Midnight Society, the game development studio founded by Guy ‘Dr Disrespect’ Beahm and Robert ‘fourzerotwo’ Bowling, has announced it is shutting down permanently.
The studio was working on Deadrop, a free-to-play, first-person vertical extraction shooter set in the 1980s, and had sold Founders Access Passes to grant early access ahead of its global launch.
“Today we are announcing Midnight Society will be closing its doors after three incredible years, with an amazing team of over 55 developers contributing to our new IP DEADROP,” shared the studio in its official announcement on X yesterday (January 30th).
The company had reportedly undergone layoffs in September 2024 shortly after severing ties with Dr Disrespect over allegations of him sending inappropriate messages to a minor.
The streamer initially acknowledged the misconduct in June 2024 in a since-deleted tweet but later denied wrongdoing. Dr Disrespect’s YouTube channel was completely demonetized after the situation but, on the same day the studio closed down, it has now been re-enabled to generate ad revenue.
With the studio shutting down, all employees are now seeking new opportunities, and Midnight Society has urged other companies to consider hiring its staff.
“We are actively seeking other game studios that would be interested in offering employment opportunities to our talented team members,” Midnight Society announced.
“If you know anyone who’s hiring please forward this message to them or DM us for direct intros. We express our sincere gratitude to each and every one of our community members and deeply sorry we were unable to reach our ultimate goal.”
Midnight Society has not confirmed whether refunds will be issued to players who purchased Founders Access Passes at the moment.
The studio is not the only one facing permanent closure in the gaming industry. Ubisoft also recently announced the closure of its UK-based Leamington studio, known for working on major titles like Far Cry 5 and Tom Clancy’s The Division.
