With the success of "Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch," a sequel to the role-playing video game was scheduled towards the end of the year. However, more tweaking is needed and therefore the launch has been canceled. Developer Level-5 also confirmed that multiplayer mode will not be included in the sequel.
The release date for "Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom" was initially set for Nov. 10 but will have to be delayed until January of next year. According to Akihiro Hino, president of gaming company Level-5 and story director, not only will the upcoming sequel be delayed, but online multiplayer will also not be available in the game.
Hino reasoned that the game needs more time so that it can reach the quality level that he wants. The game director explained that more development is needed so that fans will get the full experience of "Ni no Kuni II." Hino stated:
"I deeply apologize to those who have been looking forward to the game's release. Please rest assured, however, that we will continue to strive to provide a deep and satisfying single player experience that our fans can look forward to enjoying."
Regarding multiplayer mode, Hino claimed that there was a misunderstanding when he was asked a question previously about the game's online support. He was actually referring to the support for online announcements and not the online multiplayer mode.
Game delays are fairly common in the video game business. Rockstar's "Red Dead Redemption 2" was supposed to come out this fall but was pushed back to spring 2018. "Middle-earth: Shadow of War" was also set for Aug.22 but has been delayed until Oct. 10. If a game doesn't get the time allowance for defects to be fixed and features to be improved, it might end up like the troubled "Mass Effect: Andromeda" which was released last March.
"Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom" fans will have to wait until Jan. 19, 2018 for its release.
