This project started as a small website and grew into the main source of information for the game.
Now, with the announcement that CountryStar will shut down at the end of October 2025,
I want to make it clear that this site will REMAIN ONLINE as an archive and a resource even after the game ends.
On a personal level, this is a devastating blow (and a horrible 30th birthday present). Everything that was done to make
this site what it is today and the community and loyal fans built over the years will now become a graveyard and Nick's CountryBot
that helped thousands learn more about the game quickly across hundreds of discord servers will become pointless. All of this
is a sad reminder of how much Space Ape, and now NextBeat, have managed to drive the game into it's grave.
From grind-heavy mechanics (that suddenly became irrelevant the moment IAPs were turned off), to constant anti-consumer tactics
and manipulative gacha and event odds, the greed was always obvious. Then came three tours in a row stacked with huge premium rewards,
pushing people to pay to build up their libraries, only for the company to announce the shutdown right after. Players lose everything,
the company keeps the cash. This wasn't a "tough decision", it was planned ahead for months. And if that wasn't enough, even
someone in a lead position promoted the use of AI generated content and called "passion" a red flag. That aligns perfectly with the company's actions.
The whole situation makes it clear that profit was the only thing that ever mattered to them. The same disregard
they showed to the player base, they showed to this site and the 40,000 people who use it every month. First they pulled
financial support without a word, and now they didn't even bother giving out any kind of notice to CountrySCORE ahead of
time so it's clear that years of hard work and dedicated effort will become obsolete overnight.
Even so, I want to remind you that keeping this site online still costs money. If you value the information here and want
to help keep it preserved, please consider supporting through
Patreon or a one-time donation.
Thank you, and see you on the next project. (Which will be announced soon, and will have many familiar songs in a card format, so stay tuned!)
P.S. If you donate, be rest assured that CountrySCORE won't pull a NextBeat move and announce a tough decision to shut the site down a few months later.
