No Rest for the Wicked: Why the Game Faced Issues and the Risks of the Early Access Model

Content:

• What Happened?
• Moon Studios vs. Steam's Review System: Was There Really Review Bombing?
• Possible Financial Troubles: How Selling Private Division Could Have Affected Development
• Key Mistakes by Moon Studios During No Rest for the Wicked's Early Access
• Not All Developers Understand the Concept of Early Access

What Happened?

On April 30, Moon Studios released the second update for No Rest for the Wicked titled The Breach. Along with two new zones, the studio introduced thousands of changes of various scales, as well as adjustments to key game systems and its balance.

Initially, the release was met with negativity — on May 1, only 19% of nearly 800 new reviews were positive. It’s worth noting that ten months had passed between the first and second updates, and the new version of the game brought many unexpected gameplay changes and issues for the audience.

Most of the negative reviews boiled down to the fact that developers, in pursuit of their vision of balance, continued to kill the fun. The main complaints included radical nerfs of certain mechanics like archery, reduced drop rates of important items, spikes in difficulty, and issues with parries and other combat elements.

We won't dwell on every point, as developers quickly responded to the feedback and released three hotfixes in the first week after The Breach that addressed many problems. Moreover, part of the criticism was related to mechanics that had been in No Rest for the Wicked since the early access launch. For instance, the lack of a full fast travel system (a point now promised to be addressed in an upcoming patch).

The head of Moon Studios, Thomas Mahler, eventually publicly took responsibility for the game balance being "somewhat ruined" at The Breach's launch. According to him, this happened because the studio wanted to add too much new content and reworked mechanics in the update.

After several fixes, the overall user rating of No Rest for the Wicked on Steam began to increase gradually, with reviews moving from "mixed" to "mostly positive." Out of over 11,000 reviews left in the past 30 days, 81% are now positive.

At first glance, it seems like a straightforward situation: developers recognized and quickly resolved several issues, and the audience supported their efforts with a "thumbs up." Reason to rejoice, right? But in reality, the appearance of these reviews was a direct consequence of Mahler's public reaction and his rather skewed understanding of the term "review bombing."

Moon Studios vs. Steam's Review System: Was There Really Review Bombing?

Mahler frequently communicates with the audience on social media and in the official Discord of No Rest for the Wicked. After the release of The Breach, he actively asked users who liked the game and the current fixes to leave a positive review. The game's community saw dozens of such messages in the first half of May.

However, what seemed like an understandable call to action from the developer unexpectedly became the cause of a mini-scandal.

Western media attention was drawn to two posts from May 10, in which Mahler referred to the rating situation of No Rest for the Wicked as "review bombing" and lamented that a "red" rating might hurt sales and lead to financial difficulties for the studio.

The article that gained the most traction was Windows Central, with a headline suggesting the potential closure of the studio. The outlet seized on a striking quote from Mahler in the Discord community of No Rest for the Wicked: "It is entirely possible that within a couple of months we cannot continue simply because we were review bombed, which has caused people not to buy the game. In such a case, we won't make money, and we'll have to shut down."

Two Discord messages from Mahler that led to misunderstandings

Due to the storm in social media, Mahler had to — publicly— clarify that the company was not in immediate financial danger. He added that he merely wanted to convey to his audience one of the industry's issues — the impact of user ratings and review bombing on small indie companies like Moon Studios.

In short, Mahler has several grievances with the current review system on Steam:

• User reviews, regardless of their relevance and content, impact the overall game rating on Steam;
• Authors of negative reviews, including constructive ones, rarely change their rating to positive — even after developers make fixes;
• This is problematic for actively developed games, as potential buyers for obvious reasons often look at the overall rating rather than the review content.

Mahler is not against negative reviews as such, since this is a way for players to provide feedback to developers and warn other users about potential issues. So where does the so-called review bombing come in?

The head of Moon Studios noted that he had seen calls to lower the ratings for No Rest for the Wicked out of personal dislike for him. Mahler admitted to receiving threats and cited negative reviews where authors only left symbols like "." and requested refunds.

The problem is that in the case of No Rest for the Wicked, this is pure manipulation. If you study the reviews left in the days following The Breach's release, there is little evidence of what would qualify as "review bombing." One can debate the constructiveness of specific complaints, but there is no coordinated attack aimed at collapsing the game’s rating.

This is not the situation with Helldivers 2, where the audience tanked the rating of a popular game overnight due to dissatisfaction with a specific issue, or with War Thunder, whose fans temporarily drove the game’s rating to 93% negative reviews following controversial changes in the monetization system.

This is what true review bombing looks like (used here for good)

From Mahler's perspective as a developer, a large number of negative reviews serve as an attack on a project he is genuinely passionate about. Games are updated and fixed, yet negative comments remain indefinitely, and a once-fallen Steam rating is challenging to raise solely through hard work.

