Spectre Divide, a free-to-play shooter that garnered attention for its unique gameplay mechanic of controlling two bodies, is shutting down just months after its September launch. Developer Mountaintop Studios announced that the game will be taken offline "within the next 30 days" due to insufficient player engagement and revenue to cover the day-to-day costs of the game and the studio.

The studio had initially reported a promising start, with around 400,000 players trying out the game and a peak concurrent player count of 10,000 across all platforms. However, the player base failed to sustain, and the game's revenue was not enough to keep the studio afloat. Mountaintop Studios will also be "closing its doors" at the end of the week, marking the end of the game's development and support.

In a post, the studio explained that it had explored every avenue to keep the game going, including finding a publisher, securing additional investment, and pursuing an acquisition. However, none of these efforts were successful, and the studio was forced to shut down the game and cease operations. The industry is currently facing challenging times, and Spectre Divide's failure is a testament to the difficulties faced by game developers in today's market.

This news comes as no surprise, given the dire situation the studio was in just a few months ago. In December, Mountaintop CEO Nate Mitchell and Spectre Divide game director Lee Horn had expressed concerns about the game's performance, citing server issues at launch that had hindered its momentum. The game's new season had peaked at just over 1,000 concurrent players on Steam, and the player base had been declining ever since.

Mitchell had previously stated that the game needed thousands of concurrent players to survive, or else the company would run out of money by the end of the year. Unfortunately, the game failed to meet this threshold, and the studio was forced to take a hard look at its operations. The shutdown of Spectre Divide follows the disastrous launch of Sony's Concord hero shooter, which also failed to gain traction and was eventually shut down by the company.

The closure of Spectre Divide and Mountaintop Studios serves as a reminder of the challenges faced by game developers in today's market. The industry is highly competitive, and even innovative games with unique mechanics can struggle to gain traction. As the gaming landscape continues to evolve, it remains to be seen how developers will adapt to these challenges and find success in an increasingly crowded market.