According to Insider Gaming, Supermassive Games, based in Guildford, recently canceled an unannounced game based on the Blade Runner franchise. The game was reportedly titled Blade Runner: Time To Live and was described as a character-driven cinematic action-adventure in a world where the society of 2065 was crumbling. The game was to be a blend of Blade Runner’s philosophizing with action-adventure gameplay, and a length of approximately 10 to 12 hours of play.
Supermassive Games Cancels Blade Runner: Time To Live, an Action-Adventure RPG
Pre-production on Blade Runner: Time To Live began in September 2024, with the same team that worked on The Quarry. Pre-production was slated to finish in March 2025, and prototyping was anticipated to conclude six months after that. The game was tentatively slated for a September 2027 launch for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, with a chance that next-gen PlayStation and Xbox systems would also be included.
However, it seems unlikely that Supermassive would have enough insight into Sony and Microsoft’s future console plans at this point. Blade Runner: Time To Live was estimated to have had a development budget of $45 million, with an external performance capture and voice casting budget of $9 million. Extra costs were to be budgeted for music production, image rights, actor fees, testing, localization, and future DLC.
Gameplay would have been as a replicant called So-Lange, from New Zurich. It picked up her story, as she fought to “retire” a fearsome underground replicant leader named Rev, only to be double-crossed and left for dead. Each was thinking about adding gameplay in the form of leveling up a skill or ability. Though the cause of the cancellation is not stated, the decision was apparently made with some involvement from Blade Runner IP holders Alcon. The news is disappointing, considering how well Supermassive’s created some of the best adventure games. At least Annapurna Interactive is working on Blade Runner 2033: Labyrinth.
FAQs
Why was Blade Runner: Time To Live canceled?
The exact reason isn’t clear, but Blade Runner IP owner Alcon is reportedly to blame.
Will there be other Blade Runner games?
Yes, Blade Runner 2033: Labyrinth is in development by Annapurna Interactive.
