Behind the messy launch of Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition Eurogamer.net If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Behind the messy launch of Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition Deadlines and Covid amongst pressures faced by Nightdive Studios. News by Liv Ngan Reporter Intern Published on 9 Aug 2022 16 comments Two lead developers on Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition have detailed some of the factors that led to the game's disappointing state upon release. Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition released on 23rd June, and received a negative reaction from critics and fans alike. The controversy didn't end there, with many also unhappy about the delisting of the fan-made ScummVM version of the original game on GOG. The ScummVM version, seen as vastly superior to Nightdive's remaster, was subsequently reinstated a week later, and was also then packaged with the Enhanced Edition on Steam. Now, Nightdive Studio director of business development Larry Kuperman and lead producer on Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition Dimitris Giannakis have discussed the troubled development of the project with PCGamesN. Watch on YouTube Eurogamer Newscast: Would you eat a Pokémon? The pair blamed "human issues", and described the released version of the game as the "result of a perfect storm of challenges" faced by the studio. Kuperman took the blame for the game's release date, chosen to coincide with the movie's 40th anniversary. "The responsibility for the ship date and, in retrospect, the failure to change the ship date resides 100 percent with me... Anyone who knows me knows I have a strong personality. Maybe Dimitris [Giannakis], if he'd been on board, would have been the one that said, hey, we're not ready. Maybe it was because of my personality, because of who I am, that nobody told us we weren't ready." The studio had previously spoken to Eurogamer about the difficulties faced by developers who had to reverse-engineer the original's code due to a lack of source code. This process, Giannakis claimed, took thousands of hours to do. The huge time and effort that went into reverse-engineering the game, as well as team members catching Covid, all contributed towards the game's subpar quality. Kuperman also defended his decision to not push the game's release date back later in the interview. "I can't say that if we had pushed it off a couple of months that things would have been better. We could have had a monkeypox epidemic. These are just the things that happen." Given that Nightdive is currently working on the long-awaited System Shock reboot and System Shock 2: Enhanced Edition whilst the world continues to adapt to Covid and a monkeypox outbreak, I'll be keeping my fingers crossed that the studio has learnt from the experience of developing Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition in the same conditions. Become a Eurogamer subscriber and get your first month for £1 Get your first month for £1 (normally £3.99) when you buy a Standard Eurogamer subscription. Enjoy ad-free browsing, merch discounts, our monthly letter from the editor, and show your support with a supporter-exclusive comment flair! Support us View supporter archive More News Atari will hold RollerCoaster Tycoon rights for another decade Ups and downs. 7 Lady Dimitrescu will be a tad smaller in Resident Evil Village's Mercenaries DLC Level the playing field. 1 Overwatch 2 suffers another DDoS attack and character roster bugs Mei Mei. 7 Nintendo Switch firmware update lets you take screenshots in the Switch Online app The app on your console, not your phone. 7 Latest Articles Genshin Impact Path of Gleaming Jade dates, login event rewards Including other anniversary rewards and how to claim them. Atari will hold RollerCoaster Tycoon rights for another decade Ups and downs. 7 Jelly Deals Logitech's G Pro X gaming headset is its lowest-ever price during Amazon's Early Access sale Prime Members can get it for just £52. Jelly Deals Save over £500 off the retail price on this beefy ASUS TUF Dash gaming laptop from Amazon Under £1080 for an RTX 3070 laptop. Supporters Only Premium only Off Topic: Take a minute to appreciate Cookin' with Coolio's incredible scallops recipe. What a great book. Premium only Off Topic: Reading City of Glass in comic form "Where exactly am I going?" Premium only Off Topic: Il Buco is a transporting film about a really big hole Underlands. Off-Topic Netflix handled Sandman brilliantly It was Dreamy. 9 Buy things with globes on them And other lovely Eurogamer merch in our official store! Explore our store