During the Game Awards in 2018, an expanded version of entirely serious office-life drama The Stanley Parable was announced with a release date of 2019. As that year drew to a close, the release was pushed back to 2020, “probably before summer, but it sort of depends on the specifics of how development goes”. That didn’t work out either. News of its delay to 2021 was delivered via borrowed delay announcements from other games. By this point, nobody was taking the date seriously.

And so, the new trailer begins: “What does it mean to be a videogame developer? It means lying, boldly and brazenly to your audience, promising them release dates that are wildly outside the realm of reality.” Then it confidently announces a new release date of “early 2022”. However, this time it’s “content complete.” It even has a Steam page. I think it might actually be for real. (If you’re reading this from the future and it’s not, please don’t laugh.)

“If you’re wondering why this game has taken so long to develop,” said writer/designer Davey Wreden on Twitter, “the script for new Ultra Deluxe content is actually LONGER than the script for the original game”. While the original game’s story will remain as it was, additional choices, secrets, endings, and so on have been added around it. Wreden went on to explain, “It’s different than the original Stanley Parable, sort of. We wanted even veterans of the game to feel surprised. I’m glad we took this path.”

The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe will also have accessibility features and upgraded visuals. And be out in early 2022. Totally. Yep.