Skydance says Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra was not cancelled

Skydance Games executive producer Lu Gigliotti said Nov. 11, 2026 that Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra had not been cancelled, telling staff directly that there was no truth to the claims after a fan account spread the rumour on X. “They asked me to make sure you all hear that directly. There is no truth to these claims,” Gigliotti said. Kotaku also contacted Skydance and Marvel to seek comment on the rumour and reported on the development troubles. The fan account, Marvel 1943 Rise Of Hydra Countdown, put the cancellation claim on X, then removed the post and later apologised for sharing bad information. The account said its source had misunderstood, adding that the game faced development issues yet continued to move forward. Its past correct reports on Skydance’s restructuring had helped the claim spread. Jason Schreier reported that Skydance Games used Slack to tell the development team the game is not canceled, pushing back against the Twitter rumour. Power Up Gaming shared Schreier’s report once the original fan post had been deleted, shortly before his correction. Skydance said it was reducing the scope of some projects without naming affected games or confirming Marvel 1943 had been cancelled. Kotaku reported that the Paramount and Warner Bros. merger led to job losses for at least 30 Paramount Games staff on Nov. 9, 2026, including many from Skydance. The outlet said it did not appear the layoffs had a significant impact on the Marvel 1943 team. Amy Hennig started work on the game in 2019 at Skydance New Media, a studio that had just been established, and Push Square reported the title was first announced in 2019. It began as a Netflix pitch before shifting to consoles and PCs during development. Engadget reported on May 13, 2025 that the game is a narrative adventure taking place in occupied Paris during World War II. A reveal trailer arrived in 2024, but little substantial gameplay or news followed before late 2026 even with repeated delays. Skydance originally planned the game for a holiday 2025 release, then pushed it to 2026 so the team could add more polish. The first delay pushed it past early 2026, and a second delay moved it into 2027 and later. Power Up Gaming said the game, first set for 2025, shifted to early 2026 before the November 2025 delay. No confirmed release date exists as of November 2026 because Skydance pushed the game past early 2026 without setting a replacement date. Paramount Games Studio executive Shawn Kittelsen said in June that the game was playable and still in development, making a 2026 launch unlikely. Kotaku viewed a Slack message indicating the project is approaching an Alpha milestone later in November 2026. A source speaking to Kotaku said the project is close to being finished. IGN India repeated Kotaku’s finding that the project is close to being finished, adding that content and length cutbacks could leave it extremely compromised. The project is allegedly well over budget and has been significantly scaled back from its original vision for length and content. Kotaku described repeated development trouble and said the current version offers little gameplay. IGN India said the cutbacks came because the project went well over budget. People familiar with the project describe the gameplay as light, with nearly every action mapped to a single button and little meaningful interaction. Push Square said journalist Rebekah Valentine reported the gameplay description, and compared the game to this year’s Marvel’s Wolverine as potentially even simpler. IGN India offered a purely speculative comparison, suggesting the game could play like a Quantic Dream title such as Heavy Rain with combat added. Hennig’s final lead credit was Uncharted 3 in 2011, though she has consulted on titles including Forspoken. The adventure takes place during World War II, with settings including Nazi-occupied Paris and Wakanda’s jungles. Four heroes—Captain America, Black Panther, Gabriel Jones and Nanali—headline the adventure as they confront the emerging Hydra terrorist organization. Hennig said the story follows a young Steve Rogers still finding his feet and a newly introduced Black Panther set in 1943. “Good people have to work together to overcome evil. If you separate, then you’re not going to succeed,” Hennig said. Drew Moerlein voices Captain America, Khary Payton voices Black Panther, Marque Richardson voices Gabriel Jones, and Megalyn Echikunwoke voices Nanali. Hennig worked as a creative director and writer at Naughty Dog, writing the Uncharted trilogy and directing Legacy of Kain.