Abbey Games 'scoping down' and terminating all employee contracts by 2020

Dutch indie Abbey Games announced yesterday (via forum post) that it will end all contracts with its employees by December 31st in an effort to "scope down" and get its Early Access god game Godhood to 1.0 by 2020.

It's yet unclear how many people will lose their jobs, but this appears to bring Abbey Games' 8-year run as a game developer to a close following Godhood's full release.

The company says it plans to launch the game out of Early Access in the first half of next year, but after that Abbey doesn't expect to update it or continue operating as anything more than a publisher for its catalog of games: Reus, Renowned Explorers (pictured), and Godhood.

Gamasutra has reached out to the studio for further details and comment on the situation. If you or someone you know has been affected by this situation, you can email Gamasutra to tell your story confidentially.

Update: An Abbey Games representative has told Gamasutra that while the four Abbey Games founders/owners will stay on and seek a way to avoid bankruptcy, the other seven staffers will have their contracts either terminated or not renewed by January of next year.

Another Abbey Games staffer wrote in to say that while they're unhappy about the studio's financial situation, their contract is being honored and they're receiving appropriate benefits. They report that staff inside the studio are finishing out their contracts and updating their portfolios together, noting that "it's not a Telltale situation" but "it would be nice if you could...send some recruiters our way."