5. Mega Man Universe
Mega Man Universe was being developed by Capcom as a game to put on both the Xbox Live Arcade and the Playstation Network. Mega Man Universe aimed to give players the freedom and tools they needed in order to create and share their own classic Mega Man levels. Not only that, but the player would also be given the ability to customize their own characters. Not only that, but based off of the trailers you would have also been able to play as other loved capcom characters, such as Ryu or King Arthur. The main draw to the game would have most likely have been the level creator. As we’ve seen with the recent hit Super Mario Maker, players go absolutely crazy when given the ability to create their own courses. Seeing all of the creative and wonderful levels to come out of Super Mario Maker maker makes me wish that we had been able to see that with Mega Man.
-Jim
4. LMNO
For the most part, Steven Spielberg’s most memorable claims to fame in the video gaming industry are the time he signed off on E.T. for the Atari 2600, his work on the first Medal of Honor game, and his contributions to Boom Blox for the Nintendo Wii. However, when Spielberg teamed with EA for a multi-game deal, he was close to making a game the likes of which wouldn’t be seen for years to come. The project, codenamed LMNO, was a first-person adventure game which had a man named Lincoln and an alien-like woman named Eve fleeing from government agents. In terms of gameplay, LMNO had a mix of first person parkour and Bioshock Infinite-esque AI interaction, where the character’s actions would influence Eve’s actions and how the character treated the player. Unfortunately, the higher-ups at EA weren’t exactly fans of the team’s plans to make LMNO a short, but replayable experience, among other things. A majority of the original team was laid off with the remainder put to work on a new version of the game that seemed like more of a traditional adventure title in the vein of Uncharted instead of a grand, cinematic experience. LMNO was eventually cancelled in 2010, with Spielberg calling a wrap on his game development career in the process.
-Donovan
3. Cry On
Cry On seemed like it was going to be another surefire hit for Hironobu Sakaguchi (the man behind Square Enix’s Final Fantasy series) when it was announced back in 2005. The game would have taken place in a steampunk world populated by both humans and miniature creatures known as “Bogles,” which were once powerful giants that lived alongside humanity before the events of the game. These “Soulless” Bogles can be returned to their giant forms via a mysterious ability that a few humans possess, leading some humans to use them for war and destruction. In response to this crisis, the king of the land grants his daughter Sally a Bogle of her own that can speak human languages as well as the skill to turn that Bogle into a giant. Sally and the Bogle would then traverse across a variety of landscapes, mixing action and rpg elements into a unique experience. With character designs from Drakengard 2 artist Kimihiko Fujisaka and music from Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu, Sakaguchi aimed to make a game would make players weep in sadness and joy (hence the name Cry On). However, the game dropped off the face of the earth after 2006 and was canned in 2008 with a little over half of the game’s story finished. In late 2014, six years after Cry On’s cancellation, Sakaguchi quietly released the concept trailer for the game on YouTube. Why? We don’t know, and Sakaguchi doesn’t seem to be in any rush to enlighten anyone. Nonetheless, it’s an interesting look into what might have been a very emotional experience and a unique game to boot.
-Donovan
2. Legacy of Kain Dead Sun
Legacy of Kain is a decently popular game series that definitely has a loyal following. For a while now fans have been asking for a new addition to the series, be it a HD remaster, or an entirely new game. Well, it seems that there were plans to fulfill these wishes. Legacy of Kain Dead Sun was a planned to be a reboot of the beloved series for the new generation of consoles (PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and of course PC). After the game was cancelled, a 32 minute video of gameplay leaked to the internet. In this gameplay, not only do you see combat, but you also see Kain switch between what seem to be two different realities to get around obstacles in his path. From what can be seen in the gameplay footage it looks as if a large part of the game’s fundamentals and execution had already been made. Hopefully the game will either one day be revived in some way. Until then we’ll think about what could have been an incredible game.
-Jim