If you’re looking forward to ToeJam & Earl: Back In The Groove, you’re definitely a patient sort. The Kickstarter campaign for the game finished all the way back in March 2015, raising over half a million dollars. Since then the game has changed in scope and moved to consoles as well as the original PC version, and picked up Adult Swim Games as a publisher. However, development finally appears to be coming to an end, as HumaNature Studios is talking about a potential release date.
The latest update on the game targets it as an autumn release. “We ARE releasing this year!! Right now we have our sights set on a fall release. We will be making a specific release plan announcement in regards to dates as soon as we have that nailed down,” said Greg Johnson, studio founder.
One big surprise is a change to the game’s publishing arrangements, with Adult Swim Games no longer involved in the project. “Adult Swim Games has some other big titles they plan to launch this summer so when Back in the Groove pushed back, we both agreed that it made sense for them to hand us the reigns, rather than taking a chance on this getting pushed back any more,” explained Johnson. The split seems to have been amicable though, as he continues “Also I’d like to say how deeply grateful I and all of us here at HNS are to Adult Swim Games. We wouldn’t have gotten this game to this point without them…seriously. Thank You Adult Swim!!”
For console owners and backers looking forward to playing sooner, there’s also good news in the update. “We are also going to be opening a closed beta within the next couple weeks for our early-access backers, and we’ll be looking for your feedback! Also, the Nintendo Switch version of the game is just about ready to be submitted for certification by Nintendo, and the other console versions are not too far behind,” according to Johnson.
Are you still looking forward to the return of ToeJam & Earl, or has your excitement dampened over the last few years? Let us know on the forums or via our social media pages.