Canceled Part 2: A Maximum Letdown Thanksgiving Special

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and we certainly have a lot to be thankful for, such as our friends, family, jobs, health, and fortune. We as gamers especially have cause to be thankful. With all the games being canceled throughout the years, we’ve had several classic games that have made to store shelves. On the flip side, we should also be thankful for all the crappy titles that were not released. This is a follow up to this past summer’s article about canceled games. As you read this list, be thankful for all those triple A titles you enjoyed that were released.

1. Steven Seagal – The Final Option (Super Nintendo)
What it was: Shortly before the release of Seagal’s Under Siege, game company TecMagic announced that they signed the action film star to a video game deal. Shortly after, the company began work on this beat-em-up/action hybrid in which up to two players take control of Steven Seagal and some woman in a quest to rescue the woman’s son from terrorists. The game was developed by RSP.
What Happened: No one knows. The game was slated for a 94 release, then pushed back to a 95 released, and then canceled quietly. The company went belly-up shortly after, while RSP went on to become Running with Scissors, the creators of Postal. Deadly Honor, an N64 game also featuring Seagal, was also canceled. No reason was given for the cancellation. A prototype rom leaked to the internet featured some god awful gameplay, but it’s not as if that’s ever stopped a company before. Mostly creative differences or lack of funds led to the cancellation.
My Thoughts: Or maybe someone finally realized that they were making a game featuring STEVEN SEAGAL.

2. 100 Bullets (Xbox, PS2)
What it Was: A video game based on the gritty DC/Vertigo comic, in which ordinary people are offered a gun, 100 bullets, and carte blanche to exact revenge on anyone who has done them wrong. Players would take control of Cole Burns and Snow Falls. Early gameplay trailers featured the characters taking enemies to use as human shields.
What Happened: Acclaim went bankrupt. Thus this, and several other games were canceled, including a mafia game entitled Diary of a Made Man and a PS2 and Xbox beat em up based on the comic The Red Star (and this was after a demo was released, although the PS2 version was released by a different publisher). D3 entertainment picked up the rights, but as of 2007, the game’s status is unknown.
My Thoughts: This was actually shaping up to be a good title, even if it was from Acclaim.

3. 3DS Assassin’s Creed (Nintendo 3DS)
What it was: A 3DS installment of UBIsoft’s Assassin’s Creed series, duh!
What Happened: It was canceled, as many of its concepts made their way into the recently released Assassin’s Creed Revalations
My Thoughts: This is a serious blow for the recently released system, as it’s badly in need of games that aren’t remakes or ports. Although it is far from a death kneel for the system, and there most certainly will be an Assassin’s Creed game for the system at some point, but a cancellation this early in the system’s lifespan isn’t doing Nintendo any favors. On a side note, a Saint’s Row spin-off that was planned for the system entitled Saint’s Row drive by was also canceled.

4. Mega Man Legends 3 (Nintendo 3DS)
What it Was: The third installment in Capcom’s exploration-heavy Mega Man spin-off series. This game would be preceded by Mega Man Legends 3: Prototype version, a downloadable preview title (similar to Dead Rising Case 0) with 10 missions and a new playable character.
What Happened: It was canceled this past summer. No reason was given, although the departure of producer Keji Inafune might have had something to do with it (see the cancellation of Mega Man Universe in the last volume of this list). By the way, Prototype was cancelled as well.
My Thoughts: Not only is this a crippling loss for the DS, but it’s also a serious blow for Mega Man fans.

5. Tattoo Assassins (Arcade)
What it was: Yet one of many games that tried to capitalize on Mortal Kombat’s success. As such, the game featured digitized actors, and over 2000 fatalities. Some of these fatalities involved nudity and animals (this was before MK3’s Animalaties by the way). Each of the game’s characters had magical Tattoos that came alive during their special moves.
What Happened: After some negative feedback from testers, and a increasingly hellacious production schedule, Data East pulled the plug. Company G-Mode bought the rights to Tattoo Assassins along with most of Data East’s other properties in 2003, but I doubt they are going to finish it.
My Thoughts: And thus, the world is spared yet another Mortal Kombat ripoff. After Survival Arts, I’ve pretty much had my fill.

6. Primal Rage 2 (Arcade)
What it Was: A sequel to Atari’s fighting game that starred dinosaurs. After the events of the first game, a new being called the Necrosan emerges, imprisoning the dinosaurs. The dinosaurs then call upon human avatars who do battle alongside the dinos.
What Happened: Atari felt the game wouldn’t move units. This, despite the popularity of the first game. After the cancellation, Atari tried to keep the Primal Rage brand alive. Necrosan and new character Slash Fang were released as part of a short-lved action figure line, and the game’s story was made into a novel.
My Thoughts: See above. Although, I kinda liked the original Primal Rage.

7. Leisure Suit Larry 4 (PC)
What it Was: The 4th installment in the Leisure Suit Larry series. According to LSL5’s story, An enemy of protagonist Larry Scaffer stole the floppy disks for LSL 4, causing Larry to become an amnesiac.
What Happened: Okay, this is kinda complicated. Leisure Suit Larry 5 was the follow up to Leisure Suit Larry 3. Producer Al Lowe planned for LSL 4 to be a multiplayer title on Sierra’s online service. However, hardware difficulties caused him to cancel the game althoughter. Although what made him skip straight to 5, one can only guess. Because of the missing floppy plot of LSL 5, fans jokingly gave LSL 4 the subtitle of “The Missing Floppies”.
My Thoughts: This is nowhere near as complicated as the Final Fantasy situation.

8. Half-Life(Dreamcast)
What it Was: A Dreamcast port of one of the most influential PC games of all time. The game would feature improved graphics, as well as a new standalone adventure, Blue Shift. Blue Shift was a scenario that would feature Barney the security guard.
What Happened: Publisher Sierra cancelled the game. According to them, the cancellation was  ”due to changing market conditions”. Actually, they were among many publishers who canceled their products due to the Dreamcast being at the end of it’s life cycle for fear of not turning a profit.
My Thoughts: Now they really won’t turn a profit. Such a high profile release would have benefited the system in it’s final days. Instead it ends up being yet another nail in the coffin of the Sega’s system.

9. B.C (Xbox)
What it Was: Fable creator Peter Molyneux’s second big Xbox project, or at least it would have been. Players take control of a pre-historic tribe as they evolve to become the dominant species of the land. The game featured a huge open world complete with dinosaurs, an eco-system, and a food chain. Players can craft weapons and tools from materials in the environment. Members of the tribe can each become different classes, each with their own abilities.
What Happened: No reason was given for it’s 2004 cancellation. However, as anyone who has played Fable or The Movies knows, Molyneux has a bad habit of making properties that he is later unable to keep.
My Thoughts: This was a pretty ambitious project, but sadly, we all know Lionhead. Even if the game had been released, I doubt that it would have lived up to the lofty expectations Molyneux set for his project.

10. Peter Jackson’s Halo Chronicles (Xbox 360)
What it Was: At one time, Peter Jackson was attached to the movie rights for the Halo franchise. To further solidify his work with the property, Jackson proposed a series of downloadable chapters that would represent a new and original chapter in the Halo universe. The game was said to push the boundaries of storytelling in video games.
What Happened: Financial difficulties put the Halo film on the back burner, and the deal between Jackson, Bungie, and Microsoft Game Studios dissolved. Naturally, this led to the end of the project as well.
My Thoughts: It would have been interesting to see what Jackson was cooking up. At the time of the game’s release however, Microsoft and Bungie were working on Halo Wars, ODST, and the then-unannounced Reach, so Jackson’s project wasn’t that great of a loss.