Yesterday, Ukrainian developer Frogwares delivered one of the best surprises of the Xbox Partner Showcase with the announcement of The Sinking City 2.
In a press release sent after the reveal, Frogwares clarified there will be a Kickstarter campaign for the sequel, just like for their previous game (Sherlock Holmes The Awakened), and it’s all due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. CEO Wael Amr explained:
At this stage, we have learned and adapted to our reality but the ongoing war adds an ominous layer of uncertainty, and the additional funds will help us deal with potential disruptions on top of helping fund various extra features we would love to implement. Our previous game, Sherlock Holmes The Awakened, was fully developed and released during the war. Through Kickstarter and our supporters, we built ourselves a safety net that saved us more than once. From power cuts as our electrical infrastructure was targeted for months to the need for team members to relocate at very short notice, this financial safety net proved invaluable to us. So we need to do the same now with The Sinking City 2 as this game is vastly bigger and more complex.
On the different nature of the sequel, which will move from a detective game with horror tones to a survival horror game with optional detective moments, Publishing Director Sergiy Oganesyan said:
The original The Sinking City is still one of our most successful titles, most likely because of stronger horror genre leanings and setting. We created quite a few detective adventures in the past, so now we’re going to mix things up to keep doing what people love about us – meaning story-rich experiences – while still being able to evolve. It’s exciting but at the same time risky. We’re a totally independent studio that for the past 24 years has become known for detective games. But we need to start taking bolder moves. The industry is changing around us and we want to secure the studio’s future.
The Sinking City 2 will include an arsenal of weapons to fight off Deep Ones, Mi-gos, occult zealots, and other iconic monsters from the source material as well as new and unique creatures that expand the Cthulhu Mythos. It’s being made with Unreal Engine 5 and will take advantage of its most prominent features, such as Lumen, Nanite, and Metahuman characters.
Frogwares is targeting a 2025 launch on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S|X.
