Report: A Look Into Dungeons & Dragons Cancelled Open-World RPG “Project Dante,” Gameplay and Concept Art Unearthed
Last year, an open-world Dungeons & Dragons RPG in development by Hidden Path Entertainment was officially canceled. The game had initially been announced in early 2021, but two years later, Bloomberg reported that Wizards of the Coast, the IP holders, had decided to cancel five video game projects, among which was Hidden Path’s title.
Despite this, Hidden Path Entertainment did not officially confirm the cancellation until a year later, when one of the studio’s founders posted on LinkedIn, explaining that the game’s termination was due to funding problems. Sadly, this cancellation led to the layoff of 44 studio employees. It’s also regrettable that no glimpse of the game was ever publicly revealed, though this is understandable considering we estimate the game was only in development for roughly three years.
However, for those curious, you’ll be pleased to know that we have found a wide variety of development material from the game, including both concept art and early gameplay footage, and you may find it surprising just how advanced the project already looked.
D&D’s Cancelled “Project Dante”
This material originates from the portfolio of a former Hidden Path employee who contributed to the game’s music and sound effects. We have also discovered that this project was referred to internally as “Project Dante.”
The various clips showcase third-person gameplay, offering glimpses into elements like player mobility, UI, puzzles, cinematics, and some of the characters that would have accompanied the player’s journey. For instance, the initial fragment depicts a mission to find a temple, showcasing both melee and ranged combat, with the UI indicating the possibility of deploying four different ranged abilities.
In this first mission, the player is accompanied by two other characters, Kavir and Ri Om, who assist with combat and puzzle-solving. Furthermore, within the cinematics (or just early animation tests), more voice acting for the companions can be heard, which was likely placeholder work.
The concept art, meanwhile, reveals a wide array of creatures and environments, such as caves, dragons, various beasts, and even a cute winged cat—a creature known in D&D lore as a Tressym. These pieces also feature illustrations focusing on seven key characters, which seem to be companions, some of whom are also visible in the gameplay fragments as part of the player’s party or in cinematics.
While we don’t know the exact date of all of this material, particularly the gameplay, we suspect it originates from near its final development versions in 2023, just before its cancellation.
Unfortunately, it appears this ambitious project will never come to fruition. While Hidden Path Entertainment’s website still describes the studio as having “over 65” game developers, the layoff of 44 employees would have drastically reduced their personnel, rendering it unfeasible for them to manage a large-scale undertaking like Project Dante.
Still, for those eager for more Dungeons & Dragons games, there are other promising titles on the horizon. Project Baxter, another D&D game from Starbreeze (the creators of Payday), is currently slated for a 2026 release. A separate D&D project is also in development from Gameloft Montreal, which is expected to blend life simulator elements with action RPG gameplay.
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