"Please just wait a little longer," Capcom producer Tetsuya Kitabayashi asked fans in May when he revealed the upcoming Mega Man Legends 3: Prototype Version was delayed. Today, Capcom revealed that "a little longer" means indefinitely, as both Mega Man Legends 3 and its downloadable Prototype prequel have been canceled.

"We must regrettably announce the discontinuation of this project," a post on the Capcom-Unity blog announced. "We can only express our deepest apologies to all of you who have lent us your unending support."

According to the announcement post, Capcom felt that "the Mega Man Legends 3 Project" did not meet the "required criteria" from different sectors in the company which decide whether a game will go into full production. Since the primary game has been canceled, Capcom is also scrapping plans for the downloadable prequel MML3: Prototype Version and the MML3 Developer Room, though the North American Dev Room forums will remain open.

In the 'Frequently Asked Questions' section of the announcement, Capcom is quick to note that it still holds the Mega Man franchise dear, despite canceling two projects that piqued the interest of core gamers in the franchise in less than a year. Mega Man Universe, a game that was meant to celebrate the franchise's longstanding history, was canceled in March.

Capcom is also adamant that the decision to cancel both projects has "nothing" to do with the departure of Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune, who left the company in October 2010, after 23 years of service.