Celeste Team Scraps Earthblade After Legal Disputes

Earthblade, the highly anticipated project from the Celeste developers, has been cancelled due to internal team conflicts. This article details the circumstances surrounding the cancellation.

Internal Discord Leads to Cancellation

Extremely OK Games (EXOK), the studio behind the acclaimed Celeste, announced the cancellation of Earthblade on their website. EXOK Director Maddy Thorson explained that a significant internal rift, involving herself, programmer Noel Berry, and former art director Pedro Medeiros, ultimately led to the decision. The core of the conflict stemmed from a disagreement over the intellectual property rights of Celeste, a matter Thorson chose not to elaborate on.

While a resolution was reached, it resulted in Medeiros departing to pursue his own project, Neverway, under a new studio. Thorson emphasized that despite the circumstances, there are no hard feelings, and any negativity towards Medeiros and his team is unwelcome within the EXOK community.

The loss of Medeiros wasn't the sole reason for cancellation, but it highlighted underlying issues. Thorson acknowledged that Earthblade's development was further behind schedule than expected, and the pressure to surpass the success of Celeste contributed to team burnout. The decision to cancel, she stated, was a recognition that the project had lost its way.

EXOK's Future Focus

With a reduced team, Thorson and Berry plan to refocus on smaller-scale projects, prioritizing a more organic development process reminiscent of their work on Celeste and TowerFall. They expressed a desire to collaborate with former team members in the future. The statement concluded with a message of moving forward and rediscovering the joy of game development.

Earthblade was envisioned as an explor-action platformer featuring Névoa, a child of Fate, exploring a ruined Earth. The cancellation marks a significant setback, but EXOK aims to learn from this experience and embark on new creative endeavors.