NetEase is reportedly closing Ouka Studios, the developer of Visions of Mana, due to job cuts and funding cancellations. Despite early reviews being negative, gamers are excited about the game.
Bloomberg says that NetEase already started cutting jobs at the studio a few months ago. Job cuts began in March and more staff have left the studio since. Tencent is also involved in the downscaling as the company cancelled funding for multiple projects and pulled out of various commitments.
Keep in mind that Visions of Mana is a Square Enix property. While Ouka Studios helped develop the RPG, it was published by Square Enix and most of the revenue will go to them. That is if the game sells well. Early reviews of Visions of Mana have been quite rough. Many critics call the game bland and dated while looking quite stunning. The game’s Xbox Game Pass launch will also do nothing to help game sales.
Gamers, on the other hand, seem quite excited about the RPG. Many of them have been hoping for a colourful RPG to play and this seems to be it. There is a demo available for Visions of Mana on all platforms if you want to give it a go.
At the moment this story is still developing. Ouka Studios has yet to comment on the closure.
Source: Bloomberg
