Skybound Games, which announced in October that it would take over development of The Walking Dead: The Final Season following the collapse of original developer Telltale, said in an update posted today that work on the game has now officially resumed, and that release dates will be announced soon.
"It’s been a ton of work logistically and legally to get us to a place where we’re able to roll up our sleeves and get to the actual work," Skybound social media rep Johnny O'Dell wrote. "After Telltale shut its doors, the game was, unfortunately, unable to be worked on and hence the release dates of Episodes 3 and 4 have been delayed. But, we’re excited to let you know that many of the talented, passionate team members who originally worked on the game are resuming development efforts today!
"Soon, we will be announcing release dates for the two remaining episodes. It’s likely that previous seasons of the game may be unavailable to purchase for a few days as we transition—but don’t panic!—we’ll have everything back online ASAP. If you already purchased Season Four, you will NOT have to pay again; future episodes will be available to download as soon as they are released via your original point of purchase."
A couple of weeks after revealing its intention to finish the game, Skybound said that its goal was to do so entirely with former Telltale employees. Not all staffers would make the transition, but Howe said in an AMA that the story as it was planned will not be changed: "The process of developing the narrative isn’t changing, there is a long standing collaboration between the writers and Skybound over story approval and all the same people will still be involved."