Gazillion staff reportedly sacked as Marvel Heroes closure is accelerated

It seems as if Marvel Heroes will close a month ahead of schedule and that its developer Gazillion has been shut down.

The game’s termination was announced last week, at which time it was claimed that it would continue to operate until the end of the year. Now multiple reports, including the original from Massively OP, claim that the studio has already been closed.

Furthermore, as per an apparent leaked memo from Gazillion CEO Dave Dohrmann, it has been claimed that funding has been yanked from the studio and that all staff have already been laid off – and without their severance, promised benefits and accrued holiday pay.

Indeed, Gazillion staff such as Andrew Hair have confirmed the news on Twitter.

The game itself will also apparently go offline tomorrow (November 24th) – over a month ahead of previously announced December 31st date.

I know a lot of people are upset and wanting refunds for their purchases in @MarvelHeroes, but please keep in mind the developers were not paid out PTO, severance, and our medical insurance is ending in 8 days.

— Andrew Hair (@andrewhair) November 22, 2017

“We’re sad to inform our players and our entire Marvel Heroes family that Marvel Heroes Omega will be shutting down,” a statement on the game’s website said just last week.

“The Marvel Heroes servers will stay on until Dec 31, 2017, and we’ll be removing real money purchases as soon as possible. Players will be able to play the game entirely for free once this sunset period commences. We will share the exact date things go completely free as soon as we can.

“We’ve had the privilege of entertaining and collaborating with our players for over four years. We’re extremely humbled by that privilege and wanted to get this message out: Thank you. Thank you to our players, our tireless employees, and everyone involved in the life of Marvel Heroes, Marvel Heroes 2015, Marvel Heroes 2016, and Marvel Heroes Omega.”

Marvel Heroes originally released in 2013. It’s a free-to-play action RPG title that is supported with microtransactions. A console version for PS4 and Xbox One arrived under the name Marvel Heroes Omega was released in the summer. Gazillion signed a 10-year exclusivity deal to produce Marvel games in 2009.

Yesterday we reported that some players who sunk money into Marvel Heroes since its release only a few months ago are demanding refunds.