Fable Legends Cancelled, Lionhead Studios to Close

I'm genuinely shocked... they've been working on Fable for years, to just pull the plug without even launching the game seems ludicrous. Press Play too... I loved Max: The Curse of Brotherhood...

So that's a well loved, Xbox exclusive franchise just flushed down the toilet. This, along with everything else announced recently really makes me worry about the future of Xbox - Microsoft are ruthless. Only got to look at Windows Phone/Nokia acquisition for proof of that.

Sad times...

As disappointing as it is to hear about the closure of the studio and the loss of jobs, I can't say I am disappointed to hear that Fable Legends is cancelled - primarily because it wasn't on my watch list. I enjoyed the previous Fable games but this was quite a departure and the concept really didn't appeal.

I am still shocked to hear this though, especially as only a week ago, I saw an unboxing of a custom XB1 console https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odtTtiaBVKM which indicated to me that things seemed to be progressing.

As much as I like Xbox and the work Phil Spencer had appeared to be working towards, I must admit that I am beginning to feel concerned about the future. I don't like the direction 343 studios have taken Halo and I have concerns over the Coalition and Gears4 (although I did think the reveal wasn't too bad). Apart from 'Scalebound' which is a 3rd Party exclusive, I can't say that any exclusive is really that anticipated. The closure of Lionhead is a loss to the future of exclusive games for the console.

That combined with the shift away from 3rd Party deals, recent comments regarding upgrades etc does make me wonder what MS are planning for the future of its Xbox console division. I had hoped that the lead PS have would have made MS come out fighting with AAA quality exclusive software - not get rid of studios and talk about making the console effectively a gaming PC...

Gob smacked! Was only playing the BETA the other week & looking forward to the final game. Even more shocking though is the closure of Lionhead itself, indeed Stylon, sad times.

:0!
Wow, that is...something
Fable Legends did look like it was going nowhere, I'm surprised they didn't just scrap that and work on an awesome fable 4.
My prayers for those who lost their jobs.

Wow! Sad to hear about this. I do think part of the problem with Fable Legends was the gameplay. I don't think the 1 vs 4 or 1 vs 5 gameplay works.

I dont know anyone who plays Evolve for anything other than the achievements. Even when it was on sale everyone I knew passed (even after playing it for free for the weekend).

Project Knoxville, while an interesting concept, there wasn't much there unfortunately.

It's the fact they closed the entire studio of talented staff that gets me. If they were concerned about the reception of the game they could have simply delayed it until next year and rejigged it or given them another project to work on. Seems they aren't looking to the future (of xbox) and are only concerned with short term profitability.

I played the Legends Beta and thought that it was ok for a freebie although I was a bit concerned at its state, considering the length of the beta. There were things that I said to myself 'Well hopefully it will be in the final release'. Say that often enough and you begin to worry. Really sorry to see them gone as Fable is one of my all time favourite franchises.

If I sucked at my job I would get fired too. I have no sympathy for these people. As a beta particiapant and Fable fan, this game was going to be garbage and the last 2 games the made were bad too. I'm not surprised. I just hope Fable is put in the right hands.

@stylon

All three game companies (Microsoft, Sony, & Nintendo) are ruthless. They all do the same types of things. The video game world is a business. And, unfortunately, that business is cruel sometimes.

With that said, I am surprised about them closing Lionhead. The Fable series was a staple on the original Xbox & the 360. However, Fable 3 wasn't as well received as the first 2. The Kinect game? Pfft. And now this FTP Fable Legends? This would have been the Fable game nobody was asking for or wanted. Not sure why Lionhead went this direction with the franchise, but it may have cost them.

Hopefully the people at Lionhead find new jobs & it's always a shame to hear this kind of news.

@BAMozzy

This closure really means nothing in the big picture. Sure I feel bad for the people losing their jobs, but it's not like Lionhead has been kicking out amazing games recently.

