Many might not know that ROUTINE has been in development for a surprisingly long time, which has sometimes made fans worry about the project’s future. However, the developers have confirmed that the game is still alive and actively being developed by the Lunar Software team, even though they’ve lost an important team member with Mick Gordon’s departure.
This matter was also confirmed by the publisher Raw Fury, which shared a social media post highlighting the Steam update from the developers. The update reassured everyone that ROUTINE, which was first shown at the 2022 Summer Game Fest, is still progressing well and continues to receive positive impressions.
However, doubts are understandable at this point. The first reveal of ROUTINE by Lunar Software dates back to 2012, with the initial release planned for the following year.
Several years later, the space-themed horror game had a new release window, but this timeline was also missed, leading to another long period of silence.
ROUTINE was then showcased again in 2022 with a trailer at the Summer Game Fest. It was even announced for an immediate launch on Game Pass. However, this appearance didn’t bring any further information or updates, at least until recently.
The latest message posted on Steam tells us that ROUTINE is still alive, but it’s clear that the project has faced some challenges during development. The developers said,
In short, ROUTINE is still very much in active development, and we are beginning to approach the finish line for the game. We’ve learned a lot from past experiences, one of those is not to commit to a release window before we’re absolutely sure we can hit it. However, we’re confident that we’ll be able to share more news on that front soon.
Unfortunately, the departure of Mick Gordon was also confirmed. Gordon, who had been working on the audio for the game, contributed for several years. The developers explained that Gordon left the project in 2024 due to scheduling conflicts. However, Mick created many outstanding audio assets that will be featured in the final game and provided invaluable audio direction for ROUTINE.
ROUTINE is currently available to wishlist on Steam, however it doesn’t have a planned release date yet.
