Lies of P 2 enters full production — but an AI hiring decision is stirring up fans
The studio behind Lies of P has confirmed the sequel is in full production — good news for fans of the 2023 Soulslike, tempered by a controversial move to bring generative AI into the creative pipeline. Developer Round8 posted a job listing for an AI Creator role, drawing swift criticism from players who credit the original game's handcrafted Belle Époque aesthetic as central to its success.
In production, on a new engine
Neowiz's Q1 2026 earnings report confirms the Lies of P sequel has cleared the prototype stage and entered a vertical slice phase — meaning core teams have established the game's concepts, tools, and begun building actual content. The sequel will run on Unreal Engine 5, an upgrade from the original's UE4, with some outlets reporting a potential open-world direction, though nothing official has been confirmed. No release window has been disclosed; two to three years would be a reasonable estimate given where development currently stands.
The franchise has momentum behind it. The base game hit 3 million sales by June 2025, and combined with the Overture expansion — which won Best DLC at the New York Game Awards and earned a Golden Joystick nomination — the series has surpassed 4 million units as of March 2026.
The AI question
The job listing, confirmed by The Gamer, seeks a candidate with three or more years of experience using Midjourney and Stable Diffusion to generate concept art, textures, and 2D-to-3D asset conversions. Round8 has not clarified whether AI-generated assets would appear in the final game or serve only as internal reference material.
The backlash landed quickly. Lies of P sits at 93% positive reviews on Steam, built substantially on praise for its detailed Victorian-Pinocchio art direction. Players on Steam and Reddit have been vocal about the risk of diluting that quality with AI-generated visuals.
Neowiz is also expanding elsewhere — Project Rubicon (a narrative RPG in vertical slice) and Project Windi (a Soulslike prototype) are both in development, alongside external partnerships with WolfEye and Zakazane Studios. The sequel is clearly the flagship, but how Round8 resolves the AI question will likely shape the community's anticipation more than any engine upgrade.