Blackbird: a leak shows in video the cancelled Microsoft MMO

A leaked footage allows to see for the first time the ambitious project of ZeniMax Online that never came to be released.

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For months, there has been talk of the cancellation of Project Blackbird, one of the most ambitious projects underway within the Xbox ecosystem. Now, a video leak has once again put the spotlight on this unreleased MMO, offering new clues about what Microsoft was preparing before deciding to cancel it.

The material has started circulating in recent hours, and although it doesn’t show combat or playable systems, it does reveal part of the world, tone, and scale that the project was going to have. A glimpse that inevitably invites us to wonder what could have been.

What the leaked Blackbird video shows

The video, whose authenticity has been backed by Tom Henderson, doesn’t go into playable details, but it does confirm many of the rumors that had been circulating for some time. Blackbird was being developed by ZeniMax Online Studios, the team responsible for The Elder Scrolls Online, and it was taking a clearly different approach from their previous work.

The images show a futuristic city inhabited by different races, with a strong science fiction atmosphere. The approach placed the game halfway between Destiny and Blade Runner, combining an advanced technological universe with a strong visual identity.

However, the footage makes it clear that the project was still in an early stage of development. There is no sign of HUD, mechanics, or confrontations, which fits with the previous information that pointed to Microsoft canceling the MMO before it entered advanced production. Nevertheless, it’s not ruled out that more fragments may appear in the future, showing other parts of the work that never got completed.

👀🔥 LEAK ⚡️

New footage of “Project Blackbird”, the Zenimax Online MMO canceled by Xbox a few months ago.

I was really looking forward to it 🥺. pic.twitter.com/4Nz1G22l2F

— eXtas1s 🎮 News & Rumors (@eXtas1stv) January 18, 2026