Sony Interactive Entertainment has canceled development subsidiary Haven Interactive Studios‘ May 2023-announced multiplayer shooter Fairgame$, according to a Bloomberg report.
A spokesperson for Sony Interactive Entertainment told Bloomberg there will be no job cuts as a result of the cancellation, and that Haven Interactive Studios will move to support other studios within the organization.
In an email to employees today, which was reviewed by Bloomberg, Sony Interactive Entertainment executives Sean Decker and John Doyle said a recent playtest with thousands of players—likely the “Project Espresso” playtest we reported on in September—did not deliver on the results the organizations expected.
“While the test demonstrated strong operational excellence, live ops readiness, and community engagement, player feedback and retention results were mixed and fell short of the goals we had set,” the email reads. “Combined with challenging market conditions in the [player-versus-player] shooter genre, we have made the difficult decision to cease development on the game.”
Fairgame$ was planned for release on PlayStation 5 and PC.