Originally beginning as a Nintendo IP for its SNES and then Nintendo 64 systems, Killer Instinct transfered rights to Microsoft once the corporation purchased developer Rare. Killer Instinct would eventually be revived as a free to play launch title for the Xbox One, and would go on to have 3+ seasons of updates over the course of multiple years and quickly becoming a fan favorite title. Unfortunately, Microsoft has been rather quiet on the future of its popular fighting game series.
In fact, earlier this year, fans led by content creator Maximilian "Maximilian Dood" Christiansen, who recently started another revival attempt for Marvel vs Capcom 2, attempted to bring attention back to the fighting game. In addition to the #BringBackKI hashtag that began trending across social media, he partnered with Twitch Rivals to hold a special Killer Instinct tournament with some of the biggest names to help raise awareness. According to the latest rumors, all that attention may have ultimately paid off.
On Episode 79 of the XboxEra Podcast, Nick "Shpeshal Nick" Baker casually mentioned that a new Killer Instinct game could finally in fact be in development. Inside of the Rumor Mill portion of the podcast, Nick divulged that he has been told from a source that a new Killer Instinct is currently in active development. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to identify the studio currently working on the title, though, if true, it would appear that Microsoft has managed to find the right studio to helm it.
Fans have already begun disecting which studio could be behind the latest Killer Instinct title, with many agreeing that it isn't likely Iron Galaxy. While the studio is very familiar with the series thanks to working on multiple seasons of the most recent game as well as previously expressing interest on working on the franchise again, Iron Galaxy appears to be busy on other projects such as Uncharted at the moment, likely taking it out of the running. NetherRealm was another popular pick, though most agree that it has plenty of other games on its plate including a rumored new Mortal Kombat, Injustice, and potentially something related to Marvel.
While this is still considered just a rumor for now, it should excite the community who was left hanging a bit this past June. While participating in the Dropped Frames podcast, Xbox head Phil Spencer was asked about the community effort to bring back Killer Instinct. While Spencer admitted that he thought the response was fantastic and that Microsoft wasn't done with the franchise, he confirmed that Microsoft had nothing to share at the moment as they were prioritizing finding the right opportunity and team to handle a project of that size.