Some won't dodge GTA VI: Blacksmith Master launches its 1.0 version on November 19 itself

While half the industry clears November to avoid crossing paths with GTA VI, some are staring the monster in the eye. According to 3DJuegos, Hooded Horse - the publisher of Manor Lords - has confirmed that Blacksmith Master will leave early access and hit version 1.0 on November 19, the exact same day as Rockstar’s game.

Far from hiding it, the Texas company’s CEO, Tim Bender, turned it into a joke on LinkedIn: “Are we worried that GTA comes out the same day? It’s actually a strategy: people looking for a PC version of stealing cars and shooting their enemies will find they actually prefer controlling characters who hammer horseshoes.” Behind the joke there’s a serious argument: GTA VI has no PC date, so Blacksmith Master’s audience - medieval blacksmith management from Untitled Studio, with 84% positive reviews in early access - can’t even choose Rockstar’s game that day.

Bender also takes a swipe at fellow indies: he believes independent studios obsess over dodging big launches when they don’t even compete in the same segment. In his view, moving a release only makes sense for a console-focused action AAA, not for games with their own audiences, and he doesn’t see a situation like the one indies faced with Hollow Knight: Silksong.

It won’t be the only brave one on November 19: Devolver Digital also has a release confirmed for that day, true to its tradition of provoking with the calendar. The contrast with the general stampede turns GTA VI’s date into a small experiment: does it really crush everything, or only what looks like it?