Human Head Studios is closing, but everyone's been offered jobs at Bethesda

(Image credit: Human Head)

Human Head Studios, the developer of the original Prey, is shutting down. It's been around since the late '90s, but action RPG Rune 2, which launched on the Epic Games Store yesterday and was meant to be due out on Steam next year, will be its final game. It won't, however, be the end of the team.

"After 22 great years of making games as an independent studio, economic realities have forced us to make the decision to wind down the company and close its doors," community manager Katherine Stull wrote in the blog update. "But while we are closing the book on Human Head, we are not closing the book on the amazing team we have assembled."

It's not clear where this leaves the future of Rune 2. It only came out yesterday, and preorders couldn't have been great if Human Head is closing immediately after. With online co-op and PvP, you'd expect a degree of ongoing support, but with the developer (and presumably the publisher, as it was a business entity created by Human Head and its financial partner) gone, that doesn't seem likely.

Update: Rune 2's publisher, Ragnarok, has released a statement expressing shock at Human Head's closure. "We found out about this news when you did," the publisher wrote. The publisher has promised to continue support for the game.

Fraser is the UK online editor and has actually met The Internet in person. With over a decade of experience, he's been around the block a few times, serving as a freelancer, news editor and prolific reviewer. Strategy games have been a 30-year-long obsession, from tiny RTSs to sprawling political sims, and he never turns down the chance to rave about Total War or Crusader Kings. He's also been known to set up shop in the latest MMO and likes to wind down with an endlessly deep, systemic RPG. These days, when he's not editing, he can usually be found writing features that are 1,000 words too long or talking about his dog.