Milo didn't return to E3 this year, but Microsoft maintained that the project he starred in was still in development. A new report indicates that is no longer the case as of this week.
19 contractors have been let go and Lionhead's Milo team team members will instead focus on a "Fable themed Kinect game," anonymous sources told Eurogamer.
Though Microsoft's official position is that they do not comment on rumor or speculation, the news wouldn't be all that surprising considering what a big part of Kinect's (then Project Natal's) debut Milo became in 2009 compared with his conspicuous absence in 2010.
Even if some of the gameplay features he helped demonstrate were just parlor tricks, the vision for what Kinect could be used for made an impression on those who saw him. As an interactive standard to aspire to between users and in-game characters, Milo will hopefully give Lionhead a treasure trove of technology and research to recycle, whether or not he and Kate ever show their faces at E3 again.
Personally, I never got all that jazzed about going fishing with a little kid in a video game, whether he talked back to me or not. If we already have "Kinectimals" offering similar features with pets, do we really need the same thing available with a little boy instead? Unless Project Milo turned out to be some kind of family-friendly "Kinectimals"/"Heavy Rain" hybrid title, I don't see where it would have found its niche. Nevertheless, I hope we get a really great Fable game out of it down the road.
Are you heartbroken to read the new rumor about Milo? Were you hoping to see Lionhead stick with him? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below.