Electronic Arts cancels Black Panther game, closes Cliffhanger Games

Electronic Arts has canceled its third-person single-player game based on Marvel’s Black Panther franchise and will shut down developer Cliffhanger Games, according to an IGN report.

“These decisions are hard,” said Electronic Arts Entertainment president Laura Miele in an email sent to staff. “They affect people we’ve worked with, learned from, and shared real moments with. We’re doing everything we can to support them—including finding opportunities within [Electronic Arts], where we’ve had success helping people land in new roles.”

Electronic Arts is also laying off staff on both its mobile and central teams, but the company declined to comment on the number of employees affected.

According to Miele, these changes are being done to “sharpen [Electronic Arts’] focus and put our creative energy behind the most significant growth opportunities.” Going forward, Miele said, Electronic Arts intends to focus on a small handful of franchises, including Apex Legends, Battlefield, The Sims, and skate. She also assured that the company is continuing production on its Iron Man game in at Motive, the third entry in the Star Wars: Jedi series at Respawn Entertainment, and the next Mass Effect game at BioWare.