Worlds Untold, the studio founded by Mass Effect and Anthem veteran Mac Walters under the auspices of Chinese gaming giant NetEase, has seemingly announced that it's effectively shutting down.
In a post on LinkedIn, Worlds Untold says it's made the "very difficult decision to pause operations" while it searches for a "new partner to help bring [its] vision to life", which makes it sound as though NetEase might not be part of the picture anymore.
Though the studio insists that "this isn't goodbye" and that "there's more to come", it does say that Worlds Untold staff will be "exploring new opportunities" while the search goes on, so it sounds like Worlds Untold expects to be out of commission for quite some time.
Walters announced the formation of Worlds Untold back in late 2023, at which point he also said his new studio would focus on "AAA action-adventure games with an emphasis on narrative and worldbuilding".
Worlds Untold's first game would, according to Walters, be a "near-future action-adventure game in a breathtaking world filled with mystery and exploration", although he didn't offer any further information.
Believe it or not, Walters isn't the first BioWare veteran to face the closure of his studio this week. Just yesterday, Mass Effect director Casey Hudson's studio Humanoid Origin announced its closure, pointing to "an unexpected shortfall of funding" as its reason.
Of course, Walters' studio's situation is a little different. After all, it boasts - or boasted - funding from Chinese gaming titan NetEase, so its closure is perhaps a more worrying sign for other NetEase proponents than that of Humanoid Origin.
NetEase has made a name for itself as a place where industry figures can found studios with creative freedom; other folks who've started up studios under NetEase's umbrella include Call of Duty veteran David Vonderhaar, Dragon Quest producer Ryutaro Ichimura, and ex-Ubisoft staffer Sean Crooks.
They, as well as others who've thrown their lot in with NetEase, may be looking at the closure of Worlds Untold with some consternation, although it's possible that Walters' studio is an isolated incident. We'll bring you more on this as soon as we get it.
