Tencent and Remedy, the developer of Control and Alan Wake, have completely scrapped their joint game project codenamed Kestrel, which they have been working on since 2021. The companies were originally developing a free-to-play cooperative shooter until they decided to go in a different direction in November of last year. They went back to the drawing board, renamed their project from Vanguard to Kestrel and had instead planned to make a “premium game with a strong cooperative multiplayer component.” Back then, they said their game would “lean more heavily on Remedy's core strengths” and use repurposed versions of the company's assets and themes. However, it's clear that their partnership wasn't meant to be.
In its announcement, Remedy said that canceling the project will allow it to focus more attention on its other games in development. Although it did not list them, the company is working on the sequel to Control that will be released for PS5, Xbox Series x|S and PC, as well as a spin-off game in the franchise currently known as Condor. It will reassign developers to its other gaming projects, and since it was going to co-finance Kestrel with Tencent, canceling the project means reduced investment and hiring needs for the company.
Codename Kestrel is still in its early concept phase, Remedy CEO Tero Virtala said in a statement, while the company's other projects have already “progressed well” and are moving into the next stages of their development. “This is yet another means to ensure our gaming projects continue to move forward,” Virtala added.