In addition to Gears 4, Scalebound, & the Halo franchise, you forgot to mention Quantum Break, Halo Wars 2, Sea Of Thieves, ReCore, Crackdown, Cuphead, etc. that are Xbox exclusives. I think they are doing just fine with their gaming lineup. It's certainly more appealing the PS4's barren wasteland of Uncharted, Horizon (maybe), & a bunch of indies. And it's not like another studio can't work on Fable games. Microsoft owns the IP, so maybe this will get them to commission another company to give us a real Fable game.

So let's not hit the panic button just yet, eh?

(Edit: forgot Halo Wars 2, which should be awesome)

Lionhead part of bad news day.
March has been the month by hell for Xbox one, quantum break was Xbox one/PC win10 umbrella by that time to hold it there, then this.
E3 2016 you have a lot live up to, either Xbox one has dramatic price reduction £150.00
Or come up less that which bolt on original to give muscle.

@narcoss

Wow. Gamers are so overdramatic, it's ridiculous. All gloom & doom comments here. Why? Because we aren't getting some FTP garbage that almost nobody wanted?

Lionhead hasn't made a great game since Fable 2. And if you make mediocre software for long enough, there will be consequences. This is not some gigantic loss that will crush Xbox in the future. Lol.

@KelticDevil Yeah it's a wasteland when you don't mention but two games. Uncharted 4, The Last Guardian, No Man's Sky, Ratchet & Clank, Horizon, Gran Turismo Sport, Gravity Rush 2, MLB:16, Persona 5, Nier Automata...I could go on with more.

@KelticDevil I really can't stand the direction of Halo since 343 took over and Gears of War 4 could go the same way after the disappointing Judgement. Scalebound is a 3rd Party development game and in truth, the most anticipated game in Xbox's exclusive line up.
Quantum Break doesn't appeal and I really have NO interest in watching a TV show after each game chapter. Sea of Thieves is an MMO and I have no interest in them - good to see Rare break away from Kinect but that game isn't on my list. ReCore has an interesting concept admittedly but its still somewhat of a mystery and therefore could go either way. Crackdown hasn't yet had any game-play - 2 was AWFUL! I am struggling with the destructive elements and how that will fit into the game - particularly as you are playing an Agent, meant to be protecting the City - not levelling it! How that fits in with Rooftop races, Orb collections etc too, I don't know. I have NO interest in it from a MP perspective and hated the 'co-op' of the previous. Cuphead, although I do like the animation style, the game-play looks pretty ordinary and not something I would play. The only 'good' thing is that style of animation - take that away and you are left with yet another 2D run and gun game!! I could go on and say how I feel about the other games expected to release exclusively to Xbox...
Compare that to Uncharted 4, from a studio whose last 4 games (Uncharted 1-3 and the Last of Us) have all won the Game of the Year, Horizon: Zero Dawn - probably the most highly anticipated new IP and I believe won Best Original game at E3, No Mans Sky - Best Independent game at E3. Also has Hellblade, the Last Guardian, Dreams, Wild, Ratchet and Clank to name a few...

Wait... what!? I saw this on another site and assumed it to be a joke article, but this news is here as well. Is Microsoft pulling a joke here... someone hacked them or something?

Why would they suddenly close Lionhead Studios like this? No warning... just, their gone! Are we sure this is real because... it doesn't make any sense!

If it is true then... I have no words to accurately describe this, or at least none I can say on this site. Along with Ori and the Blind Forest and Sunset Overdrive; Fable Legends was one of the games that convinced me to get an Xbox One. Sure, it wasn't a traditional Fable game, and sure, I wasn't exactly a fan of Fable 3, but I really liked the look of Fable Legends. I liked the world, and fond memories of Fable 1 and 2 propelled me to give the game a chance. I watched some trailers and began to get invested; considering which heroes I'd try out first, even going and getting myself some proper headphones to use when I play the game.

Now... why!?

@Dreamcaster-X

We can get into a debate about which console has better exclusives, but it's all about personal preference.

I will give you Ratchet & Clank, as I forgot about that remake & I did like that series. But even then, it's yet another, remake. And Sony's MLB series is always solid & deserves a lot of credit.

The Last Guardian? I'll believe it when it's on store shelves. I thought Ico was overrated. And when a game goes through development hell for like 10 yrs., it rarely lives up to expectations.

