Sony Turned Down The Order: 1886 Sequel Due to Critical Reception, Dev Says

Ready at Dawn's co-founder, Andrea Pessino, recently revealed that Sony rejected a proposed sequel to their PlayStation 4 title, The Order: 1886, citing the original game's lukewarm critical reception. Despite this, Pessino stated that Ready at Dawn pitched a compelling sequel concept, and would have accepted almost any terms to develop it for the fans.

The 2015 release of The Order: 1886, a Victorian-era werewolf action game, boasted impressive visuals but received mixed reviews, primarily criticizing its limited gameplay. Pessino confirmed the sequel pitch, although he couldn't elaborate due to lacking franchise ownership rights. He emphasized the sequel's potential, highlighting that the team was willing to endure unfavorable conditions, including a significantly reduced budget and limited negotiating power, simply to deliver a follow-up.

Pessino detailed a challenging relationship with Sony during the original game's development. Meeting Sony's high graphical expectations, initially set based on early impressive demos, proved difficult due to necessary prioritization of other aspects of development. This resulted in payment delays and a strained partnership. Despite this experience, the team was eager to create a sequel to rectify the perceived shortcomings of the first game and resolve its cliffhanger ending.

Ready at Dawn's desire to deliver a satisfying sequel stemmed from a strong foundation laid in the original game, according to Pessino. He believes the sequel would have built upon this foundation successfully. However, with Ready at Dawn's closure by parent company Meta in 2024, any hopes for a sequel are now extinguished. IGN's original review, scoring the game a 6/10, echoed this sentiment, praising its visual style while criticizing its restrictive gameplay.