Improbable shuts down ‘Scavengers’ before it can leave early access

Scavengers, the survival shooter title from Improbable and Midwinter Entertainment, is shutting down next month – without the game ever having left early access.

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Scavengers, a free-to-play title from former Halo and Battlefield developers, released into early access back in April 2021. Just over a year in, however, it seems that Scavengers’ days are numbered – and that the title won’t ever be leaving early access.

Indeed, the survival shooter is not long for this world – with Improbable getting ready to shut the game’s servers down next month on December 16.

That’s according to a post on the Scavengers website, in which Improbable blames a “decline in the playerbase” for the game’s imminent demise, adding “whilst we explored many options to reinvigorate server population while the game is in early access, it became clear that it was unsustainable to continue development and live service.

“We’re all proud of what we accomplished,” continues the post, “and are grateful to every player who took the time to play, even if it was just for a short while.”

Improbable thanked players for their “passion, dedication and support” over the game’s short lifespan, and invited them to “give Scavengers the thrilling sendoff it deserves” before its servers are shut down for good on December 16, 2022

It’s an unfortunate turn for the game, which initially seemed promising – impressing Andy Brown in his preview for NME, where he praised the game for being able to differentiate itself from rival battle royale titles, a crowded genre with some big-label competition.

Sadly, however, it seems that it wasn’t able to differentiate itself enough. The disappointing news comes months after plans for a console version of the game were scrapped following the sale of developer Midwinter Entertainment to Dead By Daylight developer Behaviour Interactive.

In other gaming news, classic PlayStation hero PaRappa the Rapper has starred in an unlikely cameo in God of War: Ragnarok, courtesy of a subtle reference to the 2012 title PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale.