Deliver Us Mars studio lays off all staff after funding efforts fall through [Video]

Deliver Us Mars developer KeokeN Interactive has laid off its entire team after being unable to secure funding for future projects. The studio said in today’s announcement that it has “exhausted all our possible options for publishing, work for hire, and co-development.”

The sci-fi thriller Deliver Us Mars, and its predecessor Deliver Us the Moon, are both well-regarded games: Despite some technical issues, we called Deliver Us Mars “a serious display of sci-fi storytelling talent” in our 75% review. But, the videogame industry being what it is—cold, fickle, occasionally vicious—making good games isn’t enough to ensure a secure future, and just over a year after Deliver Us Mars went live, KeokeN is in trouble.

The studio actually revealed the looming trouble with a video released in March, just ahead of GDC, which included a brief showcase of five game concepts “in urgent need of investment,” and a plea to fans to “amplify …