In August 2013, a Kickstarter for a "JRPG with a squad based RTS game design, brought to you by veteran developers and creators from the East and West," went live. Project Phoenix quickly smashed its $100,000 goal, eventually raising $1,014,600 from almost 16,000 backers.
Regular updates continued for the next six years, but on March 26, 2019, CIA Inc. went silent. There were no further updates, and backers were left to believe they'd fallen victim to yet another Kickstarter rug-pull.
Over seven years later, TheGamer has learned that Project Phoenix has risen from the ashes, with its creator issuing a lengthy apology email to backers, vowing to finish production in 2031.
Project Phoenix promised veteran developers from the East and West, and it looked set to deliver on that, with Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu penciled in to create the game's main theme. It also featured developers with credits on Diablo 3, L.A. Noire, Final Fantasy 3, 8, 9, 12, and 14, Skyrim, The Lord of the Rings movies, Metal Gear Solid V, Halo 4, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, Street Fighter 2, and more. It's an impressive roster.
The game had lofty ambitions, with its Kickstarter campaign...
