Ashes of Creation is dead, and the MMO graveyard keeps growing

On February 2nd, 2026, Intrepid Studios laid off all employees. Founder Steven Sharif resigned, along with most of the senior leadership team. Asmongold broke the news live on stream, reading through the WARN Act notices and Discord announcements as they came in. The MMO that fans had been waiting nearly a decade for — the one that once prompted Asmongold to say "if this game comes out with everything that's been promised and it's polished, WoW's done" — simply stopped existing.

What actually happened

The collapse came fast but had been brewing for months. Asmongold read a statement from Sharif explaining that "control of the company shifted away from me and the board began directing actions that I could not ethically agree with or carry out." Sharif resigned in protest rather than lend his name to those decisions. After his departure, much of the senior leadership team followed. The board then issued WARN Act notices and proceeded with a mass layoff.