Vienna-based Ori developer Moon Studios is not actually in trouble, according to its own founder and CEO, Thomas Mahler.
On the developer's Discord, Mahler had told fans in no uncertain terms that they need their help to survive and complete No Rest for the Wicked. The studio's latest game, a top-down action RPG, debuted around a year ago on Steam Early Access and just received a large update. However, the player numbers aren't that great, and neither are the user reviews (72% for the recent ones, 74% overall), with the latter leading to the former. Mahler claimed (as first reported by Gamereactor) that Moon Studios is the victim of 'review bombing' and asked true fans to help counterbalance the phenomenon with their own reviews of No Rest for the Wicked.
I think people think I'm joking when I'm asking for positive reviews cause in people's mind there's always some big publisher in the background who'll cover costs...
Folks, if you're writing here and are enjoying Wicked and are excited for future updates, but haven't left a positive review, it's entirely possible that we won't be around in a couple of months to do anything anymore simply because we got review bombed which leads to people not buying the game. Which means we're not making any money and will have to shut down.
I wouldn't ask if our business wouldn't be dependent on it. I also never write reviews on anything, but if you want to see us actually finish Wicked, it's detrimental that we get that review score back up.
Indeed, Mahler is absolutely correct that they do not have a publisher's backing anymore. While Private Division originally published No Rest for the Wicked, Moon Studios repurchased the rights a couple of months ago. As you might recall, Take-Two sold Private Division to a new company managed by former Annapurna Interactive staff members.
However, a few hours ago, Mahler suggested that the press had misinterpreted his original statement. Here's what he wrote on X:
Overall, pretty much everyone who’s tried Wicked after the last few hotfixes is extremely positive. The reason I left the post on Discord up was simply to push back against some of the bullshit reviews. I have no issue telling active players who love Wicked that they should go ahead and leave a positive review on Steam. After all, it’s allowed on Steam to buy a game, leave a negative review that doesn’t even talk about the game at all (there are negative Wicked reviews that literally just say '.'), and then instantly refund it… and the negative review still counts.
If that’s allowed, then it should also be allowed for a developer to encourage their players to share their real experiences. And no, we’re not in immediate financial danger—but from time to time, I think I’m allowed to speak up about issues within our industry I personally find unbecoming.
We are continuing as always—our goal is for every game Moon Studios creates to be an absolute masterpiece, and with Wicked we’re already on the way.
It would be a shame to see Moon Studios close down, that's for sure. The Ori games were stellar, and No Rest for the Wicked also has 'extreme' potential, as noted by Francesco De Meo in our early access preview.
