Sorry to all the Paranormal Activity heads out there, but the upcoming game adaptation Threshold has crossed over to the other side. Brian Clarke, the solo dev that goes by DarkStone Digital for his gaming exploits and maker of 2022’s The Mortuary Assistant, shared the news to his personal Zwitter account earlier this week alongside a statement explaining why the game has been cancelled.

“It’s no secret that game development means constant change and challenges especially as a solo indie,” Clarke explains. “It became clear that the game needed more time to ensure it was the best it could possibly be. DreadXP stood by my need for more time and, together, we made a request to Paramount for a time extension. Sadly, Paramount did not agree to extend development.”

Clarke goes on to share that this put him in a position of having to make a choice between rushing through development and releasing a “sub-par product I would not be proud of,” or asking for himself and Paramount to go their separate ways. “I chose the latter,” he writes, while also making sure to mention again how DreadXP stood by him, and that the split from Paramount was amicable. “It was an honor to even be considered to work on an IP I love so much.”

I admit to having felt quite apprehensive about a game adaptation of Paranormal Activity, namely because of how the tactile quality of recording on tape could have gotten lost in translation. I’ll never get to have my apprehension proven wrong, or right, unfortunately. Its cancellation also makes me think of how awkward game development is compared to film; sure, a movie might get announced and never made, but how often do we actually get to see something from one only for it to be ultimately cancelled? I’m sure that isn’t a broader concern in the games industry! Not one bit!