Foretold Studios is facing financial difficulties, which has resulted in employees "begging" for assistance to receive their salaries

Reports have surfaced that Foretold Studios, the creator of Tollan Universe, is facing difficulties in paying its employees.

Game Developer revealed that these financial issues trace back to last September. The company's CEO, Michael Kuvshynov, has been criticized for both inadequate communication concerning the cash flow challenges and for continuing to hire new staff while existing wages remain unpaid.

Employees have reported that they are owed several months of wages totaling in the tens of thousands. One individual shared, "I had to beg for $200 to meet basic needs. Although the company eventually conceded, the initial offer was to pay in cryptocurrency."

Another employee expressed, "I had no money for anything. Michael asked why I needed the money. It was one of the most humiliating conversations I've ever had, begging for food money he owed me."

The same employee continued, "He assured us that everyone would be paid, and those who chose to leave would still get their due. It was hard to trust him—to decide between quitting and risking unpaid wages or staying in hopes an investor would step in."

"Michael claimed they had substantial funding and several investors lined up. After just a month of receiving pay, he informed us of a one-month delay, which then stretched into several months with no payment and attempts to cut our previously agreed salaries," recounted a former developer anonymously.

Arkadi Allakhverdiev, a former artist at Foretold, mentioned that after starting in September 2023, they were only paid once. Upon leaving in April 2024, they were still owed a minimum of $8,700.

"As an indie company, it didn't initially alarm me. We faced typical struggles launching small games. However, a major investment we were expecting by the third month never materialized, and we received nothing during my remaining time," Allakhverdiev stated.

In response, Kuvshynov commented to Game Developer, "We've faced significant fundraising challenges over the past year, impacting our ability to meet payroll. From the outset, we made our team aware of the situation, offering stock options as a form of compensation. For those preferring to leave, we committed to compensating them once we secured funding, maintaining close contact to address their concerns."

Nonetheless, three former developers contradicted these claims, asserting that the leadership has not been transparent about the studio’s financial issues.