Ambrosiasw 1Last night, a number of employees of longtime Mac developer Ambrosia Software tweeted that they had been let go from their jobs and that the company was shutting down.

However, today The Mac Observer spoke with Ambrosia president Andrew Welch who said the company is not shutting down but employees had been let go.

Mr. Welch didn't say if Ambrosia is scaling back on its app lineup, but his confirmation that the company isn't shutting down is good news for the people that rely on its products. Snapz Pro X and WireTap Studio, for example, are critical tools for many writers, bloggers, and podcasters, and losing those would mean some serious redesigning of workflows.

Ambrosia has a long line of games and utilities that it has developed and distributed over the years, including Deimos Rising which came preinstalled on a number of Macs ten years ago, and the Asteroids-style shooter Maelstrom that put the company on the map in 1993.

Top Rated Comments

Parystec Avatar
164 months ago
Not surprised

This is what happens when we race to to bottom on software pricing and everyone else thinks software is free.:(
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
50548 Avatar
164 months ago
Guess thats any hope of an iPad EV game out the window now.

If true, this is really a pity - Ambrosia takes me back to the 90s, where TRULY HONEST Mac gaming development took place (not just crappy Cider wraps and the like), with jewels like Maelstrom and Escape Velocity.

The EV series was one of the best ever in terms of space strategy games, and I would love to have it on the iPad - heck, the other day I almost bought EV Nova, which still runs fine on OS X..!

Good luck to them..!
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
freelancing Avatar
164 months ago
I'm not surprised. This is what happens when you act like you're the only game in town. They were IT for what their offerings were for a long time... but now there are a LOT of screen capture apps. SnapZPro had a bug w/ a version of OSX for a very long time and it went un-workable for months before they had a fix. Sorry - when I have a project due that requires a working app, I'm going to find a working competing app, and I did. No sense in paying for an upgrade to software in the future when they can sit on this OSX compatibility issue for months without getting a fix for it, when I can get a cheaper, competing app that works. You can make up in volume what you make up in price if your product is really good. When it's buggy w/ a new OS release and causes kernel panics every time you try to save a movie, people are going to stop trusting your product.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Kissaragi Avatar
164 months ago
Guess thats any hope of an iPad EV game out the window now.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
GimmeSlack12 Avatar
164 months ago
I also have a special place in my heart for Ambrosia SW. I cannot count how many games of Maelstrom I have played (and still do) in high school, not to mention the countless hours in Escape Velocity.

On top of their games they also had a significant number of Mac utilities that were always a quality product.

Ambrosia is a remnant of the Pre-OS X days.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Consultant Avatar
164 months ago
This is what happens when we race to to bottom on software pricing and everyone else thinks software is free.:(
NOPE. Snapz Pro X and WireTap Studio are $69.00 each.

Their Mondo Solitaire was last updated in April 2012.

It appeared that they are still not up to speed on the new App Store world.

This is what happens when you become irrelevant, and don't do anything to stay relevant. Kinda like what's happening to Apple right now. I had a couple friends say the other day, there's nothing I want from Apple right now, isn't that weird? It's easy to become irrelevant, and insanely hard to make a comeback.
I have a couple of friends say your friends are irrelevant. Isn't that weird?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

iOS 26.1 Beta Liquid Glass Battery Drain Test: Tinted vs Clear Mode

Friday October 24, 2025 2:30 pm PDT by
In the fourth iOS 26.1 beta, Apple added a "Tinted" option that reduces the translucency of Liquid Glass for those who prefer a more opaque look. I saw some comments wondering whether the setting might preserve battery life, so I thought I'd do some testing. Test Settings I did four separate tests using the iPhone 17 Pro Max, and I kept the parameters as similar as possible. Here are the...
iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Coming Soon With These 8 New Features for Your iPhone

Wednesday October 22, 2025 6:15 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more. iOS 26.1 is currently in beta testing. The update will likely be released in the first half of November, and it is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer, but some...
iOS 26 Maps Glass

Apple Reportedly Moving Ahead With Ads in Maps App

Sunday October 26, 2025 6:22 am PDT by
Apple Maps could feature integrated ads as soon as next year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. In his latest "Power On" newsletter, Gurman said that Apple's plan to bring more ads to iOS is moving "gaining traction," with the Maps app being next in line. The project will apparently give restaurants and other businesses the option to pay to have their details featured more prominently in...
Emergency SOS via Satellite iPhone YT

iPhone 18 Pro Rumored to Support Full 5G Satellite Internet

Friday October 24, 2025 7:18 am PDT by
At least some new iPhone models launching next year may support full 5G satellite internet, according to a report this week from The Information. "Apple plans to add support in upcoming iPhones as early as next year for 5G networks that aren't tethered to Earth's surface, which includes satellites," the report said. "That would give the iPhone full internet access over satellite," it added. ...
trump white house ballroom

Apple Donating to Trump's $350M White House Ballroom Project

Thursday October 23, 2025 3:55 pm PDT by
Apple is one of several tech companies that will contribute to the construction of U.S. President Donald Trump's 90,000-square-foot ballroom, reports CNN. Construction began on the ballroom this week, and the White House's east wing was torn down. Trump claims that the ballroom will cost $350 million, and that it will be privately funded through donations. The cost has already increased $150 ...
iPhone 17 Colors

iPhone 18 Rumored to Feature 50% More RAM

Saturday October 25, 2025 2:57 am PDT by
Apple's upcoming iPhone 18 could feature 50% more memory than its predecessor, according to Korea's The Bell. With its latest iPhone lineup, the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max feature 12GB of memory. This is a significant increase of 4GB more their predecessors, largely driven by the demands of on-device artificial intelligence processing. The iPhone 17 is the only new...
All Screen iPhone 2027 Feature 1

Report: Apple to Skip 'iPhone 19' Name for 'iPhone 20'

Thursday October 23, 2025 4:28 am PDT by
Apple's new iPhone lineup launched in the fall of 2027 will be called the "iPhone 20" models, rather than the "iPhone 19," according to research firm Omdia. Speaking at a conference in Seoul (via ETNews), Omdia Chief Researcher Heo Moo-yeol corroborated rumors that Apple plans to move the launch of its standard iPhone to the first half of the year and provided some additional clarity about...
iOS 26 Feature

iOS 26 Leaker Being Sued by Apple is Actually a 'Lifelong Apple Fanboy'

Friday October 24, 2025 9:20 am PDT by
In July, Apple sued well-known YouTuber Jon Prosser and his acquaintance Michael Ramacciotti over alleged theft of the company's trade secrets, after Prosser leaked some iOS 26 details in videos uploaded to his YouTube channel Front Page Tech. If you are not caught up on the lawsuit, read our initial coverage to learn more. Earlier this week, Prosser told The Verge he has "been in active...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: iPhone Air Is in Trouble

Friday October 24, 2025 8:32 am PDT by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we discuss the latest rumors about the iPhone Air not selling as well as Apple hoped. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos There have been many recent reports suggesting the iPhone Air has failed to catch on with consumers, with Apple moving to cut production due to lower-than-expected sales. The first warning sign was...