After yesterday’s news that Telltale would be closing its doors and cancelling all future projects, fans were left with countless questions surrounding the future of their beloved franchises, the games Telltale were publishing and of course, the fate of the talented developers who were suddenly let go.
Although the cancellation of fan favourites like The Wolf Among Us and Tales From The Borderlands is absolutely tragic, I’m personally grieving the most for The Walking Dead which is almost undoubtedly ending unfinished after the second episode in the final season drops later this week. The Lead Episode Designer, Emily Grace Buck, responded to stunned players on Twitter and pretty much laid the issue to rest:
Please stop asking me about future Telltale releases. I don’t work for Telltale anymore, they terminated me yesterday.
Same goes for everyone else terminated yesterday. We. No. Longer. Work. There.
— Emily Grace Buck plz hire TTG devs! (@emilybuckshot) September 22, 2018
“The Company will finish it” With who? “The company” doesn’t make games. The people who worked for Telltale made games. Devs aren’t interchangeable cogs- the game reflects the people who make it. The Walking Dead: TFS Team is gone. We alllll got terminated yesterday. — Emily Grace Buck plz hire TTG devs! (@emilybuckshot) September 22, 2018
Telltale also published games from other developers, such as 7 Days to Die, and were set to bring the island survival/ crafting game Stranded Deep to consoles early next month too, which they crazily announced a day before the studio went under. While the future remains uncertain, Beam Team Games has let fans know that they’re seeking information from Telltale and are committed to doing everything they can to see a release on PlayStation and Xbox:
We’re actively gathering info in light of the recent announcements from Telltale. From our side, there’s been a lot of hard work from everyone involved and we’ll be doing absolutely everything we can to ensure the release and success of SD on consoles! We’ll keep you posted.
— Stranded Deep (@BeamTeamGames) September 22, 2018
Perhaps the saddest part of this whole messy ordeal is that scores of talented game developers are now looking for work elsewhere. Thankfully though, it seems as though the community of gamers and companies are getting behind the devs and posting everything they can about employment opportunities:
#TelltaleJobs folks — meet us Monday 9/24 on the patio at BJ’s in San Rafael starting at 4:30PM. Let’s talk about job opportunities over some drinks & food, our treat. https://t.co/RAOWQU3Z1o #UbiSF
— Ubisoft SF (@UbisoftStudioSF) September 21, 2018
To all of our friends affected by the reported #Telltale news, please feel to check out the openings on our Careers page. We have plenty of awesome #RADjobs open and would love to hear from you. #gamejobs #gamedevsjobshttps://t.co/MaDhxHhmmz — Ready At Dawn (@RAD_Studios) September 21, 2018
We are so sorry to hear about #TellTaleGames & wanted to let you know we are currently hiring for the following positions -UI Artist -Combat Designer -Systems Designer -Design Implementer -Level Designer You can find more details here: https://t.co/amdVdR68dB#gamejobs #gamedev
— Gunfire Games (@gunfire_games) September 21, 2018
So while we all still collectively mourn the loss of Telltale and the amazing games they’ve delivered over the years, it seems as though there is a glimmer of hope for all of the wonderful and talented people its closure has affected. Although we’re deeply saddened here at WellPlayed (and shocked at their apparent working conditions), we also can’t wait to see the kind of impact that the ex-Telltale team will bring to other studios.
If they had waterproof controllers in the 80s, Edward would probably have been gaming in the womb. He'll play anything with a pixel and would rather make console love, not console wars. PSN / XBL: CptLovebone