"Next-Gen Blade Runner Game Scrapped by Until Dawn Studio"

Supermassive Games, renowned for their gripping horror titles such as Until Dawn, The Quarry, and The Dark Pictures anthology series, has reportedly halted development on an unannounced game set in the Blade Runner universe. According to Insider Gaming, the project, known as Blade Runner: Time To Live, was envisioned as a "character-focused, cinematic, action-adventure" experience centered around the last Blade Runner operating in 2065. The narrative was set to follow So-Lange, a vintage Nexus-6 model tasked with the mission to retire the leader of a secretive replicant network. However, betrayal leaves So-Lange stranded in a brutal environment, with gameplay encompassing elements of stealth, combat, exploration, investigation, and deep character interactions.

Insider Gaming further disclosed that Blade Runner: Time To Live was backed by a substantial development budget of approximately $45 million, with $9 million specifically allocated for external performance capture and acting talent. The game was projected to offer a 10-12 hour single-player experience, with pre-production kicking off in September 2024 and an anticipated release in September 2027 across PC and both current and next-generation consoles.

The project's cancellation reportedly stemmed from issues with Alcon Entertainment, the rights holder for the Blade Runner franchise, leading to the project's demise late last year.

In a separate development, publisher Annapurna Interactive announced in the summer of 2023 their venture into in-house game development with Blade Runner 2033: Labyrinth, marking the first Blade Runner game in 25 years. Unfortunately, there have been no updates on this project since the initial announcement.

Amidst these shifts, Supermassive Games has been managing multiple projects, including the next installment in the Dark Pictures series, Directive 8020, and the development of Little Nightmares 3. The studio also faced significant layoffs last year, with around 90 employees affected, as reported by Bloomberg's Jason Schreier, during a time described as a "period of consultation."

On a lighter note, fans of Supermassive's work can look forward to the cinematic adaptation of Until Dawn, which is set to hit theaters this weekend. For those interested, our review of David F. Sandberg's take on Until Dawn for the big screen is available here.