Xbox boss Phil Spencer has revealed that he would like to revive a dormant first-party franchise that hasn’t been seen since the original Xbox. As Microsoft has continued to expand the number of video game studios that it owns in recent years, it hasn’t forgotten about many of its oldest properties. Long-running franchises such as Halo, Gears of War, and Fable have all continued in some capacity and likely will for the foreseeable future. Now, Spencer has expressed interest in bringing back a series that a number of Xbox fans may have forgotten about.
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During a Q&A session that coincided with Tokyo Game Show, Spencer was asked about which Xbox series he would like to see make a comeback. In response, Spencer called out MechAssault, which is an original Xbox title that first launched back in 2002. MechAssault was later followed by a sequel in 2004 titled MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf. A third installment in the mech-action series was at one point thought to be in the works, but its development seemingly fell apart. As a result, MechAssault hasn’t been seen or heard from in roughly 20 years, which is something that Spencer would seemingly like to change.
“I’ve always wanted us to go back and revisit the MechAssault, MechWarrior space. I think there’s a lot we could do,” Spencer said in response to the inquiry. “There’s so much about that whole franchise that in some way was ahead of its time, and it would be nice to get to go back and revisit. We don’t have a plan today, so it’s not a leak of anything, speaking of leaks, but that would be a nice one.”
As we’ve seen this year, a return from MechAssault could prove to be quite popular. Within the past month, developer FromSoftware brought back its dormant mech franchise Armored Core with Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon. Although that game didn’t set the world on fire in terms of sales, it was very well-received by both fans and critics alike. As such, if Xbox were to release its own mech game in the form of a new MechAssault entry, it could prove to be a hit with audiences.
Which classic Xbox franchises would you like to see make a return in the future? And did you happen to play MechAssault for yourself on the original Xbox back in the day? Let me know either down in the comments or reach out to me on social media at @MooreMan12.
