Upcoming Games That Are Overdue For Status Updates And News And The Possible Reasons Behind The Silence

As we get closer to the end of 2020; gamers are looking forward to the release of new gaming consoles as well as several new games to enjoy.

The end of the year also causes many gamers to look ahead to 2021 and which games they will be enjoying including those that many had expected to arrive this year. While 2021 has teased several games such as Far Cry 6, Deathloop, Hitman 3, Resident Evil Village, Ghostwire Tokyo, and Gotham Knights; there are several announced games that fans have been eager to get updated about.

The lack of conventions such as E3, PAX West, Gamescom, Tokyo, Game Show, and so on may be a factor behind the silence as some companies may see that doing the updates/reveals at a major event followed with a booth and playable preview may be a better option than dropping a trailer online plus it gives them more time to work on the game. However since some of the games have been announced and even previewed over a year ago it does cause speculation to grow as to the reasons behind the silence.

As such here is a list of some games that have long been announced but have been fairly silent on news.

The new Alien Shooter from Cold Iron.

In January of 2018 we were sent a press release announcing the new game. It was described as a shooter from consoles and PC. Very little information followed and E3 and other shows came and went without any updates. Disney then took over FOX and sold FOXNext and Cold Iron to a mobile game developer who was clearly not a home for this sort of game which caused many to fear it had been cancelled despite Cold Iron insisting work was continuing.

In August Cold Iron announced they have joined Daybreak and that the game was continuing ahead. Naturally one has to think at this point that a move to the Next-Generation systems is likely as the game will likely not arrive until mid or late next year and gamers have yet to see one image or video from the game.

Back 4 Blood

The game is said to be a spiritual successor to Left 4 Dead as the studio behind the original game is behind the creation of the game. Turtle Rock announced the game and that they would be working with Warner Bros. Interactive to make the game. Since then it has been silent and with the release of the Left 4 Dead update The Last Stand; many have started to wonder when they will hear news of the game.

I think that rumors of Warner Bros. Interactive being shopped to a new buyer may be behind this as while exciting over a pending title and possible new franchise can raise the value of a company; a new buyer may want changes to a title or opt to cancel it in favor of their new plans which might be a factor behind the silence.

Dying Light 2

The silence behind this game has lit up Social Media groups who expected the game to have a release date by this time. I saw the game at a private meeting at E3 2019 and even did an interview for the game in Feb. 2020 which can be seen here. https://www.sknr.net/2020/02/20/we-talk-dying-light-2-with-tymon-smektala-lead-designer-at-techla/

One of the questions I asked regarded the game on Next-Generation systems to which I was given a general and evasive response to. There have been reports that there have been conflicts over key aspects of the game amongst developers and with the delays I think it is only natural to assume that the game is now being looked at as a Next-Generation release.

The series arrived for current generation systems and promised a version for the prior generation before scrapping this idea when they realized it would compromise the game due to the limitations of the prior systems.

Beyond Good and Evil 2

This game was announced to the delight of fans but it has been very quiet since. Despite Ubisoft doing showcases for upcoming games this one has been absent. The likely cause is that it is still early in development and with the lack of major conventions the company is eying a possible big splash at E3 2021 should the event be able to happen where they can do their usual showcase and have a dedicated space at their booth for fans to experience the game.

Starfield and The Elder Scrolls VI

Fans have clamored for more information and many thought that E3 would provide some updates during the Bethesda showcase. The pandemic cancelled those plans and Bethesda opted not to do a showcase stating that they did not have anything to show. Reveals for Deathloop and Ghostwire Tokyo arrived during a Playstation showcase but the games were missing from Quakecon. Combine this with the recent purchase of Bethesda by Microsoft and speculation has arisen that the games may be exclusive to or timed exclusives for the PC and Xbox. The likely reason for the silence is simply a mix of all the above. The games are not ready to be shown off and Bethesda is waiting for the right time to show them off.

Diablo IV, and Overwatch 2.

Both games have been announced and have sections of the company website available but it has been very quiet in terms of news. To me this is easily explained as with the loss of Blizzcon in 2020 the company lost their usual platform for dropping news for eager fans the world over. Since the show has been moved online to Feb. 2021 and it is likely that updated news will be made available then. Should the world situation improve it will be interesting to see if Blizzard would look to do an in-person show in the Fall of 2021 as well.

The above list are just some of the bigger names that fans are eager to hear about. Which games are you most excited to be updated about?