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It’s been a long road to get here, but Kentucky Route Zero is about to reach its conclusion with the release of Act V and the compilation “TV Edition”.

Kentucky Route Zero, by Cardboard Computer, launched with its first act back in January 2013. It made an instant splash, receiving widespread critical acclaim, and was followed by Act II five months later. We then had to wait a perfectly reasonable year for Act III, then another two years for Act IV, which released in July 2016.

But Kentucky Route Zero Act V was nowhere to be seen.

And that’s fine, incidentally. Developers should take as long as they need to. They shouldn’t come under any pressure from fans – no matter how anticipated the game – to work at anything other than a comfortable pace. That’s the right and decent way to behave. (We use that “finally!” in this article’s title in jest, by the way. It always amuses us how often and readily games media uses the word “finally” for the most trivial of headlines.)

But we will confess to being a little concerned that Kentucky Route Zero Act V might never see the light of day.

It is with a great degree of excitement, then – but also tinged with a hint of sadness that a magical journey will soon be over – to report that Kentucky Route Zero Act V will release on January 28, 2020. That announcement comes from publisher Annapurna Interactive, who has taken on publishing duties for the compilation of all five acts, the Kentucky Route Zero TV Edition.

This is normally the bit where we’d tell you about the game and just why it’s so special. But we won’t. It’s a beautiful narrative experience that people should go into blind, and we won’t be spoiling it for anyone.

And if you’re one of the many people who has been putting off playing the landmark game until Kentucky Route Zero Act V was available? You might have looked pretty foolish for a few years, and missed out on a stellar story, but who’s laughing now?

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