What Smilegate’s North America Shutdown Means for Epic Seven and Its Future

In a shocking turn of events, Epic Seven fans were hit with the news that Smilegate has shut down its North America branch, severing its vital community management ties for both Epic Seven and Outer Plane. In a recent video, a community influencer known as “Tristan Wulf” shared their concerns and insights into what this means for the future of the game. With key team members now gone, here’s everything you need to know about the shutdown and what it could mean for Epic Seven players.

What Happened to Smilegate North America?

On the surface, Smilegate’s decision to shutter its North America branch appears to be a major restructuring. The team behind Epic Seven and Outer Plane has lost almost all of its dedicated support staff. The impact is especially severe for Epic Seven, where not only the community managers but key figures in live streaming and social media engagement are now out of the picture.

• The disbanding of the North America team also affects the OuterPlane game.
• The move has left the community feeling uncertain and concerned about the future of communication with Smilegate.

What Does This Mean for Epic Seven Players?

The immediate concern for Epic Seven players is that Smilegate’s North America shutdown could drastically change the way players interact with the game’s developers and community. Without the support team in place, players have lost their main point of contact for issues, feedback, and community events.

The most immediate fallout from this shutdown is the loss of a crucial communication bridge between Smilegate Korea and the Epic Seven community. The community managers served as a vital link, translating player feedback and concerns to the developers, and ensuring that player voices were heard. Without this team:

• Players will have less influence over game changes or new content.
• Feedback and suggestions from the community may not reach Smilegate Korea as efficiently.
• There will be no more live streams, where fans could directly engage with the devs, ask questions, and receive rewards.
• Tournaments, giveaways, and special events organized by Smilegate’s North American team are likely to be a thing of the past.

The removal of community-driven events means fewer opportunities for players to stay engaged in Epic Seven. Events that once offered exciting rewards like Sky Stones or exclusive in-game items may no longer occur. This will likely lead to a decline in community involvement, as players miss out on the events that made the game feel more dynamic and engaging.

Furthermore, the world cup and other tournaments are now in jeopardy, as community managers were the driving force behind such events. If Smilegate doesn’t step in to fill the gap, the lack of official competitions could diminish the excitement and competitive edge for fans and players.

Impact on Customer Support

With the North American community management team gone, customer support is also facing an uncertain future. Issues that were previously resolved by dedicated staff members will now likely be handled through a much less personal and more automated system.

• In-game ticket support will now be your only option, and it’s unclear how effective this will be given that Smilegate has cut down its staff.
• Many players already facing problems with the patch system (e.g., issues with the new 120 FPS patch causing the PC client to break) are left to troubleshoot on their own or rely on forums for help.
• With fewer community managers to escalate issues to Smilegate Korea, bug fixes and quality-of-life updates could experience significant delays.

What’s Next for Epic Seven?

For many Epic Seven fans, the game may have just entered a new era—one that sees less direct interaction between players and developers. While the immediate future doesn’t suggest any drastic changes to the gameplay, this shift in communication and support raises some red flags about the long-term health of the game.

It’s also likely that Epic Seven’s live service approach will continue its slow decline. Fans have already noticed the lack of significant new features, with the last major updates (like Labyrinth or Abyss) being years old. With no new systems or major overhauls in sight, the game could stagnate.

Although this doesn’t mean the end of service (EOS) for Epic Seven, it’s evident that the game’s future as a live service title may not be as dynamic as it once was. This shift signifies that Smilegate is stepping away from direct communication with players, which could lead to:

• No more major system overhauls.
• Minimal changes to Arena mechanics.
• Slow updates, especially in endgame content.

What Does This Mean for You?

If you’re a fan of Epic Seven and have been invested in its community-driven events, this news may feel like a punch to the gut. However, it’s important to remember that while the community team’s departure is a significant blow, the game itself is still full of rich content for new players. Epic Seven offers one of the best new player experiences available, but for veterans, the future may feel bleak.

With a focus now primarily on new players and catch-up content, those who have been in the game for years may feel disconnected from the long-term development of Epic Seven.

If you’re still enjoying the game, you can continue to have fun, but be prepared for less interaction and potentially more stagnation in the future. Stay engaged, but keep your expectations realistic, as significant changes are unlikely without direct community involvement.

Finally, let’s show some appreciation for the community managers who were laid off—they gave a lot to the community and deserved better. If you see any former Smilegate employees, offer them a kind word for their hard work and dedication to the game. Epic Seven may have lost its community-driven soul, but for now, the game marches on, and it’s up to us, the players, to keep it alive.