Yesterday, we received news that Hopoo Games will no longer continue the development of Risk of Rain 2, as the game’s publisher, Gearbox Software, will purchase the franchise’s IP. While the news left many uncertain of the game’s future, Hopoo Games has assured fans that the game will continue to be supported for the foreseeable future.
Released in 2013, Risk of Rain was developed by Hopoo Games and published by Chucklefish to critical and commercial acclaim. Gearbox published a sequel in early access in 2019, with a final 1.0 version released in 2020. The sequel was a smash hit, topping Steam charts, and was critically acclaimed for its gameplay.
Gearbox announced yesterday that they now own the franchise’s intellectual property. They were previously the game’s publisher and stated they are eager to prove that they’re worthy developers for the series. They bought the IP from the original developers Hopoo Games, who say they will no longer be working on the series.
However, the original developers say that the hit indie roguelike will still receive updates in the future while they independently pursue new IPs. They also clarified that Gearbox would continue developing the game to create new content for fans, and they will share more about the franchise’s future in the coming months. Gearbox is an experienced developer, having created games such as Borderlands and Hopoo games ensures us that they’ll do right by fans.
As for the future of the original developers, they clarified that despite selling their primary IP, Hopoo is not stopping making games as the studio plans to develop new games independently for the foreseeable future. They also talked a bit about the studio’s “passion project,” which is still in development, saying that it is being worked on internally at the studio and will continue to be done in the future.
