Studio Halts Game Development Due to Grant Non-Payment by the Government.

Russian studio Watt Studio has announced the discontinuation of development for their fantasy adventure game “Trains” due to a lack of funding. Initially, the studio was guaranteed a grant of 100 million rubles from the Autonomous Nonprofit Organization “Internet Development Institute,” but these funds were to be paid only after the game’s release, not during development. The studio was also unable to find other investors.

In an article by TASS, the developers from Watt Studio were partially contradicted by representatives of the Internet Development Institute (IDI). According to IDI, the studio was supposed to independently find additional investors, which it did not. IDI also offered the creators of “Trains” to divide development and payment into five stages, but the studio declined this offer.

“Trains” is an action-adventure game set in an alternative Russia of the 20th century. The main character, Anna, must solve puzzles using an electric glove to find blueprints for the perpetual engine created by her father. Watt Studio received a grant from the Internet Development Institute in October 2022, with the goal of creating the game with a budget of 180 million rubles. The developers have stated that they will resume work on the game as soon as they can secure funding for development.