Naughty Dog’s Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet Reportedly Won’t Make 2026, Neil Druckmann Tells IGN ‘We Are Playing It at the Office and It's Incredible’

As the wait for *The Witcher 4* stretches into 2027, fans of Naughty Dog’s newly unveiled *Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet* face a similar timeline. Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier confirmed on ResetEra that neither *The Witcher 4* nor *Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet* will see the light of day next year, setting the earliest release date for both titles at 2027. This raises questions about whether *Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet* will target the PlayStation 5, the anticipated PlayStation 6, or be a cross-generational release. If Naughty Dog opts for a direct jump to the PS6, it would mean the studio has skipped the entire PS5 generation for new titles, having only released ports, remasters, and remakes like *The Last of Us Part II*, *Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection*, *The Last of Us Part I*, and *The Last of Us Part II Remastered* on the current-gen console.

Unveiled at The Game Awards 2024, *Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet* boasts a star-studded cast including Tati Gabrielle from the *Uncharted* movie as protagonist Jordan A. Mun, and Kumail Nanjiani from *Marvel's Eternals* as Colin Graves. Fans have eagerly dissected the trailer to uncover more about the cast, with a crew photo hinting at additional characters.

Earlier this month, *The Last of Us* director Neil Druckmann shared further insights into *Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet*. In an interview with Alex Garland, the writer of the zombie movie *28 Days Later*, Druckmann revealed the game has been in development for four years. He humorously reflected on the backlash to *The Last of Us Part II* and expressed a desire to explore less controversial themes in *Intergalactic*, saying, "Let's do something that people won't care as much about — let's make a game about faith and religion."

Set in an alternate historical timeline, *Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet* explores a significant religion that has evolved over time. Druckmann teased, "This whole religion takes place on this one planet, and then at one point, all communication stops. And you're playing a bounty hunter that's chasing her bounty, and she crash lands on this planet." He emphasized the game's focus on immersion and mystery, aiming to leave players "lost in a place that you're really confused about what happened here, who are the people here, what was their history." The ultimate goal for players is to unravel the planet's past in hopes of finding a way off, given that no one has been heard from there in 600 years.

Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet Screenshots

4 Images

With Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet slated for a 2027 release and already in development for four years, by launch, it will have been in the works for six years. Despite the lengthy development time, Druckmann remains enthusiastic. Speaking to IGN at the premiere of The Last of Us Season 2, he described the game as not only playable but "really good." He teased, "I will say we are playing it at the office and it's incredible. It's really good. I'm so excited to finally put gameplay out into the world and show people about it, because we just showed you the very, very, very tip on the iceberg. The game goes pretty deep beyond that."