Lionhead’s Fable Legends might not be dead after all.
Multiple sources at the studio, which Microsoft announced last month will likely close in the near future, have informed MCV that there is talk of keeping the free-to-play RPG alive.
No one is currently seeking to purchase the game or the studio but employees are currently being surveyed on whether they’d like to continue working on the game or simply accept the redundancy package being offered by Microsoft and leave at the end of April.
One of the sources told MCV that this process has arisen from a proposal by some Lionhead staffers to continue working on Fable Legends at a new independent studio.
Most freelancers attached to the project have already left the studio but those with contracts are still being employed by Lionhead. Many have already received offers from other companies and Microsoft announced its intention last month to reallocate staff within the company where possible.
In a statement, a Microsoft spokesperson commented, “We aren’t sharing additional details beyond that we have ceased development on Fable Legends, and are in discussions with employees at Lionhead about our proposed closure of the studio as well.”
Fable Legends was announced at gamescom 2013 and was originally due for release in 2015 before being delayed to this year. The game’s closed beta is due to end on April 13th and has ceased accepting new players. Fable Legends has been in development for PC and Xbox One.
With Lionhead gone, it’s unclear how willing Microsoft would be to allow a new studio make use of the Fable IP or whether the developer would have the resources to achieve the original vision for the game. Lionhead’s last game was Fable Anniversary in 2014.
