Earthworm Jim [SNES/MD - Beta]

Although it seems to start out as something completely different, this is a promotional video for Earthworm Jim, mostly focusing on the Mega Drive version. As well as some insight into the design process of the game, it shows a lot of footage from an earlier version of the game. Unfortunately, the way the video has been edited together means that picking apart all the differences between the early version shown and the final game is very difficult, but some parts are clearer than others.

Some of the highlights include:

• 1:13 – Completely scrapped level, with a suitless Jim wandering around on spikey platforms.
• 3:40 – Concept art, including a scrapped Psycrow encounter
• 5:05 – 5:30 – Shows a slightly different HUD (different Atom icon), different opening segment from New Junk City, and different looking segment from  What the Heck level
• 6:09 – 6:30 – Glitchy segment of Who Turned Out the Lights (you can see a giant 10 for some reason) and another completely scrapped level- first shown with Jim alone, then with him fighting Psycrow

Video:

From some beta screenshots that were published in Nintendo Power, we can notice various differences. On the new junk city images the background art design looks different and there’s also a moose head in everyone of them, but those are normally only used to swing from. The wheel monster has a completely different design in the final game. On the screenshots for What The Heck the design looks different and the backgrounds are different in at least one of the screenshots. On the screenshot of For Petes Sake everything about that level is different in the final game: the asteroids, the background, and the ground. Jim’s models also seems to be different maybe even better looking than in the final game. Also, in the last screenshot we can notice a weird looking enemy to the left of Jim which isn’t in the final game.

Also, thanks to Rocketworm.com we can see many concept arts from the development of the game, showing an early design for Intestinal Distress (the falling columns of fat aren’t in the final game, and the idea for the villi was later used in Earthworm Jim 2), early concept art for Buttville and New Junk City (with some gameplay ideas that would’ve probaly been impossible to pull of on a 16 bit console), a concept of a level based off of Bob the Goldfishes world which didn’t make it into the final game and various character designs.

Thanks to Earthwormjim and Lemm for the contribution!

Images:

 

1. Socks the Cat Rocks the Hill [SNES/MD/G - Cancelled]
2. Earthworm Jim 2 [MD/G - Beta]
3. Hardcore [MD/G & Mega CD - Cancelled]
4. The Simpsons: Virtual Bart [SNES/MD/G - Beta]
5. Earthworm Jim 3D [N64/PC - Beta]