Basilisk Games informed us they have updated the Eschalon Book III site with a new screenshot showing a shipwreck.

Today Basilisk games officially announced Eschalon Book III.

Basilisk Games Announces the development of "Eschalon: Book III" For Windows, Macintosh and Linux

Indianapolis, IN - November 19, 2012 - Basilisk Games, Inc. today officially announced the development of the third and final game in the Eschalon trilogy: Book III.

“It feels great to be able to announce that we are developing the final game in the Eschalon trilogy” said Thomas Riegsecker, CEO of Basilisk Games. “Although we've never hidden the fact that we've been working on it for some time, we can finally unveil a bit of the game to our fans who have waited so long to hear more about it. Announcing Book III on the fifth year anniversary of Book I’s release just felt appropriate.”

Eschalon: Book III is being developed for Windows, Macintosh and Linux computers. It features numerous fan requested updates and brings the trilogy to a climatic end. Currently scheduled for a Summer 2013 release, a more specific release date will be announced on the Basilisk Games website early next year. Visit http://basiliskgames.com for more information.

About Eschalon: Book III

Eschalon: Book III is the final game in the award-winning Eschalon RPG series, following Book I's release in 2007 and Book II's release in 2010. The Eschalon RPG series features sprawling, open-ended game worlds and almost unlimited character development options. Book III brings the series to a climatic end as you seek to uncover the mystery of four powerful gemstones and your clouded past. No experience with either of the first two games is needed to enjoy this final chapter in the Eschalon saga. More information on the game can be found online at: http://basiliskgames.com/eschalon_book_iii

We all know it's coming but Basilisk has tweeted they will "formally" unveil Eschalon: Book III on November 19th. Hopefully we'll get some media on that date:

We're nearly ready to "formally" announce Book III with screenshots and some game info. Check our website November 19th. Yes, finally!

Basilisk Games has a short update on their site, promising they are "moving forward at full speed" following some delays:

Sorry for the lack of recent updates to the front page. We have just begun a special “Summer Crunch Session” to get Book III back on schedule after a small delay in production due to moving the studio. All is well and production is moving forward at full speed. We’ll use this post as a reminder to follow us on Twitter and/or Facebook to keep up with minor news that is not important enough to post here. Also, the Community Forums are a very active hub of fans and sometimes we drop update tidbits in there, so be sure to stop in from time to time.

Basilisk Games has kicked up an update for the New Year, explaining development of Eschalon: Book III was slow in 2011 for business and expanded production reasons - but a 2012 release is still "possible". A partial snip:

And while development of Book III is in full swing, continued sales of Book I & II are still extremely important to us as the ongoing revenue keeps the bills paid. It eats up quite a bit of our time promoting our games and working to get Eschalon as widely available as possible. Mac App Store, Desura and OnLive are three of our newest partners. Many of you may also remember our efforts earlier this year to get Humble Bundle to give us a spot. We are still trying to convince them that we'd be a great addition, so don't be afraid to send them an email to let them know you want to see us included in the next bundle.

Oh yes, and to top it off, during all of this we moved the studio a couple month ago to give us more room. This is still somewhat ongoing as we're awaiting some additional equipment and furniture. Growing the studio is ultimately a good thing, but it pretty much brought all development to a halt for several weeks.

What this all means is: YES, Book III is coming!! We really blew our development schedule in 2011, missing almost every deadline we set for ourselves. But 2012 will be a productive year for us, and we are working hard right now to get everything together to make the formal announcement. This requires a press release, logos and artwork, screenshots, and we need to be able to answer questions when requests for info and interviews come our way. We certainly think that a 2012 release for Book III is possible, but we can't make any promises to anyone right now.

Thanks, Black Rune!