Night School, the developer behind the Oxenfree games, has been shut down by Netflix, despite just releasing the acclaimed horror title, Unhinged.

A decade on from the release of the charming, spine-tingling adventure game Oxenfree, its maker, Night School Studio, has been shut down.

The Los Angeles-based studio was previously purchased by Netflix in 2021; the streaming giant then bankrolled the 2023 sequel, Oxenfree II: Lost Signals, which was released to much the same acclaim as the first.

Netflix now appears to be moving some of its money away from the videogame sector, with Night School and the Finnish studio Moonlot being the latest casualties in its cost-cutting. According to IGN, Moonlot’s team was working on an “unannounced life-sim project” when the axe fell.

In a statement given to GameFile, Netflix said somewhat cryptically that it sees the closures as “an opportunity to be more focused in our execution, so we are making organizational changes to the business to match those priorities.”

Under the circumstances, ‘execution’ feels like an insensitive choice of word.

Only weeks ago, Night School released Unhinged, a first-person horror adventure that it developed with input from Zach Cregger, director of Weapons and the forthcoming Resident Evil.

Featuring the voices of Sadie Sink and Zoë Kravitz, it was released on the 30th June to widespread praise – though this writer would argue that Netflix didn’t exactly push the boat out when it came to publicity. Zach Cregger’s name alone could have sparked interest, though there appears to have been little coverage of Unhinged outside the usual gaming outlets.

As spotted by IGN, a former Night School staff member wrote about the closure on LinkedIn:

“Despite directing Unhinged and shipping it 6 weeks ago to millions of excited, satisfied players, it looks like I’m back on the market (along with the rest of Night School Studio)! …I’m so proud of what we accomplished, and millions of people agree that we made a great product! Onward to the next exciting thing!”

Netflix’s overarching gaming strategy looks, from the outside, somewhat muddled. It’s either acquired or set up development houses, such as Boss Fight and Team Blue, only to shut them down again eight years later. (Neither studio ever released a game.)

It proudly announces that its games, including Unhinged and a FIFA World Cup tie-in, were played by millions, only to announce staff cuts or closures weeks after.

Night School’s fate means the loss of yet another talented team of artists and designers. Here’s hoping they keep producing thoughtful, absorbing games elsewhere.