Pokémon-Style MMO Temtem Signals End of Development, Removal of All Microtransactions

05.03.2024 - 13:23 / ign.com

Remember Temtem? Four years before ‘Pokémon with guns’ game Palworld exploded onto the scene, massively multiplayer creature-collection adventure Temtem came out alongside similar comparisons. Now, its developer has issued an open letter to players signaling the end of support and teased what’s next.

In the message, posted to the Temtem Steam page, developer Crema addressed what it said was an “uptick” in community concern about Temtem following the announcement of Temtem: Swarm, a “survivor-like bullet heaven” spin-off due out later this year.

Crema started its message by discussing the mismanaged expectations that came from Temtem being tagged as an MMO on Steam when the plan was for it to be an MMO-lite. Trying to make Temtem more like a traditional MMO to meet those expectations caused Temtem to “grow far beyond our original intentions, and even beyond our grasp,” the developer admitted. “We understand now that seeing the game being called an MMO everywhere led to expectations that we have failed to fulfill.”

Crema went on to explain why it’s not adding new islands and Tems, pointing to the limited development capability of a studio of its size. It’s the same explanation, in essence, for the lack of more multiplayer content. Crema then apologized for features that were promised but will not be released, including PvP Draft and the Temtem API. “For our shortcomings and failure to deliver these to you, we are truly sorry,” Crema said.

But the big announcement is that patch 1.7, due out early June, will remove all the game’s microtransactions after a community backlash. This means Temtem’s entire monetisation system will be stripped out. Then, with patch 1.8, Crema said it will “alleviate FOMO” (the fear of missing out) by letting players select any battle pass from the past and complete it. “While it’s still very early to talk about monetization for future projects, we have learned from this situation and the lesson is clear, and will keep these learnings in mind for the future,” Crema said,

Patch 1.8, then, is the last feature-filled patch of the usual size, Crema warned. “1.8 will not have a Tamer Pass, nor a Season, and there won’t be more Seasons going forward," it confirmed. "This doesn’t mean there won’t be new patches in the future: we’ll continue polishing, fixing bugs, and balancing Temtem for as long as it needs it.

“Beyond the economy, all these changes have been made considering the community’s feedback and the game’s wellbeing, as our mission for 1.8 onwards is to make the game more fun, enjoyable, rewarding and self-sustained, even in the absence of big updates. Small updates will keep appearing in the form of bug-fixing and balance tweaks, as we don’t intend to close the game nor its