In some ways, it's unfair, but developers must not forget the importance of first impressions. Phrases like "Well, we've fixed everything now" aren't an argument. Players are simply utilizing the tools available to them, just as Mahler is utilizing available resources to ask dedicated fans to leave a positive review.

Ultimately, the situation even played into Moon Studios' favor. On May 11-12 alone, players left nearly 3,500 positive reviews for No Rest for the Wicked. Are all of them constructive and meaningful, or is it simply the reverse manifestation of the Steam review system’s imperfections? The question is rhetorical.

Mahler can indeed be overly emotional. He isn't accustomed to choosing safe wording and rarely considers that phrases from his Discord posts could be used as headlines.

One could argue that the quotes about potentially "shutting down" Moon Studios due to "review bombing" were taken out of context. However, Mahler genuine reasons for being concerned about his company’s future. They are directly related to its recently achieved independence from publisher funding.

Possible Financial Troubles: How Selling Private Division Could Have Affected Development

Mahler has previously drawn attention to the importance of supporting Moon Studios. At the beginning of May, he jokingly wrote: "If you like what we do, leave a positive review on Steam or soon you'll be able to attend our funeral."

There have also been more serious statements. "We had to take a huge risk to buy out the publishing rights [for No Rest for the Wicked],” noted Mahler in another message, adding that the studio’s future directly depends on the game's subsequent sales dynamics.

As known, the publisher of No Rest for the Wicked was Private Division, a former subsidiary of Take-Two. They announced their partnership with Moon Studios back in July 2020 and helped release the game in early access on April 18, 2024.

Just a few weeks after launch, Private Division encountered problems due to cost-cutting measures within Take-Two. Events unfolded rather rapidly:

• In early May 2024, reports surfaced about layoffs at Private Division and a potential shutdown of the label;
• Initially dismissed by Take-Two, in November they officially announced the sale of Private Division;
• The new owner acquired rights to all released and in-development titles;
• The only exception was meant to be No Rest for the Wicked, which Take-Two initially planned to support independently, but later apparently opted out of the Moon Studios project;
• In January 2025, it was revealed that the buyer of Private Division was Haveli Investments, an investment firm;
• Managing the acquired portfolio was assigned to a group of former Annapurna Interactive employees, who had left in September due to conflicts with management.

The situation directly impacted the development of No Rest for the Wicked. Its support slowed, and throughout 2024, developers released only one update. From the outside, it appeared Moon Studios simply didn’t manage their ambitions. However, a key reason for the stalled development was indeed Take-Two’s decision to divest themselves of its subsidiary.

Unexpectedly, Mahler confessed that Private Division not only served as No Rest for the Wicked’s publisher but also funded game development through milestones. What percentage of these payments made up the studio’s total project expenses is unknown.

Upon learning of Private Division's sale, Moon Studios decided to buy the rights to the game and become fully independent. This process inevitably consumed team resources, as they had to simultaneously handle various legal and financial matters while developing the game.

Judging from Mahler’s messages, the active phase began around November 2024. In January, he urged the audience to give the team more time to tweak new content: "The paperwork regarding the Private Division situation isn't fully done yet. I know you're frustrated waiting — so are we, as our fate and livelihood depend on it."

At that time, Moon Studios finally announced the new expansion for No Rest for the Wicked, and on March 11, publicly announced their complete financial independence.

The last phrase is key here. It now seems Moon Studios is ready to actively engage with the audience and work with feedback. However, for No Rest for the Wicked to succeed, the studio still needs to solve many problems and somewhat revise their approach to early access.

Key Mistakes by Moon Studios During Early Access

1. Communication Problems

Judging by Moon Studios’ messages, they initially understood the risks involved in developing such a complex cross-genre game. However, even aside from the silence due to legal issues over rights, their interaction with the audience at all levels leaves much to be desired.

In No Rest for the Wicked’s case, merely publishing announcements and patch notes on Steam isn't enough since the game features many constantly changing systems and mechanics and months pass between updates. It’s not reasonable to expect all players to follow sporadic messages in general Discord chatter or forums where team members occasionally address inquiries personally.

It’s apparent Malher is passionate about the project and loves posting random future update ideas on social media. But this often creates confusion, as serious messages with actual plans blend with mere side notes.

Ideally, No Rest for the Wicked could benefit from regular streams or developer commentary videos on YouTube discussing the current state of the game and responding to feedback.

The situation is beginning to improve now. Post-releasing The Breach, Mahler personally wrote a lengthy post on Steam addressing audience concerns point by point. In recent weeks, he has also given several interviews with streamers detailing the current situation and the studio’s future plans.

2. Grand Words and Difficulty Conveying Their Vision

With No Rest for the Wicked, developers aimed incredibly high. Even before early access, Mahler stated how the team wanted not only to redefine the action RPG genre but to reinvent it. To push boundaries and offer their formula in place of the stagnant concepts from the Diablo II era.

