Microsoft Paint is officially being killed off, with Microsoft deprecating the program with the release of Windows 10 Fall Creators Update. In layman's terms this means Paint will no longer be updated and has been flagged for removal at some point in the future. Still, there's always Paint 3D.

Windows has been around since 1985, when Microsoft released Windows 1.0 unto the world. And residing on Windows 1.0 was a little program called Microsoft Paint. It has been helping people draw terrible digital art ever since, but the end is now nigh. Or so it would seem...

Microsoft Paint Is Marked for Death

As first spotted by The Guardian, Microsoft Paint has been added to the list of "features that are removed or deprecated in Windows 10 Fall Creators Update". Paint is listed as deprecated, which means it is "not in active development and might be removed in future releases".

MS Paint hasn't exactly evolved much in recent years anyway, but it's now stuck as it is for eternity. Microsoft is choosing instead to focus on further developing Paint 3D, which became an integral part of Windows 10 with the launch of the Creators Update earlier this year.

Paint 3D is the spiritual successor to the original Paint, but is a separate app altogether. Regardless, Microsoft clearly feels the presence of Paint 3D means Paint is no longer necessary. Which it probably isn't, especially as Paint.NET is better in every conceivable way.

While everyone is rightly focusing on the deprecation of Microsoft Paint, several other notable Windows programs are being killed off completely in the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update. Namely Outlook Express, Reader App, and Reader List. The former is no longer functional, while the latter two are being integrated into Microsoft Edge.

The Beginning of the End for Paint

We suspect Paint will remain a part of Windows 10 for some time to come. Mainly because Microsoft would face a massive backlash from Paint fans if it removed it completely. However, this is the beginning of the end of a program most of us have used at least once, so we advise you to make the most of Paint while you still can. Even if that just means creating terrible art.

[Updated on July 25: Microsoft clarified the future of Paint in a blog post revealing, "MS Paint is here to stay, it will just have a new home soon, in the Windows Store where it will be available for free." Hoorah!]

Do you have Windows 10 installed on your PC? Do you love it, hate it, or not have strong feelings one way or another? What do you think of Microsoft ditching Paint? Should Microsoft have put Paint out to pasture a long time ago? The comments are open below...