Electronic Arts has canceled its in-development Black Panther game and is shutting down the studio behind it, Cliffhanger Games. The project was first announced in 2023 as a narrative-driven, single-player Marvel title, but it will now never see release.
### What Happened to Cliffhanger Games
Cliffhanger Games was a relatively new EA studio formed to build the Black Panther game, staffed in part by veterans with experience on major action-adventure franchises. EA’s decision to close the team is part of a broader internal restructuring, with the publisher saying it needs to concentrate resources and reduce risk by narrowing its slate.
### EA’s Marvel Plans Aren’t Over
Despite the cancellation, EA is not exiting Marvel partnerships entirely. The company still has multiple Marvel projects tied to its agreement with Marvel Games, including Motive Studio’s Iron Man, which remains in development. That makes Black Panther’s cancellation feel less like a retreat from superhero games and more like a recalibration of which projects EA believes can hit its quality bar and timeline.
The Black Panther game had been positioned as a big-budget, third-person experience centered on Wakanda and its world, with EA previously stressing story and player agency. With so little publicly shown—no gameplay reveal and few concrete details—the shutdown suggests the project either struggled to reach a stable production rhythm or fell victim to shifting priorities higher up the chain.
### Why This Matters
For players, it’s another reminder that licensed games, even from major publishers, are far from guaranteed—especially when they’re still years away from launch and haven’t locked in a public-facing identity. For the industry, it underscores how publishers are increasingly funneling investment into fewer “sure bets,” even as demand for polished single-player action adventures remains high. The remaining Marvel titles at EA, particularly Iron Man, will now carry extra expectations as the company looks to prove its superhero strategy can deliver.
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