The Wolf Among Us 2, highly-anticipated sequel to the original Wolf Among Us, has been delayed to 2024. The Telltale Games team announced the news on Twitter, describing it as a ‘difficult decision’ that was necessary to ensure the game meets fan expectations, and to avoid forcing the development team to crunch.
‘We have made the difficult decision to delay The Wolf Among Us 2 out of 2023,’ Telltale announced on Twitter. ‘We know, it’s frustrating to hear. We started work on this in 2020 and we’re still determined to tell the ongoing story of Bigby and the rest of the Fabletown gang. However, it’s going to require more time. As disappointed as you are hearing this, we feel worse having to say it.’
‘But work continues. We’re committed to delivering the sequel fans deserve and doing what’s right for the game while protecting the health of our team. We appreciate your patience and understanding.’
Read: The Wolf Among Us 2 will be perfect for newcomers, assures Telltale CEO
According to Jamie Ottilie, Telltale Games CEO, a major factor in this decision was the game’s switch from Unreal Engine 4 to Unreal Engine 5. Speaking to IGN, Ottilie confirmed the transition required redoing ‘quite a bit of work’, leading to delayed timelines and increased workload. Despite this, he believes it was the right move as Unreal Engine 5 is a much better engine ‘worth the effort’.
Ottilie further spoke of the pressure facing the team, and the high expectations for the sequel, both of which spurred the decision to delay the game.
‘If we put this game out and it’s not ready, we’re going to get torn to shreds,’ he said. ‘The expectations are pretty high, and we want time to meet those and we want to be proud of it and know that, “Hey, this is the best game we could have made.” Let the world say what they will [once] it’s done, but at least we know that in these times, in these conditions, this is the best game that we could make.’
Ottilie is determined that Telltale fosters the best conditions for employees possible, with the year long delay for The Wolf Among Us 2 hopefully aiding an environment with minimal crunch, and well-rounded support.
‘I’ve done [crunch], and I don’t want to do it again, and it’s not fair to ask it,’ he said. ‘You can’t plan a business around it. So yeah, part of it is about maintaining a healthy work culture. We don’t want to burn out our good people … as an industry, if we’re going to continue to grow, we have to stop it. We just have to stop doing it and make better choices.’
Telltale Games will continue to work on The Wolf Among Us 2 over the coming year, in preparation for a later 2024 release date. Stay tuned for more news on this upcoming game.