Gran Turismo hasn't been great since the PS2. The Forza series has surpassed it, by far, in my opinion. The other games you mentioned I have zero interest in. Niche Japanese titles are not my thing.

And No Man's Sky? While it sounds like an interesting concept, I have doubts it will deliver & doesn't sound like my kind of game anyways.

I am not saying these will be bad games. It's just other than Uncharted & maybe Horizon, I have no interest in any of it unless No Man's Sky actually delivers on it's lofty goals.

I am glad there are people stoked for these games & I hope they turn out well, but it would be a barren wasteland on PS4 for me in '16 (unless something is announced at E3), just like it was in '15. But, that's just for my tastes. I guess I could've used better wording in my original post.

@Souldin Its no joke - its announced on the official MS Xbox news site - Xbox Wire. I do wonder if the fact this was using the Fable Licence, affected public opinion. I would guess that the majority of people who participated in the beta were 'Fable' fans. Its almost like Fallout fans getting 'Evolve' instead of Fallout 4. I enjoyed the previous Fable games - even 3 - and whilst it wasn't 'great' it was fun. It was what I consider a a good 7/10 but Legends had zero appeal to me - even less when it was announced it was F2P!

@BAMozzy

Like I said in a previous post, it's all personal taste. Unfortunately, it doesn't sound like Xbox One's 2016 exclusives line-up is for you. Just like PS4's is definitely not for me.

But I don't think Microsoft closing Lionhead makes that any different. It's not like they were working on Fable 4 & cancelled it. Legends was a FTP co-op game that they shouldn't have been making in the first place. And Lionhead hasn't made a great game in many years, in my opinion. So I don't get where this news is some more bad news for Xbox, like you wrote? Lol.

@BAMozzy It unfortunately does appear to be true.

I for one, was looking forward to the game, both for the game itself and as a spin-off for the series itself. I found the game looked fun and I was liking the cast of characters; and it was set within the charming Fable universe. I was patient enough to wait until the next main instalment and interested in what this spin-off had to offer both in terms of gameplay and series story/lore.

@KelticDevil Well it is as you pointed out, in your opinion. In other peoples opinion, this badly effects part of the appeal of the Xbox systems, some people enjoyed and were drawn to the works of Lionhead Studios. I believe Fable to be one of the Xbox line of system's most well known IPs, so the sudden closure of the entire studio behind the series and the cancellation of their upcoming game, does naturally raise concern.

Shame that they couldn't have simply made Fable 4 since that is a game people actually wanted to play, myself included. I enjoyed all three of the original Fable games so while this does kind of suck I hope they give the ip to a studio a little more capable because while all three if the games were good, in my opinion only 1 and 2 we're excellent, with the first game taking the gold by a large margin. When games don't improve over the years it is probably best to hand the ip off to a new team with fresh ideas for the gameplay.

@Souldin

Yea sorry to hear you were really looking forward to the game. But hey, maybe another studio will work on the Fable series. Like you said, it is a big IP & I can't see Microsoft just letting it rot.

I am just bummed we haven't had Fable 4 yet. The first 2 games were favorites of mine. Here's hoping we get another Fable game in the future.

I never really was a fan of the Fable games, but it's always sad new when a company closed down and people lose their jobs. Hopefully, these guys can find something out there.

it's a shame , wish rare would go old school again and create great games like old n64 days if not see them going same way.

I do think Microsoft & the old Xbox regime (a.k.a. The Mattrick) is partially to blame for this. Forcing their 1st party studios to work on gimmicky Kinect games instead of making core games hurt these companies.

Rare is the same way. At least they are getting another shot at a big, new IP in Sea Of Thieves. It's too bad that Lionhead won't get a chance at redemption with a proper Fable sequel.

But as we've seen with Halo & Gears, a new developer will probably take up that mantle & hopefully they can get the Fable series back on track.

Wow! Really disappointed this has happened. I wasn't particular looking forward to legends but it's a shame. Sure Microsoft will get some else to make a new fable game.

