The Zero Escape series, which has so far comprised of Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors and Virtue’s Last Reward, is currently in limbo. Series director Kotaro Uchikoshi has revealed that his development team at Chunsoft has been unsuccessful in securing a budget for the proposed third game in the series.
A peek at Uchikoshi’s Twitter account reveals that the previous games in the series, though critically acclaimed, have not been selling as well as Chunsoft had hoped, leading management to become disinterested in a sequel.
In conclusion, unfortunately, I have to say that it is difficult to realize it “at this stage” yet, although we have done all we can.
— Kotaro Uchikoshi Eng (@Uchikoshi_Eng) February 13, 2014
But, “in Japan”, 999 and VLR are in the red. They are not selling more than people think. — Kotaro Uchikoshi Eng (@Uchikoshi_Eng) February 13, 2014
However, despite this, Uchikoshi maintains a positive outlook:
I believe there is still hope. ZE3 will definitely be released somehow, someday!
— Kotaro Uchikoshi Eng (@Uchikoshi_Eng) February 13, 2014
Uchikoshi is also currently searching for a third-party investor.
If there is an great investor who thinks “Virtue is its own reward”, I wish him/her to send me a message.
— Kotaro Uchikoshi Eng (@Uchikoshi_Eng) February 13, 2014
Have you played either of the Zero Escape games? What did you think of them? Would you buy a third game? Let us know in the comments!
