Peter Molyneux, creator of Lionhead studios and the brain behind games such as Black and White and Fable, recently left Lionhead and Microsoft to start his own studio. Now that he has left Microsoft he’s been talking with the press about his experience there, and the reasons why he left. In a recent interview with develop he talks a bit about Kinect and Project Milo…and it seems that the truth about this cancelled project is finally out.
Vapourware can end up being the stuff of legend, like Rockstar's Agent, Star Wars 1313, or StarCraft: Ghost. Without ever seeing the light of day, these games never risked the possibility of being played and forgotten, and instead live on forever as the subjects of lengthy YouTube essays.
Still, Molyneux's most notable lost game (or tech demo, depending on who you asked at the time) was arguably Project Milo.
I can see the potential of the kinect hardware... its rather impressive tech, but it was just not meant to be for gaming. If anything, MS had a huge missed opportunity to have used it for the AR/VR projects.
You can use the Kinect as an SLS camera for paranormal investigations. So it wasn’t a complete failure.
Remember Star Wars Kinect announcement? Biggest laughable acting seen
"Unfortunately, as we were developing Milo, so the Kinect device was being developed. And they realised that the device that Alex Kipman first showed off would cost $5,000 for consumers to buy.
"So they cost-reduced that device down to such a point, where the field-of-view...I think it was a minuscule field-of-view. In other words, it could only just see what's straight in front of you."
Hmm, exactly what tech was in it, that was cut, affected the development? It was only ever interpreting visual and audio inputs right? The xbox was processing those inputs.
Nor do I see how the field of view thing is relevant to the discussion.
Exactly! Tf kinda BS statement was that? i don't really see how fov is relevant at all, since when do you move all around a room while talking/interacting to someone?
This is entirely untrue. There was never a 5000 dollar Kinect prototype that could somehow use a wider field of view to scan and import generated in-game items and advance AI by over a decade. Anybody that fell for this was a stupid moron child, myself included. Anybody that falls for this lie now is a stupid moron child who doesn't realize that these people *only* know how to lie.
Masters of Albion is already promising, but can we trust Peter Molyneux to not let us down again?
I came here to say that I don't want to hear any grand standing or over promises, and I was not left disappointed when I read: "Molyneux has “kept very quiet” about the project as he wanted to “let the game speak for itself”.
Perfect.
Project Milo could not have been released even if it existed. Why would a grown man want to simulate talking to young kids?
No he hasn't done anything to earn it if he actually delivers a fun competent game that's different
Come on, you can hate him for overpromising, but he made some fun games.
Fable I and II were awesome, as was theme park or Dungeon Keeper.
Unfortunately its the haters who will always set the agenda on any such discussion. Peter is a visionary who delivered some exceptional games and invented genres. I consider myself blessed to have worked at Bullfrog and seen such creativity up close. The fact he over promissed on several projects later in his career is hardly an issue limited to just him, and certainly does not undo the huge legacy he has.
I was impressed by the showing at the event, and Im pleased to see he's learnt to shutup and just deliver a game. Maybe one two people can let go of the hate if he delivers on this project, but I doubt it - people love to hate.
Amen. I respect Peter as a dreamer of interesting and grand ideas. Those who remember the golden years of Bullfrog knows how interesting their games were (and still remain) and the glorious feel of manipulating all the little simulation mechanics. If you understand many of his promises were "wouldn't it be cool if" hypotheticals that were strived for but ultimately not achieved (ie the realities of game dev) it makes far more sense than him being deliberately misleading.
No. Too many other developers who HAVEN’T scammed people and lied to our face for two decades. Don’t have time to listen to this dude anymore. If it’s good, good for those people that like that type of game. I still won’t ever trust him.
One of the dumbest questions I've ever heard. Guy hasn't told the truth in over 20 years
I’m curious who the dislikes are on our comments. Either people old enough to have some deeeeeeep love for Black and White and Populous, or young enough to not know what a massive huckster Molyneux is. He’s the M.Night Shyamalan of game directors. Did a couple good things early on and somehow has managed to ride that for decades.
Project currently codenamed MOAT.
"It’s between him and Phil. I’d vote Phil"
If Phil were the man that made my life miserable, I would vote for him as well.
Regarding the topic, it could be both Peter and Phil working together.
M.O.A.T takes place in Albion, so it´s possible that Pete is working on new partnership with Xbox, which imo, is nothing but great news!
What exactly has Phil mislead about? I can’t wait to hear the verbal diarrhea you come with.
If anyone knows his name you have to be extremely skeptical that what he delivers will be anything like what he says it would be and that’s best case scenario.
I remember Black & White (PC) but other than that I can only think of Fable, B&W was a pretty cool game tho at the time.
Populous was another one designed by Peter, released before B&W, godlike game as well, pretty good too.
"His name is still used as a selling point for new games? Seriously?"
The guy is a gaming legend for gamers who actually knows and played his games, like Dungeon Keeper, Populous, Black & White and Fable for example.
I'm certain that most who actually know who he is would contest your use of legend. He's the living, human embodiment of false advertising.
@Becuzisaid
There´s an abyss between false advertisement and bad games.
Most gamers will get excited for games from great gaming creators rather than focus on their exaggerated promises.
Kojima described his Xbox exclusive game as "very unusual like no one has ever experienced before, leveraging the cloud." He said all publishers he presented the project, called him mad and rejected his game but Microsoft, because it´s too crazy.
Is Kojima exaggerating? Obviously. It´s gonna be a bad game? Hardly.
Imagine a game where Peter Molyneux presents an extraordinary set of ideas that players will enjoy for years to come. Now imagine that this particular game will come out because it will never exist.
So basically Milo is complete and sitting on some shelf, buried in a data base, while its creator shames the company that made it?
*waits for pedophile jokes* lol
***"It’s just that… what was so hard for some people to imagine is what Milo would look like on the shelves, sitting alongside these murderous shooter games."***
That is a piss poor excuse.
I can't imagine how Just Dance looks on the shelves next to those murderous shooter games. /s
Milo was a great concept and shows the great potential kinect has when it's all said and done. I really hope future kinect games will implement some of the great elements that Milo was able to produce.
I wonder what Microsoft is doing with the Mega Meshes tech from this game that they showed at GDC last year?
I don't think this would've made a very good game. Great tech demo for Kinect though.
i think the real reason was that it was garbage, not that the "world wasn't ready for it."
nice try, molyneux.