Regardless of how people feel about games like Fable, news like this is never good. But it happens because nobody these days is willing to give anything new or different a try. Oh sure they'll b*tch on end about CoD yet the millions and millions run out to buy it day one anyway. A great game like Gravity Rush comes along or something like Alan Wake and it is ignored by the masses. Fable had fallen off in recent years, I won't argue that, but the first couple were very good games and it's a shame MS didn't do something to try and rebuild Lionhead and maybe make the series great again. The game industry right now is as bad as its ever been as far as creativity and variety and this just makes things worse. And I worry what's going to happen when games like Scalebound, ReCore, Gravity Rush 2 and Sea of Thieves inevitably flop. The only brand new or newer IP I'm confident might break through is Quantum Break if they nail everything they're going for and actually advertise the game unlike Alan Wake which was just put onto the market with no hype to speak of from MS or Remedy.

@KelticDevil I was merely pointing out that the PS4 has a wealth of exclusives too - not just a couple and the rest made up of indies as you seemed to be indicating. I too have no interest in the Japanese style games but Uncharted and Horizon are 2 of my most anticipated games. As I pointed out, I had no interest in Fable Legends or for that matter anything by Press Play Studios. It doesn't stop it being disappointing to learn that MS has 'closed' 2 of its studio's responsible for a number of its exclusives including one that was responsible for a franchise that has been used to sell the Xbox brand. Regardless of what you think of the franchise as a whole, Fable is only behind Halo, Gears and Forza in terms of well known Xbox franchises.

For many long term Halo fans, 343 has not really delivered. Judgement is by far the worst Gears game too - again not made by the original team. The Coalition may well deliver and the initial reveal wasn't a disaster but historically, franchises that change developers don't live up to the standards set by the creators. Is it any wonder why fans of Fable are concerned?

According to Rare and some of the original members that have left to create Yooka-Laylee, MS never forced them to work on making Kinect games. It was Rares management that wanted to focus on Kinect based gaming. Lionhead were not forced into using it either. For some developers, they wanted something 'unique' and saw Kinect as a way of delivering something different within something that may not be so unique.

The impact of these closure may well be minimal to some gamers and I admit with upcoming games these too studio's had planned, its not impacting on me. Lionhead were the only ones who made an RPG in recent years exclusively for Xbox and were also responsible for Black and White - an excellent franchise. Even if the next wave of games didn't appeal, maybe the next could have. Its still a loss and fewer studios working on Xbox exclusives.

The closure of Lionhead is equivalent to Sony closing something like Suckerpunch (Infamous). Its 2 less exclusives for us, even if those didn't appeal to you, its clear they appealed to some.

2016 has not started off well for Microsoft Studios PR wise and I have to say this news is a little unsettling to me. I guess we now wait to hear what news comes out of GDC 16 next week and Microsoft Build conference at the end of the month.

@LuckyPenguin
To be fair not all the bad PR should actually be labeled 'bad.' The crying about Quantum Break going to PC for example, when Remedy's games have always gone to PC, was nothing to get upset over yet idiotic corporate slaves who can't see the big picture and are just in love with their piece of plastic, went way overboard. There's also nothing to really make of the recent talk of 'upgradeable' consoles because chances are if that were going to happen it wouldn't be this gen anyway. Until there is some concrete evidence of it happening this gen it was just an off-the-cuff remark that crazies took and ran with. To me the first bit of bad news actually did happen today, and the shuttering of two studios really is bad news. It doesn't mean Xbox One suddenly has no games but like I commented before it is another step closer to this industry just being remasters and sequels to gritty, 'mature' shooters and nothing more.

@BAMozzy

As far as PS4 exclusives....You say "more than a couple" & you continue to only mention Uncharted & Horizon. That's the same 2 I mentioned. Where are all these other games? I already said that it comes down to personal taste. I am not saying anyone is wrong for liking Japanese games or indies. I am just saying that the exclusives they have coming don't interest me other than the 2 I memtioned.

And your reasons for being concerned about Halo & Gears are reasons I could be concerned about Uncharted & Horizon. The lead writer of Uncharted left after the 3rd game, it's been delayed like a million times, & I thought UC 3 was the worst in the series. By far.

