Inafune Apologizes for the Cancellation of Mega Man Legends 3

TMMN Staff

July 20, 2011

Many have been hit hard by the announcement of Mega Man Legends 3‘s cancellation, which one can easily attest by looking at how many comments we received on our post delivering the news. It is a truly considerable outpouring, perhaps a site record and is even comparable to how many the announcement itself received. Add to this the response on many other sites who have picked up the story, and it is clear that many have been affected by the news.
And among the affected is Legends series creator Keiji Inafune. And I know that some of you hate it whenever we post something about Inafune after he left Capcom, but tough– this is relevant.

The former Capcom executive posted to his blog today an apology to staff and fans alike for what has transpired. While he did not address the game by name, his intent was clear as he wrote “The decision for the cancellation was out of my sphere, but as someone who took part in the development, I’d like to convey something to the staff: I’m sorry that I couldn’t be of assistance.”

According to Andriasang, who summarized the Japanese post, his assistance may not have been needed (beyond simply keeping the project from being scrapped, anyway. –Ed.), as he went on to say that the staff had such “tremendous motivation” that his help was unnecessary. This makes him all the more saddened by the cancellation, though he encouraged the staff to “turn their feelings of sadness around and work towards making an even better game.”

Of course, for some, the sentiment may be that if that game is not Mega Man Legends 3, then it may not matter.

Addressing the fans who had hoped and waited so long for this game to come to fruition, he simply said “I’m truly sorry I couldn’t take part until the end.” He also included himself among the fans, continuing to keep track of the game’s progression even following his departure from the company creating it.

“I didn’t buy a 3DS for this project,” he notes, “but at the very least I’d like to have played the demo.”

So would we, Keiji. So would we.