Penny’s Big Breakwayindiedeveloper Evening Star has laid off six of its employees, despite its “best efforts to secure another project,” according to the company’s CEO and Executive Producer Dave Padilla in a social media post on Friday. Those affected include 3D artists, a gameplay engineer, game designers, and a producer.
Unfortunate News for Evening Star
Padilla explained in hisLinkedIn postabout the reason behind the unfortunate news. “This is a post that I was hoping to not have to write, but Evening Star has been swept up in the same turbulence that has affected so many of our peers in the games industry for the last year and a half,” said the company’s CEO.
According to Padilla, Evening Star tried to “secure another project to keep [the] team together,” but the team had to lay off the developers who worked on Penny’s Big Breakaway. Thankfully, Padilla is sharing the information of every staff member that has been let go. “I cannot stress enough how amazing they all were to work with, how talented they are in their respective disciplines, and how lucky any team would be to have them on their project,” said Padilla.
The gaming industry is shaky currently, to say the least. For example, theentirety of Annapurna Interactive supposedly have left the studioafter spinoff discussions reportedly fell through.
Review: Penny’s Big Breakaway
Originality and nostalgia combine in Evening Star’s delightful if occasionally fumbled attempt to rekindle the magic of early 3D platformers.
Thankfully, the laid-off developers of Evening Star have a fantastic game to show off to potential employers. “Wielding enough creativity and originality in its approach, Penny’s Big Breakaway is a classic case of the good of its premise outmatching the occasional bad of its execution,” saidour review.
Screen Rantpraised the preciseness of the platforming in its preview. “What immediately stands out about Penny’s Big Breakawayis the movement, which balances the appropriate precision for tight jumps with the speed and complexity needed for momentum-based mastery.”
Overall, Penny’s Big Breakaway has a 77 Top Critic average onOpenCritic. The OpenCritic rating is Mighty and 64% of critics recommend the vibrant platformer. If you’re interested in trying out the game, you can get it for 34% off onSteamuntil Monday.
Astro Bot is Awesome, Check it Out
Thankfully, the 3D platforming genre is far from dead. Astro Bot is one of the highest-rated games of 2024 and has plenty of exciting levels to explore. “Team ASOBI has yet again cracked the code of delivering an experience that’s fun, rewarding and nostalgic all at the same time,” saidour review. “With nostalgic callbacks, vibrant worlds and welcoming gameplay, there’s truly something for everyone in Astro Bot.”
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