PlayStation-owned studios have produced a string of hits throughout their history, resulting in some of the most successful games ever made. In recent years, though, reports suggest that there’s a lot of pressure to deliver, leading to some intense deadlines.
Based on a report from Bloomberg, one major PlayStation game is in trouble. Currently, it doesn’t even have a release date yet.
Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet Is Still In Development
And There’s A Lot Of Work Left
According to Bloomberg, Naughty Dog is racing to meet an internal deadline for an internal demo of Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, the developer’s newest game. For those unaware, Intergalactic is a sci-fi action adventure game starring bounty hunter Jordan Mun (performed by actress Tati Gabrielle), and the scope looks far bigger than most of their projects so far. That scope has already been scrutinized by many pundits thus far (especially when director Neil Druckmann said that the trailer is “barely scratching the surface” of what the game has to offer), but there could be other issues brewing.
Bloomberg alleges that the studio has been “pushing its staff to work long hours,” with an alleged mandate of eight extra hours a week that began in late October. It’s still on track for a mid-2027 release, but the report has staff thinking about how stressful the road ahead will be. Workers have allegedly been scrambling to figure out pet and child care in recent weeks, as well.
Naughty Dog Has Been Busy
Plus, There’s The Last Of Us TV show
In terms of scope, Naughty Dog reminds me of how Telltale Games rapidly expanded beyond its usual output. With numerous remasters and remakes to oversee, and some key staff’s involvement in The Last of Us TV show, their profile has risen considerably. Based on this report, that profile could potentially come at a cost.
The PlayStation brand is currently at a crossroads. As they try to balance their past with their present, it’ll be interesting to see what they look like in the future. For now, it would help to maintain their massive talent pool.
