Released in 2012, Sleeping Dogs was very popular with many players. However, the developers never made a sequel: some fans have already lost hope for a continuation, while one of the developers is more optimistic.
Sleeping Dogs creator Alastair Cornish recently spoke with FRVR. During the podcast, he noted that the developers were not surprised by the cancellation of the sequel – production would have been too expensive:
It was a huge disappointment because there was a huge amount of space [for a possible sequel], and the team was just fantastic. But when working with teams, you have to look carefully at where they are located. Where is the studio? What are the overheads? How much is the rent? How expensive are the specialists and are there competing studios nearby that drive up salaries? As for UFG (United Front Games) and Vancouver, it was the epicenter of such processes. This has happened several times before, when a sequel would have been quite possible, but not at such production costs.
The developer admits that the development of a Sleeping Dogs sequel is possible, but it would require resources and a team of professionals with different skills who can strictly control production costs:
In game development, never say "never." So yes, I think it could happen, but a lot of circumstances would have to align. You need truly passionate people with a lot of different skills who manage resources very carefully and intelligently, and who honestly admit what really works and what doesn't.
According to Cornish, in a potential sequel, developers should justify the existence of an "open world," rather than just making a large map filled with repetitive tasks.
Sleeping Dogs can still surprise players even today. The development of the canceled Triad Wars is also ongoing: modders are gradually implementing various features of the MMO project.