Ivy Road, the studio behind Wanderstop, announced today that it is closing its doors as of March 31, 2026. The team had been working on a new project called Engine Angel, but the funding didn’t come through, and the studio was unable to find a publishing partner to bring it to life.
I put about seven hours into Wanderstop earlier this year and found it to be a cozy, relaxing, and genuinely charming experience. I never finished it, not because the game lost me, but because other obligations pulled me away and it fell off my radar. I do plan on going back to it because its core gameplay loop is unlike anything else out there, and that kind of creativity deserves to be seen through. So hearing this news is a real bummer.
The good news is that Wanderstop isn’t going anywhere. The game will remain available on its current platforms, and Ivy Road says there’s still one last surprise that the team has been working on for the past year to help the game reach new players. Publisher Annapurna Interactive will share more details on that in the future.
Ivy Road also shared a chapter select code for players who may get stuck or want to revisit a specific moment in the game. While in Chapter Select, using the D-pad, input: UP, LEFT, DOWN, RIGHT, UP, B (RMB), UP, RIGHT, DOWN, LEFT, UP, B (RMB), UP, DOWN, UP. For any future requests, feedback, or bug reports, players can reach out to help@annapurnainteractive.com.
It’s a tough time for game studios trying to secure funding, and Ivy Road is unfortunately another casualty of that reality. The team should be proud of what it created with Wanderstop, a game that was experienced by hundreds of thousands of players and stood out in a crowded market by being something genuinely different.
