Hasbro and Jagex's Transformers Universe to close down next month

Just six months after entering open beta, Hasbro and Jagex's Transformers Universe video game will close down for good.

In a post on the Transformers Universe website, the development team said it was "hugely disappointed" by the move.

The game shuts its doors at 10am UK time on 31st January 2015, but the closing down period begins today. Jagex will refund all who have bought a Founders Pack, as well as those who have bought relic bundles and starter packs. Expect the refund to be processed in the next 30 days.

New players can no longer create accounts. Those with existing accounts can continue to use them until the closure date.

"Once again we want to thank all of the players that have played Transformers Universe and all those that have worked on the project," Jagex said.

"We're sure you have thoughts and feelings that you'd like to share on this, so please do so on our forums. Please bear in mind that this is obviously a challenging time for all involved, especially the CM team. There will be plenty of things we can't comment on, so please respect their position."

We've heard whispers of layoffs at UK developer Jagex, which also makes fantasy MMO Runescape, for some time, and it sounds like Transformers Universe's lack of success may be behind at least some of them.

"Today Jagex and Hasbro can confirm that Transformers Universe will close," reads the statement. "This decision comes at an important time for both companies as they both realign their plans and focuses for 2015."

Back in July 2013 Jagex confirmed 13 people had been made redundant from the Transformers Universe team. At the time Jagex told Eurogamer the layoffs would not "adversely impact" the game, but, according to a source close to the matter, concern was building over the quality of the game even then.

Last month Jagex announced a new first-person shooter called Block N Load, which is a bit like Team Fortress 2 meets Minecraft. Unlike previous Jagex games, Block N Load is not browser-based, is not free-to-play and is not an MMO.