Alan Wake 2 developer, Remedy Entertainment, has previously announced it’s got a number of projects in development including a remake of Max Payne 1 an 2, a sequel to Control and two other, more mysterious titles. One of those was a project codenamed Vanguard, which was to be a free-to-play multiplayer game developed with support from publisher Tencent
Now, Remedy has revealed that both it and Tencent agreed a free-to-play title would be a bad idea in the current market climate, and have decided to “reboot” development with a new angle and new codename. Now dubbed “Kestrel,” it’ll be a premium game with a “strong, cooperative multiplayer component.”
Here’s what Remedy had to say in its investor release:
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“Remedy signed a global agreement with Tencent as its publishing partner on December 28, 2021, to develop Vanguard. Due to uncertainties in creating a successful game to the rapidly changing free-to-play market and associated risks, the parties have discussed a new direction for the game project, which will be given the new codename, “Kestrel.”
“The reboot comes as the project has reached the end of its proof-of-concept phase and after Remedy and Tencent had time to evaluate the project’s status and its next steps.
“The project will return to a concept phase. Part of the former Vanguard development team will move to work on Remedy’s other ongoing projects, while the core leadership and select members of the development team of Kestrel will focus on the project’s new direction from the concept stage onwards to create a premium game with a strong cooperative multiplayer component. The new experience will lean more into Remedy’s core strengths and be built on many of the features, assets and themes already designed for Vanguard.”
“We have made some great strides in free-to-play and multiplayer development in Vanguard,” said Tero Virtala, CEO of Remedy Entertainment. “After a lot of careful consideration, we believe that taking on a new direction where the game will be built more around Remedy’s core competences is the right way to go. We are creating another distinct Remedy game with Tencent’s continued support in making a great cooperative multiplayer experience.”
We gave Remedy’s just-launched Alan Wake 2 a huge 9.5/10 in our review, saying “While I’m sure there were countless drafts and edits throughout the journey to this point, this Alan Wake II is proof that great things come to those who wait. Like breaking through after a thirteen year stretch of writer’s block, I can only imagine the sense of relief in letting this monster of a game loose.”
