Skybound Pulls the Plug on Overkill’s The Walking Dead
This multiplayer zombie shooter is officially dead in the water.
By Chris Morse
Update: Skybound has issued a statement of its own, which has been added below.
If cancellation fears weren’t enough to sink OVERKILL Software’s The Walking Dead, Robert Kirkman’s Skybound Entertainment has put the final nail in the coffin for the embattled video game. Following a relatively poor reception after its initial PC launch, the game’s console release was eventually delayed indefinitely as the team scrambled to pick up the pieces and figure out where to go from there.
Due to the delay, refunds were issued for existing pre-orders, which led to speculation that the console releases might not happen at all. Interestingly, publisher 505 Games issued a response to insist that the game was not cancelled and was still merely delayed, but now the narrative has taken yet another twist. The “still delayed” talk may have been true at the time, but it would now appear that the console release, as well as all future content, has been cancelled for a different reason altogether: Skybound has terminated its contract with the publisher effective immediately.
The company issued the following statement on the discontinuation of OVERKILL’s game and it certainly does not mince words regarding the disappointment surrounding it.
As of today, we have terminated our contract with Starbreeze Studios and will discontinue all efforts on OVERKILL’S THE WALKING DEAD. Our creators and their stories are the core of Skybound, and since 2014 we have worked hard to expand the world of The Walking Dead into an exceptional Co-op Action FPS. We did our best to work with Starbreeze and resolve many issues that we saw with the game, but ultimately OVERKILL’S THE WALKING DEAD did not meet our standards nor is it the quality that we were promised. We are exceedingly sorry to our fans and share in their disappointment in the game.
Skybound followed up late in the day with a statement of its own, indicating that the team is trying to reach a solution with Skybound to allow the game to remain available for sale, despite how unlike that seems at this time. You can read that below.
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN (February 27, 2019) – Skybound, the rightsholder of the OVERKILL’s The Waling Dead title (OTWD), has received a notice of termination regarding the license agreement with Starbreeze for OTWD.
Starbreeze has a dialogue with Skybound with the ambition to reach a solution. Starbreeze has been informed that the product likely will be disabled for further sales on the platform Steam and should Starbreeze and Skybound not reach a solution, it would mean that the game will not be made available for sale again on Steam, and that the console version would not be released.
Sales related to OTWD amounted to SEK 34.1 million in the fourth quarter 2018. Costs related to development of OTWD has so far exceeded revenue. There are no assets related to OTWD in Starbreeze Group balance sheet.
At this point, it’s safe to assume that this termination means a full stop to all efforts on the development of this game. That would not only include the console release, but also any future content updates that have been planned out up until this point. Needless to say, unlike the recently deceased in Robert Kirkman’s apocalyptic world, this game has no hopes of being resurrected in any capacity.
Regardless of this title’s untimely fate, you can be sure that we will continue to cover all the latest news and updates on The Walking Dead franchise right here on Dead Entertainment.
Refunded Preorders for Console Version of Overkill’s The Walking Dead Spark Cancellation Fears
The publisher has released a statement to clear the air about the postponement.
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