Abandoned Returns to PS5 Store with 2027 Release Window

Abandoned, the PS5 survival horror shooter from indie developer Blue Box Game Studios that became one of gaming’s most talked-about conspiracy magnets, has returned to the PlayStation Store after multiple removals, now listing a 2027 release window and the same barebones description it has carried since 2021.

A Game That Keeps Coming Back

Blue Box first announced Abandoned in 2021 with plans to release it that same year. Those plans collapsed, and the studio delayed the game indefinitely in 2022, stating it would notify players when ready. No such notification came. The listing was pulled from the PlayStation Store, restored, pulled again, and has now returned once more. According to GamesRadar, the current store page still carries only this description: “Abandoned is a horror survival shooter with the focus on realism.” A promised playable Prologue never materialized, and the studio’s YouTube page no longer displays the game’s existing trailers.

The Kojima Conspiracy That Took Over the Internet

When Abandoned’s announcement teaser dropped in 2021, a large portion of the internet became convinced it was a secret Hideo Kojima project, with the gray, sparse woodland visuals drawing comparisons to a potential Silent Hill revival filtered through Metal Gear’s aesthetic sensibility. As GamesRadar details, a dedicated subreddit called r/TheBlueBoxConspiracy emerged, with theorists arguing that the studio’s name itself was a Death Stranding reference. Their reasoning: Kojima Productions is an indie studio, Death Stranding protagonist Sam Porter Bridges sometimes carries blue boxes, a dropped box of oranges created an orange box moment, and blue is the complementary color to orange. Blue Box Game Studios denied any connection to Kojima, and over time the internet accepted that denial, which is roughly when the game’s reputation shifted from conspiracy magnet to outright scam suspicion.

What the Return Actually Means

The reappearance on the PlayStation Store does not come with new screenshots, a trailer, or any expanded details about what Abandoned actually is beyond that original single-sentence pitch. GamesRadar notes the listing at minimum confirms the game was not a collective hallucination, but stops well short of signaling that a real product is close to delivery. With five years of silence, scrubbed social media activity, and no tangible footage of gameplay, a 2027 window will do little to rebuild trust until Blue Box shows something concrete.

Sources: GamesRadar