NetEase’s Closure of Greg Street’s MMO Ghost Marks Another Loss in the Gaming Industry

The Closure of Fantastic Pixel Castle: Another Blow to the Gaming Industry

It is with a heavy heart that we report yet another games studio facing closure. Fantastic Pixel Castle, led by industry veteran Greg Street, known for his contributions to World of Warcraft and League of Legends, will be shutting down its operations. The studio had ambitious plans for an MMO codenamed Ghost, with NetEase as the publisher. However, a recent announcement on LinkedIn by Street revealed that the doors of Fantastic Pixel Castle will be closing for good on November 17.

”Fantastic Pixel Castle will close its doors on Nov 17,” Street shared. “While there is still a chance for funding post-closure, it will depend on the remaining team members. Our priority now is to assist our developers in finding new opportunities, whether within an indie studio version of Fantastic Pixel Castle or at other reputable game and tech companies.”

The closure of Fantastic Pixel Castle adds to a growing list of setbacks for NetEase in the gaming industry. Earlier in the year, the company laid off US-based developers working on Marvel Rivals. In August, T-Minus Zero Entertainment, founded by former BioWare developer Rich Vogel, met a similar fate. This trend of cutbacks and closures across various studios raises concerns about the stability of the industry.

Little was known about Ghost, the project at the heart of Fantastic Pixel Castle’s ambitions. Without intervention, the fate of this unreleased MMO remains uncertain. Unfortunately, the cancellation of MMO projects is not uncommon, as seen recently with Amazon’s decision to halt development on their Lord of the Rings MMO. Our thoughts are with the developers at Fantastic Pixel Castle during this challenging time.