Robotoki shuts down, leaving an obscure future of Human Element

The game dev institution Robotoki has ceased operations and will no longer be developing titles. The company was founded by Robert Bowling, an ex-creative strategist that worked for Infinity Ward. Robotoki’s shutdown comes at an unfortunate time, as Human Element, the Robotoki-made game being shown at the first Game Awards in Las Vegas has been put on hold indefinitely:

This week we have ceased operations at Robotoki and the development of Human Element is on hiatus. We were actively negotiating a new publishing deal for the premium version of Human Element but unfortunately I was unable to continue to self-fund development until a deal was finalised

Not very promising words from Bowling. Human Element was first announced in 2012, set in a post-apocalyptic world of the undead kind. Human Element slated for release on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One and Windows PC, but it seems that this may not happen for a while, best-case scenario.

Robotoki however did manage to release the iOS + Android game Drop Squad 4 in 2015, but not having moderate strategic investment seemed to work against the company and their projects. Hopefully they can at least take one final swing and get Human Element out.