A port of the critically acclaimed murder-mystery role-playing game Disco Elysium is in development for Nintendo Switch. The announcement was made on an episode of BBC 5live’s Game On podcast that featured art director Aleksander Rostov.
“This interview is, at this very moment, interrupting me from writing up design documentation for the user interface and input systems for the Switch port,” Rostov told host Adam Rosser when asked about a Switch version of the ZA/UM title. Narrative lead Helen Hindpere then said the port will happen soon but stopped short of providing a concrete time frame.
Disco Elysium released in October of last year exclusively on PC. The player operates as a detective suffering from drug-induced amnesia while attempting to solve a murder case. While there’s no combat, the game is heavily influenced by tabletop role-playing games as players attempt to pass skill checks to get through conversations and learn more about the case. There are 24 skill categories and how a player maps out their character will lead to unique experiences.
Lead designer Robert Kurvitz confirmed last year that the game will come to both PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in an interview with Escapist. The studio isn’t outsourcing development on these ports, and Kurvitz believes the game will lend itself to console play due to its narrative focus.
Since released to critical acclaim from reviewers, Disco Elysium found success at award shows. At The Game Awards 2019, ZA/UM’s debut title took home the most awards of any game at the show and won each of the four categories it was up for. Victories at the 2019 TGAs include Best Narrative, Best Independent Game, and Best Role-Playing Game.
Disco Elysium also found success at the 23rd Annual DICE Awards winning the Outstanding Achievement in Story award, and the development team took home two awards at the 20th Game Developers Choice Awards for Best Debut and Best Narrative. It was also awarded the Matthew Crump Cultural Innovation Award at the SXSW Gaming Awards for its story. Most recently, the 16th British Academy Games Awards nominated the RPG in seven categories and it won three of them (Best Debut Game, Best Music, and Best Narrative).
