Silicon Knights cuts force team to refocus on “one of its most requested titles for the next generation.”
Massive staff cuts hit the X-Men: Destiny developer Silicon Knights last week, slashing the Canadian developer nearly in half after a publisher, that remains unnamed, pulled out on a project the team was working on.
The project in question, which also remains unnamed, is still in development according to developers. A Silicon Knights spokesperson has said recently however, that “the company is currently refocusing and returning to its roots, working on one of its most requested titles for the next generation.”
While the name Eternal Darkness 2 has not been mentioned, it seems the most likely candidate for a next generation revamp and a perfect fit for the Wii U controller. Despite vast amounts of love for the original, Eternal Darkness has never seen a follow-up, but this could be the news we’ve all been waiting for.
Nintendo also own the rights to the name, a patent on the infamous Sanity Effects from the original Nintendo GameCube title and it’s believed Nintendo still own a minority stake in Silicon Knights too! So a follow-up to Eternal Darkness could indeed be a possibility.
Eternal Darkness is a psychological horror action-adventure video game released for the Nintendo GameCube.
Though not a commercial success, the game was widely praised, even winning the Outstanding Achievement in Character or Story Development award at the 6th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards.
Not familiar with Eternal Darkness? Take a look at the trailer!
Update March 25, 2012: Silicon Knights boss Dennis Dyack mentioned in a recent GI interview that his studio is working on their most requested game, another strong hint Eternal Darkness 2 is in development for the Nintendo Wii U.
To quote: “We’re really excited and we’re working on our next generation stuff. We’re working on an IP that’s our most requested and we’re really excited about that. We’re going back to our roots. I’m really looking forward to a point in time when we can talk about it.”