And Guerilla games has been hit or miss with the Killzone franchise. Who says they have what it takes to deliver on Horizon? Nobody knows.

My point is, yes we don't know if Gears 4 will better with a new developer. And you are clearly not a fan of 343 Studios, but I feel they have done a good job with the Halo series. I know Halo 5's campaign got ripped, but 343 has been amazing with free DLC & post launch content. They are basically showing all developers how it should be done.

So your reasons for being concerned about one system's exclusives & not the other is puzzling to me. Lionhead hadn't delivered a great Fable game for many years anyways. And they & Rare actually did choose to work on Kinect games, then they should be held accountable for their work. Why not give another studio a shot?

@Gamer83

I agree that this is the worst the industry has ever been in terms of creativity. Just look at last-gen for examples. At this point in that cycle, we had BioShock, Mass Effect, Modern Warfare, Gears, etc. All new IP's that led to amazing games. Almost none of that has happened yet on either Xbox One or PS4.

I also agree that this is bad news. Any studio closing is bad news. I hate to see people lose their jobs. But what I don't like are people using this as an artificial reason to pile on Microsoft & the Xbox. The Quantum Break thing was completely ridiculous. And then people freaked out because Phil brings up console upgrades.

And now it's more "gloom and doom" because Microsoft shuts down a studio who has spent the last 8 yrs. making mediocre games. People using this to pile on the other 2 things is just weak. Gamers are so dramatic & sensitive these days.

@KelticDevil Actually they shut down eight studios today.
https://twitter.com/VG_Dave/status/706959248190775296

@LuckyPenguin

What other studios? That link told me nothing. Lol.

@KelticDevil It isn't doom and gloom but to say this is as insignificant as Quantum Break coming to PC or the consideration of Xbox going the route of Steam is wrong. Sure, Legends wasn't what longtime fans wanted to hear, but this is more like The Elder Scrolls Online coming after the card game nobody wants and a terrible phone entry that thankfully hasn't happened rather than the hell with no end in sight that Metroid is going through. I'm very disappointed this was cancelled on top of the studio being shut down. Hopefully they find another developer for the Fable series.

@Vincent294

I am not saying Lionhead closing is as insignificant as QB going to PC or the possible Xbox upgrades thing. I was saying that there are comments here grouping this news with the other two bits & proclaiming the "gloom & doom" I mentioned earlier.

I would not group them together at all. In fact, I don't consider the first two bad news in the first place. And while I have made my opinion on the quality of Lionhead's last three games known, I still don't want to see a studio close & people lose their jobs. So I am arguing against comparing these three things, not the other way around. Maybe I wasn't quite clear on that.

But make no mistake (and like someone said earlier), if I wasn't doing acceptable work at my job, I would be fired. And it's my boss's right to make that decision. Microsoft owned Lionhead & I am assuming they were not happy with their work. So they, essentially, fired them. That is how the world works.

If Lionhead had just come off making Fable 1 or 2, I would question Microsoft's sanity. But even Peter Molyneux called Fable 3 "a trainwreck". Their Kinect game wasn't that well received. And Fable Legends shouldn't have been made in the first place, in my (and many other people's) opinion. It sucks people lost their jobs, but lots of people in this world lose their jobs & people aren't making excuses for them in video game website comment sections.

@KelticDevil Never argued you thought this was a good thing, let's get that clear. I just find it a shame they couldn't even publicly launch their newest game. You'd figure they could at least do that.

@KelticDevil I certainly mentioned more than 2 PS exclusives - No Mans Sky, Hellblade, the Last Guardian, Dreams, Wild and Ratchet and Clank were mentioned and that's without mentioning games like Nier, Gravity Rush, GT Sport, Persona and the exclusive for VR like Rigs, Golem etc. Whilst I may not be that interested in VR or the Japanese games, why I didn't mention them, there is definitely a LOT of AAA games due out in the next year or so.

