Steven Sharif announced that he will be filing a lawsuit against the new management of the MMORPG Ashes of Creation.

Steven Sharif Announces Plans to Sue New Leadership of MMORPG Ashes of Creation

It all started on Saturday when Intrepid Studios, the creators of Ashes of Creation, seemingly collapsed overnight. Steven Sharif, the former Creative Director, made a cryptic statement in response to a flood of rumors. He stated that he has already spoken publicly, and his next step will be to file a lawsuit, which he hopes will clarify the situation.

Sharif himself emerged from the shadows to respond — albeit vaguely — to the wave of speculation on Reddit. Responding to a user in the game's official Discord, he stated that he has already "made a public statement," but for him, this story is not over.

"My next step will be a public filing in court. I hope then people will better understand what happened," he wrote.

In another response, he called for patience, again referring to future public documents that he hopes will clarify the situation.

"The internet doesn't tolerate waiting, but unfortunately, the legal process requires exactly that. You have no idea how difficult it is for me to remain silent. But I must. When the documents become publicly available, a clearer factual picture will emerge," Sharif explained.

What these documents will be is currently unknown. Sharif announced that he and most of the senior leadership resigned from their positions "in protest" against the actions of Intrepid's board of directors. At the same time, employees apparently learned that their positions were being eliminated and the studio was shutting down.

The author of the YouTube channel KiraTV published a video citing information from his sources, including a claim that Intrepid Studios was sold to a private equity firm. He also reports that the initial plan was to reduce the staff from 250 to about 70 people, but at the last moment, this turned into a complete dismissal of all employees.

Meanwhile, players who made early pre-orders for hundreds and thousands of dollars are demanding refunds. But it's unlikely they will succeed.