STUDIOBSIDE has announced that it will no longer provide new updates for its urban fantasy collectible RPG ‘COUNTERSIDE’ starting April 29. Additionally, the sale of monthly subscription products will be discontinued.
PD Kim Hyun-soo from STUDIOBSIDE shared the future plans for COUNTERSIDE in a developer note released on the 24th. The game will stop receiving new content updates after the introduction of a new Awakened Employee on April 29. Instead, it will transition to a system that rotates legacy content periodically. Monthly subscription products will also be phased out following the April 29 update, with any remaining benefits for active subscribers being fully honored.
PD Kim Hyun-soo will be stepping down from his role as COUNTERSIDE PD by the end of April. In appreciation of the players’ support, Kim announced that the final new Awakened Employee will be given for free instead of being obtained through the gacha system. Players can acquire duplicates of this character through event missions and main story completion rewards for limit breaks.
COUNTERSIDE, an urban fantasy collectible RPG launched by STUDIOBSIDE in February 2020, initially through Nexon, tells the story of the Administration and other factions battling to save a world on the edge of destruction due to the emergence of the Counter Side and Corrupted Objects. The game features a unique gameplay style incorporating line defense mechanics. While it faced challenges initially, including inconsistent illustration quality and unrefined monetization, the 2.0 update revitalized the game by improving monetization and gameplay loop, showcasing the built-up scenarios’ potential.
After transitioning to self-publishing in 2023, the team at STUDIOBSIDE undertook various initiatives to breathe new life into the game, such as opening the themed ‘CaffeStrega’ in Pangyo and participating in AGF for multiple years. Recently, on the 22nd, the game concluded its Season 3 story with the release of Episode 15, ‘The Golden Tree and the Pruning Girl.’ Despite these developments, the termination of the Prestige Skin service, cessation of new updates on April 29, and the PD’s resignation suggest that the game’s six-year journey is nearing its conclusion.
[Read Original]