After months of rumors, confirmation has arrived: Wolfenstein III is officially in production at MachineGames, with Bethesda Softworks as publisher. The announcement came from Asha Sharma, CEO of XBOX, during the celebrations for the brand's 25th anniversary. Along with the news, he published an excerpt of the script for the first chapter, while the studio released a photo taken during a motion capture session.

In his message on social media, Sharma emphasized the weight of the series and the work done by the team to make it grow: "Wolfenstein III is officially in production at MachineGames. It is one of the most important franchises in the world of video games, in the hands of a team that has done an extraordinary job to carry it forward. I can't wait to share more. ”

The first chapter is called "Nazitraz". The name seems to recall Alcatraz and suggests that the adventure may begin in a prison or in a compound run by the Nazis. The scene opens in an interrogation cell: the shot tightens on a table clock that marks a few minutes to midnight. B.J. Blazkowicz gets so close to a man named Otto that the latter can't help but look at him, and greets him with a simple "Hello". In German, the unfortunate man responds in a way that immediately makes it clear how much he fears the protagonist: "Oh fuck. Oh... fuck. Not him. Fuck. " The tone of the work promises to be brutal from the very beginning.

The excerpt closes with Fergus approaching to get the watch, a detail that is anything but secondary. In fact, the survival of the character depended on a choice made in Wolfenstein: The New Order, so his presence could indicate that MachineGames has chosen this narrative line as the official one. The studio could also offer both versions of the character based on saves or decisions made in the past, but there is no confirmation on this.

Brian Bloom and Debra Wilson will return to play B.J. Blazkowicz and Grace Walker respectively, and the photo shared by the studio shows them working in motion capture. Development is therefore already well underway. However, there is no indication of release period and platforms, so the question of a possible XBOX exclusive remains open.

The new chapter follows Indiana Jones and the Ancient Circle, released in 2024, and the return to Wolfenstein had been hinted at several times. In February Jerk Gustafsson, director of the studio that has been in charge of the series since 2014, had reiterated the desire to complete the trilogy that began with Wolfenstein: The New Order: "Our intention has always been to return to Wolfenstein. We wanted to complete the trilogy. When we do it is something I don't want to comment on: it may be now, it may be later, but we are not finished. ”

Also in February, a casting for a project codenamed Valkyrie had emerged, which revealed the first details of the plot. At the center was Sofiya, a Ukrainian orphan between the ages of 8 and 11 accompanied by her dog Ralph, destined to form a deep bond with William "B.J." Blazkowicz. The war made her traumatized and distrustful, but she was still described as a survivor with a strong character. The same announcement set the start of performance capture in April, with filming set to continue until 2027.

Finally, at the beginning of the month, Marty Stratton, co-director of id Software, had talked about the increasingly close technical collaboration with MachineGames: the two teams work together like never before on id Tech, the technology on which the studio's productions are based.

For the moment there are no other details or a launch window, but the announcement finally closes the season of speculation: the story of B.J. Blazkowicz is ready to continue.