a bit like The Order: 1886. Finally we’ve gotten a tiny bit of new information about the game that shows at the very least, it hasn’t been canceled.

We did know that development of the game was actually moved from Crytek USA to Crytek Frankfurt and now the CryEngine’s Brand Manager Marcel Hatam has taken to Twitter to announce this game’s development is “going well.” That was also the extent of the information Hatam was willing to actually let slip even when he was pressed on any other details about when people could see a demo or even a plan on a release schedule.

Hatam responded that he didn’t really have the ok to say anything other than the fact the development was continuing but he wasn’t going to be letting anything else slip. This isn’t exactly shocking considering how under wraps the development has gone so far. At the same time, it’s still a bit odd that we’re two years out and Crytek can’t give any more information. It’s still coming, and HUNT: Horrors of the Gilded Age is expected to be released on the PC, PS4 and the Xbox One when it finally does launches, but that launch date isn’t yet known.

Crytek UK is no more and development of Homefront: The Revolution has shifted to Dambuster Studios with the IP being acquired by Deep Silver. Crytek has revealed that free to play co-op shooter Hunt: Horrors of the Gilded Age will be shifting development from Crytek USA to the home office in Frankfurt.

However, sources speaking to Kotaku revealed that studio head David Adams, along with other senior staff at Crytek USA, have quit following lack of pay. About 30 to 35 employees have left the studio as of last week. It seems that Crytek CEO Cevat Yerli told staff members in May that a bank deal would be put together by June 20th so despite weeks of no payment, the team at Crytek USA still kept going. After June 20th though, staff members simply stopped going to work with some already going to new places to work.

One source connected to Crytek USA stated that, “Everyone at that studio was incredibly talented, and they got scooped up quickly by studios that actually pay their employees.”

Is this the end of Crytek as we know it? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Crytek has announced a new multiplayer IP for PC and consoles just in time for E3. HUNT: Horrors of the Gilded Age will be a third person co-op action title wherein four players team up to face various hulking beasts and monsters. It’s being billed as the debut title from Crytek USA and will be showcased at E3 from June 10th to 12th. Check out the reveal trailer for the game above.

CEO of Crytek USA David Adams said, “In HUNT: Horrors of the Gilded Age, players will be counting their bullets and crying out for help as they delve deeper into the shadowy world we’ve created. From the outset of the development process, we’ve poured our imaginations into the game so that everyone who plays HUNT will discover a challenging experience that feels fresh, captivating and rich in possibilities.”

HUNT will take place in the late 1800s and involve various myths and folklore. A special content generation system promises that you won’t see the same environment and fight the same enemies twice. HUNT enters closed beta testing for PC later this year and you can sign up for the same here.

“We are not a developer. We should not create a sequel. We need to find the best creative team to look into a sequel. We will look into various options to make sequels. In the last 24 hours we have been approached by people who seem to know that product very well. However, if those discussions lead anywhere, I don’t know.”

“Without saying we have been in contact with Crytek USA, I’d love to do something with them if we can find the right set-up. If they can prove they can make a worthwhile sequel, why shouldn’t we talk? I have a great respect for those guys. They made very good games. But I’m sure they have a full agenda. Making games takes time.”

Wingefors felt that Crytek USA “are the best-suited people in the world to make a sequel, that I’m aware of. But if someone else has a better set-up, they should step forward. We take one day at a time. I’m sure we’ll get the chance to speak.”

Court documents show that of the 17 bids made, with final offers still pending court approval, the total amounts to roughly $6 to $7 million. As of now, it’s unknown who won the bids but we do know that TeamPixel lost out on trying to capture Homeworld, for which they’ll be refunding various backers.

IPs involved in the auction includ Darksiders, Red Faction, the MX series, and of course, THQ’s licensed software. Wrapping up of the auction’s proceedings was expected to be done by mid-May but it appears things will be well and truly over by May end. Stay tuned in the coming weeks for details on the new IP owners.

Even Crytek CEO Cevat Yerli, who eventually made a deal with Vigil founder David Adams to form Crytek USA from the 20-30 employees available, had no idea.

Speaking to GamesBeat, he said, “We were surprised when nobody bid on Vigil. We would have liked to have bid, but there were too many unknowns.

“I thought that maybe we could reconsider bidding, but eventually we decided not to because the projects [the developer was working on] weren’t strategically fit for us, but I really liked David [when I talked to him] on the phone. He made a very good impression on me as someone who really cared, someone who is really passionate about what he does, and someone who is passionate about the team he works with.”

However, there won’t be a Darksiders 3 “since that doesn’t fit with our strategy” according to Yerli. Though Crytek USA isn’t bound by a specific concept, this fact means we won’t be seeing the Four Horseman again anytime soon.

Source: GIBiz