Digimon producers Kazumasa Habu and Takahiro Yokota have revealed the monster-taming franchise has "multiple" new games in development. The long-running series has been looking to make a major resurgence over the past few years, between the recently released Digimon Survive and the revival of the classic Digimon Adventure anime. Bandai Namco had previously announced that Digimon World: Next Order would soon be coming to both the Nintendo Switch and Steam. Now, the producers have teased fans about the franchise's future with plenty more to come.
In a video formally announcing the upcoming port of Digimon World: Next Order, Habu revealed that Bandai Namco currently has "multiple Digimon games" in the works at the studio. Habu did not give any specific details about the upcoming games, asking fans to stay tuned for more information to come in the future. The launch of Digimon Survive earlier this year was the first new major entry in the franchise since 2018's Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth - Hacker's Memory.
The confirmation of new Digimon games in development may look to affirm previous rumblings about the future of the franchise. Habu confirmed earlier this year that a Digimon World remake or remaster was being considered by Bandai Namco. The original Digimon World, while beloved by fans of the franchise, would not see any international ports or remasters with only a PC port in South Korea shortly after the original's launch. Digimon World would later receive multiple sequels on the PS1 and several Japan-only follow-ups on PSP, 3DS, and Vita before Next Order's international launch.
The Twitter video also talked more about the recently revealed port of Digimon World: Next Order, set to launch on Switch and Steam on February 22, 2023. The port will be adding a few quality-of-life features to the game with a new easier "Beginner" difficulty and the ability to run, speeding up movement within the game. The Next Order port also features a new producer with Takahiro Yokota making his Digimon debut with the Switch and PC versions.
Digimon's new releases come at a time when the monster-taming/raising genre has seen fiercer competition in recent years than it has since the franchise's debut. Digimon's main rival Pokemon is set to welcome its newest generation of games with Pokemon Scarlet and Violet releasing next month. Temtem has also seen success as an indie game looking to capture some of Pokemon's massive fanbase. A suite of new Digimon games from Bandai Namco will look to bring the franchise back to its glory days from the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Source: IGN