Ex Gazillion Employee Contradicts Disney, Marvel’s ‘Marvel Heroes’ Shutdown Date

Contrary to what Marvel and Disney announced last week that “Marvel Heroes” servers are shutting down next month, a former Gazillion Entertainment employee is now saying that the online action role-playing video game is actually meeting its demise this Friday.

On Wednesday, Massively OP reported after hearing a tip from a credible source that “Marvel Heroes” is shutting down this Friday, Nov. 24, instead of the previously announced Dec. 31 date. The information apparently came from a former employee of the game’s publisher. According to the outlet, the employee disclosed the tip the same day that he was terminated for Gazilllion was being shut down.

Massively OP also managed to obtain a copy of CEO Dave Dohrmann’s termination letter, which explains that banking creditors have effectively pulled the plug on Gazillion. This obviously caused the termination of almost everyone at the studio. At the same time, this revokes the employees’ benefits including their accrued PTO.

Previously, a Marvel representative said that “Marvel Heroes” would remain online until the end of this year. However, Dohrmann revealed in the termination letter that Marvel actually directed the publisher to prepare the sunset as soon as possible. And as it turns out that day has come to Gazillion just a day prior Thanksgiving, as per IGN.

A former gameplay engineer for Gazillion, Andrew Hair, has also corroborated the story about the earlier demise of “Marvel Heroes” and Gazillion. He also addressed the recent spike in refund requests made by players in the wake of the announcement that the online game is shutting down. “I know a lot of people are upset and wanting refunds for their purchases in ‘Marvel Heroes’ but please keep in mind the developers were not paid out PTO, severance, and our medical insurance is ending in 8 days.”

Last week, Marvel announced the termination of its relationship with Gazillion and the imminent demise of “Marvel Heroes.” “We regret to inform our ‘Marvel Heroes’ fans that we have ended our relationship with Gazillion Entertainment, and that the ‘Marvel Heroes’ games will be shut down. We would like to sincerely thank the players who joined the ‘Marvel Heroes’ community, and will provide any further updates as they become available.”

Gazillion has also issued a statement, saying: “The ‘Marvel Heroes’ servers will stay on until Dec. 31, 2017, and we’ll be removing real money purchases as soon as possible. Players will be able to play the game entirely for free once this sunset period commences. We will share the exact date things go completely free as soon as we can.”

IBT reported last Sunday that following Marvel’s announcements, many fans quickly demanded for refunds for the purchases they made in-game. Because “Marvel Heroes” only provided free access to a few characters, players resorted to purchasing locked heroes and other items using real money. Hence, it does not come as a surprise why they are asking for refunds now. Many players have since shared on social media that Microsoft and Sony are giving refunds for in-game purchases.