Those who remained were asked to pick up the slack, as leadership apparently mandated overtime to help the project over the finish line. However, a studio spokesperson told IGN that development is “continuing as planned” with the team’s “full commitment” and “all the necessary resources.”

“As previously stated, the development of Star Wars Eclipse remains unaffected by the recent closure of Spellcasters Chronicles, a decision driven by the challenging market conditions in that segment.

“The development of Star Wars Eclipse is continuing as planned, with the full commitment of its team and all the necessary resources to complete its mission.

“Our priority is to ensure that employees affected by the restructuring process receive the appropriate support, care, and consideration. Out of respect for this ongoing process and for the employees concerned, we will not provide any further comment at this stage.”

First announced in December 2021, reports quickly emerged about the project being three to four years out from launch. Other rumors claimed it had already been in development for 18 months and still lacked a playable build. Quantic Dream would eventually counter reports of delays by stating that it never announced a release date (which is technically correct).

However, it seems things have only barely improved over the years. Fresh rumors claimed that the project was “years off” from completion and currently in “development hell.” Quantic Dream was apparently counting on Spellcasters Chronicles to help fund it. With that possibility out of the window, it remains to be seen if the studio will even remain with NetEase, which has seemingly remained neutral to the current strike.

Speaking to Gamekult, the team behind the title believes that they’re “absolutely essential” to the project and that it “literally cannot be finished” without them. If not retained, those remaining will have to crunch to make up for the loss (overtime reportedly went into effect for Eclipse hours after the announcement of layoffs).

“We believe that, as things stand, the game simply cannot be completed if the layoff plan is implemented as currently proposed,” said one developer.

Together with STJV union, the studio is holding a protest on the same day that a Lucasfilm delegation is set to visit. Its long-term goal is to meet NetEase Games executives (who have apparently remained hands-off throughout) to put pressure on Quantic Dream leadership. The latter is reportedly pushing back against this while also claiming that failure to return to work could lead to Eclipse’s cancellation and the studio facing bankruptcy.

As for why there’s been little to no communication on the title – announced in December 2021 at The Game Awards – it’s apparently due to “multiple delays and massive disorganization.” Negotiations are still ongoing, so stay tuned for updates. Unfortunately, the situation with Quantic Dream and the recent layoffs at Bungie is only a taste of what’s still to come.

In a series of social media posts, Trinel has described the coming layoffs as “just the beginning of a massive bloodbath” for studios owned by publishers.

Along with game development companies under Microsoft, like id Software and Bethesda, Trinel has also pointed to other major developers, like DON’T NOD and Quantic Dream. He said that there are “a lot of layoffs expected in many very well-known studios. It’s going to be a catastrophe.”

Along with these companies, Trinel has also indicated that BioWare might be in trouble as well, which is likely, considering Electronic Arts’ current need to make more revenue thanks to its structured buyout.

“The echoes I’ve been able to pick up tonight are far from encouraging,” wrote Trinel. “This is really just the beginning.”

The Xbox division is noted as being under some heavy scrutiny under the leadership of its new CEO, Asha Sharma, who had spoken about the company ending the fiscal year with an accountability margin of 3 percent lower than the previous year. As part of this, a report has indicated that there will be plenty of other budget cuts throughout Xbox as well, including spending in marketing and “some other areas of the business.”

“We will end this fiscal year at about a 3 percent accountability margin, down year-over-year,” wrote Sharma and Xbox CCO Matt Booty in a recent blog post. “Excluding Activision Blizzard King, over the past five years, we have spent over $20 billion on ongoing investments in our content, platform, and hardware subsidy, but our annual revenue has declined nearly half a billion during that time. Going forward, this cannot continue.”

As for BioWare owner EA, the company is currently in the process of being sold to an investor consortium made up of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Affinity Partners, and Sliver Lake Partners. The deal, valued at around $55 billion, was approved by EA’s shareholders back in December. The next step in the acquisition process is for the company to get approval from government regulators.

BioWare developers had reportedly started becoming concerned about this acquisition quickly after the deal was first announced. Speaking to various outlets, developers had already spoken about being prepared for the worst, with many of them noting that they were making sure that their portfolios were up to date.

“I’ve been doing it since last year, but I’m making sure I have a portfolio ready and feelers out for other jobs,” said a developer. “Kind of feels like a matter of time.”

Others had spoken about continuing to work until the studio is explicitly told to stop. “We’re going to keep working until they tell us we’re done,” they said. “It’s not the healthiest way to live, but as long as the paychecks keep coming, we’re not going to just walk away.”

While discussing the titles that could appear at the upcoming Xbox Games Showcase, he said, “Yeah, it ain’t going well. Quantic Dream..They want to get out from under NetEase. They want to divest from Quantic Dream. I’m not going to be surprised if Quantic Dream is sold by the end of the year…like, ‘Hey, we’re selling or whatever by end of the year or sometime in 2027.’

“It’s not going well. Like, it is not going well at all. And there’s frustration. There’s a lot of frustration about it. So I would not expect that. If they did anything, it would be a ‘We’re still here.'”