Uncharted may have lost Amy Hennig but are using the lead creators from The Last of Us - arguably the best game of last generation and one of the best games of all time. Killzone may not be your cup of tea (so to speak) but its been relatively consistent and even its weakest campaign is better than the latest Halo. Switching to a new genre I know can be difficult but when they have ex members of CDProjekt and the lead writer of Fallout 3:NV on board, a lot of my concerns are negligible. Killzone itself has never played poorly, never looked awful, etc Whether you like a story or not is subjective...

As I said I actually enjoyed Fable 3 and 2 for that matter. So they dabbled in some Arcade games after 3 so technically their last few games weren't good. The point is though, they were still making exclusives and responsible for one of the top 4 well known franchises on the Xbox. What's MS going to do? No doubt form a Studio (probably called Albion Games/Studios etc) with the soul purpose to churn out mediocre Fable games and nothing else.

Given away free 'rubbish' like 343 are doing is still 'rubbish'! Compared to epicness that was Halo 1-3, even Reach, Halo 5 is awful!! It has to give away content to try and make up for the fact the game is no longer what people bought Halo for in the first place.

Anyway this isn't really the place to discuss the merits and number of one consoles exclusives over another. Its several studios closing that made games exclusively for Xbox that have closed and therefore potentially fewer exclusives - even if their 'next' games didn't appeal to you, me or many others.

Its not all 'doom and gloom' completely and I know Xbox has a few games releasing - even if it has a few less now. Coming off the back of seeing that many exclusives are now releasing on PC, talk about making the xbox upgradeable - essentially becoming a PC and closing down a few studios is concerning for Xbox owners. Its 'big' exclusive franchises are no longer 'exclusive' to the console - whether that makes any real difference or not as it doesn't stop console players playing the game. It seems (and I use the SEEMS) that MS are trying to push console players into the PC market. Will future exclusives only be playable on PC unless you buy a Xbox that you can upgrade with a new GPU, CPU etc? That may or may not be the case, but the last couple of months, the news hasn't exactly been 'positive' for Xbox with Win10/PC getting far more attention. I can see E3 having all these gaming announcements with Win 10 devices instead of 'Xbox'

@BAMozzy

Once again....for like the 8th time......it's all down to personal taste. I thought The Last Of Us was overrated. It was good, but in my opinion, it is not one of the "best games of all time". I almost choked on my breakfast laughing at that statement. And just because the writer of that game wrote Uncharted 4, doesn't just guarantee success. Amy Henig's writing was my favorite thing about the Uncharted games.

You just spit out opinions as if they are facts. It's ridiculous. You keep trashing Halo 5, even it's much lauded multi-player. Why? Because you don't like it? So? Maybe it's not for you. So it's "no longer what people bought Halo for in the first place"?Once again, that's opinion. Not fact.

And if you think 343 studios is doing such a bad job, why did you buy the game in the first place? They also made Halo 4 (which was VERY well received critically), so it's not like you didn't have some warning what Halo would be like post-Bungie. Let me guess......I bet you play or played a lot of Destiny? Lol.

Once again, you pile on the news of a studio closing onto two bits of news that are not even close to being relateable. And it's debateable if those other two things are even bad news in the first place. In my opinion, they are not. And once again, most of what you say is pure speculation. Microsoft has announced nothing about upgrading anything. And I don't feel they are trying to push me to PC gaming at all.

@KelticDevil Its not just MY personal taste - The Last of Us has won MANY awards and regularly features in the top games of all time top 10 so it can be considered one of the best games of all time - I didn't say it was THE best! I admit I enjoyed Amy Hennigs writing of the previous 3 games but as 4 isn't out yet, I can't comment on whether this is a significant loss or not. Everything I have seen and read so far though doesn't look like it has had any negative impact.

