What you need to know
- Redfall is a vampire-slaying shooter from former Microsoft subsidiary Arkane Austin.
- The game was a commercial and critical flop, criticized for an overall lack of polish and uninspired gameplay.
- Roughly a year after its launch, Microsoft shuttered the studio behind the game, Arkane Austin, who also created the criminally underrated immersive sim Prey.
- Users who purchased Redfall's "Bite Back Edition" were promised additional DLC, which ended up being cancelled.
- Now, Microsoft has begun rolling out refunds to digital owners on Steam and Xbox.
Redfall was a 4-player co-op shooter set on a fictional island community besieged by vampires and other similar mutants. Developed by Arkane Austin of Prey fame, Redfall looked like it had some promise in its initial marketing cycle, but the full game sadly fell far below expectations. A general lack of polish flanked by uninspired gameplay saw Redfall struggle to stand out in a busy crowd, and thus, unable to find an audience.
Microsoft acquired the studio behind Redfall some time in mid-development, as part of its Bethesda / ZeniMax purchase a few years back. Roughly a year after Redfall's disappointing launch, Microsoft shuttered Arkane Austin, alongside Tango Gameworks and other Bethesda Studios, as part of restructuring efforts. Incidentally, Redfall's promised DLC plans were shelved, leaving users who had purchased season passes and associated content early with the game's "Bite Back" Edition out in the lurch. Now, it seems Microsoft and Bethesda are trying to repair the damage.
I received tips this evening from users who purchased Redfall's Bite Back Edition that they were receiving automatic refunds. The Bite Back Edition cost $26.99, and Microsoft appears to be refunding the full amount to users on both Xbox and Steam.
Refunds seem to be rolling out in waves, with some having received one already, while others are currently in waiting. You should check your Junk Mail attached to your Steam or Xbox account in case it has fallen in there. One user also informed me that they were able to work with Bethesda Customer Support to receive a refund for the physical version of the Redfall Bite Back Edition as well after submitting a ticket. Although if you go down this route, be patient with waiting times, as there may be a fair few other people trying to grab refunds via this method as well.
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Redfall had a solid concept behind it, given that we live in a world with a chronic lack of high-quality vampire games these days. Perhaps it's the lingering curse of the Twilight movies, but Redfall was sadly not destined for greatness. Redfall had received some solid post-launch updates, including a 60 FPS mode, but it sadly wasn't enough.
The human cost of Arkane Austin, Tango Gameworks, and other studios closed by Microsoft in recent years is still raw to think about. But at the very least, it's good to see Bethesda and Microsoft making things right for customers who purchased expected content, only to not receive it. If you picked up the Redfall Bite Back Edition, keep an eye on your inbox for a refund, or drop a line to Bethesda Customer Support if you're a physical version owner.
Arkane lives on under the Arkane Lyon branch, now working with Disney and Marvel on a game based on the similarly vampiric Blade IP.