Straw reiterated that Quantic Dream was reportedly riding on Spellcasters Chronicles providing funding for Eclipse to help push it across the finish line. Obviously, that didn’t happen with servers planned to shut down on June 19th. It stings all the more considering that the free-to-play 3v3 title reportedly took eight years to develop.

And if that wasn’t enough, the developer is undergoing an “internal reorganization,” which could result in layoffs for up to 95 employees. Given that it’s still early, Quantic Dream couldn’t comment on the severity.

While Star Wars Eclipse could receive a cinematic trailer at, say, Summer Game Fest or the Xbox Games Showcase, reports that it’s still “years off” from completion apparently remain true.

Suffice to say that between this and Knights of the Old Republic – Remake, it’s a tough time to be a fan of narrative-focused Star Wars games. Fortunately, it seems that Arcanaut Studios’ Star Wars: Fate of the Old Republic is making positive progress, with project lead Casey Hudson promising it would launch before 2030. He also noted that it wouldn’t be 200 hours long or feature generative AI in any form.

STJV has also noted that there have been plenty of red flags about the project over the years, and said that management was overconfident about the potential success of Spellcasters Chronicles, citing “30 years of experience” of the leadership team.

“This project, started 8 years ago and led by Guillaume de Fondaumière, David Cage, and Grégorie Diaconu, was supposed to be a ‘reasonably-sized’ project and was planned for a much earlier release,” wrote the union. “Over all these years, nobody questioned the business model or how the game was to become profitable. Catastrophic project management resulted in iteration after iteration, exhausting the team and leading production straight to disaster.”

“It’s sad to say, nobody is surprised by this outcome. Worker representatives have sounded the alarm about the project’s colossal risk level numerous times,” it continued. “In front of employees, management arrogantly explained that success was a given for Spellcasters Chronicles, thanks to ’30 years of experience’ of the decision-makers. In front of the workers’ council, management refused to consider other scenarios and to plan accordingly. Failure was never an option, never thought about, never planned for: incompetence led us here today. Workers pay for management’s misguided ways.”

Along with the management itself, the union has also noted that Quantic Dream shareholder NetEase also shares the blame, thanks in large part to its push to stop development of Spellcasters Chronicles as soon as possible, as well as a lack of marketing surrounding its launch.

STJV wraps up with a list of demands for Quantic Dream, chief among them being the cancellation of all planned terminations. Along with this, the union has also said that the team behind Spellcasters Chronicles should, in the absence of a new project, be reassigned to work on Star Wars Eclipse. The union also wants workers to be “re-categorized at a higher professional rank” in order to give them better rights and employment protections, and for the management and leadership teams to accept responsibility for the failure of the project and to resign immediately.

Spellcasters Chronicles was unveiled in October 2025 and revolves around putting players in the shoes of spellcasters that partake in 3-on-3 PvP battles. Along with spells, players also have the ability to control large armies that include a variety of fantasy creatures, from dragons to skeletons. The title boasted of more than 50 spells and summons.

While the title remains playable for those who already added it to the library until its servers are shut down on June 19th, no new players can give Spellcasters Chronicles a shot, with Steam noting that the game is no longer available on the store.

“With Spellcasters Chronicles, Quantic Dream set out to propose a bold and original multiplayer experience. It gave our studio the opportunity to explore new creative territories and experiment with new concepts. However, in today’s particularly challenging market environment, we must acknowledge that the game, in its current form, has not reached a sufficient audience to ensure its long-term sustainability,” it revealed to IGN in a recent statement.

“We have consequently made the difficult decision to discontinue the development of Spellcasters Chronicles and to refocus our efforts on our other projects. This decision reflects a disciplined and responsible approach in light of current market conditions. It in no way diminishes the remarkable work accomplished by the teams involved. Their talent, creativity, and dedication have been essential in bringing this ambitious project to life, and we are proud of what has been achieved together.” It has yet to announce a shutdown date.

Quantic Dream is also undergoing an “internal reorganization.” “We are fully committed to ensuring that this transition is handled with fairness, care, and respect. Wherever possible, we will prioritize internal reassignments to support our other productions.” Layoffs usually occur in such scenarios, although the developer said it couldn’t comment on those affected due to the legal process in France and because it’s early days yet.

But hey, if it helps, it seems that Star Wars Eclipse “is not affected by this decision and continues as planned.” Announced in 2001 at The Game Awards, the narrative-focused title hasn’t received any gameplay or indication about when it could release.

It’s compounded by reports that Quantic Dream banked on Spellcasters Chronicles delivering some form of recurring revenue. Insider Gaming noted that failure could mean NetEase Games, which owns the studio, could “reevaluate its commitment” and “opt to discontinue further investment.”

Which certainly wouldn’t help Star Wars Eclipse since it’s allegedly “years off from completion,” even if a “good portion” of it is already complete, and Quantic Dream is reportedly hoping to expand the team for the final stretch. Could this potentially lead to the project’s cancellation if NetEase drops it – a situation that Nagoshi Studio’s Gang of Dragon is currently facing?

