Beta + Cancelled Xbox Video Games - Page 52 of 72

House of the Dead III in cell Shading?!? It seems impossible, but let’s take a step back in time … It was 2003 and House of the Dead III, the famous Sega shooter, raged in the arcades, like previous episodes of the series.

Sega decided to port it to a home console, and since it was based on the Sega Chihiro hardware, they decided on the Xbox. So, SEGA announced the development of a port for Xbox was under way and showed some screens to the public. The early screens had a special feature, using the technique of Cell Shading which made the game look like a color cartoon, with characters drawn with a black marker.

However, the idea was soon abandoned. The causes of abandonment are still unknown, but it is thought that the idea of a graphic “cartoon” in a game as violent as HOTD III would not satisfy the fans, who would definitely prefer “normal” graphics.

Thanks to UK Boogie for the english translation!

[spoiler /Clicca qui per la versione in Italiano/ /Nascondi la versione in Italiano/]House of the Dead III in cell Shading?!? Sembra impossibile, ma facciamo un salto indietro nel tempo… Era il 2003 e il gioco House of The Dead III, il famoso titolo sparatutto SEGA, imperversava nelle sale giochi; come per i precedenti episodi della serie, si era deciso di realizzare un porting per una console casalinga, e dato che il Sega Chihiro, la scheda su cui girava HOTD III, era basata sull’ Xbox, si decise per quest’ultima. Così, SEGA annunciò al pubblico che lo sviluppo di un porting per Xbox di HOTD III era stato iniziato e mostrò al pubblico alcuni screen. Quest’ultimi, avevano una particolarità, utilizzavano la tecnica del Cell Shading, un particolare sistema che faceva assomigliare il gioco a un cartone animato, grazie a colori un po’ più carichi e al contorno dei personaggi, che era tracciato con un pennarello nero, proprio come un disegno di un cartone.

Tuttavia, l’idea fu presto abbandonata. Le cause dell’abbandono sono ancora sconosciute, ma si pensa che l’idea di una grafica “cartoonesca” in un gioco violento come HOTD III non abbia soddisfatto i fan, che preferivano senz’altro una grafica “normale”.[/spoiler]

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Microsoft, Others, PC / MAC, Xbox

Shining Lore [XBOX/PC – Cancelled]

U64 Staff & Contributors

16-04-2008

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Shining Lore is to the very majority of people a cancelled MMORPG originally to be released early 2003, before it fell into development limbo. However, what most people are unaware of is that Shining Lore Online, as it was to be called, was originally a dating RPG called, simply, Shining Lore. This was, obviously, a -very- different game from Shining Lore Online, which shared some elements, but in many ways it was very different. (A dark plot instead of a lighthearted one, for example.) (Supposed to be released in 1999 or 2000) Many of the characters you were to meet in Shining Lore Online were based on designs of the girls you could date in Shining Lore, although obviously, some of them had seen slight redesigns, or in some cases even sex changes […]

The original game sound track was composed by Noriyuki Iwadare of Lunar and Grandia fame, so it’s really quite good. You can download it from here!

For more infos: Shining Lore Project Analisys

Thanks to Saga Darvulia for all these informations!

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Microsoft, Xbox

Oddworld: The Brutal Ballad of Fangus Klot [XBOX – Cancelled]

monokoma

16-04-2008

2 Comments

The Brutal Ballad of Fangus Klot is a cancelled action adventure game that was meant to be the last chapter in the Oddworld series. An April 2005 issue of Game Informer revealed a character named Fangus, a buff-looking character who serves as a type of shepherd on Oddworld, watching over a flock of particularly demonic-looking sheep. While OWI did not confirm the game (many suspected it as an April Fool’s joke), the article briefly outlined the plot: Fangus is a shepherd who dutifully wards off predators, until one day, invaders arrive. Fangus is then forced to rise to the occasion, assuming the role of savior of all Oddworldian nations.

Meanwhile, rabies slowly begins to turn him mad, and he must make haste in thwarting the invaders’ plans before his mind is completely lost. A Mature rating (by the ESRB) was expected due to dark tones and themes throughout the game, and Majesco was expected to publish the game for the Xbox. – [info from Wikipedia]

As we can read at the Oddworld Library:

The July edition of Game Informer is out, containing an interview with Lorne Lanning talking about the cancelled game The Brutal Ballad of Fangus Klot. The article includes several images of concept art by Silvio Aebischer and Raymond Swanland, only some of which have been available on TOGG.

You can find more info about the project at the Oddworld Library!

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Microsoft, PC / MAC, Xbox

The Y-Project [PC,XBOX – Cancelled]

IGOR

15-04-2008

1 Comment

The Y-Project (announced in summer 2000) is a cancelled FPS that was in development for the original Xbox by Westka Interactive (later known as Joy Labs), conceived as something like a german version of Deus Ex. It would mix shooting action with role-playing elements and many different devices, from guided missiles to magnet boots for walking on ceilings. The game used the Unreal 2 engine, so the graphics looked pretty good at the time:

“Players assume the role of a hero who must keep a genetically altered race of insects from destroying the human population. The game is set in and around a huge city infested with dozens of different kinds of insect enemies. Players can join a military faction and blast their way through the game using 16 different types of upgradeable weapons, or they can join a scientific faction and reason their way through the game by solving puzzles. Players can also freely switch factions at any point during the game.”

Unfortunately VIVA Media Germany (owners of Westka Interactive) refused to give more money to complete the game: in spring 2003 the team had to be closed and Y-Project was officially cancelled. Former Westka Interactive developers then opened another company called “Joy Labs” and started a new game titled “Das Reich 2005” (announced in early 2004). It was set in an alternative history in which the Nazis not only won World War II, but also seized power over the entire world. The only hope of all mankind was a small group of those who clandestinely resisted the Nazis (among them was the game’s protagonist). Like in The Y-Project, the graphic in Das Reich 2005 was quite impressive for its time.

Unfortunately no publisher was found for Das Reich 2005: Joy Labs could not finance development and their new project was also abandoned.

Thanks to Josef for the contribution! Details from «Игромания» magazine, 02 (113) 2007

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Microsoft, Playstation 2 (PS2), Sony, Xbox

Johnny Whatever [PS2/XBOX – Cancelled]

yota

15-04-2008

No Comments

“Johnny Whatever is a computer game by Warthog Texas. It started off in development for formats such as the PlayStation 2 and the original Xbox, but after the developers were purchased by Tiger Telematics to produce titles for the Gizmondo handheld console, it became Gizmondo exclusive. As Tiger Telematics went bankrupt in February 2006, the status of the title is currently unknown.

The following is an excerpt from a GamesAsylum.com news article, dated 20 July 2004: The Queen has been imprisoned in a vat of mustard, and the only person who can save the day is guitar hero Johnny Whatever. That’s the premise of Johnny Whatever, one of three titles recently announced by Warthog. You attack your enemies, Robo-Bobbies, using your guitar, Nancy. As far as we can gather, the facia buttons fire off chords, and licensed songs form combos, with artists including The Troggs, The White Stripes and The Ramones.” – [Info from Wikipedia]

[Images contribute by Matt Gander from www.gamesasylum.com]

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