MachineGames confirmed a sequel to Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus after putting the series on hold to work on 2024’s Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, but the shooter series is now back on the front burner at the Swedish developer.
“One of gaming’s most important franchises, and a team that has done remarkable work bringing it forward. Looking forward to sharing more,” Xbox CEO Asha Sharma, Xbox CEO, said in the announcement, which featured a photograph of a script for the project.
Wolfenstein 3 is officially in production at @MachineGames. One of gaming's most important franchises, and a team that has done remarkable work bringing it forward. Looking forward to sharing more. pic.twitter.com/YyX8LrbTvh
MachineGames responded to the post with a photograph from a motion-capture session, saying that “Wolfenstein 3 is in production.” The developers also said “His reputation precedes him,” referencing action described on the shared script page.
Actors Brian Bloom and Debra Wilson will reprise their roles as protagonist William Joseph “BJ” Blazkowicz and Grace Walker, respectively, as confirmed by motion-capture studio photographs. MachineGames and publisher Bethesda Softworks developed earlier reboots including 2014’s Wolfenstein: The New Order and 2017’s Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, before a co-op spinoff titled Wolfenstein: Youngblood debuted in 2019 starring Blazkowicz’s twin daughters.
MachineGames studio head Jerk Gustafsson said in an interview with Noclip that the team had “always seen [BJ’s story] as a trilogy.”
“That journey for BJ, even during those first weeks at [id Software], when we mapped out New Order — we still had the plan for at least [BJ], what would happen in the second one and what would happen in the third one,” Gustafsson said.
Gustafsson said in that interview, “I think that’s important to say, because — at least, I hope — we’re not done with Wolfenstein yet. We have a story to tell.”
Fans have a television series adaptation of the pioneering first-person shooter franchise to look forward to at Amazon.
This upcoming installment is the first game in the franchise developed by MachineGames under Xbox ownership following Microsoft’s acquisition of parent company ZeniMax Media in March 2021. The reveal took place right ahead of Xbox’s official 25th anniversary celebration on Sunday, November 15.