Featured Image Credit: Bethesda Softworks
They say you can't keep a good vampire down, and that seems to be the case as Arkane Lyon's Blade is still showing signs of life. Originally announced with a suitably glossy cinematic trailer at The Game Awards 2023, fans of Marvel Comics, the iconic Daywalker, and superhero games in general were pumped to see the fan-favourite character get time to shine.
Recent rumbles of mass layoffs at Xbox led to scandalous reports that Blade had taken a stake to the heart, but thankfully, Bethesda's Todd Howard is here to set the record straight.
This wouldn't be our first foray into the nightmarish world of vampires, as we've been enjoying Blade appearing in games all the way since HammerHead delivered a disappointing Blade tie-in on the OG PlayStation in 1998.
Safe to say, the industry has evolved a lot since then
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Earlier in June 2026, Arkane studio and co-creative director Dinga Bakaba asked us to be a little more patient in waiting for Blade. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Todd Howard then gave a brief update on Blade when he said: "I'm not at liberty to say when [we'll see more]. But I saw some stuff just yesterday [on May 21] and the folks at Arkane [Studios, the developers] are doing a really, really great job."
Couple this with Bakaba's words and Blade assistant art director Jean-Luc Monne saying, "Let us cook," and it sounds like we'll have to wait patiently in our coffins until the sun goes down. In the meantime, you could always boot up Marvel's Midnight Suns or Marvel Rivals if you want to get your Blade fix in the gaming world.
Speculation about Blade comes after Arkane Lyon was notably absent from the June 2026 Xbox Games Showcase, as well as a worrying report that 'several' Microsoft developers are in the process of being shuttered.
Double Fine, Ninja Theory, and Compulsion Games are among those tipped for closure under Xbox, and while it's true that Ninja Theory could be closing despite supposedly having Senua on the way, Howard's words at least restore faith that Blade will live to fight another day.
Arkane already has some history with vampires, but with Redfall being the last game out of Arkane Austin before it was turned to dust like Dracula in sunlight, the less said about that, the better.
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Given that Blade was also missing from last year's Xbox Showcase, you'll forgive us for being more than a little concerned about what's going on.
Unfortunately, Howard stopped short of letting us know exactly where (or where) Blade could release. As the years have ticked by and gamers are getting ready for the mysterious Project Helix, many are sure to be asking whether Blade will be rolled over to Microsoft's next era of Xbox console.
Remembering that Insomniac Games announced Marvel's Wolverine in 2021 and it's releasing later this year, it's entirely possible that we won't be getting to grips with Blade until 2028. Insomniac's leaked roadmap originally pencilled a part one of a mythical two-part Marvel's Spider-Man 3 in for 2028, but as the entire industry continues to crawl at a snail's pace, Marvel's Blade could swoop in and clean up in Web-Head's absence.
Even though we know Bethesda has a lot on its plate with The Elder Scrolls VI, we can only pray that Blade doesn't stay in development for as long as the fantasy epic.
