Microsoft cancels Fable Legends (and more games,) closes Lionheads (and more studios)

[ktchong]

Thank goodness I did not buy an Xbox One... looks like the ship is sinking.

 

Links:

 

• http://news.xbox.com/2016/03/07/microsoft-studios-changes-uk-denmark/

 

• https://twitter.com/VG_Dave/status/706957781417533440

 

• http://news.xbox.com/2016/02/11/quantum-break-coming-to-xbox-one-and-windows-10-on-april-5/ - Quantum Break confirmed for Windows 10.

 

• http://news.xbox.com/2016/03/01/xbox-spring-showcase-recap/ - Gears of War series and Forza Motorsport 6 are also coming to Windows 10.  So what is the point of buying an Xbox One?  Halo?  I bet the Halo series will be coming to Windows soon.

 

Edited March 8, 2016 by ktchong

[Ganrich]

Wow, this is sad. Well, Fable was the only one remotely interesting to me. I would give Halo a try if it came to PC. I wonder if MS will try to reinstate the Xbox Live fee from GfWL with the online side of these games?

 

I can't help but wonder what is going on though. My guess is that these ports plus the UWP API are a contingency for DirectX 12 losing to Vulkan as another way of keeping gamers on Windows. Still doesn't explain Lionhead though.

 

I expect the Xbox will live on, and they may leverage the ease of porting via UWP to shore up their exclusive games on Xbox as well. So, the Xbox won't have exclusives anymore, but Windows will.

Edited March 8, 2016 by Ganrich

[Oerwinde]

I imagine the xbone will be the last true game console they make, and xbox will just be a brand of prebuilt living room PCs in the future.

 

Sad about Lionhead. I enjoyed most of their games, though Fable Legends wasn't something I was looking forward to. The CoOp focus really turned me off. I imagine cancelling it this far into development meant it had some serious issues.

[Meshugger]

The next step is the Xbox division getting sold to SEGA and people will party like it is 1999 again.

[HoonDing]

SEGA is still in vidyagaems?

[Keyrock]

Wasn't Fable Legends almost finished?  

[Oerwinde]

Wasn't Fable Legends almost finished?  

 

It was in closed beta after being pushed back to q2 2016. Was supposed to come out last year. A lot of beta players on the Lionhead forums were all talking about how they regretted giving bad feedback.

 

As for Lionhead shutting down, supposedly they have someone trying to find another IP to work on and if they can't they will close. Should have just done Fable 4 instead of jumping on the co-op multiplayer bandwagon.