Wreckreation Developer Three Fields Entertainment Issues Studio-Wide Redundancy Notice
▼ Summary
– Three Fields Entertainment, the studio behind Wreckreation, has placed its entire staff at risk of redundancy.
– CEO Fiona Sperry announced the studio will not see revenue from game sales soon, with Wreckreation’s Steam player count peaking at only 199.
– The studio had to self-fund development for most of the year, including post-launch content, after lacking publisher support.
– Sperry expressed that without publisher enthusiasm or financial backing, the studio cannot sustain its current form.
– The founders, Fiona Sperry and Alex Ward, previously co-founded Criterion, the maker of the Burnout series.
The studio behind the recent open-world driving title Wreckreation has issued a redundancy notice to its entire staff, a devastating blow following the game’s challenging launch. Three Fields Entertainment, founded by former Criterion Games leads Fiona Sperry and Alex Ward, confirmed the news through a LinkedIn post from CEO Sperry. She explained that despite releasing the game last October through publisher THQ Nordic, the studio “will not see revenue from game sales for the foreseeable future,” a situation underscored by the game’s modest peak of 199 concurrent players on Steam. This financial reality has forced the difficult decision to place all employees at risk.
Sperry detailed that for most of the past year, the studio had been operating on self-funded capital, including resources allocated for post-launch content and updates. The core issue, however, was a lack of ongoing publisher engagement. “Without the enthusiasm or financial support from our publisher to continue development, we simply cannot sustain the studio in its current form,” she wrote, describing the choice as unbelievably painful. This leaves numerous planned features and creative updates, showcased in a final public video, in limbo.
The announcement marks a heartbreaking chapter for the team, which believed strongly in the unrealized potential of their project. Sperry expressed a faint hope that publicly revealing their unfinished work might attract a new opportunity, but framed the move primarily as a testament to the team’s dedication. “We want this to stand as a testament to our vision and to the strength, passion, and skill of our tiny team,” she stated, affirming her belief in both the game and the people who built it.
Three Fields Entertainment was established in 2014 by Sperry and Ward, veterans best known for their foundational work on the iconic Burnout series at Criterion. The studio’s prior releases include titles like Dangerous Golf, Lethal Zone, and Danger Zone, which explored similar high-octane, physics-based destruction. The current situation highlights the precarious nature of game development, where even teams with esteemed pedigrees can face insurmountable hurdles after launch, especially when expected commercial and partner support fails to materialize.
(Source: Games Industry)
