Check out the first (and last) look at this canceled Stranger Things-esque retro adventure

Publisher NetEase has made some major cuts this year, but its most recent cost-cutting measure stings particularly badly, in part because of the promising nature of the game on the chopping block. According to a recent LinkedIn post from NetEase-funded Bad Brain Game Studios head Sean Crooks, the developer’s retro-futuristic sci-fi adventure — codenamed The Midnight Riders — has been canceled, with owner NetEase planning to shut down the studio on Nov. 17.

But it seems that Bad Brain still has hope for the game. Crooks released a five-minute sizzle reel trailer for the project, sharing it alongside the post announcing the studio’s closure in the hopes of showing off the project and potentially attracting investors.

“Despite our continuing efforts to seek a new partner for the project, a path forward has yet to materialize,” Crooks’ LinkedIn post reads. “We are deeply grateful to NetEase Games for their support and for giving us runway to explore every possible opportunity.”

Based on the trailer, The Midnight Riders would follow a young teenager named Josh as he tries to solve the disappearances of several other local children, whose missing posters are accumulating all over town. Set in the 1980s, the trailer shows Josh returning a videotape to a Blockbuster-esque rental store (and coming up with a pretty funny excuse for forgetting to rewind it). In the store, a cardboard cutout of a monster from a fictional film called Hive can be seen — presumably, Hive was the film Josh rented and returned.

After returning the video tape, Josh is seen meeting up with various friends, trading mix tapes, and riding his bike around town, with what looks like a walkie-talkie dangling rather precariously from his backpack. The vibes are very much Stranger Things meets It, as the trailer eventually reveals that Josh’s nightmares are coming to life — and may have something to do with all the missing children. In one scene, Josh and his friend Jesse navigate a nightmarish version of their school, which has been overrun with spidery, facehugger-like creatures that launch themselves at nearby humans and look suspiciously similar to some alien enemies seen in an in-game, Contra-inspired arcade game called Uni-Corps.

Other familiar-looking monsters (including the tall, lanky creature from the Hive movie) also chase Josh and Jesse through this Upside-Down version of their real-life school. But these kids came with a plan — Josh arms himself with a baseball bat for general self-defense, and teams up with Jesse if combat gets sticky. In one scene, Jesse fires a gasoline-filled water gun at an enemy, dousing it in flammable fluid before Josh finishes the creature off with a slingshot and a lit cherry bomb.

Based on a quick shot of the game’s quest log (which takes the form of Josh’s school notebook), it appears the town’s children are experiencing shared nightmares. One quest objective, directing Josh to speak to a girl named Callista, reads, “Last nightmare was intense, she might be shaken up.” Another task requires Josh to speak to someone called Axel, and the task’s description reads, “Supposed to be prepping for another nightmare.”

Despite the lack of funding, both Bad Brain Game Studios and NetEase are open to selling the IP, meaning there’s still a chance we might actually get to play The Midnight Riders one day.

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“As we close this chapter, the game and its underlying IP is still available for acquisition or partnership, and we/NetEase are open to discussions with publishers or studios who see potential in continuing its development,” Crooks shared on LinkedIn. “We believe strongly in what was created, and would love to see this world find its way to players.”