With the anticipation for The Witcher 4 extending into 2027, fans of Naughty Dog’s newly announced Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet are facing a similar wait. Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier confirmed on ResetEra that neither The Witcher 4 nor Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet will be released next year. This means that, like The Witcher 4, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet is slated for a 2027 release at the earliest. Both games will likely spark discussions about their target platforms, whether it's the PlayStation 5, the forthcoming PlayStation 6, or possibly a cross-generational title.

If Intergalactic launches directly on the PS6, Naughty Dog would be bypassing the PS5 generation for new titles. So far, the studio has focused on ports, remasters, and remakes for the current-gen console, including The Last of Us Part II, Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection, The Last of Us Part I, and The Last of Us Part II Remastered.

Naughty Dog unveiled Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet at The Game Awards 2024, spotlighting a stellar cast led by Tati Gabrielle from the Uncharted movie as protagonist Jordan A. Mun, and Kumail Nanjiani of Marvel's Eternals as Colin Graves. Fans have meticulously analyzed the trailer to identify additional cast members, although it primarily focuses on a few key characters. A photo of what seems to be the crew has revealed even more about the ensemble.

Earlier this month, The Last of Us director Neil Druckmann provided further insights into Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet. In an interview with Alex Garland, the writer behind the zombie film 28 Days Later, Druckmann openly discussed the development process, revealing that Intergalactic had been in development for four years already.

Druckmann shared, "I joke about this with the team. We made a game, The Last of Us 2, we made certain creative decisions that got us a lot of hate. A lot of people love it, but a lot of people hate that game," to which Garland responded, "Who gives a shit?" Druckmann continued, "Exactly. But the joke is like, you know what, let's do something that people won't care as much about — let's make a game about faith and religion."

Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet is set in an alternate historical timeline and features a significant religion that has "changed and bastardized and evolved" over time. Druckmann teased, "This whole religion takes place on this one planet, and then at one point, all communication stops. And you're playing a bounty hunter that's chasing her bounty, and she crash lands on this planet."

He further elaborated on the game's unique setting, "So many of the previous games we've done, there's always, like, an ally with you. I really want you to be lost in a place that you're really confused about what happened here, who are the people here, what was their history. And in order to get off this planet — again, no one has been heard from this planet for 600 years or so — if you ever have hoped to have a chance to get off, you have to figure out what happened here."

Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet Screenshots

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Assuming Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet launches in 2027, and considering Druckmann’s mention of four years in development so far, the game will have been in the works for six years by the time it's released. Despite the lengthy wait, Druckmann expressed optimism during an interview with IGN at the red carpet event for The Last of Us Season 2 premiere, stating that the game is not only playable but "really good."

Druckmann added, "I will say we are playing it at the office and it's incredible. It's really good. I'm so excited to finally put gameplay out into the world and show people about it, because we just showed you the very, very, very tip on the iceberg. The game goes pretty deep beyond that."