Mahler also enjoys using the phrase "change the status quo," describing Moon Studios’ desire to challenge the current state of affairs in the market. "We want our small team of 90 people to push companies like Blizzard, Grinding Gear Games, and others towards innovation by releasing high-quality and genuinely unique products. We believe in competition and think it ultimately benefits the players," — he wrote in one of his recent substantial posts.

Such ambitions are commendable, but at this stage, they might need tempering. A year after its early access release, No Rest for the Wicked still lacks a finished vision and concept. The game blends elements from Legend of Zelda, Diablo, Dark Souls, survival games, and MMOs, also introducing its innovations, such as complex and unusual vertical level design for isometric titles.

Meanwhile, Moon Studios regularly discusses plans for more radical changes. Whether it’s complex class/profession systems akin to Final Fantasy Tactics or customizable worlds with configurable difficulty levels and other rules. Mahler perpetually finds himself in creative overdrive, spreading the team's limited resources thin to refine existing mechanics and create ever more intricate systems, which might eventually entirely replace what already exists.

Changing the proverbial status quo in the genre could perhaps require such approaches. Still, learning to set priorities would be beneficial. Especially as Mahler admits Moon Studios struggles in explaining existing game mechanics. In his mind, he likely sees the bigger picture, but users need to find the project understandable and comfortable to play regardless of its development stage.

Otherwise, by its 1.0 release, No Rest for the Wicked might turn out to be a monster composed of five separate games, none of which are fully realized.

3. Lack of Transparency and Clear Planning

Upon launching in early access, Moon Studios shared a roadmap for No Rest for the Wicked. The first major update was supposed to be a multiplayer mode with co-op play. Later plans changed, shifting multiplayer to the update following The Breach.

When the audience again asked about a new roadmap, Mahler replied back in September that it was initially a Private Division initiative. The studio doesn’t see the point in setting arbitrary timelines just to appease, risking unreal expectations.

Moon Studios clearly has internal plans for No Rest for the Wicked’s development, but externally, it seems these plans alter on the fly. Consequently, the entire project development process in early access looks chaotic and opaque from the outside.

The multiplayer, still several months from release, is still listed as one of the core game features on its Steam page.

The roadmap for No Rest for the Wicked, which they later simply abandoned

4. Reliance on Traditional Publisher Model

When signing with Private Division, the studio couldn’t anticipate the label would be divested four years later. However, relying solely on their funds and publisher financing, without a plan B, proved to be a short-sighted decision.

Moon Studios is not a humble indie startup nor novice developers making their first small game. They have two successful titles and an experienced team of 90 people under their belt. Hence, it would have been more logical to look at the experience of other independent companies with comparable staff sizes.

For example, Larian Studios, while developing Baldur’s Gate 3, relied not only on a licensing agreement with Hasbro and self-funding but also Tencent investments (the Chinese giant owns 30% of the studio’s Irish legal entity). This approach turned out to be far more financially reliable than via Kickstarter or bank loans, allowing the studio to calmly work on the game in early access for three years.

Not All Developers Understand the Concept of Early Access

No Rest for the Wicked is a largely unique game that can engross you for dozens of hours. Despite some controversial ideas and overall lack of polish, Moon Studios' new project offers fresh experiences with its complex combat system, unusual visual style, multi-level design, and intriguing plot.

Most current issues in No Rest for the Wicked arise from Moon Studios' inexperience with Early Access.

Larian had launched two early access projects (Divinity: Original Sin 1-2) before presenting Baldur’s Gate 3 to users. This journey prepared the studio to approach developing its most complex game fully equipped.

Meanwhile, Moon Studios set out to create an immensely ambitious project, where development is further complicated by the need to consistently adjust already implemented game mechanics and an unawareness of how to engage with a dissatisfied audience.

It seems neither Mahler nor the team entirely understands that Early Access isn’t a testing ground for game design experiments. The lack of a complete vision can't be excused with complex gameplay systems. Early access and the feedback it provides are meant to help bring a project to full release, rather than endlessly testing bold ideas on players. Developing a game with audience collaboration is proper, but perpetually changing and reworking even basic elements under the guise of a genre revolution is misguided and shortsighted.

Moreover, developers often forget that Early Access is not a platform for project funding. Users cannot be viewed as investors, which is why other platforms exist. According to VG Insights, within a little more than a year, No Rest for the Wicked earned around 39 million dollars on Steam. On the one hand, that’s an excellent result. On the other hand, given the project’s scale and ambitions, and the costs of buying back rights, relying solely on future sales is far from a sustainable business model.

Ignoring these fundamental principles might prove detrimental to Moon Studios. There’s hope that the team’s talent will shine, but if Mahler continues to decry "review bombing" and hide behind the studio's desire to change the status quo, No Rest for the Wicked risks falling victim to its ambitions.