The Game Delayed Twenty Times: Mike Goes on Hike

Every day, I check my Steam wishlist filtered by release date to see if any of my anticipated games get release dates. Sometimes games I completely forgot about will pop up, and I’ll get excited all over again. Other times, I’ll see a game I’m constantly reminded of, Mike goes on hike, get a new release date in the near future. Problem is? This game has changed release dates before. Not once or twice, in fact, but at least twenty times… since 2019. This trend of putting things off with minimal to nonexistent communication is leaving followers wondering if the game will ever truly release.

To fully illustrate the delays Mike goes on hike has experienced, here is some of the change history thanks to Steam user mcroell: “Q3 2019 > Q2 2020, 4th quarter 2021 > 1st quarter 2022, coming soon > March 24, 2025…” and the list goes on. In recent years, though, Mike Goes on Hike has been seeing delays by one quarter/month, seeming to indicate that the game would be nearing readiness for completion, but with each passing month comes another delay, leaving prospective players with the belief of an impending release. If we could just look to Far Cry 3‘s Vaas Montenegro for the definition of insanity…

The release for Mike Goes on Hike is listed as an Early Access launch, indicating that when (if) it does actually launch on Steam, it will do so in an incomplete state. Developer Lazy Racoon Games notes, “the current version includes a fully playable prologue and the first episode.” In addition, addressing the timeframe for the Early Access period, “We expect the game to remain in Early Access for approximately 8–12 months.” Past this, there are no Steam Announcements to communicate anything to anyone viewing the page/wishlisting the game, leaving many in the dark about the long-delayed game’s future.

It is shocking to see a game delayed for seven years, but more so off-putting to see a release date change this many times with no level of communication to consumers. Whenever most games get delayed in the 2020s, you can expect a somber social media post with a new concrete release date, an apology, and an explanation in tow. In the case of Mike Goes on Hike, it’s a running joke that has been dedicated to the bit for the better part of a decade. This goes past the realm of quality control, polish, or fine-tuning – it’s a true headscratcher. Considering Lazy Racoon Games has a publisher attached with Arkuda Inc., one has to wonder how long they can continue this partnership before something breaks.

Will we ever see Mike goes on hike in a playable form? Considering the below trailer exhibits gameplay in-engine and is three years old, one has to think there is a build on a storage drive somewhere. It’s clear the project isn’t abandoned, as the release date keeps getting moved in perpetuity. Now it’s a wonder if Mike goes on hike can live up to its ambitions from a prior decade, even if it launches with a sprinkle of content and a dream. Even if it does launch, can the community expect timely updates after this rollout? All I know is, don’t expect to see Mike goes on hike anytime soon.