Microsoft fired 9,000 workers across the company. Many of these job cuts hit the Xbox gaming division hard. The tech giant killed several game projects before they could launch. Project Blackbird became the biggest casualty among the cancelled games. ZeniMax Online had been developing this massive online game for years.
Phil Spencer runs Microsoft's gaming business and loved what the team created. Reports say he got addicted to playing early versions of Project Blackbird. Spencer needed people to take the controller away from him during meetings. His passion for the game could not save it from corporate budget cuts. Microsoft wants to focus more money on artificial intelligence projects.
The cancelled game would have put players on an alien world called Soteria. One side of the planet stayed frozen under ice all the time. The other side burned under constant sunlight from a nearby star. People could only live in the middle area called the Twilight Band. Players would have controlled characters called Revenants working for alien crime groups.
The game featured cool movement options like wall climbing and grappling hooks. Teams of four to six players would complete missions together. Different alien races lived on Soteria and had their secrets. The story centered around solving the murder of an important alien official. ZeniMax Online had big plans to make this game even larger than Elder Scrolls Online.
Phil Spencer runs Microsoft's gaming business and loved what the team created. Reports say he got addicted to playing early versions of Project Blackbird. Spencer needed people to take the controller away from him during meetings. His passion for the game could not save it from corporate budget cuts. Microsoft wants to focus more money on artificial intelligence projects.
The cancelled game would have put players on an alien world called Soteria. One side of the planet stayed frozen under ice all the time. The other side burned under constant sunlight from a nearby star. People could only live in the middle area called the Twilight Band. Players would have controlled characters called Revenants working for alien crime groups.
The game featured cool movement options like wall climbing and grappling hooks. Teams of four to six players would complete missions together. Different alien races lived on Soteria and had their secrets. The story centered around solving the murder of an important alien official. ZeniMax Online had big plans to make this game even larger than Elder Scrolls Online.
