Ghost Story Games, the studio founded by BioShock director Ken Levine and currently working on a very BioShock-esque-looking game, Judas, just published a developer blog for the first time in the game's more than a decade-long conceptual and development production period. The update provides a few details about one of the game's core features, and shows off some impressive key art, but it does not provide any kind of update as to the game's release date.
We got our very first proper look at Judas last March, and since then, Ghost Story Games has been about as quiet as it was for the last decade. Though in fairness, Judas has been an idea floating in Levine's mind since 2015, and Ghost Story Games was only founded from the rubble of Irrational Games in 2017.
Still, it feels weird and surprising to read "Dev Log #1" at the top of the post for a game that we've been hearing about for years. At least it features a few interesting tidbits about what to expect in Judas, namely around the game's core feature called Villainy.
"Villainy is a central feature of Judas. When you play BioShock or BioShock Infinite, the villain is always going to be the villain. Fontaine, Comstock — they’re always going to be the bad guys," the post reads. "In Judas, your actions will attract members of the Big 3 to you as friends. But ignore one of them enough, and they become the VILLAIN. From there, they will get access to a new suite of powers to subvert your actions and goals."
The post also digs into how Judas takes a good deal of inspiration from Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor and its Nemesis System. But before Warner Bros fires up its legal team, the post is quick to point out that what Levine and the Ghost Story Games team have made for Judas is a system that is accomplishing different goals, particularly around how you'll interact with the three core characters referred to as 'The Big Three,' which is Tom, Hope, and Nefertiti.
"In Judas, you're going to get to know these characters intimately. We want losing one of them to feel like losing a friend. We want to play with that dynamic, and we want that choice to be super hard. The Big 3 are all going to be competing for your favor and attention. They can bribe you, save you in battle, talk shit about the other characters, and share with you their darkest secrets. But eventually, you've got to decide who you trust and who you don't."
Ghost Story Games also revealed that it has just completed a playtest for its Villainy feature, which was another major milestone in the game's development, before closing the post by making it clear that the studio won't be announcing a release date until it is sure that it will hit said date.
"While we wish we could give you an exact date today, we’re not quite ready to finalize that. As you know, release dates have a way of slipping by, and we’d like to avoid having to change the date after we announce it. But we know Judas is not really a game until the players get their hands on it, and that’s a day everyone on the team is working toward."
Earlier this month, it seemed like Ghost Story Games' parent company Take-Two Interactive, confirmed that Judas will arrive sometime in 2026. Hopefully, that is the case, and we can finally wrap up this decade-long journey from BioShock Infinite to Judas.
Unfortunately, and oddly enough, it doesn't sound like BioShock 4 will be as lucky, and might not be arriving until 2027 as its development troubles only seem to keep piling up.
About the author: David has been writing about videogames, technology, and culture since 2020, with a focus on reporting daily news across multiple publications, including GameDaily.Biz, GameSkinny, and PlayStation Universe before joining Wccftech in 2025. David started contributing as Canada/US reporter for Wccftech's gaming section in 2025. Besides being up-to-date on the industry's movements, he loves interviewing developers, reviewing games, and writing intricate essays about the symbolism and layered meanings to be found in rich narratives as he's done for publications like GamesIndustry.Biz, LostInCult, and others. Outside of games he loves movies, music, theatre, his hometown, and his family, though not necessarily in that order.
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