Supermassive Games, renowned for their gripping horror titles such as Until Dawn, The Quarry, and The Dark Pictures anthology, has reportedly halted development on a previously unannounced game in the Blade Runner universe. According to Insider Gaming, the project titled "Blade Runner: Time To Live" was envisioned as a "character focused, cinematic, action adventure" set in 2065. The narrative would have revolved around So-Lange, a vintage Nexus-6 model and the last Blade Runner, tasked with eliminating the head of an underground replicant network. After being betrayed and left for dead, So-Lange's journey would have involved stealth, combat, exploration, investigation, and intense character interactions.
Insider Gaming disclosed that the game had a development budget of approximately $45 million, with $9 million designated for external performance capture and acting. It was planned to offer a 10-12 hour single-player experience, with pre-production commencing in September 2024 and a targeted release in September 2027 for PC and both current and next-gen consoles. Unfortunately, the project reportedly fell through due to complications with Alcon Entertainment, the rights holder for Blade Runner, resulting in its cancellation late last year.
In a different development, Annapurna Interactive announced in the summer of 2023 their plans to develop their first in-house game within the Blade Runner franchise, titled "Blade Runner 2033: Labyrinth." Touted as the first Blade Runner game in 25 years, there has been no further news or updates on this project since its announcement.
Amidst these shifts, Supermassive Games has been busy with other projects, including the upcoming entry in the Dark Pictures series titled Directive 8020, and their work on Little Nightmares 3. Last year, the studio announced layoffs affecting around 90 employees, as reported by Bloomberg's Jason Schreier, entering what they described as a "period of consultation."
On a brighter note, fans of Supermassive's work can look forward to the cinematic adaptation of Until Dawn hitting theaters this weekend. For those interested, our review of David F. Sandberg's take on Until Dawn for the big screen is available here.
