In August 2020, it was announced the game was delayed until Q2 2021 as development was impacted by the governmental response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The company later announced it planned to release Deathloop on 21 May 2021. About a month prior to the planned May release, Arkane delayed the release until 14 September 2021, stating that they will be "using this extra time to accomplish our goal: create a fun, stylish, and mind-bending player experience." On 21 September 2020, Bethesda Softworks' parent company, ZeniMax Media and Microsoft announced Microsoft's intent to buy ZeniMax and its studios, including Arkane, for , incorporating the studios as part of Xbox Game Studios, with the sale finalized on 9 March 2021. Xbox Game Studios head Phil Spencer said that this deal would not affect Deathloops platform-exclusive release on the PlayStation 5, and the game would remain exclusive there for one year before arriving on other consoles. The game was released for Xbox Series X/S on 20 September 2022, alongside the "Goldenloop" update which introduces a new weapon, a new ability, new enemy types and cross-platform play, as well as an extended ending. Reception Deathloop received "generally favorable reviews" from critics, according to review aggregator Metacritic. In a review for Wired, Gabriel Solis wrote that the game's "profound meditation on time" kept him engaged in the game. Ars Technica criticized the invasion mechanic in Deathloop, feeling that Juliana had "no interesting strategies" to use against the other player. Eurogamer enjoyed the art style, feeling it built upon the foundations of Dishonored; comparing it to "an upper cruster's carnival with heady overtones of Tarantino and Wolfenstein". Sales Deathloop was the 18th most-downloaded game on the PlayStation Store for 2021 in the US and Canada. Arkane stated the game had reached 5 million players by February 2023. Awards and accolades References External links 2021 video games Arkane Studios games Bethesda Softworks games First-person shooters Golden Joystick Award winners Immersive sims Interactive Achievement Award winners Multiplayer and single-player video games PlayStation 5 games Science fiction video games The Game Awards winners Video games about amnesia Video games about time loops Video games developed in France Video games featuring black protagonists Video games postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic Video games scored by Tom Salta Video games set in the 1960s Video games set in the Arctic Video games set on fictional islands Video games with alternate endings