On May 29, 2024, Worldwalker Games co-owner Nate Austin posted a bittersweet update: that the studio was ending development on its beloved indie TRPG Wildermyth. The devs still plan to finish everything that’s already in progress, including ports, translations, and the OST Kickstarter, as well as continuing to fix critical bugs as needed, but there will be no new content on the horizon.
In his announcement, Austin emphasized that ending active development was the studio’s own choice. This farewell has nothing to do with how Wildermyth and its recent DLC Omenroad are performing—in fact, he said that sales have continued to be very strong. However, after spending the last 11 years working on Wildermyth, the devs are ready to move on. This wasn't a financial cull for stock prices, but just the logical end of a project that had been worked on for so long.
And so, Worldwalker Games is being shuttered, at least for now. Austin did end on a hopeful note, saying that he’s fairly confident they’ll eventually find a new passion project and come out swinging.
I’m reminded of a Tumblr post that makes the rounds on social media every now and then. It talks about how we tend to only consider something “successful” if it lasts forever. After all, a company that shuts its doors is, by definition, a failed company, right? But the devs from Worldwalker have chosen a different kind of success. They accomplished what they set out to do (and then some), they created something amazing, and they’re satisfied with that. Now they’re ready to—voluntarily—shelve this project and start looking for a new adventure. Would that we could all be so successful.
In an era filled with companies releasing games filled with massive microtransactions or announcing huge layoffs just for their own bottom line, seeing an indie game we reviewed years ago do well enough to complete its goals and then move on is heartwarming, even if a bit bittersweet. We would love to cover more stories like this, rather than of corporate greed.
To Nate and the rest of the Worldwalker team: Good game.
Writer’s Note: Hello all. I know content from me has been sparse; these last couple of years have been some of the worst, and then best, of my life. I had a bit of a mental breakdown (I’m much better now), and less than a year later I bought a house(?!) with my girlfriend(?!!) and we moved in together(?!?!?!?). It's been a wild ride.
I know I shouldn’t be sorry for taking the time I needed for myself, but part of me still feels guilty about letting SnD slide. Regardless, coming off of my hiatus to say goodbye to some incredible game devs just feels right.
