Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet gets rare update after years of silence

It’s incredibly difficult to gauge just where Naughty Dog’s Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet is in its development.

The title was revealed at 2024’s The Game Awards - and that was after Naughty Dog vowed to reveal all of its games much closer to launch following pressure surrounding The Last of Us Part II.

Yet, the end of 2026 draws near and we’re yet to get any kind of meaningful update on the new sci-fi IP which’ll star Tati Gabrielle as protagonist Jordan A. Munn.

Sony

A recent report claimed that Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet didn’t occupy the attention of the majority of the studio’s developers until after The Last of Us Online was cancelled.

It would’ve had a skeleton crew before then, but we’re essentially looking at three years of intense development.

Hopefully then, a gameplay reveal isn’t too far away with many hoping for a 2027 release date, although that is more of a wish than anything else.

Amid Naughty Dog’s radio silence though, one interesting update has emerged with Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet adding a former Naughty Dog collaborator to the cast list.

Actor Robert Atkin Downes has confirmed his involvement in the game, posting to Twitter/X with a video showing the game’s logo before transitioning to Downes in a mo-cap suit.

In the caption, he said, “I've been keeping this one quiet for a while .... The journey continues! Awesome to be working again with the Dawgs!”

We’re relieved to hear that he’s been involved for “a while”. The longer Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet has been in the works, the closer fans are to getting their hands on it.

READ MORE: Naughty Dog's Intergalactic dodges PlayStation physical media cull with positive update

Downes has a long history of portraying Naughty Dog villains, suspicious

Downes has quite the history with Naughty Dog, having appeared in The Last of Us and Uncharted franchises.

In 2007’s Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, Downes voiced and provided mo-cap for Atoq Navarro, who was the ultimate main antagonist of the title.

He then returned in 2009’s Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, reprising Atoq Navarro for the multiplayer component. He also mocapped for the character of Tenzin, who was voiced by actor Pema Dhondup.

Downes’ journey continued in Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception, where he once again voiced Navarro for the multiplayer, while this time appearing as Talbot, villain Katherine Marlowe’s right-hand man.

Oh, there’s more. In Uncharted: Golden Abyss - the PSP exclusive - Downes portrayed Vincent Perez before then appearing in The Last of Us in 2013 as Robert.

Downes’ last collaboration with Naughty Dog came in 2016, when he voiced Navarro and Talbot in the multiplayer of Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, again, plus brief antagonist Hector Alcazar.

Downes has not worked with Naughty Dog in recent years, so it’s certainly a reunion that’s been a long time coming.

There’s precisely no word on who Downes will play and admittedly, as we know so little about Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, it probably wouldn’t mean a lot to us. A villain, however, feels likely.

What we do know is that Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet takes place thousands of years in the future, where lead character Jordan finds herself stranded on Sempiria, a planet that has been cut off from outside contact with no one able to leave for over 600 years.

There, based on a brief cinematic trailer, we know Jordan will wield a glowing blade as she fends off robots.

The story has been described as focusing on religion and faith - and what happens when that can evolve into something more.

Hopefully, a full Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet update will be here before long.