Where the game goes next isn't clear, but what you're predicting probably won't happen. "While a pivot to free-to-play (F2P) may seem like the easiest change to make, a change of this magnitude takes publishing planning and resources to do it." When it was first announced, LawBreakers was going to be a F2P game, but the developers were worried it'd end up limiting the audience because people thought they'd get nickel and dimed to death. Of course, going F2P isn't a silver bullet for success either -- just ask Turtle Rock, makers of the failed online shooter Evolve.

That doesn't mean LawBreakers is going away, though, or that Boss Key is abandoning the game wholesale; the game will continue to be supported in its current state. A second life may arrive, Boss Key writes, but in the meantime it sounds like the studio's efforts are focused on a passion project that the studio is "in complete control of." That wording makes it sound like there were at least a few arguments between the studio and a higher power, potentially publisher Nexon.

Previously, Nexon blamed (PDF) the popularity of PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds for impacting sales and the amount of players. Is Fortnite the next scapegoat?