Psychonauts enthusiasts anticipating a sequel announcement during Gamescom will likely face disappointment. Tim Schafer, the head of Double Fine, confirmed that the studio is not planning to create Psychonauts 3 or a sequel to Brütal Legend anytime soon.
During an IGN interview at Gamescom, Schafer underlined that the studio’s focus is currently on original intellectual properties, stating, “I’m working on other stuff.”
(Translation: Estoy trabajando en otras cosas.)
While he refrained from revealing details about these projects, he noted, “The studio is doing multiple original IPs because we just produced Psychonauts 2, which will satisfy us for sequels for the time being.”
(Translation: El estudio está trabajando en múltiples IPs originales porque acabamos de producir Psychonauts 2, lo que nos satisfará en cuanto a secuelas por un tiempo.)
This isn’t the first occasion when Schafer has dashed hopes for Psychonauts 3 in recent years. The documentary series PsychOdyssey, released last year, showcased the extensive effort and time that went into making Psychonauts 2, sparking some reluctance among developers to undertake another installment. Therefore, it seems reasonable that Double Fine would prefer to concentrate on smaller projects for now, however disappointing that might be for fans of the series.
Among these projects is Keeper, set to release on October 17, described by Schafer as a surreal and unsettling puzzle game where players assume the role of a walking lighthouse accompanied by a bird named Twig. He mentioned that it is a unique yet tranquil experience devoid of any dialogue.
“It’s taken a considerable amount of effort to develop, although it isn’t a lengthy gameplay experience. We anticipate about six to eight hours of gameplay, but it promises a deep and immersive, AAA-like experience within that time frame,” Schafer elaborated.
(Translation: Ha llevado una cantidad considerable de esfuerzo desarrollarlo, aunque no es una experiencia de juego larga. Esperamos alrededor de seis a ocho horas de juego, pero promete ser una experiencia profunda e inmersiva, similar a un AAA, en ese tiempo.)
Keeper will be available for wishlist on Steam and will launch on Xbox as well. While it may lack the title of Psychonauts 3, its surreal artistic style may appeal to fans of the franchise, especially since it appears there are no sequel plans from Double Fine anytime soon.
