Illuvium Crunding is done because Overdlld uses the MMO Lite model

Illuvium announced a major restructuring effort aimed at reducing costs and adjusting its development focus to the MMO Lite model.

The company will reduce its monthly spending to $500,000 by March and take cost-cutting measures, including lower wages, operational adjustments and team layoffs. Some employees can choose to get payments in Illuvium’s local $ILV token instead of $USDC.

These changes occur when the studio is ready to transform its flagship title Overworld, which will transition to the “MMO Lite” model rather than the traditional open-world experience. The move comes after cost-cutting efforts by 2024, when Illuvium lowered its monthly expenses from nearly $1 million.

How has our expectations for Overworld changed?

Originally designed as an open-world creature collection game, Overworld will now adopt the “MMO Lite” structure announced last December.

This means the game will incorporate multiplayer elements while maintaining a streamlined design without the complexity of a full MMORPG. Players are still able to explore, capture creatures and engage in combat, but the focus will shift to a more interactive and multiplayer-driven experience.

Illuvium clarified that instead of building this from scratch, they worked hard to integrate MMO-style features in a way that makes the game accessible. The studio said that after a major update to Illuvium Arena’s PVP model in the second quarter, the development of the new structure of Overworld will become a major focus in mid-2025.

What’s next for Overworld?

In addition to restructuring and game design changes, Illuvium previously announced plans to launch AI-powered NPCs to Overworld.

Through partnerships with virtual protocols, these NPCs will provide interactive elements such as dynamic conversations and personalized task lines. The goal is to create a more immersive environment without the need for manual content creation at scale.

Although the restructuring expanded Illuvium’s financial runway, the company has acknowledged that further funding is necessary to complete the Overworld transition. The success of these changes will depend on how the team effectively implements the revised game structure while maintaining community engagement.