In the long, messy history of games that never saw the light of day, Project Blackbird might be one of the great what-ifs. Developed quietly for seven years by Elder Scrolls Online studio Zenimax Online, the sci-fi MMORPG was reportedly so impressive that even Xbox chief Phil Spencer didn’t want to put the controller down. And yet—poof. Microsoft canceled it anyway, tossing it onto the corporate bonfire along with over 9,000 employees and a growing list of scrapped projects.
The ax fell as part of Microsoft’s most recent round of layoffs, which didn’t just gut staff—it also ended support for multiple live service titles, saw leadership shake-ups, and, for the Blackbird MMO, slammed the brakes on what could’ve been one of the most original MMO shooters in years. According to sources speaking to True Achievements and Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier, Blackbird wasn’t just another idea on paper. It was playable, promising, and, by multiple accounts, “f—ing incredible.”
So what was it? Imagine a world blending Destiny’s shoot-and-loot, Blade Runner’s neon-soaked dystopia, and Horizon Zero Dawn’s gorgeous exploration. Set on the planet Soteria—half endless sun, half frozen wasteland, with a slim Twilight Band in between—players would have stepped into the shoes of Revenants aligned with one of five alien factions. There was an open world, a sprawling city hub called Exodus, and four-player co-op missions wrapped around a juicy murder mystery. Add in crafting, traversal with grappling hooks (because of course), player housing on the roadmap, and optional PvP, and you’ve got what sounded like a genre-blending dream.
The class system? The classic MMO trinity: tanky Guns for Hire, control-focused Tech Operators, and Augments to heal your sorry butt when you inevitably picked a fight with something way above your level. All this, reportedly running well enough that early testers were wowed, with one calling it “some of the best reactions from folks who played it.” Schreier even claims Spencer had to be gently (or not-so-gently) separated from the controller during a meeting so the adults could keep talking.
And yet, despite that internal hype, Microsoft decided to yank the plug anyway. No amount of player enthusiasm or executive joyrides could save Blackbird from the cold calculus of corporate consolidation. In an era where anything not guaranteed to pull Fortnite numbers is a risk, even a promising MMO shooter wasn’t safe.
The fallout didn’t stop there. The layoffs drew sharp criticism from the Communications Workers of America (CWA), the union representing some of Microsoft’s workforce. CWA president Claude Cummings Jr. slammed the decision, pointing out the gall of shedding thousands of jobs “at a time when the company is prospering.” He also reminded everyone that union organizing isn’t just about contracts—it’s a lifeline in an industry where even critically loved projects can vanish overnight.
It’s a tough pill to swallow. For MMO fans burned out on the usual suspects and shooter fans tired of the same formula, Blackbird could’ve been the breath of fresh air the genre desperately needed. Instead, it joins the sad, ever-growing list of games we’ll never get to play—right next to Scalebound, Titan, and all the other digital ghosts of good ideas past.
If you’re still chasing that survival fix, though, all hope isn’t lost. You can check out our Dune: Awakening review or catch up on The Midnight Walkers playtest—two titles that, so far, haven’t been fed into the corporate woodchipper. Yet.
