Immortals of Aveum developer furloughs majority of staff - report

Ascendant Studios, the developer behind last year's EA-published magic shooter Immortals of Aveum, has reportedly furloughed the majority of its staff.

The situation first came to light via a LinkedIn post from Kris Morness, a former staff member now employed elsewhere, and has since been corroborated by Polygon reporter Nicole Carpenter, who wrote that «a large portion» of the company was put on furlough.

Ascendant Studios is yet to comment on the matter, though Eurogamer has now asked for more detail.

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The decision to furlough staff means the employees have, on paper, been retained — meaning they are not due severance. The move follows earlier layoffs of around 45 percent of the studio less than a month after Immortals of Aveum was released last year to a lukewarm reception.

It's unclear how many employees not on furlough remain, or what Ascendant's next moves may be.

Just over a month ago, Ascendant Studios founder Bret Robbins stated that the Immortals of Aveum franchise would grow for «years and years» into a cult classic like Dead Space — the beloved EA sci-fi horror series that was just revealed to have been reportedly put back on ice.

Immortals of Aveum this month arrived on PlayStation Plus, eight months after its release following poor initial sales.