Halo 5 hasn't sold that well and is currently the lowest selling Halo 'main' game - only remasters/remakes and Halo Wars has sold less - some of that could be down to the number of XB1 consoles and the length of time its been available. Many of the Halo community have been very critical of the campaign as well as the MP. I am not denying that some people may like it but its hardly the 'force' it was - each to their own I guess. The MP itself has certainly divided many saying its very similar to CoD:AW. Whilst some may like that direction, others are disappointed its lost the essence that made it popular in the first place. Halo 4 may have got some acclaim, its campaign is one of the shortest and whilst it looks good, its also divided many in the Halo community. Halo 5 is generally regarded as having the worst Halo campaign. The majority of people that bought into Halo in the first place, did so for the campaign - NOT MP. Back when Halo launched, the focus was very much on its campaign with the MP an after-thought- an added bonus for the 'few' that subscribed to gold. Now it seems that the campaign is an after-thought and hardly a 'bonus'. Maybe its not 'fact' as such as I haven't asked everyone why they bought Halo:CE or what people buy Halo games primarily for but I do know that Halo 1-3 and Reach are regarded as the best campaigns, Halo 2 and Reach as probably the best MP's of the franchise and that's not just 'my opinion'

However, like I said, this isn't the place OR topic to be talking about these 'exclusives'. and therefore I am NOT going to go on about them any more. Each to their own

I link the news because its the current news that has come out and although some of it isn't necessarily 'negative' - especially the news about upgrades as there is nothing more than a quote to go on, for a lot of people - again not just me - it is quite negative and worrying for them. I couldn't care less if 'exclusives' release on PC - its not stopping me access the games. But for people that may have a PC and bought a console purely to play these, its annoying. Its annoying for some people who were looking forward to games like Fable Legends and Project Knoxville. Its concerning for people that may have been considering buying an Xbox and the future of it. Yes a lot of it maybe speculation but until we get some concrete information from MS regarding these news items, their short term and more long term plans, the future of franchises, exclusives etc then people will be concerned and/or worried by the sequence of news that MS has announced this year so far. The only way to end worry and speculation is for MS to come out with facts.

@SuperKMx

Uh-oh. I woke up the big guy.

(Quickly scans up looking for my The Last Of Us comment to delete)

Lol.

@SuperKMx
It's easily a top 5 for me but I'm a huge PlayStation fan and I really enjoy those kind of games. I can see why others wouldn't be into it though.

@KelticDevil
Unfortunately the piling on goes back to 2013. It's just like early last gen with Sony where it f**ked up early and people were constantly looking for reason to find something wrong with PS3. It's unfortunate to have to read through some of the crap but frankly MS only has itself to blame for the bad press because of the putrid job it did introducing Xbox One to everybody. And while there's no doubt in my mind Sony was set to go down a similar path (screwing the consumer), it was MS who said to the public first 'we're going to bend you over and you will like it' so MS will be the one to get most of the hate. Don't want it? Don't be scumbags, but execs at giant corporations can't help themselves, scum is what 99% of them are.

That aside, I agree the doom and gloom is ridiculous. This is legit bad news but the other nonsense people lost their minds over was absolutely nothing. And even with this news it's not like Quantum Break isn't coming out. There's still ReCore, Sea of Thieves, a new Forza, Scalebound was delayed until next year which sucks but we know it's still on the way. And then there's the multiplats shared between PS4, Xbox One, PC and maybe even NX. So it's not like there's nothing to play. The biggest issue to me is the still relative lack of new IPs compared to last gen but that isn't an MS exclusive problem, it's industry wide and I think it's only going to get worse as time goes on. Look at freaking Capcom, nothing more than a remaster factory at this point.

@SuperKMx @Gamer83
I really enjoyed The Last of Us. Excellent game. Pinnacle of the genre.

But, it wasn't even among the best of the generation imo, much less all time. I think I enjoyed Portal 2, Metroid Prime 3, Xenoblade Chronicles, Super Mario Galaxy 2 and Batman Arkham Asylum all more than TLoU. Just to name 5 7th gen games off the top of my head. Heck I could probably name a lot more than that even...

But no doubt it is certainly excellent

@JaxonH
Well, that's where it comes down to personal taste. I have no problem saying I find TLoU far superior to all those games, exception being Xenoblade since I didn't play to the end. But for me TLoU is one of the three best games of last gen along with Uncharted 2 and GTA V and I certainly have no problem putting it in with the best I've ever played over at least 28 years. However, as I posted, I realize it's not without flaws. In fact I think of all the games I've played I'd only list one as near-flawless, which would be The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. There's nothing about that game that I hated. With any other I could list some stuff I despise.