Scalebound, the latest project by Bayonetta and Vanquish developers Platinum Games working alongside Microsoft Studios for Xbox One and Windows 10, has unfortunately been cancelled following a long development silence.
The game was originally announced back in E3 of 2014 and it had a lot of hype behind it. It was to be an ambitious combination of the chaotic high-octane action Platinum Games has become associated with and the tactical enjoyment of cooperating with several friends to take down larger than life monsters straight out of Monster Hunter. There was even footage shown at E3 2015, showcasing a team of players fighting a gargantuan spider while riding on top of dragons, with Bayonetta director Hideki Kamiya overseeing the entire presentation.
But other than those two areas, nothing else of significance about Scalebound came to anyone’s attention. Not even any updates through Xbox Wire. But now we have official word from Windows Central, straight from Microsoft themselves that this game is done. The official statement reads:
“After careful deliberation, Microsoft Studios has come to the decision to end production for “Scalebound.” 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.”
After careful deliberation, Microsoft Studios has come to the decision to end production for Scalebound. Read More: https://t.co/lTQD8PJ6GX
— Scalebound (@Scalebound) January 9, 2017
On the one hand it makes sense that the studio would focus on established franchises by developers they have a history with. However, the loss of such a talented studio’s work is excluding a lot of lovers of intense Action RPGs in favor of the familiar. Hopefully, Platinum returns to the idea of co-op dragon riding monster slaying in the future and on more amiable terms with the next potential publisher.
