Scalebound Developers Would Love to Finish the Game With Microsoft’s Permission

Developer PlatinumGames says they’d love the chance to work on Scalebound again, but they need Microsoft’s permission to do so. 

For those who don’t remember, PlatinumGames was set to make an Xbox exclusive title known as Scalebound. Not only was it a big deal for Microsoft to secure an exclusive title from a high-profile Japanese developer, but it was a big deal for them to secure such a notable exclusive at all given that the Xbox One had been suffering from a lack of exclusives up until that point. 

Unfortunately, things didn’t quite work out that way. Scalebound was canceled by Microsoft for debatable reasons that basically seem to do with both sides being relatively unhappy with the progress of the title up until that point. While PlatinumGames says they don’t feel like people should blame Microsoft for that decision, Producer Atsushi Inaba recently told Eurogamer.pt that the studio would love the chance to work on the title again if Microsoft decides to let them do so. 

“This was an intellectual property that belongs 100% to Microsoft,” Inaba said in the interview via a Google translation. “Whatever happens with this project, we can’t really do anything with it unless Microsoft leaves us. But it’s a game that we fall in love with and love, if the opportunity arises, it’s something we would love to return to.”

The entire Scalebound situation has always been a strange one considering that nobody has ever really given a clear answer regarding why the game wasn’t really coming together as planned, but we’re not surprised that PlatinumGames is interested in returning to it. After all, they’re a high-profile studio known for making exceptional titles, and we’re sure that there’s something about having to walk away from that project probably sticks with them. 

PlatinumGames was able to resurrect cult classic Wii U title The Wonderful 101 via Kickstarter, so it’s possible that they could find a way to make a Scalebound revival happen if Microsoft gives them permission to do so. 

Matthew Byrd is a staff writer for Den of Geek. He spends most of his days trying to pitch deep-dive analytical pieces about Killer Klowns From Outer Space to an increasingly perturbed series of editors. You can read more of his work here or find him on Twitter at @SilverTuna014.