Fairgame$, the heist shooter developed by Haven Studios, has been canceled more than three years after its initial announcement. Some players who claimed to have participated in late-stage testing subsequently shared their experiences, criticizing the game's gameplay and appeal.
A tester recruitment video titled "Project Espresso" leaked in September, giving the public one of the first relatively complete looks at the game. Subsequent testing failed to meet the targets Sony had set for the project.
ResetEra user RedBullCola claimed to have participated in late-stage testing, stating that the overall performance of the game was poor and feedback during matches was similarly negative, describing it as "a PowerPoint presentation made up of executive ideas." Reddit user Darkdhalias commented that the game is still years away from being truly engaging and that canceling the project was the right decision.
Another ResetEra user, srrai, offered a more moderate assessment. He acknowledged that the game has its fun aspects but noted it doesn't cater to mainstream audiences, which could make it difficult to attract enough players and generate sufficient willingness to pay. He mentioned he might be willing to purchase it for $40. It should be noted that these comments come from anonymous community users, and their identities as well as the specific test versions they experienced remain unverified.
Sony actively pursued live-service games this generation, achieving success with Helldivers 2, but several other attempts struggled. Haven Studios employees are reportedly not facing layoffs due to the cancellation of Fairgame$ and will instead be reassigned to support other PlayStation Studios titles for the time being.