Alone in the Dark has lost its October release and instead coming out in January 2024
Delays are not uncommon in gaming, its the nature of development that sometimes things just don’t go to plan, so seeing that Along in the Dark has been delayed from its planned October 13th release until January 16, 2024 is no big deal, right?
Wrong, as their reason is just stupid. In the tweet below, the game has been delayed as October is too busy, so in order to ensure people can enjoy the game, they have decided to move it, not by a few weeks but out of the year entirely.
Horror games thrive on the eerie embrace of solitude, something that is impossible to achieve in a gaming month as busy as October.
— Alone in the Dark (@AITDGame) September 5, 2023
To ensure a breathtaking experience for everyone, we have made the decision to move the release of #AloneInTheDark to January 16, 2024. pic.twitter.com/W5EgV4aTZc
Now I don’t begrudge the developers from taking more time to ensure the game is better across the board, if they wanted more time to polish it up, I am all for it. But that reason, that October was too busy, is just pathetic and while yes the month will be busy with Mario, Sonic, Spider-Man, Assassin’s Creed and Forza Motorsport, releasing a game in that would have been a lot.
If this was Alone in the Forza Motorsport, then yeah I could see why delaying it would be good, or if this was butting against another atmospheric horror game, but as far as I can tell there is only one other horror game set to release in the month. Which given its October and people think of it as the spooky month, means horror games get plenty of attention.
If the reason is that they needed more time, then fine, but next time I hope they just say that instead of trying to be cute with the excuse that the delay is to avoid a crowded month, as spoiler alert, January is not likely to be any less busy.
If you want to see some of the game in action, check out the spotlight video from a few months back.