Marvel’s Blade Really Is Cursed

Wesley Snipes once said there was only ever going to be one Blade, and that line is sadly starting to look prophetic. Marvel's Blade has run into a major roadblock, the most significant setback yet for the vampire hunter's return to video games, and one that might, unfortunately, be insurmountable. But that's not the end of the character's troubles.

Marvel has been trying to get a new Blade movie off the ground for some time, hoping to officially add Mahershala Ali to the MCU's star-studded lineup in the leading role. With various delays and director changes, Ali himself is frustrated with the situation, and an indefinite delay is starting to look more like a cancelation. With these two major projects in production for years without an end in sight, Blade might really be a cursed franchise.

Marvel's Blade Developer Arkane Studios Is In Trouble

Microsoft recently cut 4,800 jobs, most of which will affect Xbox. 1,600 layoffs at Xbox and its subsidiary studios have already occurred, with another 1,600 coming throughout the next year. Part of those cuts include divestment of four studios. Compulsion Games (South of Midnight) and Double Fine (Psychonauts) will become independent, while Ninja Theory (Hellblade) and Undead Labs (State of Decay) are in the process of being sold.

Arkane Studios, known for Dishonored, Deathloop, Prey, and the upcoming Marvel's Blade, is in a similar situation, but its fate remains up in the air for the time being. Since Arkane is based in Lyon, France, stricter labor laws make the divestment process more difficult. The official word from Xbox CEO Asha Sharma (via an internal message published by Xbox Wire) is that "Arkane’s management is beginning required consultation with its Works Council to review potential strategic options."

One of those options is, sadly, the closure of Arkane and the cancellation of Marvel's Blade. The studio will hopefully find a buyer, or similarly go independent, because the developers there do truly unique and inventive work. All those Arkane employees losing their jobs would be devastating.

Blade starring in a game developed by Arkane Studios is one of those pairings that feels perfect. The studio is known for its immersive sims, which offer a combination of stealth and action with a variety of powers that let you do all sorts of wacky things – like turn into a copy of an inanimate object in Prey. Blade's vampire hunting would translate very well, and the announcement trailer (below) from nearly three years ago hints that Arkane has nailed the tone.

Major Projects Starring Blade Can't Get Out Of Development Hell

With Marvel's Blade and the MCU adaptation both stalling, it's weirdly becoming a pattern for the character. Both new projects had a lot of excitement around them; Arkane is well respected and is a good match, as discussed above, and Mahershala Ali playing Blade in the new movie has been received as an inspired casting decision. Both projects potentially being canned is a huge disappointment.

Ali as Blade may still make appearances in the MCU – rumor has it he will be included in upcoming Avengers films or a potential ensemble affair featuring the Midnight Sons. This is, coincidentally, exactly how the character is also making video game appearances. Blade is a part of the Marvel's Midnight Suns roster, was added to Marvel Rivals, and has been confirmed to be a fighter in the upcoming Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls.

The Blade trilogy starring Wesley Snipes in the late 1990s and early 2000s is fondly remembered, and the character is still making regular comic book appearances these last few years. Both Marvel's Blade from Arkane Studios and an MCU adaptation starring Mahershala Ali seem like surefire hits, but the character seems cursed to remain relegated to guest appearances and ensemble casts.

Developer(s) Arkane Studios

Publisher(s) Bethesda Softworks

Engine Void Engine

Franchise Marvel