Deltarune Update: Chapter 4 Nearing Completion, but Release Still Awaits
Undertale creator Toby Fox recently offered fans a progress update on Deltarune's upcoming chapters via his newsletter. While Chapters 3 and 4 are planned for simultaneous release on PC, Switch, and PS4, Fox clarified that, despite Chapter 4 being nearly finished, the launch date remains distant.
Chapter 4's development is in the polishing phase. All maps are complete, battles are playable, but refinements are needed. Fox highlighted minor adjustments to cutscenes, battle balancing, visual improvements, background enhancements, and ending sequence improvements for certain battles. He considers Chapter 4 essentially playable, pending final touches, and has received positive feedback from testers.
The multi-platform and multilingual release presents significant challenges, particularly given this is the first major paid release since Undertale. Fox stressed the need for meticulous quality assurance to ensure a polished final product. Pre-release tasks include testing new features, finalizing PC and console versions, Japanese localization, and comprehensive bug testing.
Chapter 3 development is concluded (as per Fox's February newsletter), and preliminary work on Chapter 5 has already begun, encompassing map creation and battle design.
While a specific release date remains unannounced, the newsletter provided glimpses of upcoming content, including Ralsei and Rouxls dialogue, an Elnina character description, and a new item, GingerGuard. Although the three-year wait since Chapter 2 caused initial disappointment, the expanded scope of Chapters 3 and 4 (confirmed to be longer than Chapters 1 and 2 combined) has generated considerable excitement.
Fox remains optimistic about future development, anticipating a smoother release schedule for subsequent chapters following the launch of Chapters 3 and 4.
