Scalebound Director Addresses Cancellation and Rumors He's Taking Time Off

Platinum Games has released a statement addressing the cancellation of its Xbox One and PC exclusive Scalebound. Chief executive Kenichi Sato expressed his disappointment but highlighted a number of the studio's upcoming games that it hopes fans will enjoy.

"We're sorry to say that on January 9, 2017, Microsoft Studios announced the cancellation of Scalebound," the statement begins. "We are very disappointed things ended up this way, especially since we know many of our fans were looking forward to this game as much as we were.

"Going forward, we will strive to continue delivering high-quality games to you, starting with NieR: Automata in March, and including products like Granblue Fantasy Project Re:Link and Lost Order in the future."

Bayonetta director Hideki Kamiya was leading Scalebound's development. Around the time the cancellation was revealed, rumors suggested that Kamiya would be taking some time off for his mental health. However, Kamiya has indicating this is not the case in a series of Twitter posts.

Microsoft officially confirmed Scalebound's cancellation on January 9, saying it was the result of a "careful deliberation" process. The game has since been removed from Xbox.com and videos of it are no longer available on the Xbox YouTube page.

Head of Xbox Phil Spencer later said the decision to cancel Scalebound was a "difficult" one, but added he believes the result is "better [for] Xbox gamers."

Platinum has still not clarified whether it plans to continue developing the title separate from Microsoft. The next game from Platinum, Nier: Automata, launches for PS4 on March 7 and then on PC later in 2017. A demo for the game is available now.