We first covered Blue Protocol, the stylized online action RPG developed by Bandai Namco Online, nearly five years ago. Back then, there was no assurance the game would ever launch in Western countries.
That changed in December 2022, when Amazon Games took the stage at The Game Awards to announce a publishing deal with Bandai Namco Online to bring the game to PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S|X outside of Japan.
Blue Protocol eventually got its debut in the Land of the Rising Sun on June 14, 2023. The Western version was delayed to 2024, but we haven't really heard any more about it. In fact, Amazon Games continued to mention its publishing deal with NCSoft for Throne and Liberty (now set to launch on September 17 in Western countries) in its press releases, whereas Blue Protocol wasn't mentioned any longer. The last blog post on the official global website is dated November 13, 2023.
Unfortunately, that may be due to a dire financial situation. A few days ago, Bandai Namco Online (a subsidiary of Bandai Namco Entertainment) declared itself insolvent due to substantial losses. That doesn't necessarily mean work on the game is about to stop, but it doesn't incite faith in its future, either.
The developers held a live stream earlier this month, but it didn't provide any news on the global launch. They only talked about upcoming updates, such as the next chapter in the main story, a new region, an increased level cap to 80, and new passive abilities for each class available in Blue Protocol.
We'll keep an eye on the news from Japan, hoping for the best while preparing for the worst.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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