PlayerUnknown Productions announced it is ending development on its survival game Prologue: Go Wayback, just over six months after the game’s early access launch in November 2025 [1, 2]. The decision came amid low player engagement, with the game peaking at only 182 concurrent players on Steam and dropping to single digits shortly after launch [1].
Founder Brendan Greene said he has "reached the limits of how far I can continue to fund this journey in its current form," indicating financial constraints drove the decision [1]. The studio is also laying off an unspecified number of staff members as part of a restructuring effort. Greene added, "Our immediate priority is to support our affected employees to the best of our abilities during this difficult transition" [2].
PlayerUnknown Productions said it will release a final update for Prologue: Go Wayback that will add new items, paths, and trails. This update will also mark the game’s exit from early access and make it free to play [1, 2]. The studio is investigating offering refunds to players who purchased the game [1, 2].
Despite ending work on Prologue, the studio plans to continue development on Melba, its proprietary game engine and terrain generation technology, using a smaller team [1, 2].
The early access launch of Prologue: Go Wayback occurred in November 2025. On June 3, 2026, PlayerUnknown Productions publicly announced the end of development, staff layoffs, and final update plans [2].
