Though not much is currently known about System Shock 3, other than the fact that it is, indeed, being actively developed by one of Tencent's game development studios, the franchise's considerable following is eager to learn more about the project. A recent interview with Warren Spector himself, however, revealed something new about its ongoing production.
System Shock 3 was initially announced back in 2015, with the project going into production under Warren Spector and his team of veteran game developers, Otherside Entertainment. Spector was regarded as a good fit for the game, as he had previously produced immersive sim classics such as Deus Ex and Thief, but he doesn't seem to be working on the game any longer.
In his latest interview with VentureBeat, Spector referenced the fact that Tencent acquired Otherside Entertainment back in 2020, and clarified that the studio is no longer working on System Shock 3 at all. The project is now managed completely by Tencent, said Spector, though there was no information provided on which of the publisher's many different game studios could be working on it at this time.
Curiously, Spector also confirmed that Otherside Entertainment stopped working on the project quite a long while ago, in 2019, and that the project was passed over to Tencent relatively early on. This means that Spector and Otherside had already been taken off the project when reports from 2020 about System Shock 3's development initially surfaced. According to Spector, his team has been working on an immersive sim title since, but he was clear that System Shock 3, specifically, was out of Otherside Entertainment's reach, and even said that this was "good for everybody."
While there's plenty of confusion surrounding the current state of production of System Shock 3 specifically, Nightdive Studios' remake of the original System Shock is set to launch in 2022. Though there were some troubles with this project, too, it seems to be further along than the continuation of the series, and is eagerly awaited by the fans.
Featuring the legendary SHODAN as one of the scariest gaming AIs, System Shock titles have historically been regarded as some of the finest examples of immersive sim games, alongside Deus Ex, Thief, and very few others. Though System Shock 3 is still under development, it remains to be seen whether the final product can live up to its branding in the end, especially now that it's clear that Warren Spector and his team won't be the ones to see it through.
System Shock 3 is currently in development.
Source: Venturebeat (via IGN)