11 Bit Studios has announced that Frostpunk 2 will now be released on September 20, far from its initially planned release date of July 25. The city-building survival game was first announced in August 2021.
“Based on the surveys we received after playing beta, the average rating you gave us was 8 out of 10. We’re super grateful for that! At the same time, it was only a small slice of a work-in-progress, still-growing game,” said Frostpunk 2 design director Jakub Stokalski and art director Lukasz Juszczyk in a new statement posted on Steam. While our backlog is plentiful, it was an opportunity for us to listen to what you enjoyed, and what didn’t quite land yet.”
The first Frostpunk game was released in 2018. Players take on the role of a leader in an alternate 19th century, in which they must build and maintain a city during a global volcanic winter.
“This allowed us to prioritize things better, and bring upfront the features and modifications we were already working on,” the statement continues. ‘But we also realized that to guarantee the best possible experience on launch, we need more time to finish the development of Frostpunk 2. That’s why we made the difficult decision to postpone its release to September 20, 2024.
We know this is not the news you wanted to hear. However, we believe these additional features are something you deserve to see in-game on day one, not in a patch added after the release. We can only hope you understand that our decision comes from a place of wanting to create the best game possible for you. One thing is certain – these few weeks will pass by VERY quickly for us, because we’re cooking some really exciting stuff.”
Currently, the Frostpunk 2 team is working on new game mechanics and extensive UI and UX enhancements.
Frostpunk 2 will now be released on September 20 for PC via Steam, Epic Games Store, and GOG. The title will be released on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S at a later date.