Rare has been teasing the possibility of a return for Killer Instinct 3 – and is now suggesting a new instalment in the cherished fighting series could utilize the Xbox 360’s forthcoming Natal technology.

A third Killer Instinct has been rumoured since the last game was released in 1996, with Rare – a Microsoft owned studio - frequently alluding to the title. Studio head Mark Betteridge has dropped the most explicit hint that a new Killer Instinct game could be on the way in an interview with magazine Games TM.

"It’s about timing, and it’s about the opportunity creatively and gameplay-wise that it would offer," said Betteridge in an interview picked up by Video Games Daily, "Street Fighter IV looked great and they’ve done a great job, and I’m a big fan of those products, but with KI we want to do something different rather than go back into that arena."

As to what shape a new take on the series would take, Betteridge implied it would work with Natal, the motion-sensing technology due at the end of next year. "I think it’s about doing something different than with a conventional controller," he said.

Could motion controls work on a fighting title, and is this what you want to see Rare working on next? Let us know in the comments below.