Head of Xbox Phil Spencer has commented on the cancellation of Scalebound, the Xbox One and PC-exclusive action title developed by Platinum Games.
Posting on Twitter, Spencer said the decision was "difficult" but added he believes it’s better for Xbox fans in the long run. Continuing, he expressed confidence in the games Microsoft has lined up for 2017.
@TiC_Podcast Difficult decision, we believe result is better 4 Xbox gamers, still disappointing. Im confident in 17 lineup thats our focus
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) January 9, 2017
Microsoft officially announced Scalebound’s cancellation on January 9 and released a statement similar to Spencer’s comments.
"After careful deliberation, Microsoft Studios has come to the decision to end production for Scalebound," a spokesperson said. "We’re working hard to deliver an amazing lineup of games to our fans this year, including Halo Wars 2, Crackdown 3, State of Decay 2, Sea of Thieves, and other great experiences."
In the time since the announcement, videos of Scalebound have been removed or become inaccessible from the official Xbox YouTube channel. Prior to this the Scalebound page on Xbox.com had been removed from the website; it now redirects to the site’s homepage.
Development on Scalebound, an action-RPG featuring dragons and online co-op, was led by Bayonetta director Hideki Kamiya. Platinum has not discussed whether development of the game could continue separate from its partnership with Microsoft.
Platinum Games’ next release is Nier: Automata, which launches for PS4 on March 7 and then on PC later in 2017. A demo for the game is available now.
Source: GameSpot