Redfall Still Getting Offline Mode And Big Final Update Even As The Studio Shuts Down

A year after Redfall’s disastrous launch, Microsoft announced it would be closing the beloved studio behind it, Arkane Austin. But it sounds like Game Pass’ vampire shooter will still get the big final update Arkane’s devs were working on after all.

“Thank you for all your supportive messages,” the studio—which also worked on critically-acclaimed immersive sims Dishonored and Prey—wrote in an update on the Redfall Twitter account today. “We are working to release our final update, Game Update 4, that brings revamped Neighborhood and Nest systems, Single Player Pausing, Offline Mode, and more. We’ll provide additional details soon. Thank you all.”

Remaining fans of the game have been hoping for this update for months, with some expecting it might have originally arrived back during last Halloween. IGN previously reported that the studio was in the middle of working on the update when it first received the shocking news that Microsoft would be shuttering it after nearly two decades. One thing the last update won’t include are the two promised DLC heroes some players already paid for via the $100 Bite Back edition of the game. Bethesda said it’s working on a crediting program to make it up to those fans.

While it will be interesting to see how the Neighborhood and Nest systems revamp the feel of Redfall, whose combination of stealth exploration and squad-based looter shooter combat never quite gelled, the bigger deal is the offline mode. So many attempts at live service gaming greatness over the years have fallen short or failed, with the always-online games that resulted eventually destined to disappear forever once the last servers shut off. It’s nice to know that the last thing a great studio like Arkane Austin worked on can avoid a similar fate.