Toby Fox Shares Extensive Deltarune Chapter 5 Update, Confirms No Early 2026 Release
In a comprehensive message to the community, timed to coincide with the tenth anniversary of his beloved title, Undertale, developer Toby Fox offered a significant update regarding the development timeline for Deltarune Chapter 5. While progress is certainly being made, Fox confirmed that players shouldn't expect the next chapter in the first half of 2026.
Development Milestones and Progress
As of September 8th, the production of Deltarune Chapter 5 is well underway. Fox provided a detailed breakdown of the current development status, offering a transparent look into the game's creation:
- Early zones within the chapter are already complete but still require a final layer of polish.
- Approximately 40% of the chapter's content is in a "rough stage," with an additional 10% currently existing as prototypes.
- Around 85% of cutscenes have reached their "first draft" state.
- Work on regular enemies is nearing completion, with one specialist already beginning development on foes for Chapter 6.
- The staging for boss battles has been finalized, and many of their attacks are already finished.
"Development on Chapter 5 hasn't been without its difficulties, but we've now overcome all the most obvious ones," Fox shared. "So now, little will hold us back. We just need to keep working on the game." This sentiment suggests that the major conceptual and structural hurdles have been cleared, paving the way for more streamlined production.
Beyond Development: Localization and Final Release
Fox also reminded fans that the journey from development to release involves several crucial stages, including localization for various languages, porting to different platforms, and thorough testing. Currently, his primary internal "deadline" is to initiate the localization process by the end of 2025. After this point, while minor gameplay adjustments might still occur, no significant plot changes are expected to be made.
Considering the extensive work still ahead, Fox doesn't believe that a release for the new Deltarune chapter will be possible in the first half of 2026. However, he added an encouraging note: "There are now no external factors that could influence the title's release date." This suggests that the timeline, while extended, is now more firmly within the development team's control.
Anniversary Streams for Undertale
In other news, fans of Toby Fox's work can look forward to special Undertale playthrough streams hosted by his team on September 20th and 21st. These streams will be accessible on Twitch and the official Undertale website. The event has been divided into two days to ensure that neither broadcast is excessively long, with the first day covering the initial half of Undertale and the second day completing the remainder of the game.
What This Means for Players
While the news of a later-than-hoped release for Deltarune Chapter 5 might be disappointing for some, Toby Fox's detailed update provides valuable insight into the complex development process. His transparency, coupled with the progress outlined, assures players that the team is dedicated to delivering a high-quality experience. The confirmation that major hurdles are cleared and that the timeline is now internally driven offers a clearer, albeit longer, path to the next installment of the beloved RPG.
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