Bayonetta creator Hideki Kamiya has a message for Xbox CEO Asha Sharma: When she’s able to make Scalebound, he’ll be ready.
The action-game mastermind and Clovers studio head spoke about his need to return to his canceled dragon IP throughout a latest interview with VGC. It has been a bit greater than 9 years since Microsoft lastly, formally confirmed it had shut down Scalebound after PlatinumGames introduced it in 2014. Nonetheless, Kamiya mentioned he is at all times able to breathe life again into it.
When requested if he is contacted Sharma about Scalebound, he mentioned, “Nicely, no, however now’s my alternative to as soon as once more say that in the event that they need to do it, let’s make it occur!”
“[Clovers president Kento Koyama] is on board too,” he added. Kamiya then requested the location to incorporate a few of what little Scalebound footage was launched to the general public simply so Sharma might have a look.
Kamiya and the remainder of PlatinumGames announced the now-canned Xbox One-exclusive action-RPG 12 years in the past at E3 2014. Lots has modified since then.
Scalebound ultimately returned for gamescom 2015, one yr later, however then largely went quiet. A delay to 2017 then stoked fears that the challenge could also be in hassle, with a follow-up report then suggesting it could be in trouble earlier than Microsoft delivered the ultimate blow.
Though Kamiya now not works at PlatinumGames, he confirmed he had moved on to help form Clovers in late 2024. Though that group is heads down engaged on Okami 2, it does not imply he is not hoping to return to Scalebound sooner or later. It is a challenge he and different PlatinumGames devs have expressed interest in returning to loads of occasions over time. Now, he is hoping Sharma may help make it occur.
Throughout his interview with VGC, Kamiya recalled a latest dinner he had with among the Scalebound group. He famous the canceled online game wasn’t the one factor they talked about, however “it did come up a number of occasions,” they usually “all remembered how enjoyable it was to work” on it.
“Clearly, there have been some robust occasions as nicely, however the truth that individuals nonetheless look again on that point with quite a lot of enjoyable is one thing that I discover very gratifying because the director of the challenge,” Kamiya defined. “After all, it’s very unlucky that the challenge was unable to see the sunshine of day in the end, and that’s one thing that even now I nonetheless very strongly need to have the ability to see via if it’s all attainable, and I’m being 100% severe after I say that.
Kamiya mentioned Clovers “may not be ready” to work on Scalebound “proper this second,” however it’s nonetheless one thing he is searching for out. He went so far as to say, “I strongly consider that if you would like one thing strongly sufficient, you finally discover a approach to make it occur.”
“That’s the case with Okami proper now,” he continued, “the place even in spite of everything these years, the chance as soon as once more introduced itself, and I hope that would be the case with Scalebound sooner or later as nicely.”
Like Kamiya, Xbox has gone via its personal modifications lately. Sharma took over for Phil Spencer as CEO in February of this yr, resulting in a waterfall of snappy modifications at Microsoft’s gaming wing which have been obtained each positively and negatively by followers. For instance, the corporate introduced final week it will enable gamers to digitize their physical games. That transfer specifically appears to have gone over nicely with followers, however it’s performed little to cushion the blow that got here after Xbox introduced it will be laying off 3,200 staff and shedding studios like Double Fine and Ninja Theory in July.
Whether or not Sharma and the remainder of Xbox have room to make Scalebound occur stays to be seen. Whereas we wait to see what the longer term holds, you’ll be able to learn what Kamiya had to say about the game in 2021.
Michael Cripe is a contract author with IGN. He is finest identified for his work at websites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Make sure to give him a observe on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).