Time will tell, but it’s certainly a sad state for a studio that once prided itself on cinematic narrative titles with jaw-dropping production values.

Insider Gaming’s Mike Straw reported via Insider Gaming Weekly that it’s been “very slow going,” with one source claiming “very little progress over months.” Another source reportedly said back in December that “The game, at this stage, is still looking to be years off from completion.”

It doesn’t necessarily mean that nothing has been made, as a “good portion” of the title is reportedly complete. But in the games industry, a scary amount of work goes into that final stretch, and Quantic Dream is allegedly lagging in that regard.

While the company reportedly discussed expanding its team, NetEase Games is apparently not interested (which would be in line with its divestment of various external studios, including Nagoshi Studio). Apparently, there’s some hope that revenue from Spellcasters Chronicles, the free-to-play competitive multiplayer that launched in Steam early access to a “Mixed” rating, will help.

“At this stage, the long-term outlook is less driven by creative capabilities and more by financial viability. Should Spellcasters fail commercially, NetEase is expected to reevaluate its commitment to the studio and could opt to discontinue further investment.” Unfortunately, with a lifetime peak of 888 concurrent players on Steam and only 86 in the past 24 hours, it seems that Spellcasters won’t be the savior that Quantic Dream is expecting.

As for Star Wars Eclipse, we’ll have to do what we’ve always done for more than four years – wait for more details. At least there’s concept art for some of the characters floating out there.

Celebrating this milestone, Quantic Dream president, writer and director David Cage has released his own statement about the impactful story of Detroit: Become Human, and how grateful he has been for the community garnered by the game. The fact that this milestone was reached after more than seven years after the original release, noted Cage, is a good indication of how much its story resonates with audiences.

“More than seven years after its release, Detroit: Become Human continues to resonate with audiences, bringing always more players together around the world,” said Cage. “What began as a reflection on choice, empathy, and humanity has become a shared journey for tens of millions of players. This milestone belongs to the community that believed in its story and carried it forward, and everyone at the studio is deeply grateful for their continued support.”

Studio CEO and head of publishing Guillaume de Fondaumière published his own statement celebrating the continued success of Detroit: Become Human. He also praised the power of the game’s story and how its themes encouraged players to reflect on it well after they rolled credits.

“This new milestone highlights the emotional resonance and lasting cultural impact of Detroit: Become Human. The game’s continued success across platforms, generations and continents speaks to the power of stories that place players at the heart of the experience, inviting them not only to play, but to reflect, question, and engage long after the credits roll.”

The last time we saw Quantic Dream celebrate a major sales milestone was back in October 2024 where it announced that Detroit: Become Human had sold more than 10 million units worldwide.

While Quantic Dream hasn’t released a game since Detroit: Become Human, the studio has confirmed that it is working on two distinct projects: the narrative-focused Star Wars Eclipse, which was announced back in 2021, and free-to-play 3v3 multiplayer game Spellcasters Chronicles.

Quantic Dream had last mentioned Star Wars Eclipse back in October, when Cage noted that development on the title has been continuing despite the studio’s silence about it. “Of course, development of Star Wars: Eclipse continues, and we are eager to share more with you in the future,” he said. While few details have been revealed about the game, its development has certainly taken quite a long time. 2024 even saw the game’s lead writer leaving the studio.

As for Spellcasters Chronicles, it was announced just a few months ago, and while Quantic Dream hasn’t yet confirmed a release date, the studio has provided a few details about its gameplay. The spell-focused PvP title will allow players to customize their role in matches by customising their deck of spells, with more than 50 different spells and summons being available. It will also feature a seasonal model that will impact its gameplay and lore.

As the name indicates, combat is heavily spell-focused, but you can also command “armies of hundreds,” including dragons, ogres, and skeletons. Each character is capable of fulfilling different roles by customizing a deck from over 50 spells and summons. You can also harness the power of Titans by controlling the battlefield and creating structures.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a free-to-play title without a seasonal model, with the developer hyping choices that will impact the “gameplay and lore.” Spellcasters Chronicles doesn’t have a release date or window, but you can register for the closed beta here, which will begin on Steam before the year ends.

For those keen on Quantic Dream’s single-player efforts, it has also recently confirmed that Star Wars Eclipse is still in development. While “eager” to showcase more, there’s still no release date or gameplay.

Unfortunately, Cage only provided a single line on its status. “Of course, development of Star Wars: Eclipse continues, and we are eager to share more with you in the future.” When and where remains to be seen, as usual.

The last official update from the studio was at Tokyo Game Show 2023, when Lisa Pende, Quantic Dream’s VP of marketing, said, “Can I say it still exists? Because it exists. It’s just not ready. It’s simmering.” Lead writer Adam Williams would depart the studio in 2024, and character concept art leaked earlier this year, showcasing a Rodian, Gungan, and Zenezian.

Platforms for Star Wars Eclipse have yet to be announced, so stay tuned for more updates. All we know is that it’s an action-adventure game set in the High Republic Era as players venture to the dangerous Outer Rim. Multiple characters are playable, and there’s even a branching narrative alongside a new species.