2026’s first major misfire is now effectively confirmed: after just six weeks on sale, Ashes of Creation can no longer be purchased on Steam. With no development team left to back it up, Valve has halted sales while the industry watches the studio situation unravel.

Things almost never go flawlessly, especially when a game is under this level of scrutiny. What once looked like the “salvation of MMORPGs” – even if its massive ambitions regularly made it feel like a project you were supposed to doubt – slammed into a wall after its top figure exited and the studio’s operational staff were laid off en masse. MMO fans were tracking every twist because Ashes of Creation’s survival hinged on it, and it ultimately turned into the first nail in the coffin: the game is effectively canceled, Steam has stopped selling it, and players are flooding the system with refund requests.

In reality, Ashes of Creation’s collapse started back in 2025. After more than five years in development, it hit Steam Early Access on December 11, 2025, but the days following launch saw Intrepid Studios’ situation deteriorate at speed. Some players slammed the state of the game, while others urged the community to keep faith in the team led by Steven Sharif, the studio founder and Ashes of Creation’s creative director. Then, in late January 2026, Sharif announced he was stepping down, framing it as a “protest” against internal board decisions he said he couldn’t ethically support. His resignation triggered further departures across leadership, and soon after, mass layoff notices under the U.S. WARN Act began circulating – signaling the beginning of the end for Intrepid Studios.

Ashes of Creation Is No Longer Available For Purchase

With the studio effectively stripped of staff and the capacity to operate, Steam removed the game’s purchase option on February 2, 2026, blocking new buyers and raising doubts about what even happens to the existing servers. After several days of uncertainty, the community response has been especially intense. Across Steam and Reddit, many customers have branded the situation a “scam” and started filing refund requests, arguing the product was effectively abandoned once development suddenly stopped.

At this point, the understanding is that some users have gotten Steam Support to review cases manually, and in certain instances refunds have been granted even after the standard two-hour playtime window. Others with significantly more hours have tried as well, with mixed outcomes: some claim they were refunded on the basis of the game’s condition, while others say they received nothing at all. What’s unambiguous is that Ashes of Creation is no longer purchasable. Intrepid Studios has stayed silent – their last Steam post, dated January 29, doesn’t address the situation – and Sharif, who many have singled out, appeared on Discord to say he can’t comment for legal reasons. Meanwhile, players have vented directly on Steam, where Ashes of Creation has become one of the lowest-rated titles in the catalog, sitting at just 37% positive reviews.

Source: 3djuegos